Reconstruction of the dynamic in a fatal traffic accident with prolonged dragging of the victim

The post-mortem examination of victims of fatal road crashes and the reconstruction of the dynamic of traffic accidents are fundamental in vehicular homicides, where the degree of negligence/careless of the driver has to be established. Here we present a case in which a pedestrian was dragged along an SUV for 3.5 km, until the vehicle was parked at the house of the driver, arising the suspect of vehicular manslaughter and failure to provide assistance. On the basis of death scene investigation, analysis of video recording from a surveillance camera, post-mortem computerized tomography (PMCT) and complete post-mortem examination, including gross and microscopical findings, the accident was reconstructed as a frontal collision between the right portion of the bumper and the right side of the body of a standing pedestrian, with deformation of the bumper and production of a metal sheet hook; secondary run-over the right feet, cranio-facial trauma against the bodywork of the vehicle and hooking of the right hand of the victim to the metal sheet; prolonged dragging of the pedestrian over the road surface and severe bleeding. A multidisciplinary-multimodal methodology, including PMCT, allowed to assess the cause of death as hemorrhagic shock, suggested that the victim would have likely survived if the vehicle had stopped, and is increasingly recommendable in fatal road accidents.