In a recent issue of the Fresno Bee (Fresno is one of the biggest cities in California's Central Valley) there was an article about the incompetency of their medical examiners and how many autopsies had been botched.
Since we all watch TV shows where the medical examiner is the main source for deciding the cause of death and all sorts of clues as to how and when the person died often leading to the murderer, it makes me wonder if some murderers are running around free because an autopsy wasn't performed or performed incorrectly.
In the article it said that a couple of the people doing autopsies had no medical background at all and others had no training in doing autopsies. Sounds like the old days when an autopsy, if there was one, was done in by the mortician in the mortuary.
My first thought was, "Gee whiz, this would sure work in a murder mystery." My second thought, "Nope, no one would believe it." This goes back to the old adage, truth is stranger than fiction, and in this case it surely is.
Marilyn, who is counting down for the appearance of Angel Lost.
Books by Marilyn
4 comments:
Scary thoughts. We do rely on so-called experts to determine matters we haven't a clue to figure out ourselves.
Morgan Mandel
http://facebook.com/foreveryoungbook
Fresno may be one of the Central Valley's largest citis, but large doesn't necessarily make it good. Remember the TV comedy Sitcom of the same name? They created that show for a reason. I grew up in California -- I can say things like this:)
I'd like to think that most of the MEs are competent, and I agree that writing about an incompetent ME may backfire. Still, it's a possibility.
I also grew up in California and lived just south of Fresno for a number of years. An amateur ME is a frightening revelation, Marilyn, and I, too, would hesitate to write about them unless you've got some documented evidence.
http://russellsolomon.co/2011/02/15/testing/
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