Forensic Fact-Check
Want to add some realism to your character's injuries? Need to make sure your detective is finding real clues? Look no further!
As the title says, in today’s blog, we’ll be looking at interesting ways that authors have created for their characters to dispose of bodies, but with an eye for realism. Forensic scientists love debating this topic and most of them have a preferred method of disposal that they’d love to tell you about. Pigs
First of all, pigs don’t eat teeth or hair. Secondly, certain synthetic materials often used in clothes are not optimal nutrition, so you’d need to shave your body, pull the teeth out, and strip them naked. Pigs also tend to consume a little over 6lbs. of food per 100lbs. of body weight per day. Depending on your pig breed, that could take over a week for a single pig to consume someone. Acid Bathtub Breaking Bad fascinated and disgusted audiences in equal measure with the acid bath. The theory behind it that hydrofluoric acid would dissolve the body, clothes, and metal bits but not the plastic tub, is sound. Many plastic and lead containers are already fluorinated (and won’t react) or contain polyethylene (doesn’t react with fluorine). That being said, hydrofluoric acid takes quite a long time to dissolve things, and sodium hydroxide (lye) is definitely better chemically and has a much wider availability (drain cleaner). Simply Burying An oldie, but goodie! You’ve got a body and a shovel, and you’re ready to rock and roll. But there are a few things to keep in mind. For one thing, when you bury your body, you’ll need to add extra dirt on top of the hole to allow for decomposition decreasing the size of your corpse and creating a distinguishing person-shaped indent. You’ll also need to bury them deep enough that local scavengers and pet dogs won’t disturb them. If you want to be extra cautious, you should sprinkle quick lime (not the fruit) on top. It both hides the smell and disintegrates the body. Ocean Dumping The ocean seems like a pretty safe place to dump a body. You’ve gotten a boat, no one’s noticed your suspiciously large duffle bag, no one else is around, and you’re golden, right? Probably not. For one thing, corpses float due to the build-up of gases during decomposition. Let’s say you’ve attached weights, though. How did you attach them? Rope and other materials can fray or be chewed through. Even then, the currents can be challenging for a layman to predict, and the body (or parts of it) could easily still wash ashore, weights be damned. Burning Up While it’s a well-known fact that plenty of people take the phrase “ashes to ashes” seriously, most people don’t consider temperature. A professional crematorium will typically heat to 1,400–2,000 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately three hours. Even then, you’ll notice (if you’ve ever sifted through Grandma’s cremains) that small bone fragments and teeth are usually still in evidence. Perhaps not enough for matching through dental records, but still. In contrast, your backyard firepit gets to be around 800 degrees. Assuming your neighbors don’t mind the smell, you’d need to cook your victim for quite a while before you’d be in the clear.
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