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Dissection of death to be focus at upcoming conference hosted by WSU School of Medicine

If you’ve ever needed to know what blood spatters, bullet entry wounds and DNA can tell you about those who have met untimely deaths, the 26th annual Medicolegal Investigation of Death conference is coming up just in time to answer any burning questions — or questions about burning to death, for that matter.

Experts from across the country will gather Monday, April 8, through Wednesday, April 10, at the Hyatt Regency Dearborn to provide training for those involved with death investigations. Among those presenting will be:

• Werner Spitz, MD, Wayne State University professor of pathology and Macomb County medical examiner, who has served on committees investigating the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. He has consulted on a number of high-profile cases, including the “Preppy Murder Trial” in New York, the O.J. Simpson trial and the Jon Benet Ramsey death.
• Michael Baden, MD, director of forensic sciences for New York Police and former medical examiner for the city of New York, who has evaluated the deaths of John Belushi, Billy Martin, Andy Warhol and Medger Evers. He also assisted in cases including Sunny von Bulow, Christian Brando and the Son of Sam murders. Dr. Baden often serves as a television commentator in addition to hosting “Autopsy” on HBO.
• Henry Lee, PhD, chief emeritus of the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and professor of forensic science at the University of New Haven, who has investigated or assisted in more than 4,000 homicide cases during his career. He testified for the defense in the O.J. Simpson case and worked on the Jon Benet Ramsey investigation.

The conference will focus on understanding the collaborative relationship between the professions responsible for death investigations, increasing participants’ ability to judge when autopsies are necessary, providing a comprehensive overview of technical aspects and familiarizing participants with selected issues ranging from gunshot wounds to preservation of evidence.

With more than 1,000 medical students, WSU is among the nation’s largest medical schools. Together with the Wayne State University Physician Group, the school is a leader in patient care and medical research in a number of areas including cancer, genetics, women and children’s health and the neurosciences.