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Maggot development during morgue storage and its effect on estimating the post-mortem interval.

Timothy E Huntington¹, Leon G Higley, Frederick P Baxendale

¹Department of Entomology, University of Nebraska, 202 Plant Industry Building, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA. timh@unlserve.unl.edu

Journal of Forensic Sciences

|February 24, 2007

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Morgue refrigeration does not halt maggot development. Insect activity inside body bags can lead to significant errors in estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI) and cause tissue damage.

Area of Science:

Forensic Entomology
Post-Mortem Interval Estimation
Forensic Science

Background:

Forensic entomologists estimate post-mortem intervals (PMI) using insect evidence from autopsy.
Low-temperature storage of human cadavers can affect insect development and PMI estimations.
The impact of morgue refrigeration on insect masses within body bags requires investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

To determine the effects of morgue cooler storage on maggot mass temperatures.
To assess the potential for insect development during pre-autopsy refrigeration.
To quantify the impact of refrigeration on post-mortem interval estimations.

Main Methods:

Temperatures were measured inside and outside body bags containing human and porcine cadavers during morgue storage.

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Seven replicates were used to ensure statistical validity.

Data were analyzed to compare temperatures and assess insect development potential.

Main Results:

Temperatures inside body bags remained significantly higher than the cooler environment (p<0.05).
Internal temperatures were sufficient for continued maggot feeding and development.
Potential error rates in PMI estimation ranged from 8.6% to 12.8% if insect development is ignored.

Conclusions:

Insect development can occur during pre-autopsy refrigeration in morgue coolers.
Forensic entomologists must consider maggot activity during storage when estimating PMI.
Maggot feeding during storage can lead to substantial tissue loss, impacting evidence integrity.