A Body of Crime: Conceptualising the Dead

Workshop Leader(s): Dr Imogen Jones, Birmingham Law School

The deceased body occupies unique socio-cultural, historical, and ethico-legal spaces. This legacy means that the treatment of the body after death can be controversial; so much so that certain acts done to the deceased body trigger the involvement of the criminal law (e.g. organ retention, the prevention of burial, and necrophilia). Moreover, the dead can become part of the criminal process when they are used as criminal evidence (i.e. for forensic purposes). The aim of the workshop is to bring together an interdisciplinary group to examine the socio-cultural, ethical, and historical factors which have impacted on the formation of the relevant legal offences and processes.

The group will also consider how ethical arguments regarding the treatment of the dead body should influence the relationship between the deceased and the criminal law. Such an examination is important because hitherto this confluence of areas has received scant attention. By bringing together those who approach the deceased body from different perspectives, we aim to map the current landscape, identify pressing challenges, and evaluate whether the current criminal legal frameworks deal with the deceased body appropriately.

The workshop will feature presentations by experts from within and outside the University. These will span the fields of medical and criminal law, history, philosophy, medicine, forensic pathology, and criminal justice officials.

This is an excellent opportunity to build links with professionals and relevant organisations in Birmingham. The overarching aim is to use the day’s discussions to form the basis of an interdisciplinary large research grant. Recent high profile convictions for offences relating to delay of burial mean that it is an opportune time to (re-)consider the place and implications of the deceased body within the criminal process in more depth.

This workshop is funded by the Wellcome Trust and supported by the Institute of Advanced Studies.

To register to attend this workshop please email Sarah Jeffery.