Criminal Mischief: The Art and Science of Crime Fiction

Bad guys, and girls, seem to always need some way to overpower or control another character. There are many ways to that.

Motives for Murder:

Financial – – insurance, inheritance, business takeovers, avoidance of alimony

Property disputes

Revenge

Political

Cults & Religions

Murder for hire

Empathy and sympathy

Crimes of passion

Domestic

Protect self image or secrets

To protect others

Blackmail

To cover another crime

Social and hate crimes

Sex, jealousy, obsession

Mental illness – – delusions and hallucinations

Drugs and alcohol

MANNERS OF DEATH: For what purpose and by whose hand

NATURAL: Natural deaths are due to the workings of Mother Nature in that the death results from a natural disease process. Heart attacks, cancers, pneumonias, and strokes are common natural causes of death. This is by far the largest category of death that the ME sees.

ACCIDENTAL: Accidental deaths result from an unplanned and unforeseeable sequence of events. Falls, automobile accidents, and in-home electrocutions are examples of accidental deaths.

SUICIDAL: Suicides are deaths that come by the person’s own hand. Intentional self-inflicted gunshots, drug overdoses, or self-hangings are suicidal deaths.

HOMICIDAL: Homicides are deaths that occur by the hand of another. Note that a homicide is not necessarily a murder. Homicide is a determination of the ME; murder is a legal charge that is determined by the courts. Though each would be ruled a homicide by the ME, the legal jeopardy is much different for a court verdict of negligent homicide as opposed to first- or second-degree murder.

UNDETERMINED OR UNCLASSIFIED: This extra category is used in situations where the coroner can’t accurately determine the appropriate category.

DETERMINATION OF THE TIME OF DEATH

Determining TOD is critical

Physiologic TOD, Estimated TOD, Legal TOD

Always a best guess

Who is telling the story?