Overview :

The temperature of a body can be used to estimate the time of death.

Method 1

time since death in hours =

= ((rectal temperature at time of death in °F) - (rectal temperature in °F at time t)) / 1.5

Method 2

time since death in hours =

= ((rectal temperature at time of death in °C) - (rectal temperature in °C at time t)) + 3

Limitations:

• Body temperatures at the time of death that are above or below normal can give misleading results.

Green MA, Wright JC. Postmortem interval estimation from body temperature data only. Forensic Science International. 1985; 28: 35-46.

Knight B, Nokes L. Chapter 2: Temperature-based methods I. pages 3-45 (pages 34-35). IN: Henssge C, Knight B, et al. The Estimation of the Time Since Death in the Early Postmortem Period. Arnold Publishers. 1995.