NCJ Number
85529
Journal
American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology Volume: 3 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1982) Pages: 221-230
Date Published
1982
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Physicians, like any other human beings, are susceptible to criminal motivation and over the past 200 years have perpetrated deliberate acts of murder on wives, relatives, patients, and others. The methods used have usually been associated with poisons and drugs, circumstances that cause problems in crime investigation.
Abstract
The frequency of physician-involved murders seems to have increased in the past 2 decades with several sensational cases being the topics of media coverage and further review in books and visual media. The investigation of these cases may be very difficult, especially when a drug may have been given to a victim which could cause severe problems from very small dosages. Detecting the death as a murder may be the first problem faced, with the demonstration of the fatal agent in the body as the next obstacle. The most difficult problem is finding a suspect in possession of the medication or paraphernalia for its injection. The murderer's stealth and cunning may further complicate the picture for the investigator, as may the physician's reputation in the community, which is often above reproach so that the public has to be convinced of the actual involvement of the suspect. A 12-item bibliography is given; illustrations are provided. A chronological list of physician crimes and criminals between 1829 and 1981 is appended.