Investigation of One-Year Requests by the Judicial Authorities of Tehran for Contagious and Non-Contagious Injuries in Death

Aim(s): According to articles 493 and 539 of the Islamic Penal Code, it is important the time interval between behavior of the perpetrator and its consequence, as well as death due to contagion of injury or unintentional injuries. The aim of this study was to investigate the one-year requests by the judicial authorities of Tehran for contagious and non-contagious injuries in death. Instruments & Methods: In this descriptive study, a total of 77 files of deceased persons were examined in the autopsy room of forensic diagnostic and laboratory center of Tehran province in 2018, and required information was extracted. Findings: The judicial authority requesting injuries was most often the special investigator for the murder and in most cases, the interval between injury and death was less than a week. The amount of contagious injuries was higher than non-contagious injuries. 16 deceased (20.8%) died at the scene. In addition, 14 (18.2%) cases of contagion were reported as having a relative effect. Conclusion: The deceased who died on the scene do not fall under the category of contagion. It is also incorrect to declare the contagion of the damage in the form of a relative impact on the authors' beliefs; therefore, injuries are merely divided into contagious and non-contagious. In any case, it will be up to the forensic doctor to determine whether the death is due to contagion.