FOUR LEGAL MEDICINE
service of the government or in private practice. In
Legal Medicine is a branch of Medicine, which
deals with the application of medical knowledge
to the purposes of law and in the administration of
justice.
- It is the application of basic clinical and
paramedical sciences to elucidate legal
matters. Legal Medicine, Forensic
Medicine and Medical Jurisprudence are
all synonymous (identical) with each other
and in common practice, are used
interchangeably in ordinary parlance.
- Strictly speaking, Legal Medicine is
primarily the application of medicine to
legal cases while Forensic Medicine
concerns with the application of medical
knowledge to elucidate (explain) legal
problems. It encompasses a variety of
fields in forensic science such as,
pathology, anthropology, odontology,
toxicology, entomology, et al.
- Its application is limited not only to legal
issues but also covers historical,
environmental, and social political issues.
This may be further elucidated by stating
that Legal Medicine refers to substantive
law defining the relationship between and
among hospitals, doctors, patients,
whereas Forensic Medicine deals with
activities or acts punishable under our
local laws.
Medical Jurisprudence denotes the
knowledge of law in relation to the practice of
medicine. It concerns with the study of the
rights, duties, and obligations of a medical
practitioner with reference to those arising
from a doctor-patient relationship.
- Any branch science so long as it is
involved with the collection, preservation,
and presentation of evidence to be
presented in a legal forum is covered by
the practice of Forensic Medicine. So that
now we have experts in different areas of
forensic science such as serology,
chemistry, toxicology. etc.
Medico legal practitioners can either be in the
government, they are connected with law
enforcement agencies such as the police
departments or with legitimate investigative
bodies such as those with the PNP Crime
Laboratory or with the Medico legal division of
the National Bureau of Investigation. They may
also be physicians employed by the government
either as Municipal or Provincial Health Officers
as they are mandated by law to perform autopsies
on medico legal cases.
- As private practitioners, they are
consultants in private hospitals to whom
are referred Medico legal patients. They
become part of the Hospital Team that
monitors the patient’s condition while
confined at the Hospital. When the
patient’s case goes to court, the medico
legal practitioner is called to testify on the
fact of the injury, the treatment the patient
received in the Hospital, his expert opinion
as to the cause of the patiently.
Who are authorized by law to perform
autopsies? Sec. 95, P.D. 856, Code of
Sanitation:
1. Health Officers
2. Medical Officers of Law enforcement
agencies
3. Members of the Medical Staff of Accredited
hospitals
4. Code of Medical Ethics of the Medical
Profession of the Philippines.
What are these so-called MEDICOLEGAL
CASES?
The following are cases considered medico
legal in nature:
1. Injuries or deaths involving persons who
have no means of being identified.
2. Persons pronounced as “dead on arrival”
(DOA).
- To be classified as being dead on arrival at
the emergency room of a hospital or a
DOA is liberally construed to mean also
dying within a short period of time from
arrival which may be within one hour or as
long as 24 hours depending on the
circumstances of the case.
3. They also involve deaths under the
following circumstances:
a. Death occurring within 24 hours of
admission when the clinical cause of
death is unknown or undeterminable.
b. Unexpected sudden death especially
when the deceased is in apparent good
health
c. Death due to natural disease but
associated with physical evidence
suspicious of foul play
d. Death as a result of violence, accident,
suicide or poisoning
e. Death due to improper of negligent act
of another person
4. They also involve victims of physical
injuries caused by the following:
a. physical violence such as gunshot
wound, stab wound, mauling, etc
b. vehicular accident.
c. asphyxia
d. electrocution, chemical or thermal
insult.
e. accident, attempted Homicide, or
suicide.
f. poisoning.
5. Cases of child abuse, domestic violence,
rape, alcoholism, and drug addiction.
6. Cases involving the mental competency of
the patient.
7. Iatrogenic causes brought about by
negligent acts or omissions of the hospital
staff resulting in violation of rights of
patients or leading to his physical and
mental incapacitation, physical injury and
death.
• Under Philippine laws, medico legal
deaths must undergo mandatory autopsy.
