Death Investigation Academy

08/26/2026

Finishing up day two of the When Forces Kill series. Huge thank to Platte County Sheriff’s Office for hosting.

08/24/2026

🚨 READY TO STRENGTHEN YOUR DEATH INVESTIGATION SKILLS?

A death scene doesn't come with a checklist telling you what matters.

You have to know what to look for, what questions to ask, what needs to be documented, and when something at the scene simply doesn't add up.

Join Death Investigation Training Academy for our in-person Medicolegal Death Investigator Course in Springfield, Missouri.

📅 October 26–30, 2026
📍 Springfield, Missouri
💲 Tuition: $875

Five days of focused training designed for professionals responsible for investigating death and documenting the circumstances surrounding it.

This course is ideal for:
🔹 Coroners & Deputy Coroners
🔹 Medicolegal Death Investigators
🔹 Law Enforcement
🔹 Medical Examiner Personnel
🔹 Professionals entering the death investigation field

Whether you're building your foundation or strengthening skills you've already developed in the field, this training is designed to help you approach your next scene with greater knowledge and confidence.

Don't wait until you're standing at a difficult scene to wish you'd had more training.

👉 Learn more and register:
ditacademy.org/mldi/

This hybrid course is developed for the police detective, patrol officer, medicolegal and coroner investigator. Taught by skilled accredited instructors working the field of death investigation,

08/24/2026

🚨 ACCIDENT OR SU***DE? THE SCENE MAY NOT BE AS STRAIGHTFORWARD AS IT FIRST APPEARS.

Fatalities associated with au******ic activity can present complex and easily misinterpreted death scenes. What initially appears consistent with su***de may, after a thorough investigation, reveal circumstances supporting an accidental death associated with au******ic behavior.

Recognizing and documenting the complete scene is critical.

Join Death Investigation Training Academy for:

🔎 Investigating Intent: Au******ic Death vs. Su***de

This focused 2-hour webinar explores the investigative considerations involved in differentiating suspected au******ic fatalities from suicidal deaths.

Topics include:

🔹 Scene characteristics and behavioral indicators
🔹 Ligatures, clothing position, and environmental context
🔹 Investigative and documentation practices
🔹 Behavioral, psychological, and situational information considered during the investigation
🔹 Communicating sensitive findings professionally
🔹 Case studies and investigative considerations

📅 September 17, 2026
⏰ 2:00 PM CST
💻 Live Webinar

Designed for coroners, medical examiners, law enforcement investigators, death investigators, and other forensic professionals.

A scene may suggest an explanation. A thorough investigation tests it.

👉 Register here:
https://buff.ly/MtSRN5p

Au******ic fatalities present some of the most complex and easily misinterpreted scenes encountered by investigators. This 2-hour webinar explores physical, behavioral, and psychological indicators that distinguish intentional death from accident.

08/22/2026

🚨 FROM THE FIELD

Every investigator has one.

That case you still think about...not necessarily because it was the most graphic, complicated, or high-profile case you ever worked, but because one small detail completely changed the direction of the investigation.

Maybe it was something at the scene that didn't belong.

Something that should have been there but wasn't.

A witness statement that didn't quite fit.

Or a finding that suddenly made everything else make sense.

Without sharing identifying or confidential information:

👇 What small detail changed the way you interpreted an entire case?

Let's hear some stories from the field.

08/21/2026

🧠 Memory isn't a recording.

A witness can be highly confident about what they remember and still recall some details incorrectly.

Human memory doesn't work like a video that gets stored and replayed exactly as it happened. Memories are reconstructive and can change over time as information is forgotten, updated, or influenced by later experiences.

Conversations with other witnesses, information learned after the event, feedback, and suggestive questioning can potentially influence later recollection.

Investigator takeaway: Initial accounts matter. Document witness statements carefully, separate witnesses when practical, use open-ended questions, and avoid unintentionally introducing information that could influence their recollection.

