[Forensic Life] The Absurd Death of a High School Student

[Asia Economy] The playground of High School A is always packed with students after classes end. That day, too, after the 3 PM class finished, more than 30 male students gathered around a basketball court in the corner of the playground. Someone shouted "Ah!" It was a student known for being good at fighting. He approached a student who had accidentally stepped on his foot and was wearing an apologetic expression, and suddenly punched him in the face. A chubby friend standing next to the student who was hit suddenly intervened. "Hey, why are you hitting him? When playing basketball, collisions can happen." Before he could finish speaking, a kick came flying. The chubby student, who fell after being kicked in the stomach, suddenly jumped up and charged at the aggressive student, knocking him down. The student who was unexpectedly counterattacked fell backward and hit his head on the ground, then immediately covered his head and got up. From then on, a one-sided assault began. By the time the surrounding kids barely managed to stop it, the chubby student's face was already covered in blood.

The next day, the student who was hit did not attend school. He was unconscious and unable to get up. He was taken to the emergency room by his parents, and imaging tests confirmed traumatic brain hemorrhages?subdural hematomas in both the frontal and temporal lobes. Emergency surgery to remove the hematoma was performed, but he died a few days later. The autopsy confirmed traumatic subdural hemorrhage. The police investigated the cause of the trauma, focusing on the fight with friends the day before his death (which was actually a one-sided assault), and charged the chubby student with injury resulting in death.

This case might seem unfair and incomprehensible from the perpetrator's perspective. Generally, the membranes surrounding the brain include the scalp (skin, composed of five layers like a pastry), the periosteum under the scalp, the skull, and beneath the skull, the dura mater, arachnoid membrane, and pia mater, which protect the brain in a complex structure. Among these, bridging veins exist between the dura mater and arachnoid membrane. If a sudden pulling or tearing force acts on these bridging veins, they can be damaged and torn. This usually occurs due to acceleration-deceleration mechanisms and is mostly observed in falls. The deceased student’s bridging veins were torn when he suddenly fell backward, and since veins have lower pressure than arteries, the bleeding spread thinly and gradually compressed the brain. Subdural hemorrhage often presents a lucid interval after injury, so the severity may not be immediately apparent. Diagnosis of subdural hemorrhage is often delayed; 50% are diagnosed within 24 hours, but 20% are found within the next 48 hours. Ultimately, if he had gone to the hospital at the moment the bridging veins were torn from hitting his head, this tragic death might have been prevented.

Bridging veins can also be torn when falling on ice, falling while intoxicated, or being pushed by others. If you hit your head, you must immediately go to the emergency room and get a doctor's diagnosis. Although the brain is protected by several layers, acceleration-deceleration can cause intracranial bleeding without skull fractures, which can be fatal. Some people survive gunshot wounds, while others may die from tripping over a stone. The saying "a frog dies from a stone carelessly thrown" applies not only to emotional conflicts between people but also to physical harm, and this is something I want to emphasize.

Yoo Seong-ho, Forensic Pathologist

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.