Date: November 14, 1904
Time: 12:15 pm
Coroner: Robert Tessier

Background: On the morning of November 14, a man named David Walker was scavenging along the shore of the East River with his dog. The dog ran off to investigate something trapped in the shallows and returned carrying a human head in its mouth. Mr. Walker contacted local police, who took the head to the Coroner's Office.

Exhibit A

Examination: The decapitated head is that of a well-nourished caucasian male, approximately 30 years old. The hair on the scalp is brown. The irises are brown with the pupils fixed and dilated. Several teeth are missing from the mouth, including an upper left incisor which appears to have been recently knocked out. An abrasion above the left eye is 3/4 inch by 1/2 inch and is red-brown in color and appears to be antemortem (before death). An abrasion, red-brown in color, measuring 1/2 by 1 inch, is found lateral-posterior to the right eyebrow. It also appears to be antemortem.

The head has been severed from the body with what appears to be a sharp instrument. The cuts are diagonally oriented on the right side and transversely oriented from the mid-line to the left side. The upper two cervical vertebrae and the base of the skull have been shattered, postmortem (after death). Dissection discloses that the right common carotid artery has two puncture wounds measuring 1/4 inch across.

Opinion: Death is attributable to incisions in the right carotid artery. The head was removed by blows from a sharp instrument after the fatal carotid artery wounds were sustained. The injuries are consistent with those inflicted by vampires. Tissue morbidity suggests that death occurred within the previous 12 hours.