💬 Have you ever worked a case where two witnesses remembered the same event very differently?

08/20/2026

LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER TO ATTEND THIS IN-PERSON SESSION IN KANSAS CITY, MO NEXT WEEK!

Join us for When Forces Kill: Investigating Environmental & Vehicular Deaths, an immersive classroom course designed for death investigators, coroners, medical examiner personnel, law enforcement, and crime scene investigators.

You'll gain practical knowledge in:
✔ Fire-related deaths
✔ Water recovery and drowning investigations
✔ Vehicular fatalities
✔ Electrical injuries
✔ Environmental exposure deaths
✔ Real-world scene interpretation and investigative decision-making

We don't teach theory. We teach the skills you'll use on your very next scene.

📍 Kansas City, Missouri
📅 Register today and strengthen your ability to investigate the scenes many investigators encounter only a few times in their careers—but can never afford to get wrong.

🔗

When death is driven by nature or motion, investigators must interpret the physics left at the scene. This course covers fire, water, electricity, confined spaces, temperature extremes, and impact to support accurate cause-and-manner determinations.

08/18/2026

The August 2026 issue of Death Investigator Magazine hit inboxes this morning. If you’re not subscribed yet, you’re missing out. It’s free and packed with solid, practical content. Get your first issue and subscribe at:
https://ditacademy.org/death-investigator-magazine

08/13/2026

SPOTS ARE FILLING UP FAST! You don't want to miss this one!

⛔️ Not every death scene happens inside four walls.

Some investigations begin in a burned structure.

Others start in the water.

Along a highway.

Or miles from the nearest paved road.

Environmental and vehicular deaths present unique challenges that require investigators to think beyond the basics. Understanding how heat, water, electricity, vehicles, and the environment affect the body and the evidence can make the difference between finding the truth and missing it.

Join us for When Forces Kill: Investigating Environmental & Vehicular Deaths, an immersive classroom course designed for death investigators, coroners, medical examiner personnel, law enforcement, and crime scene investigators.

You'll gain practical knowledge in:
✔ Fire-related deaths
✔ Water recovery and drowning investigations
✔ Vehicular fatalities
✔ Electrical injuries
✔ Environmental exposure deaths
✔ Real-world scene interpretation and investigative decision-making

We don't teach theory. We teach the skills you'll use on your very next scene.

📍 Kansas City, Missouri
📅 Register today and strengthen your ability to investigate the scenes many investigators encounter only a few times in their careers—but can never afford to get wrong.

🔗

When death is driven by nature or motion, investigators must interpret the physics left at the scene. This course covers fire, water, electricity, confined spaces, temperature extremes, and impact to support accurate cause-and-manner determinations.

08/06/2026

Clandestine Grave and Surface Recovery: Now enrolling for the Spring 2027 session. The Fall 2026 session is full. Claim your spot while spots are still open for April. ditacademy.org/grave

This course prepares medicolegal death investigators, coroners, and law enforcement personnel to lead and conduct buried and surface human remains recoveries that are operationally sound and legally defensible.

This is not an academic field school. This is investigator-driven training built around real cases, real failures, and real consequences.

Students work with real human remains in multiple recovery contexts while learning how recovery decisions directly affect cause and manner determinations, evidence admissibility, and courtroom testimony.

WHAT MAKES THIS COURSE DIFFERENT

Most recovery training focuses on how to excavate remains. This course focuses on who controls the scene, how decisions are made, and how those decisions hold up later.

Students are trained to:

Establish and maintain investigative authority at complex recovery scenes
Coordinate with anthropology, forensic specialists, and law enforcement without losing control of the investigation
Recognize and avoid common recovery failures that damage cases
Document recovery in a way that supports cause and manner determinations
Make defensible decisions under limited staffing, time pressure, and imperfect conditions

This course is built around failure-based instruction, using real-world case errors as teaching tools.