Family members of nine people killed during the April 10 clash between troops and red shirts at Khok Wua intersection went to the Criminal Court yesterday, seeking a court order that autopsies be performed.
Karom Ponthaklang, a lawyer representing the anti-government red-shirt Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), led relatives of the nine deceased to the court to seek the order.
They also called for prompt questioning of witnesses linked to the case.
The Office of the Attorney General has indicted red-shirt leader Veera Musigapong and 18 other DAAD leaders and supporters on terrorism charges in connection with riots and unrest during April and May in Bangkok and the provinces.
The defendants also sought court approval for forensic experts from abroad to witness autopsies performed on the nine bodies by Thai forensic staff.
Mr Karom said relatives of the nine dead had not petitioned any agency in regard to the April 10 incident.
Currently the nine bodies, claimed by the red shirts as key evidence, are being kept in temples.
In the meantime, the victims' families want to hold cremation rites, the lawyer said. He said they were afraid that if no autopsy was performed before the bodies were cremated, they would lack key evidence for further investigation.
The April 10 clash between the Army and the anti-government red-shirt protesters left 26 dead, including a Japanese photographer. More than 800 others were injured.
The violence erupted in the late afternoon when security forces tried to remove anti-government supporters from their protest site at Phan Fa Bridge on Rajdamnoen Avenue.