North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Chief Medical Examiner

Transcription

1 North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Chief Medical Examiner 3025 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC Telephone Fax REPORT OF AUTOPSY EXAMINATION DECEDENT Document Identifier B Autopsy Type ME Autopsy Name Lennon Lee Lacy Age 17 yrs Sex M AUTHORIZATION Authorized By Hubert C. Kinlaw Received From Bladen ENVIRONMENT 08/30/ :05 Date of Exam Time of Exam Autopsy Facility Office of the Chief Medical Examiner Persons Present Rachel Murphy, Special Agent Chad Barefoot of NC SBI Ms. Raven Sapp, Ms. CERTIFICATION Cause of Death Asphyxia due to hanging The facts stated herein are correct to the best of my knowledge and belief. Digitally signed by Deborah L. Radisch MD, MPH DIAGNOSES Dried patterned abrasion around neck with upward canting and suspension point inferior to right ear Pulmonary congestion Scattered petechial hemorrhages, bilateral sclera and right lower conjunctiva of eyes Small hemorrhage of soft tissue over right hyoid bone Biventricular hypertrophy, heart, slight Coronary atherosclerosis, focally severe, left anterior descending coronary artery IDENTIFICATION Body Identified By Papers/ID Tag EXTERNAL DESCRIPTION Length 69 inches Weight 207 pounds Body Condition Intact Rigor 4+ Livor None detected Hair Black - short. Slight beard and mustache present. Eyes Brown, congested-left greater than right. Teeth Natural. The body is that of a well developed, well nourished young black man clothed in a pair of black socks, a pair of navy blue nylon athletic pants, a navy blue nylon short sleeve shirt (logo "Bladen"), and a pair of Page 1 of 6

2 blue/yellow/green Fruit of the Loom boxer shorts. The penis is circumcised. Valuables consist of two purple rubber bracelets (March of Dimes) around the right wrist, and a rainbow colored rubber bracelet encouraging fruits and vegetables around the left wrist. The hands are not bagged. The nails are examined, and are short with no foreign material. Both earlobes are pierced, but no earrings are present. The body and clothing show numerous red ants, and the body, especially the face, upper chest, arms, and scrotum show multiple abrasions consistent with ant bites. There is a diagonal well healed scar of the right lower quadrant of the abdomen. Striae are present over the bilateral groins. A small scabbed lesion is present at the base of the posterior right 4th finger. INJURIES A sealed clear plastic bag accompanies the body in the body bag and this contains two web belts, one royal blue and one black. The black belt has intermittent grommets, and the blue belt shows a double D-ring buckle. One end of each of these belts has been cut, but a second cut end of each one is not identified. The belts are photographed and replaced in the clear plastic bag, sealed with evidence tape, and submitted as evidence. Examination of the body shows no Tardieu spots. There are a few petechial hemorrhages of the inferior conjunctiva of the right lower eyelid. The left eye shows a congested sclera. Following evisceration, petechial hemorrhages are identified in the medial sclera of the right eye and of the lateral sclera of the left eye. Photographs are obtained. The tongue protrudes and its tip is discolored red-black and is dried. The neck shows a dark dried abrasion completely encircling it. The anterior abrasion is present superior to the thyroid cartilage. A buckle mark is present inferior to the right jaw as the abrasion cants upward towards inferior to the right earlobe. The width of the abrasion is 1 1/2" on the right, 7/8" anteriorly, 1 1/8" with a fabric web pattern on the left side, and 3/4" posteriorly. Several ant bites are present within the more spared skin anteriorly. Internal examination shows intact neck cartilaginous tissues. No strap muscle hemorrhages are present. There is a small area of hemorrhage of the soft tissue overlying the right hyoid bone. DISPOSITION OF CLOTHING AND PERSONAL EFFECTS The following items are released with the body None. The following items are preserved as evidence Blood card, noose, clothing (socks, pants, boxers, shirt) and bracelets received by Special Agent Chad Barefoot of the NC SBI on August 30, PROCEDURES Radiographs A full body postmortem radiograph shows no foreign materials consistent with weapons or projectiles. INTERNAL EXAMINATION Body Cavities There are no unusual fluid accumulations or adhesions in any of the body cavities. The blood is slightly hemolyzed and a small amount of staining of the intima of the arteries is present. Cardiovascular System Heart Weight 380 grams The epicardial aspect is unremarkable. The valves are normally formed with delicate leaflets. The chambers are not dilated and the walls are not hypertrophied. The wall of the right ventricle measures 7 mm in thickness and the left ventricle measures 15 mm in thickness. There are no myocardial scars or other focal lesions. There is a right dominant coronary artery system with small coronary arteries showing a very short segment of 80% stenosis of the lumen of the proximal to mid left anterior Page 2 of 6

