UF Animal Forensic Conference 2024: Live Animal Forensic Examination with Maria Serrano

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Our next guest is Dr.

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Maria Serrano from Miami

Dade County Animal Services.

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Thank you for being here

and welcome to The Junction.

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Maria Serrano: Thank you for having me.

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It's amazing to be here.

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DrG: What is your background and how

does it involve the field of forensic?

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Maria Serrano: Um, so I am a veterinarian.

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I have been a veterinarian for close

to 20 years, which is a long time.

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Um, but I recently were not

recently, uh, 15 years ago, I

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became a shelter veterinarian.

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Um, and, um, so it kind of like just

fell into my lap, um, because I work

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at a high intake municipal shelter.

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We're considered animal control.

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And so, um, we kind of respond to,

uh, complaints of cruelty and neglect.

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And, um, things like that.

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And so, um, as these cases started

coming around, I started trying to

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just get a lot more training and

just understand more about forensics.

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And so, um, I started doing

forensics in, um, probably: 2014

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And so we've been doing them since then.

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I think we're getting better as we

learn a little bit more and get a

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little bit more expert in the field.

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And it's, it's really amazing.

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It's a new field, so it's,

it's great to, you know,

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DrG: I enjoy seeing how, how quickly

it seems to be developing and

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growing and how it's nearing like

the human forensic field, right?

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Like a lot of the advancements.

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Maria Serrano: Absolutely, and

it's just amazing to see it.

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And we have a program that we, um,

participate or training police officers.

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And so a few years ago, the, the, or

the common response from them was like,

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Oh, well, we're It's just a dog, um,

or I don't know how to handle cases

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like this and, and after giving them

a little bit of training, um, and just

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letting them be kind of relaxed with

being, this is a crime and you respond

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to it as a crime, as any other crime,

a human crime or any other crime.

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And so after that, we've actually

increased our caseload because they

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are more comfortable identifying animal

cruelty and responding to animal cruelty.

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DrG: So animals are a different

type of evidence, right,

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but they are still evidence.

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How is an animal going to be different

from just regular evidence of a crime?

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Maria Serrano: So an animal is a living

evidence that changes by the minute.

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And so it's important to see it that way

and just address it as soon as possible.

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So address it with priority.

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Um, we want to make sure

that we, um, document.

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everything about it as soon as we receive

it so that we can begin treatment as

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soon as possible and obviously alleviate

Pain and suffering related to why the

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animal is in in our care actually.

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DrG: In different states and different

even jurisdictions, there's different

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rules as far as who can do these

examinations and when they should be done.

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So in your opinion who should be

performing the examinations on

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the animal on the animal evidence?

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And when should these

examinations be performed?

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Maria Serrano: So I think responding

to these cases is a team approach and

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so investigators have a huge role in

helping us collect evidence and helping

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us get to the bottom of the story.

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But veterinarians play a huge

role in just putting their

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expertise and their knowledge and

and what they see in these cases.

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So the veterinarian should be doing the

exams, but we need a lot of support from

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our support staff, which is in this case

investigators, animal welfare officers.

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We have a forensic assistant and

she's amazing and she really,

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really helps me just log all the

evidence and just make sure that

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everything that we need to present

this case in court is put together.

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DrG: I feel that it's so important to

be present there at the beginning, or

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what we would call a field exam, because

sometimes when you get information

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after the fact, or you're looking at

an animal many days later, there's

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going to be some, some changes, right?

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So, what would be the difference as far

as, you know, if you have the opportunity

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to do a field exam, versus if you're

just doing an exam after the fact?

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Maria Serrano: That would be

the best case scenario to be

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able to respond to the field.

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Um, we always recommended, um, when I talk

about forensics with my students, I always

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say, if you can absolutely be there.

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Um, it's definitely better to have

firsthand experience to be able

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to collect the evidence yourself

or see the evidence yourself.

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Um, but it's not always something

that can be done and not all teams

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have veterinarians deploy with them.

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And so I think that it is important

to have, um, those investigators

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understand that they are going to be

your eyes on that scene and on that

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field, and then to teach them how

to preserve that evidence as much as

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possible so that when the animal is

transported wherever the veterinarian

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is, we can still have that evidence.

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So things like, for example, putting

paper bags in their, in their paws

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to be able to just maintain that

evidence, um, um, things like that.

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And of course triaging those animals

in a way that the animals that need

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immediate care, um, receive immediate

care, um, sometimes a little bit

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of it in the field if you have, um,

veterinary technicians or, or even if,

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if your state allows that, because each

state differences a little bit in who

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can do what to animals, um, so that's

something to definitely Keep in mind.

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DrG: A lot of people think that you

have to be a forensic veterinarian

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to be able to do a forensic exam on

an animal, and that's not quite true

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because a veterinarian practitioner

can do a forensic examination

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basically, I mean, it's just using

veterinary medicine in legal cases.

