Rigor Mortis

Rigor Mortis is a way of estimating time of death. There is a natural process that occurs in the body which is the natural contracting and relaxation of the body’s muscles. This is caused by the changes in the body’s chemical balances. Rigor mortis sets in the smaller muscles first. Rigor mortis attacks the eyes and mouth and jaw, at which it becomes more pronounced. The smaller muscles are the muscles of the face and neck. Rigor mortis will then work its way into the body’s larger muscles. Rigor mortis takes approximately two hours after the death has occurred and it can last up to forty eight hours. Even though rigor mortis is the most common way of estimating time of death of an individual, it is not the most accurate way. It is not the most accurate way of estimating the time of death because it depends on the climate or place of death. If a person dies in their home and the home is temperature control, it could preserve the body longer. Also if a person’s body is submerged in water, the temperature of the body will drop to a much slower pace if the water is cold or icy. One way of determining time of death would be the body’s temperature. The ambient temperature, depending on how low it is. It can take a few minutes to a few hours to be reached. This would be an indicator on how long the body is in situ. You can take a rectal temperature and a temperature reading from the liver. This a more realistic core body temperature. All in all rigor mortis is not the most accurate way of determining time of death because of all these factors. The most accurate time of death is to find out when the body stopped digesting the last meal. This would mean that the body’s organs stopped working.