The examination of an injured brain must be done in the context of all other injuries (especially to the head), the effects of treatment, and whatever additional information is known about the circumstances of the injury. The chapter provides instructions for examining the head and the brain, followed by an overview of the secondary effects of neurotrauma. The authors advise that except for instances of a rapidly acting lethal injury, almost all cases of fatal neurotrauma involve some secondary brain injuries. These are lesions that are not a direct result of the trauma itself, but rather evolve later as complications of those lesions that resulted directly from the trauma. Blood circulation within the brain is then discussed, since this is involved in the distribution of many of the lesions that complicate neurotrauma. This is followed by a discussion of brain swelling, which complicates many neuropathologic conditions. A discussion of the forensic analysis of neurotrauma focuses on reconstructing the traumatic mechanisms, the age and severity of injuries, and the relationship of injuries to the patient's symptoms and cause of death. Other forensic issues discussed are types of blunt force head injury, intracranial hemorrhages, penetrating brain injuries, spinal cord injury, and syndromes that result from neurotrauma. 70 photographic and graphic exhibits, and 164 references