The relationship between homicide rates and and forensic post mortem examinations in England and Wales

Forensic pathologists on the Home Office Register face a reducing number of calls to conduct forensic post mortem (PM) examinations. This is against the backdrop of a reduction in the number of homicides recorded by the police since the mid nineties. This study looks at the correlation between forensic PM examination numbers and homicide statistics in England and Wales. Initial examination of these two sets of data appear to show that they are reducing consistently with each other. However, more analysis is required to ensure this is the case. The article however cautions against the use of non-forensic pathologists to conduct PM examinations where there is a possibility of foul play.