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But there's going to be a little bit of

differences as far as the way that things,

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the information and the records are kept.

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So what are going to be the differences

between a forensic report versus

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what a general practitioner would

do with a pet that they're seeing?

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Okay.

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Maria Serrano: So I always tell my

students, like, you are an expert,

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you are a veterinarian, you went to

veterinary school, you were taught

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exactly the same thing, everybody was

taught exactly the same thing about

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medicine, so anybody can, that has

that expertise, can testify in court.

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I think forensic veterinarians have, um,

just more experience seeing these cases

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and also have a little bit more experience

in when it comes to testifying in court.

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Um, but anyone that is a clinician

is able to make, uh, those exams.

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The difference is how we

document all of those findings.

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Um, so in a regular general practice, we

would say something like, you know, this

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organ system was within normal limits.

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In a forensic exam, we're going to

just go through every possible thing

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and that could be positive or negative

about the findings and just record them.

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So we're going to make, uh,

just a more in depth, um, exam.

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So we're going to say something like,

you know, I did not hear a murmur.

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Um, the rhythm of the heart was normal.

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The, lung sounds were, um,

normal with no, you know, in

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the four quadrants of the chest.

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So, so you're telling the court, I

listened to all of the quadrants of

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the chest and this is what I found.

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We're going to talk about all of our

findings and just put them all in in

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paper so that you can explain that better.

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We're also going to take photos, which is

something that we don't take in general

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practice, so we're going to take photos

of the animal in all of its views so that

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we identify the animal better, and then

photos of the wounds and descriptions.

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So I always tell my students, you're

going to want to describe, um, the, the

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wounds with like specific terms, like an

abrasion, uh, you know, and then how long

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the abrasion is, uh, we're going to give

it, um, points, uh, anatomical points.

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So it's, uh, five inches, uh, from

the spine or, you know, things

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like that so that we can like

just localize things a lot better.

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Um, and, and then, um, having them in

photo, it makes it a lot easier to just

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preserve the evidence for a long time.

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But I think, um, anybody that is

a good clinician and that is able

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to document, um, findings should

be able to be an expert in court.

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DrG: So kind of along those lines,

are you going to approach every case

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the same or is it going to depend on

the nature of the suspected crime?

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Maria Serrano: So, it will

absolutely depend on the nature of

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the crime and what history we got.

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It also depends on what kind of

resources you have available, because

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it's different if you have, you know,

a forensic budget for, like in our

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case, Miami Dade Animal Services has

a forensic budget, so we're able to

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process cases a little bit different.

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There's other vets that will, you

know, Um, not have, uh, you know,

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a huge budget for those things.

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So you're going to have to rely

more on the clinical findings

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that the veterinarian has.

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So, um, if you have an individual

case, like a dog that was neglected,

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um, you're going to have that

animal or that case going to be

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approached in a lot more detail.

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Um, you're going to follow that case.

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You're going to, um, Um, take,

you know, more diagnostics,

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you're going to take x rays.

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An animal that was suspected of being

abused, you know, could have certain, uh,

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fractures, for example, that indicate that

the animal was, um, hit multiple times

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at different times throughout its life.

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Um, and then if we have, uh, you know, a

case, a hoarding case of, you know, 250

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animals, um, you're going to have to have

a, set baseline of what you're going to

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do so that you're, you're not starting

with like super in depth and the first

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one and then nothing on the last one.

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Right.

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So you're going to say, okay, we're

going to take one photo, um, of the

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actual animal, and then we're going

to take any pertinent photos of

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injuries, but we're not going to go

like all the angles of all the animals.

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Um, or you're going to say, we're

going to do, um, Um, a quick, you

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know, PCV, total solids on everybody.

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We're not going to do full

blood work, things like that.

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Because, um, you want it to be consistent

throughout the whole case, so that

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when you present it in court, there's

not any, um, inconsistencies that

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will allow, um, holes in your case.

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DrG: Sometimes people think of animals,

for instance, emaciated animals,

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that it's always starvation, right?

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It's like the gut reaction.

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Uh, and that's not always the cause,

so there are sometimes reasons

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for these things to happen, but

then there are also reasons that

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perhaps are still animal cruelty

because the owner did not seek care.

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So, what are the ways that we're

going to be able to demonstrate if,

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uh, if an animal that's emaciated

emaciated or extremely thin is

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animal cruelty and neglect or not?

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Maria Serrano: So, um, not all animals

that are emaciated are starved.

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Absolutely.

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And so in our exam, we're going

to be looking for, um, signs of

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debilitating diseases that are

causing this animal to look like this.

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Um, so it's super easy to jump to

conclusions and we actually are, our

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intake, um, Um, you know, it happens

often on intake that they're like, Oh

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my gosh, this dog was starved, right?

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For sure.

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And so, yeah, initially you see

this dog that is in terrible

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condition and that is absolutely one

possibility and it, we see it often.

