Senario: You are assisting the forensic pathologist with an autopsy on a young woman. The police report comes in, and you and the forensic pathologist read it together. It indicates that poison is the suspected cause of death. You and the forensic pathologist begin the autopsy with the external examination. The list below summarizes some of the findings.

Answer the following question for each item of evidence listed below. Do this by providing brief comments or bulleted notes for each item.

Why is recording each of these external evidence observations important in the autopsy?

(a tattoo on the wrist of the word “Faith”)
(four old bruises on the left arm)
(a new scratch mark on the right hand)
(an earring in the left earlobe)
(no earring in the right earlobe)
(false fingernails with polish, except for two missing on the left hand)
(a small piece of glass embedded in the left heel, which the pathologist extracts and )(places in a jar)
(a small hole in the clothing)
(smudged makeup on the face )