9781422273470

Forensic pathologists have to stay on top of many different fields of medicine and crime scene investigation.

Pathologists as Celebrities It might be hard to imagine that a medical examiner who performs postmortem exams could become a celebrity, but people are fascinated by death and the people who can explain what caused it—and, sometimes, what could prevent it. The first celebrity pathologist was a British doctor, Sir Bernard Spilsbury, who identified scar tissue from a piece of flesh found in a London cellar. His identification matched the description of Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen’s missing wife, Cora, resulting in the conviction and execution of the doctor. At the time of his apprehension, Dr. Crippen was on his way to New York on a cruise ship with his lover, Ethel Le Neve, who had disguised herself as a boy. Dr. Crippen became the first murderer to be apprehended by telegraph when he was identified on the ship by a suspicious telegraph operator, who contacted the British authorities. Dr. Crippen was detained

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Introduction: Uncovering How and Why a Person Died