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Um, but we also see often animals

that have cancer and animals that have

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just other conditions, um, that don't

allow, um, proper, uh, utilization

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of the food in the gut, for example.

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And so those animals will

also look pretty starved.

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Um, so the biggest sign of an animal

starved is that it will recover

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within weeks and will gain weight

and will look so much better.

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So that is the most

compelling thing in court.

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When you have an animal that you took

pictures today and it looks, you know,

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skin and bones, and then in two weeks,

um, it's gained 15 pounds and it has

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just a new semblance to it.

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And so that is the main, um,

evidence that you have in court.

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Um, but we do x rays to make sure

that we don't see any masses.

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For example, we, if an animal has chronic

diarrhea, we're going to, um, just try

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to, um, start with a fecal and then we're

going to work our way up to try to find

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why it is that this animal is having

these clinical signs that are causing,

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um, the, the condition that we see.

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DrG: Once you have accumulated all

your information, so you have your

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exam, you have follow ups, you have

diagnostics and all, and all of

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that, how do you prepare your report?

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Maria Serrano: Um, so I use a, a template

that I have, um, and so initially

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it is, um, we comp, we compile it.

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We gather all of the history information.

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So we normally won't have a medical

history on the animal, but we'll

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have a history of the event.

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And so, um, it'll be part

of the investigators notes.

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It'll be, um, the investigators

photos of the scene, uh, any

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video that they took, and then the

police reports, of what happened.

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And so I'll put that in my, my small,

um, like summary of what got to me.

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Um, and then we'll do all of the physical,

findings, physical exam findings.

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Um, and then we'll put our pictures

that, that will, um, just kind of

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correlate what those findings were.

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Um, so, you know, dehydration,

um, the body condition of the dog,

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any parasites, any infestations,

um, any results of blood work.

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Um, we will sometimes, um, refer

some cases to a forensic radiologist.

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So any report from the

radiologist, um, things like that.

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So we'll put it all together.

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And then at the end, I will have

a, a summary or conclusions.

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And that's where I kind of

like talk about those findings.

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What does that mean for the animal?

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What does that mean for

the welfare of the animal?

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If I, I think that, how long I

think the animal has been, um,

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undergoing these, these conditions.

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Um, and, and I try to use words like,

that are in, I, I work in Florida,

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so, that are in the code of Florida.

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So, um, Words like, um, this animal has

been subjected to unnecessary pain and

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suffering because that is exactly the

words that are on the Florida statutes.

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Um, and so that is really

helpful when you're in court,

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um, presenting, uh, these cases.

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DrG: One of the things that you mentioned

earlier is about how all veterinarians

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are prepared like to be a witness, like

they can be a witness because they have

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the education, but there is a reluctance

of veterinarians to become involved in

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cruelty cases and legal proceedings.

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So what would you say to a

veterinarian to help encourage them?

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to step forward and enact as an expert

witness in an animal cruelty case.

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Maria Serrano: So I would say, first of

all, you are an expert and you should

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be proud to have all this knowledge that

you acquired and expensive knowledge too,

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that you acquired throughout the years.

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So first of all, you are an expert.

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Um, and second, you, you are the best that

these animals have to advocate for them.

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Um, you have all of the information and

you have the power to be able to speak.

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Speak up for them.

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Um, one thing that, you know, you,

you need to look at your statutes.

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Each state has different, um, you know,

some, some states, uh, the veterinarian

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is immune from any prosecution.

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Some states, um, the, the veterinarian

is actually mandatory reporter.

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So you have to report any animal cruelty.

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So, so, uh, just get that information

and knowledge so that you are more

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comfortable to, with what it is, um,

that your state requires or allows.

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Um, And then just do it because

we are, you know, this is where

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we came into this field for.

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We came into this field to, to protect

them and to just be their voice.

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And so, um, I feel it feels, even though

it can feel a little bit like nerve

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wracking initially and defense attorneys,

you know, it's nothing personal.

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It's their job.

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They are there to.

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to get their person out, you

know, but it is your job to, to be

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objective and to just speak of the

evidence that you saw in the case.

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I normally, when I, when I'm going

to go to testify, I'll go in the

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bathroom, um, because I get nervous

and I I'll like be sweating and I'll

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be like, I did not commit this crime.

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I did not commit this crime.

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So just to just like, kind of like

reassure myself, I am a witness.

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I am just here to speak of what I know.

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You're not on the stand.

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Right.

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I'm not on the stand.

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I'm here to just speak my knowledge,

speak what I saw, and speak the

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truth, and that's the truth.

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And so, they can refute it as many

times, but the truth is the truth,

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and it's what actually will make it a

point for these animals to get justice.

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DrG: Excellent.

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Well, thank you so much for being here,

and thank you for everything that you do.

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Thank you.

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Thank you for this interview.

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Maria Serrano: Thank you so

much for interviewing me.

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It's been great.