Herman the Shocker
The Shocker brings you unfiltered views of reality and educational content from the world of crime, accidents, and forensics

Intermediate-range gunshot wound from a .357 Magnum—range of approximately 1 ft. Irregular, cruciform, or stellate entrance wounds can…

Brain tissue that has undergone pulp-like transformation (burial time, 7 weeks). In the case of a naturally mummified…

Bloating of face and effusion of blood-tinged fluid from the nostrils and mouth. A body recovered from water,…

This individual committed suicide with a chainsaw into the right side of the face. No further info. Suicides,…

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In this case, police and scene investigators were suspicious that this individual was killed by blunt force injuries…

A 49-year-old woman was found dead in her apartment after a fire in a residential building in Germany.…

West Virginia, USA. A 69-year-old male who was found underneath an industrial-sized lawn mower in a rural area.…

Complete destruction of the head from a gunshot suicide. No further info. Head injuries from shotguns and high-powered…

Germany. In early September 2011, after a 2-week holiday, a 26-year-old man failed to show up for work…

A 55-year-old man was found dead in his friend’s apartment. The victim’s body was suspended in a special…

France. A 59-year-old woman was assaulted by her son with a Japanese sword (katana) with a total length…

Occasionally, people shooting themselves in the mouth tilt their heads too far back- ward before firing. This results…

Tentative cuts inflicted with suicidal intent accompanied by deep stab/incised wounds to the soft tissue of the neck.…

Associated with putrefaction is the production of gases. These gases, primarily located in the abdomen, cause the body…

This individual committed suicide with broken glass from a picture frame. No further info. Sharp-force injuries are defined…

Here we see an extensive whitish-gray fungal colonization on a corpse's face following a burial time of 7…

Postmortem protrusion of the tongue due to putrefactive gas formation and purging of putrefactive fluid from the nostrils.…

Maggots are the larval form of flies. Flies lay their eggs in small and sometimes large bulky clusters…

Texas, USA. These photos illustrate the appearance of a crime scene indoors involving a high velocity weapon. The…

San Rafael del Yuma, Dominican Republic - 2019. Janel Aquiles Cedano de León, a 35 year old teacher…

The August 2023 issue is out With a monthly subscription the Shocker brings you unfiltered views of…

Bangkok, Thailand - 2014. A 28-year-old Russian woman, Svetlana Pokasova, was killed after she fell from her room…

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was shot down…

This individual was found in a state of advanced decay, he had committed suicide by hanging. No further…

Skeletonization is the removal of tissues from the skeleton or bones. It may be complete where all soft…

Madrid, Spain. Corpse of a 48-year-old woman, found in the bathroom in her home address, in a bathtub…

Germany. In March of 2007, a 50-year-old man was fatally injured when his single-engine low wing propeller aircraft…

Russia. This individual has multiple cut wounds and slash wounds on his face. No further info. Slash wounds…

Maggots cause most of the body's decomposition because the maggot will do the majority of the eating. Maggots…

Suicide by train. Decapitation of the head. No further info. Unfortunately, suicides by train do occur, and they…

2001 - Ventura County, California. The decomposed body of an elderly male was found floating in the ocean…

Nassau County, New York. The body of a homicide victim recovered from the waters with the hands still…

This man had a fatal accident and has suffered traumatizing injuries on his face. No further info. Soft…

An elderly woman with schizophrenia presented with a pair of scissors penetrating her left orbit and an enucleated…

Twin brothers committed suicide together with a gunshot wound to the head from self-constructed shooting devices, they were…

Spain. This individual committed suicide by suffocation with a bag and cable ties. After placing the bag over…

Body of a 42-year-old male found dead in the steam room approximately 8 hours after having gone alone…

Spain. Injuries caused by multiple projectiles (shotgun), with submental entry hole and exit with cranial rupture. No further…

Here the surgeons have performed a mock facial transplantation by harvesting total facial-scalp flaps from a donor and…

San Fransisco, US - 2008. This individual had died and his body scavenged by animals postmortem, no further…

This individual fell from a great height and died. He suffered from crushing facial injuries and crushing brain…

Clothing on a drowning victim will alter the buoyancy and the progression of decomposition. It may also be…

This male individual lost control of his glider shortly after take-off and flipped upside down. The glider then…

This woman was hit by a train and killed, no further info. In 2020, 1.331 significant railway accidents…

This individual committed suicide by an intraoral gunshot wound. In the tremendous force imparted by the expulsion of…

Maggots cause most of the body's decomposition because the maggot will do the majority of the eating. Maggots…

This woman was murdered and dismembered, and her face peeled off. No further info. Fig.1 The woman had…

Note the bulging eyes, lips and face with protrusion of the tongue on this decomposing individual, all related…

Hungary. A man received an email from his 51-year-old brother that he was planning to commit suicide. He…

Virginia, US. A 57-year-old white man with a history of depression and prior suicidal ideation was found lifeless…

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Body in stages of black putrefaction apparent in extensive mottling, the draining of purge fluid,…

Wayne Township, New Jersey. This case involved an 87-year-old male who was discovered after police went to his…

This individual committed suicide by fall from height, no further info. A crushing brain injury causes damage to…

Germany. A 22-year-old woman who had suffered from anorexia for 10 years and had collapsed several times was…

This body was exhumed 5 years after death. Decompositional changes (putrefaction, mummification, and adipocere formation) are fueled by…

This individual was found dead in water. Postmortem activity by eels were discovered on the body. Such injuries…

USA. This 18-year-old man died in a motor vehicle crash with rollover and ejection. No further info. Rollover…

This individual died after shooting himself under the chin with a hunting rifle. No further info. Head injuries…

~1990s - A 48-year-old landlord’s wife suffering from chronic depression committed suicide with a band saw by amputation…

A 25-year-old woman had moved in with her 34-year-old boyfriend 3 weeks earlier. The brother of the boyfriend…

In this intraoral shotgun wound, note the tissue tears extending from the sides of the mouth. These tears…

The phenomenon of postmortem animal interference with human bodies or their remains is a substantial part of the…

Many times it is difficult to make a physical identification of the victim’s bloated body recovered from the…

Iceland. A 28-year-old man was reported missing by his mother. He had a medical history of depression, for…

I have sadly no information about this one. Found in teaching material from the Office of the Armed…

No info about this case. The wounds produced by this mechanism are chopping, cutting, penetrating injuries produced by…

Colombia - November 2003. Six police officers died in a road explosion by guerrilla group FARC. According to…

USA. Self-inflicted injuries on a prison inmate who hanged himself after writing "Satan is coming take me home"…

Spain. Mummified body of a woman preserving her facial features, weighing 13 kilos. Mummification occurs in hot, dry…