Drug Induced Homicide Defense Toolkit
District Attorneys Association (NDAA) encourages developing partnerships with coroners because they "may be able to perform a quick verbal assessment of causation based on the evidence at the scene."115 i.
Autopsy as a tool
While the National Association of Medical Examiners recommends that all suspected overdoses receive an autopsy, local laws, budgets, and coroner politics governing jurisdiction influence which cases receive autopsies.116 An autopsy includes an external and internal examination of the body by a forensic pathologist (either a medical examiner or a physician employed by a coroner). Intoxication deaths are “largely functional deaths” and there are few conclusive anatomic findings at autopsy to confirm the diagnosis.117 In a suspected overdose death, the forensic pathologist will look for signs of illicit drug use, such as needle marks or drug evidence on the body or clothing.118 Internally, the pathologist may find pulmonary
115
NDAA, The Opioid Epidemic: A State and Local Prosecutor Response at 9.
116
Nat’l Ass’n of Med. Examiners, Forensic Autopsy Performance Standards 1 (Oct. 16, 2006).
117
James R. Gill, From Death to Death Certificate: What do the Dead say?, 13 J. Med. Toxicol. 111, 113 (2017), https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5330954/. 118
Gregory G. Davis et al., National Association of Medical Examiners Position Paper: Recommendations for the Investigation, Diagnosis, and Certification of Deaths Related to Opioid and Other Drugs, 41 Am J Forensic Med Pathol 152, 153 (2020), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32404634/.
Disclaimer: All content is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice
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