Experiences with a compound method for estimating the time since death II.Integration of non-temperature-based methods

The period since death was estimated at the scene in 72 consecutive cases u sing the temperature-based nomogram method as the primary method and supple mented by examination of criteria such as lividity, rigor moms, mechanical and electrical excitability of skeletal muscle and chemical excitability of the iris. A case-oriented, computer-assisted selection of the non-temperat ure-based methods and integration of the results into a common result of th e compound method was made following a special logistic. The limits of the period since death as estimated by the nomogram were improved in 49 cases b y including the non-temperature-based methods and also provided results in 4 cases where the temperature method could not be used. In a further 6 case s the non-temperature-based methods confirmed the Limits estimated by the t emperature method but in 14 cases a useful result could not be obtained. In only one of the cases investigated was the upper limit of the period since death, as estimated by the criterion re-establishment of rigor (8 h post-m ortem), in contradiction with the period determined by the police investiga tions (9.4 h post-mortem).