No consent is required for the autopsy
although the next of kin is informed of this
requirement and his signed consent
obtained as a matter of courtesy. The death
certificate cannot be completed without the
autopsy.
• If the hospital has no authority to conduct
autopsy, it refers the case to a government
body which can do it—either to the PNP
or the NBI or top a Municipal or
Provincial Heath Officer. If the Hospital
has the authority to conduct autopsy but
the relatives refuse to cooperate, the death
certificate is merely filled up by putting as
the cause of death “undetermined”. In
effect, it is also as if no death certificate
has been issued because legally the body
cannot be buried without a cause of death.
Major Capabilities of a Medico-legal
Officer:
1. conducts autopsy
2. conducts examination of victims of
sexual crimes
3. conducts examination of victims of
Physical injuries
4. Conducts examination if skeletal
remains
5. Conducts blood and blood stain, seminal
fluid/stain-examination of body fluids
6. Exhumation of bodies
7. Histopathological examinations
Branches of Law where Legal Medicine
maybe applied:
A. CIVIL LAW:
1. Paternity and filiations
2. Determination of or change in Civil
Personality/Status of persons
3. Adoption, Declaration of Nullity of
Marriage, Legal Separation, etc.
B. CRIMINAL LAW
1. Circumstances affecting criminal
liability
2. Crimes against persons
3. Crimes against chastity
C. REMEDIAL LAW
1. Rules on evidence
2. Proceedings for hospitalization
3. Physical/mental examination of a
person
Autopsies shall be performed in the following
cases:
1. Whenever required by special laws.
2. Upon order of a competent court, mayor
and a provincial or city fiscal.
3. Upon written request by police authorities.
4. Whenever the Solicitor General, provincial
or city fiscal deem it necessary to dissenter
and take possession of the remains for
examination to determine cause of death.
5. Whenever the nearest kin shall request in
writing the authorities concern to ascertain
the cause of death.
FORENSIC Science Disciplines:
▪ Hair Analysis
▪ DNA Analysis
▪ Fiber Analysis
▪ Forensic Anthropology
▪ Glass fragments and paint chips
▪ Forensic Archaeology
▪ Forensic Pathology
▪ Ballistics and Tool marks
▪ Forensic Odontology
▪ Fingerprints
▪ Questioned Document
▪ Analysis Footwear
▪ Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology
▪ Tire Impressions
▪ Blood Splatter Analysis
MEDICAL EVIDENCE
- Definition : Evidence- (Sec. 1, Rule 128)
is the means sanctioned by the Rules of
Court of ascertaining in a judicial
proceeding the truth respecting a matter of
fact. If the means to prove a fact is medical
in nature, then it becomes medical
evidence.
Types of Medical Evidence:
1. Autoptic or Real Evidence - made known or
addressed to the senses of the court, not limited
to vision. Sec. 1 Rule 130, Rules of Court
- Limitations to the presentation of autoptic
or real evidence:
a. Indecency (expression) and Impropriety
(failure to observe)
b. Repulsive objects and those offensive to
the sensibilities
2. Testimonial Evidence - Physician may be
commanded to appear before the court to
give his testimony. Physician may be presented in
court as an ordinary witness or as an
expert witness:
a. Ordinary Witness:
- A physician who testifies in court on
matters he perceived from his patient the
course of physician-patient relationship is
considered as an ordinary witness. Sec. 18,
Rule 130- Exemption to the ordinary
witness rule, privilege of communication
between physician and patient- (Sec. 24 (c),
Rule 130)
- Hearsay information is as a rule not
admissible in court (Sec. 30, rule 130)
- Exemption to non-admissibility of hearsay
evidence - DYING DECLARATION (Sec
37, Rule 130)
b. Expert Witness:
- A physician on account of his training and
experience can give his opinion on a set of
medical facts. Sec. 49, Rule 130, Opinion
Rule
3. Experimental Evidence:
- Example: A doctor may come to court and
give lethal injection of poison to a rat to
demonstrate its effect on human beings.
