Case Studies
Rollover Vehicle Accident
A 40 year old male driver of an SUV was in a rollover vehicle accident and was found dead on the side of the highway.
We were asked to determine from which portal he exited the vehicle and whether his fatal injuries occurred inside or
outside of the vehicle. We analyzed all the fractures, bruises, and lacerations he sustained by thorough review of
the medical records.
We reviewed the police report to determine his position of final rest with respect to the accident sequence. We examined the vehicle interior and exterior for evidence of witness marks from the occupant. Velocity and distance calculations in combination with the road rash recorded in his medical records determined that the occupant was ejected early in the roll sequence and slid to his position of final rest, just past the vehicle's point of final rest. Occupant loading marks were found on the lower edge of the driver's door. We then performed a surrogate study in which we examined how a surrogate occupant (the same height and weight as the injured individual) lined up with a surrogate vehicle (the same year and model as the subject vehicle). The occupant loading marks inside and outside the driver's door lined up with trauma documented in the medical records. The individual's fatal injury was a crushing of the thorax with chest and back bruising.
These facts indicated that the individual exited the vehicle through the driver's side door and received his fatal injuries as a partially ejected occupant by interaction with the vehicle and the ground during a ground contact near the driver's door.