ballistics

subdivisions of BALLISTICS:

Internal

External

Terminal

Terminal-Medical

what constitutes a complete firearm:

Barrel

Bullet
Hammer

cartridge or ammunition (parts):

shell or casing percussion cap primer powder or propellant bullet or projectile

 conical hemispherical hollow-point wad cutter glazer dumdum armor piercing flare or tracer plastic sabot double action soft point

shape of free end:

forward spinning tumbling

end-over-end

movements of the bullet

wobbling tailwag yaw downward

classification of small firearms as to wounding power: low velocity

< 1,400 ft/sec

high-powered
> 1,400 ft/sec 2,200 2,500 ft/sec

as to nature of the bore:

smooth bore
inside of the barrel has no grooves

ex. shotgun

rifled bore
with spiral lands and grooves taking a gradual twist

ex. military rifle

as to the manner of firing:

pistol
fired by a single hand

rifle
fired from the shoulder

as to nature of the magazine:

Cylindrical Revolving Magazine Vertical or Horizontal Magazine

 bullet flame unburned powder burning powder expansile gas

abrasion collar
contusso-abrasio marginal abrasion

contact fire

OUTSHOOT or EXIT WOUND

no definitive shape edges are everted bony spicules may be carried along
Shored exit back against the wall tight fit clothing waist band, belt, brassieres

ODD and EVEN RULE

Accidental :

Solitary wound Non-selected area Testimony of assailant Possibility of accident Testimonies

Suicidal:
Closed or locked rooms, uninhabited or open places. Death weapon almost always present Muzzle contact or very near contact Location should be accessible to wounding hand Solitary wound Compatible direction and trajectory Personal history, suicide note, prior attempts, Positive paraffin test Entrance does not involve clothing

Questions to be asked by a Lawyer in court:

Range and direction? Possibility of self-infliction? Signs of struggle? Can victim fire back or resist the attack? Instant or gradual death? Relative position? Is the wound compatible with the weapon used?

NEAR FIRE (shotgun)

shotgun wounds:
2-3 ft. muzzle-skin distance single wound with large entry 3-4 ft.- entry serrated or scalloped (rat hole) 5-6 ft.- wad produces and independent injury at the vicinity of the entry shots 6 ft.- shots begin to separate from conglomerate 10 ft.- each shot with independent entries

billiard ball ricochet effect

FORMULA:

D2 -1 = D
D2 = distance between the two farthest shots in inches D = muzzle-target distance in yards