4. Documentary Evidence:
- Most common is medico-legal certificate.
Bring-out your medico-legal certificate.
Types:
a. Medical Certificate- Medical
Examination, Physical Examination,
Necropsy (autopsy), Laboratory
Examination, Exhumation, Birth
Certificate and Death Certificate.
b. Medical Expert Opinion- Conclusions
c. Depositions
5. Physical Evidence:
- These are articles or materials that are
found in connection with the investigation
and which aid in establishing the identity
of the perpetrator or the circumstances
under which the crime was committed, or
in general assist in the prosecution of the
criminal.
Types:
a. Corpus Delicti Evidence
- Objects or substances, which may be part
of the body of the crime.
b. Associative Evidence
- Physical Evidence which links a suspect to
a crime. e.g. broken headlights of a car,
wearing apparel (cloth) of offender in the
crime scene of rape.
QUALITIES OF A GOOD EXPERT
WITNESS:
• Reputable professional background
(education, formal training,
work/experience, office, affiliations)
• Personal integrity and good judgment;
• Attitude of competence, credibility and
concern;
• Objective, neutral, independent and
sincere;
• “the truth, the whole truth and nothing
but the truth”;
• credibility hinges on not just “what”
was said but “how” it was said;
• convincing ;
• able to communicate (clear, articulate,
simple, concise; in lay man’s terms)
• a good teacher
• is not an advocate even if he/she
testifies for only one side of the case
• opinions/conclusions are reached
independently of interests of litigants
• informs the counsel of the party
engaging his services of all favorable
and unfavorable information
• must acquaint himself/herself of
courtroom procedures, decorum,
layout, availability of presentation aids
• is entitled to funds covering travel and
attendance in court, and an expert
witness fee
• must not be compensated on a
contingent fee basis
• preferably makes an oral report orally
rather than in writing
• is served with a subpoena to indicate
he is not a voluntary witness
• is put on call during the trial
• must disclose to the lawyer who
engages him anything that he thinks
might affect the effectiveness of his
testimony
• is willing to disagree with so-called
authorities if convinced that they are
wrong
• recognizes that contrary opinions will
not necessarily discredit him
• is most effective if firmly convinced
that the theory of liability espoused by
counsel is viable and he/she
corroborates this.
❖ “A good lawyer wants you to find out
the TRUTH, and he/she wants to know
ahead of time so he/she is not caught
by surprise later on.
If an expert’s opinion is contrary to
what the lawyer expects to prove his
case, all is not lost. He might want to
settle rather than go to trial.”
Scientific Methods of Identification
A. Fingerprinting
B. Dental Identification
C. Handwriting
D. Identification of skeleton
E. Determination of sex
F. Determination of age
G. Identification of blood and blood stains
H. Identification of hair and fibers
A. FINGERPRINTING - considered most
valuable method of identification;
universally used because:
➢ There are no two (2) identical
fingerprints - Chances of (2)
fingerprints being the same are
calculated to be 1:
64,000,000,000 (population of
the world) which is - 10x the
number of fingers existing in
the world
➢ Fingerprints are not
changeable: Fingerprints are
formed in the fourth month of
pregnancy. During the latter
stage of pregnancy as well as
after birth, the pattern enlarges
but no changes take place in the
number and arrangement of the
friction ridges. It can be said
that fingerprints are an
indelible signature which a
person carries from the cradle
to the grave.
Uses of Fingerprints:
- Help establish identification in cases of
dead bodies and unknown or missing
persons.
- Fingerprints recovered for scène of crimes
are associative evidence, associative
persons are weapons
- Fingerprints on file are useful for
comparative purposes and for the
knowledge of previous criminal records.
- Among illiterate, right thumb printing is
recognized as a substitute for signature on
legal documents (Philippines), left thumb
(India) and right pointing finger (Spain).
Dactylography- the art and study of recording
Fingerprint as a means of identification.
Dactyloscopy- the art of identification by
comparison of fingerprints. It is the study and
utilization of fingerprints.
