Pathology and forensic science: Dignity, respect, and the dead body

Abstract

This perspective considers the forensic examination of deceased bodies via the medico‐legal autopsy. It is argued that the decisions we make about what we do with, and to, deceased bodies and body parts is, and should be, limited by the need to treat bodies with dignity and respect. The treatment of parts of bodies has been explored in bioethics, substantially due to organ retention scandals bringing this to the public and political attention. But these cases—although important—represent extremes. This perspective therefore focuses on routine death investigations and the extent to which scientific method should be limited because of the competing interests in the deceased body and its treatment. It is argued that how we treat bodies/body parts matters because they represent once‐living people with contexts, histories, and relationships. They had, and perhaps still have, value as human persons. As humans, we share complex relationships and have different views and interpretations of what our duties are to each other. Dignity and respect aid by providing baseline standards, and are reflected as such in professional codes and regulations. However, the system is imbued with sufficient discretion that it is impossible to achieve consistency of standards or practice. This means that the treatment of deceased bodies in forensic science will differ substantially depending on both context and the practitioners involved.This article is categorized under: Forensic Medicine > Medicolegal Death Investigation Systems