Class Evidence, Not Proof of Identity: Medical Jurisprudence Perspectives on Bloodstain Serology

 Why this still matters

Before DNA profiling became the principal tool for source attribution, forensic laboratories used ABO and other inherited blood-group markers to characterise dried bloodstains. The absorption–elution technique, developed into a practical method for stains in the early 1960s, was more sensitive than the older absorption–inhibition approach and could detect surviving antigens on remnants of lysed red-cell membranes.

That history remains relevant whenever an old serology report, a cold case, a degraded exhibit, or a laboratory working without a usable DNA profile places ABO evidence before a court. The central judicial question is not merely whether absorption–elution is a recognised technique, but whether a validated version of it was correctly performed, controlled and interpreted in the particular case.

How the method works

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What is basic concept of artifact in medical jurisprudence and the Forensic Art of Spotting False Evidence?

 Introduction

In the world of forensic medicine, not everything that looks like violence is violence, and not everything that resembles injury actually is one. Courts, investigators, and even seasoned lawyers can be misled by the body's own postmortem behavior — changes that occur after death but mimic the signs of trauma or struggle. Two striking examples illustrate this phenomenon: the heat haematoma found in burn victims and the sanguineous purging fluid seen in hanging cases. Understanding these is not merely an academic exercise for pathologists; it is essential knowledge for judges, prosecutors, and defence counsel who must correctly weigh medical evidence rather than be swayed by its outward appearance.

The Heat Haematoma: Fire's Deceptive Signature

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When the Person Dies Before the Cells: Somatic and Molecular Death in Medical Jurisprudence

Why the law fixes a moment of death, while biology unfolds it as a process

The central distinction

Death is spoken of in court as a definite event: a person was alive at one moment and dead at another. Biology is less abrupt. The human organism may cease to function as an integrated whole even though some of its cells and tissues remain viable or excitable for a limited period. Forensic medicine therefore distinguishes somatic death from molecular death.

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Supreme Court: How to appreciate evidence if there is motive for committing murder of deceased?

 There is also enough evidence adduced by the Prosecution to hold that the Appellants had the clear motive to eliminate the Deceased. An illicit/incestuous relationship between Accused No. -1 i.e., Ms. Uma and Accused No. -2 i.e., Mr. Ravi had become known to the Deceased Rajalakshmi & her family, and she had become a stumbling block in the relationship, which swelled the common intention of the Appellants to murder her. The factum that the Deceased has passed away within six months of her marriage also becomes a relevant consideration to attribute culpable intent of the Appellants. {Para 25}

 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

Criminal Appeal Nos. 757 of 2015 and 67 of 2016 +

Decided On: 22.10.2024

UMA and Ors. Vs. The State rep. by the Deputy Superintendent of Police

Hon'ble Judges/Coram:

Bela M. Trivedi and S.C. Sharma, JJ.

Author: S.C. Sharma, J.

Citation: 2024 INSC 809,MANU/SC/1139/2024

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