Methods of Producing Impressions
(Fingerprints)
- Plain method
- Rolled method
Kinds
- Real Impressions
- Chance Impressions
a. Visible print - visible without previous
treatment. Visible immediately after
impression.
b. Plastic print- printed on paraffin, putty,
resin, cellophane, plastic, tape, butter,
soap, and etc.
c. Latent print- prints that are not visible
after impression but made visible by
the addition of some substances.
How to develop latent prints:
- Application of fine powder
- Chemical development by funning and
immersion
How to get fingerprint impressions are taken from
Dead bodies:
a. fresh dead bodies
b. Floaters- shortly recovered by bodies
of water (Floater- has been immersed
in water for longer time.)
c. Same procedure as described may be
applied to putrefied or burned bodies
according or circumstances. Poroscopy
(Locard’s method of identification)- is
applied when and only a part of the
fingerprint is available for proper
means of identification.
d. Can fingerprints be effaced? Can
fingerprints be forged?
 B. DENTAL IDENTIFICATION
Dental identification is important in the
following reasons:
1. The possibility of two (2) persons to
have the same dentition is quite
remote. Why? -32 teeth (Adult) have
five (5) surfaces. Some of the teeth
may be missing, carious, with filling
materials, and with abnormality in
shape and other peculiarities.
2. The enamel of the teeth is the hardest
substance of the human body
3. After the death, the greater the degree
of the tissue destruction, the greater is
the importance of dental characteristics
as means of identification.
4. The more recent the ante-mortem
records of the person to be identified,
the more reliable is the comparative or
exclusionary mode of identification
that can be done. P.D. 1575 requires
that practitioners of dentistry to keep
records for 10 years of their patients to
make accurate dental records available
for purposes of comparison or
exclusionary mode of identification.
Upon the lapse of ten years, they shall
turn over the dental records to the NBI.
Forensic Odontologist - dentist specializing in
dental identification. Sex- examination for the
presence of Barr bodies (sex identification) from
palatal scrapping.
HANDWRITING:
A person may be identified through:
- handwriting
- hand printing
- hand numbering
The Sec.22, Rule 132 of Court: the genuineness of
any disputed handwriting may be probed by:
1. Acknowledgement of the alleged writer
that he wrote it.
2. Statement of the witness who saw the
writing made and is able to identify it as
such.
3. By the opinion of persons who are familiar
with the handwriting of the alleged writer.
4. By the opinion of an expert who compares
the questionable writing with that of other
writings which are admitted or treated to
be genuine by the party against whom the
evidence is offered. See Sec. 50 (b), Rule
130- Opinion of Ordinary witness.
Some practical uses of handwriting
examination:
1. Financial crimes- bogus checks, credit
cards fraud and embezzlement
2. Death investigation- suicide notes, hotel
registration cards, letter of explanation.
3. Robberies- pawnshop receipts, cashing of
stolen checks
4. Kidnapping with ransom- demand notes,
threatening letter.
5. Anonymous threatening letters
6. Falsification of documents- deeds of
conveyance, receipts Bibliotic- is the
science of writing analysis, determinants
genuineness and authorship. Handwriting-
is a complex interaction of nerves,
memory, and muscular movement. It is
influenced by several factors and may be
changed or modified during the lifespan of
a person.
As a respondent, can you be compelled to
give a sample of your
signature/handwriting for the purpose of
comparing the same to a questioned
signature? Why? No, because handwriting
is not a mere physical movement of one’s
arms, movement of hands, but involves
one’s intelligence. Therefore, it is a
testimonial knowledge violative of the
right against self-incrimination.
