Forensic medical assessment of incised neck wounds self-inflicted with aluminum foil by the victim: a case report

In contemporary forensic practice, experts are often required to determine whether observed injuries could have been self-inflicted. For investigative purposes, it is important not only to establish the possibility of self-infliction but also to correlate case circumstances with objective findings obtained during forensic medical examination. Investigations are frequently complicated by the absence of a suspected injuring object at the scene that would correspond to the observed injuries. In such situations, forensic medical examination is key: it provides objective information on the nature, localization, and morphological characteristics of injuries, as well as—critically—their potential for self-infliction. Particular attention and comprehensive analysis are required in cases where an individual inflicts severe and multiple injuries using an object that, at first glance, appears incapable of causing such damage, especially in the absence of witnesses to the suicide.

This article presents a case of fatal self-inflicted injury caused by food packaging foil intended for individuals in custody, which occurred in a courthouse. Forensic examination demonstrated that the incised wounds could have resulted from an object possessing cutting properties and a defined cutting edge. The multilayer-folded aluminum foil presented for examination had a sufficiently rigid cutting edge, which did not exclude the possibility that it could have caused the described injuries.

The reported case highlights the critical role of forensic medical examination in reliably assessing the possibility of fatal self-inflicted injuries.