Milton Helpern was the most famous Chief Medical Examiner for the City of New York —"a Sherlock Holmes with a microscope."
Dr. Milton Helpern (April 17, 1902—April 22, 1977) was born in East Harlem and received his medical degree from Cornell in 1926. He joined the New York City Medical Examiner office in 1931 and became its chief in 1954. During his 20-year tenure he performed over 20,000 autopsies, and was also a key witness in some infamous murder trials. Dr. Helpern was widely admired as a forensic pathologist and medical detective. He co-wrote the definitve work on forensic medicine, Legal Medicine, Pathology and Toxicology (1954).
Milton Helpern appears in the following:
The 1957 pandemic: Not the Flu We Knew
Friday, December 13, 2013
Dr. Milton Helpern
Wednesday, September 30, 1959
Rose, Harry M. (Moderator). Epidemic Influenza
Tuesday, November 19, 1957
This is a special session convened on November 19, 1957, by the New York Academy of Medicine, moderated by Columbia University's Harry M. Rose and including the following:
Morris Greenberg, Director of Bureau Preventable diseases NYC DOH
Milton Helpern, New York City's Chief Medical Examiner
The Doctor in Court
Thursday, October 20, 1955
