A Retrospective Study of Intentional Body Dismemberment in New York City: 1996-2017

A review of New York City dismemberment cases occurring between 1996 and 2017 was conducted, which resulted in a total of 55 dismembered decedents in a 22-year period. Annual trends indicate an average of 2.5 dismembered decedents. Additional results show that 53% of cases involved transection only, 35% involved disarticulation only, and 13% involved a combination of both. When the entire body could be accounted for, the average number of body portions per case was 5.5. Frequent locations for dismemberment were the neck, shoulders, hips, and knees. Dismemberment locations showed a general trend of anatomical symmetry. Seventy-eight percent of the dismemberments involve disposal of body parts in an outside location. Eighty-four percent were concealed from view with some type of covering. The findings from New York City are compared with other studies.