Gruesome accidents, witchcraft, and jaw re-attachment

Today's Gruesome Yet Truly Morbid Fact!

The California Highway Patrol arrested a 24-year-old Vallejo man who they said fled the scene of a gruesome drunken-driving accident on the Bay Bridge that killed his front-seat passenger. Maurice Talton of Vallejo was arrested around 3 PM after he showed up at Sutter Solano Medical Center in Vallejo with abrasions and complaining of pain. Talton faces charges of felony hit and run, vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence. His arrest came nearly 12 hours after he fled the scene of an early morning accident that killed the front-seat passenger in a Chevrolet Blazer he was driving. Even before the accident, at about 3:25 AM Sunday, June 27, 2004, the CHP began receiving calls from witnesses reporting a reckless driver, speeding eastbound across the bridge and moving from lane to lane. "He was using all the lanes, speeding, whipping in and out of traffic," CHP Officer Herman Quan said.

The Chevy crashed into a Saab in the second lane from the right near the end of the Bay Bridge. The cars spun out of control onto a dirt shoulder at the end of the bridge, then Talton's vehicle ran up against the cyclone fence on the south side of the road. The speeding vehicle's front passenger window broke, exposing the passenger's head as the vehicle rubbed against the fence for about 100 feet. The passenger -- identified by the Alameda County Coroner's office as Shaun Roberts, 24, of Vallejo -- was decapitated. The Chevy's rear-seat passenger, Jason Maynard, 24, of Vallejo, suffered minor injuries. When the vehicle came to a stop in the eastbound lanes near the toll plaza, Talton fled, leaving behind the dead and injured passengers. The driver of the Saab, Anthony Fraiser, 43, of Antioch suffered minor injuries.

Culled from: SFGate.Com
Generously submitted by: Dave

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This is why I try to never sleep with my head resting against a car window. You just never know!

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The Comtesse Reviews...

Witches by Erica Jong

This is a heavily illustrated, very light primer on the history of witchcraft. Jong touches on most of the important items of discussion, such as the political, sociological, and religious reasons for the ruthless persecution and execution of alleged witches in the olden tymes, and the goddess worship inherent in pagan religions. It makes for an interesting, thought-provoking read for the uninitiated, but for those of us who have already studied the topic, it's a bit lightweight and under-researched for my liking. It's also filled with pretty mediocre poetry, which was another minus for me. However, the gorgeous illustrations are well worth the price of admission. On the whole, I'd recommend this to anyone interested in the history of witches and pagan religions, but if you've already studied those topics to any extent, you'll want to pass this one by.

Rating: 3/5 skulls

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Morbid Link Du Jour!

Here's a site that explores the history of the death penalty in Ohio. Very interesting!

Thanks to Jeff for the link.

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Ghastly!

Here's a slideshow of the world's first jaw re-attachment surgery.

And here's the story of the accident that necessitated the surgery:

Jaw operation was world first
02/05/2005 08:05 - (SA)

Pretoria - An operation just over a week ago during which the lower jaw of a 12-year-old boy was re-attached after it had been torn from his mouth in a quadbike accident, is probably a medical first. Dr. Ashraf Mohamed, a maxillafacial surgeon at Unitas Hospital, said on Sunday he searched the literature for a similar case after the operation, but couldn't find anything.

Standing at his patient's bedside, Mohamed explained in great detail the seven-hour pioneering operation that was performed on C.J. Richards from Steelport in Mpumalanga. Mohamed said that when C.J. was initially transferred from a hospital in Middelburg to Unitas, the impression was that he had suffered a normal fracture of the jawbone. On his arrival at the trauma unit, C.J. was first stabilised and placed on a ventilator, because it was feared that he also had neck injuries.

According to Mohamed, it was a great shock to find on a preliminary examination that there was a huge gap in C.J.'s lower jaw. "I thought the piece was lodged somewhere among the mouth tissue, but X-rays showed the entire lower jaw was missing." A hunt for the lower jaw at the scene of the accident, where C.J. and his friend were injured, followed.

Riding along on the quadbike, the boys had collided with a wire fence. Mohamed says it was a stroke of luck that the piece of jaw, complete with the teeth, was found quickly and brought to Pretoria. The jawbone was full of soil and ants and was placed in a special antibiotic solution to clean it, after which the tissue was removed prior to the refitting of the jaw. A steel plate and screws were used to affix the jaw and holes were drilled in it to restore its blood supply.

Mohamed explained that if the original piece of jaw had not been found, it would have been necessary to take a section of bone from C.J.'s leg to reconstruct it. He explained how tissue scrapings from the inside of C.J.'s mouth and tongue were used to fill the gaps that were created at the time of the re-implantation.

At present, C.J. is in the Eugene Marais Hospital in Pretoria where he is undergoing hyperbaric oxygenation. This treatment involves heightened oxygen intake, which aids tissue repair and prevents infection. Before being discharged in a week's time, C.J.'s upper and lower jaws will be joined together temporarily to prevent unnecessary movement during healing.

The jaws have not been joined yet due to the hyperbaric oxygenation treatment, which, in some patients, can cause seizures. Mohamed said it was a risk to replace the piece of torn-out jaw. It was fortunate that it was found so quickly. "It can't be described as anything but a miracle," Anne-Marie Richards, C.J.'s mother, said on Sunday.

Thanks to René for the link.