Two (2) types of handwriting examination done by genuine, either directly or lightly by a
comparison with known standards: pencil outline.
b. By placing the paper to receive the
1. Collected (procured) standard - These
signature tracing underneath the
consist of handwriting by a person
document bearing the genuine
suspected to have written the questioned
signature and by indented outline on
document. It may be found in public or
the underneath page, or by
private records of the person or from other
interweaving the documents with
sources. Provided it is clear and sufficient,
carbon paper to produce a carbon
it is a most appropriate standard. - 15
outline on the forged paper.
handwriting specimens (used as standards)
2. Simulated forgery - an attempt to copy in
2. Requested standard - These are standards
a freehand manner the characteristics of a
made by the alleged writer of the
genuine signature either from memory of
document in question upon the request of
the signature of from a model.
the examiner or persons interested in the
3. Spurious forgery- forger’s own
examination. Inasmuch as one of the
handwriting wherein little or no attempt
characteristics of a good exemplar is that it
has been made to copy the characteristics
must be contemporaneous with the date of
of the genuine writing.
the questioned document was made, the
use of the requested standards is applicable IDENTIFICATION OF SKELETON:
only or recently written questioned
In the identification of bones, the following points
documents, like extortion or “poison”
should be determined approximately:
notes or letter of threat or ransom, etc.
1. Whether remains are of human origin or
not
Signature forgery – is the most common activity 2. Whether remains belong to a single person
of a questioned document examiner. or not.
3. Height
A signature may be found on a document which
4. Sex
appears that a person has participated in its
5. Race
execution and the person denied that he had
6. Age
signed it. Such signature may be found in checks,
7. Length of interment or length of time from
deeds of conveyance, anonymous letters, receipts,
date of death
etc.
8. Presence or absence of anti-mortem or
Classification of Signature Forgery post-mortem bone injuries.
9. Congenial deformities and acquired
1. Traced forgery - the outlining of a genuine injuries in the hard tissues causing
signature from one document onto another permanent deformities.
where the forger wishes it to appear.
Traced forgery is basically drawing and DNA Analysis (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)
consequently lacks free natural movement
(Pronounced: dee-oxy-rye-bo-new-klee-ic acid)
inherent in a person’s normal writing.
- Forensic science is not just DNA analysis.
Ways of achieving traced forgery: Not all forensic issues can be resolved by
a. The paper wherein his signature is to DNA analysis.
be copied is placed on top of the
DNA FINGERPRINTING - A more recent
document containing the signature. By
method of identification is through a person’s
means of a strong light underneath, the
DNA, referred often as DNA fingerprinting
forged signature is traced from the
because of its irrefutable way of identifying a
person, much like a fingerprint.
 - Unless two people are identical twins or DNA Parentage evidence sources:
clones, the chance that any two individuals
Paternity:
would have the same DNA fingerprint is
one in several billion. So reliable is this - Fresh blood cord,
method that if the DNA sequence from a - blood abortus
suspect doesn’t match, with the specimen, - prenatal samples
the suspect is excluded from having left - saliva vocal cord
that specimen.
- In rape cases, there would be no need for Maternity:
the rape victim to testify as to whether the - abandoned
sexual act took place with a particular - switched
suspect since the vaginal fluid or the - kidnapped infants
semen obtained from the woman’s vagina
can contain the suspect’s DNA.
DNA expert witness testimony:

What is DNA? 1. Professional qualification and expertise;

2. Reliability of the DNA testing process;
1. DNA is the chemical substance which 3. Reliability of the laboratory itself;
makes up our chromosomes and controls 4. Interpretation of the results of the DNA
all inheritable traits (i.e. eye, hair, skin test
color);
2. DNA is different for every individual
except identical twins ❖ A forensic scientist with appropriate
3. DNA is found in all cells with a nucleus education, training and experience is
(white blood cells, soft tissue cells, bone the person best qualified to interpret
cells, hair root cells, and spermatozoa) scientific evidence, form a conclusion
4. Half of the individual’s about it, and provide an opinion about
DNA/chromosomes come from the father, its significance in the context of the
the other half from the mother case.
5. DNA is a double-standard molecule
6. The DNA strands are made of four (4)
different building blocks: A connects with
T, G connects with C
7. The four building blocks and their
sequence in DNA makes up the letters of
the genetic code
8. An individual’s DNA remains the same
throughout his life
9. In specific regions on a DNA strand each
person has a unique sequence of building
blocks or genetic code
10. It is a person’s unique genetic code that
allows scientists to identify an individual
to the exclusion of all others.