Search citation statements
Paper Sections
Citation Types
Year Published
Publication Types
Relationship
Authors
Journals
This article on gunshot wounds deals with the medicolegal aspects of fatalities from firearm injuries with special emphasis on the morphological findings and their correct interpretation. For a better understanding of ballistic trauma, first, a short survey of weapon types and ammunition is given. Another section covers the interaction between the projectile and the human body and topics related to wound ballistics (stopping power, ability to act, causes of death). A major part of the article addresses the characteristics of bullet entrance/exit wounds and the classification of gunshot wounds according to the range of fire (contact shots, close‐/intermediate‐range shots, distant shots). Apart from rifled firearm injuries, wounds from shotguns, livestock stunners, blank‐cartridge guns, and explosives are also described. With respect to the criminalistic implications of firearm injuries, the principles of medicolegal documentation and the main criteria for differentiating between suicide and homicide are also discussed. Numerous photographs from the forensic autopsy material are included in order to give an overview of the great variability of firearm injuries.
This article on gunshot wounds deals with the medicolegal aspects of fatalities from firearm injuries with special emphasis on the morphological findings and their correct interpretation. For a better understanding of ballistic trauma, first, a short survey of weapon types and ammunition is given. Another section covers the interaction between the projectile and the human body and topics related to wound ballistics (stopping power, ability to act, causes of death). A major part of the article addresses the characteristics of bullet entrance/exit wounds and the classification of gunshot wounds according to the range of fire (contact shots, close‐/intermediate‐range shots, distant shots). Apart from rifled firearm injuries, wounds from shotguns, livestock stunners, blank‐cartridge guns, and explosives are also described. With respect to the criminalistic implications of firearm injuries, the principles of medicolegal documentation and the main criteria for differentiating between suicide and homicide are also discussed. Numerous photographs from the forensic autopsy material are included in order to give an overview of the great variability of firearm injuries.
A bullet that has passed in and out of one body segment may continue its way into another part of the body causing a second entrance ("reentry") wound, which is often said to have an atypical and sometimes confusing appearance. To analyze this problem in a systematical approach, 9-mm Parabellum full metal-jacketed projectiles were fired at skin-gelatine composite models simulating the consecutive passage of a bullet through two parts of a body. When there was a distance between the two segments, the primary exit and the reentry skin wounds did not show any distinctive features differing from usual gunshot injuries. In the case of contact between exit and reentry site, the corresponding skin wounds resembled each other as both had central tissue defects surrounded by abrasion areas. The subsequent investigation of the simulant revealed that skin particles from both the exit and the adjacent reentry site had been displaced in the direction of the shot along the whole bullet track of the second segment. The morphological findings are presented and discussed with respect to the pertinent literature, and possible physical ballistic explanations are suggested.
In contact shots, all the materials emerging from the muzzle (combustion gases, soot, powder grains, and metals from the primer) will be driven into the depth of the entrance wound and the following sections of the bullet track. The so-called "pocket" ("powder cavity") under the skin containing soot and gunpowder particles is regarded as a significant indicator of a contact entrance wound since one would expect that the quantity of GSR deposited along the bullet's path rapidly declines towards the exit hole. Nevertheless, experience has shown that soot, powder particles, and carboxyhemoglobin may be found not only in the initial part of the wound channel, but also far away from the entrance and even at the exit. In order to investigate the propagation of GSRs under standardized conditions, contact test shots were fired against composite models of pig skin and 25-cm-long gelatin blocks using 9-mm Luger pistol cartridges with two different primers (Sinoxid® and Sintox®). Subsequently, 1-cm-thick layers of the gelatin blocks were examined as to their primer element contents (lead, barium, and antimony as discharge residues of Sinoxid® as well as zinc and titanium from Sintox®) by means of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. As expected, the highest element concentrations were found in the initial parts of the bullet tracks, but also the distal sections contained detectable amounts of the respective primer elements. The same was true for amorphous soot and unburned/partly burned powder particles, which could be demonstrated even at the exit site. With the help of a high-speed motion camera it was shown that for a short time the temporary cavitation extends from the entrance to the exit thus facilitating the unlimited spread of discharge residues along the whole bullet path.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.