Autopsy of Jackson Porter

Posted on 02/13/2024 @ 9:41pm by Captain Cara Letsul & Lieutenant Benjamin Woods & Commander Kodre Vedan
Edited on on 04/30/2024 @ 11:40am

928 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Pages...
Location: Medical
Timeline: MD 5 1500

The processing of Jackson Porter's quarters was well underway, and now she had another detail to look into, which was the body of Jackson Porter. Cara's hand raised up to touch the new pip on her collar, it was there for a reason and how she got her rank raise, wasn't something she had wished for. Squaring her shoulders, Cara headed out of her office and in the direction of the turbo lift to get to medical. Tapping on her commbadge Cara sent out a message.

=/\= Commander Vedan, this is Letsul, would you meet with myself and Lieutenant Woods . =/\= tapping on the combadge she closed it and proceeded to make her way to medical to check in on Benjamin.

Cara stepped inside and looked around for a moment or two, remembering the last time she had been here, working on the body of the Bolian Doctor, Salar. He had died as a result of nanites having invaded his body and him suffocating from it. She shivered slightly at that memory. Quickly dismissing that thought, she looked around to see if she could find Dr. Woods. Drawing the attention one of the people there, Cara asked. "Is Dr. Woods in Autopsy?"

Benjamin made his way out of the surgical bay and moved to take off his gloves and cap. He spotted the captain as he walked over to sanitize his hands. “Captain, I just finished the autopsy on Mister Porter.” He explained.

Cara turned to have a look at Doctor Woods. "Ah good, let us go into a room so that you can apprise us of what you had found."


Woods led the two officers into the surgical room where a nurse was finishing up the last of the reports of the novelist's body. "Unfortunately, I'm not sure how much help I can be. What I can tell you is Mister Porter did die of a heart attack, or so we are to believe." Benjamin explained before pulling up Jackson's chart on a monitor.

"There was severe and acute stress on Mister Porter's heart. By analyzing the calcium channel and sodium-calcium pump in his heart at the time of death I can extrapolate what his heart beat rhythm leading up to his death. It was indeed irregular, but only for a short while. I'd say thirty to ninety minutes at most." Ben explained, showing the officers the diagram.

Cara gave a nod towards Kodre when he had arrived then turned her attention back to Woods, "Thirty to ninety minutes before his death, that... long for Jackson Porter to die. And he died alone, well as far as I can ascertain but we won't know that until the room is finished being processed." Cara leaned back in her chair as she mulled this over. "Have you been able to ascertain what sort of poison was used? Was it from Earth? Or something of a derivative that can be compared? Was it a natural base or was it chemical in nature?"

Ben simply nodded at the question. "When we analyzed his blood chemistry we did find high levels of digoxin in his system. That would explain the heart irregularities, but Mister Porter had no history of issues with his heart in his medical file. So yes, I do believe he was poisoned and I believe it was with this..." He said before tapping the controls to the console again, bringing up the computer database's stock image of a flower with several large bright pink bell shaped bulbs with a green stem. The image labeled as an example of foxglove.

Ben tapped the controls again and brought up the report on Porter's digestive track to be side by side with the image of the flower. "I found trace amounts of this plant in his system. It's highly poisonous to humans but is extremely potent with digoxin and easy to confuse with borage, which is used in cooking and often with herbal teas. It would easy to replace borage with the foxwood and go unnoticed. The perfect crime, so to speak." Woods explained before continuing, "Unfortunately both plants are not only common on Earth, but can be found on several planets in different star systems. So I don't think there will be much help there, but I would suggest you focus your investigation on the replicators and where Mister Porter would have last ate on the station." The doctor concluded.

Foxglove! Cara's face turned pale, she knew from her studies of herbs and such of the poisonous potency of the plant. "It could be put in soups and drinks as well. If the person didn't know that it was normally, borage being used in Mediterrean drinks and dishes. Foxglove the plant had been utilized in treating cardiac arrhythmias back in the day as well congestive heart failure. This is horrible."

Cara whipped out her padd and sent a message to the Forensics team that was going through Jackson Porter's quarters. Cara glanced at Kodre, as she thought over the next few steps that needed to be taken.

Taking in a bit of a breath, letting it out slowly Cara then added, "I am glad that the component that killed him was found out. Now, we just need to chase down who is the one that delivered it and go from there. Such is the great life of solving a mystery."

"Of course, Captain." Woods said as he finished his report.



Lieutenant Benjamin Woods
Chief Medical Officer
Poseidon Station

Captain Cara Letsul
Acting Commanding Officer
Poseidon Station

Commander Kodre Vedan
Hospital Administrator
Poseidon Station

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