Homicide by heart attack: Reports highlighting presence of pre-existing and subsequent, complicated coronary artery disease

ABSTRACT Some sudden cardiac deaths are known to be induced by acute emotional stress and if triggered by criminal activity are referred to as ‘homicidal heart attack’ or ‘murder by heart attack’. These pose as challenging medico-legal cases, where determination of cause and manner of death are crucial for further investigations. We report three such cases encountered in a recent 2-year assessment of medico-legal autopsy tissues sent for histopathological examination following physical assault and caused by thrombotic coronary artery disease.