3 descending coronary artery. No other atherosclerotic plaques are identified. The aorta and its major branches are intact and unremarkable. Respiratory System Right Lung Weight 650 grams Left Lung Weight 600 grams The hyoid bone is intact. There are no obstructing materials or lesions in the larynx. The pleural surfaces of both lungs are smooth and glistening and the parenchyma of both lungs shows diffuse moderate to severe congestion with no consolidation. The tracheobronchial tree contains a slight to moderate amount of bloody pink froth. Gastrointestinal System The appendix is present. The esophagus is unremarkable and the stomach contains 3/4 cup of tan liquid with small soft irregular pink pieces of well digested food. The small intestine is unremarkable and the colon contains a moderate to large amount of green stool. Liver Liver Weight 1650 grams The capsule is intact and the parenchyma is unremarkable. The gallbladder contains a small amount of green-yellow bile and the extrahepatic biliary tree is patent. Spleen Spleen Weight 170 grams The capsule is intact and the parenchyma is unremarkable. Pancreas Normal anatomic location and configuration. Urinary Right Kidney Weight 140 grams Left Kidney Weight 170 grams Both kidneys are similar. The cortical surfaces are smooth and the capsules strip with ease. The renal architecture is intact without focal lesions. The ureters are patent and not dilated. The renal arteries and veins are unremarkable. The bladder contains a very small amount (less than 5 cc) of slightly cloudy yellow urine. The wall and mucosa are grossly unremarkable. Reproductive Normal adult male with non-nodular prostate gland. Endocrine The thyroid gland is bilobed and non-nodular. Both adrenal glands are grossly unremarkable. Neurologic Brain Weight 1320 grams The meninges are intact and there is no blood in any meningeal compartment. The cerebral gyral pattern is fully developed. There is slight cerebral edema with no herniation. The vessels at the base of the brain are thin and delicate. Multiple coronal sections reveal no gross abnormalities. Skin No scalp lacerations or contusions are present. Immunologic System The lymph nodes are unremarkable. The thymus gland persists. Musculoskeletal System There are no skull, rib, or long bone fractures. MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION Microscopic Comment Page 3 of 6

4 The tissue sections are processed to the level of blocks. SUMMARY AND INTERPRETATION The decedent was a 17-year-old young man who was found hanging from a swing set. It was reported that he had been depressed over the recent death of his uncle. Autopsy examination showed a dried abrasion encircling the neck with upward canting and a suspension point inferior to the right lower ear and jaw. This was consistent with the cut noose submitted with the body. A few petechial hemorrhages were present in the sclera of both eyes and of the conjunctiva of the right lower eyelid. The tongue protruded and its tip was dried. One small hemorrhage was present in the soft tissues over the right side of the hyoid bone in the neck. The lungs showed diffuse moderate to severe congestion and pink froth in the tracheobronchial tree, and the brain was slightly edematous. Incidental findings at the time of autopsy included hypertrophy of both ventricles of the slightly enlarged heart and a very short severe stenosis of the proximal to mid left anterior descending coronary artery caused by atherosclerotic plaque. An ethanol (alcohol) concentration of blood obtained at the time of autopsy was negative, and no benzodiazepines, cocaine metabolite, gabapentin/pregabalin, opiates/opioids, or organic bases were detected in the same blood specimen. In my opinion, the cause of death in this case was due to asphyxia secondary to hanging. DIAGRAMS 1. Adult (front/back) 2. Neck & shoulders Page 4 of 6

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