BALLISTICS

Classification of Firearms
• As to wounding powder
• Low velocity firearm
• High velocity firearm
• As to nature of bore
• Smooth bore weapon
• Rifled bore weapon
RIFLINGS:
• LANDS
• GROOVES
• TWIST
Classification of Firearms
• As to the manner of firing
• Pistol – short barrel (600-1,000 ft/sec)
• Rifle – long barrel (1,000-4,000 ft/sec)
• As to the nature of the magazine
• Cylindrical revolving magazine
• Vertical of horizontal magazine
Cartridges or ammunition
• Principal parts
• The cartridge case or shell
• Primer
• Powder or propellant
• Bullet or projectile
Bullet - classification
• As to shape of free end
• Conical
• Hemispherical
• Wad-cutter
• Hollow-point
• As to the presence or absence of jacket
• Naked lead bullet
• Jacket bullet
Special type of bullet
• Armour piercing bullet
• Phosphorous flare or tracer bullet
• Plastic bullet
• Bullet with plastic sabot
• Bullet with secondary explosion
• Soft point bullet
Factors responsible for the injurious
effect of missile.
• Factors inherent to the missile
• Speed of the bullet
• Size and shape of the bullet
• Character of the missile`s movement in flight
• Nature of the target
• Density of the target
• Length of tissue involvement in its course
• Nature of the media traversed
• Vitality of the part involved
Destructive mechanism of gunshot
• Laceration and permanent cavity in the bullet
trajectory
• Temporary cavity
• Hydrostatic force
• Shock wave
• Fragmentation or disintegration of the bullet
• Fragmentation of hard brittle object in the
trajectory
• Muzzle blast in contact fire
Gunshot wound entrance
• Caliber of the wounding weapon
• Characteristics inherent to the wound of
entrance
• Direction of the fire
• Shape and composition of the missile
• Range
• Kind of weapon
Powder burns
• It is the combined element of smoke
smudging, gunpowder tattooing and
burning of wound margin
Entrance wounds:
• Pressed and firm contact fire
• Loose contact or near fire
• Short range fire (1-15 cms)
• Medium range fire (more than 15 less
tha 60 cms)
• Fired more than 60 cms distance
Pressed and firm contact fire:
• Entrance wound is large, frequently star
shaped (if bone is superficial)
• Edges of wound maybe everted
• There are powder burns
• Muzzle imprint- barrel impression
• Radiating fracture
• Blood and tissue becomes pink due to carbon
monoxide
• Singeing of hair
Loose contact or near fire:
• Entrance wound maybe large depending upon
the angle of approach
• Abrasion collar or ring is distinct
• Powder burns are present
• Muzzle imprint maybe seen
• There is blackening of the bullet tract to a certain
depth.
• Carboxyhemoglobin is present in the wound.
Short range fire:
• Edges of the entrance wound is
inverted.
• If within flame reach, there is an area
of burning
• Smudging is present due to smoke
• Powder tattooing is present (dense and
limited dimension of spread)
• Abrasion ring or collar is present.
Medium (intermediate) range fire:
• Inverted edges with abrasion collar
• Powder burns are absent
• Smudging may be present if less than
30 cms distance
• Gunpowder tattooing is present but of
lesser density and has a wider area of
distribution
• Contact ring is present.
Fired more than 60 cms
distance:
• Gunshot wound is circular or oval
depending on the angle of the approach
• Wound entrance has no burning,
smudging or tattooing
• Contact ring is present
Instances when the size of the wound of entrance
do not approximate the caliber of the firearm.

• Factors which make the wound of the

entrance bigger than the caliber
• In contact or near fire
• Deformity of the bullet which entered
• Bullet might have entered the skin sidewise
• Acute angular approach of the bullet
• Factors which make the wound
entrance smaller than the caliber:
• Fragmentation of the bullet before
penetrating the skin
• Contraction of the elastic tissues of the skin
Other evidences used to determine
entrance of gunshot wound
• Examination of the clothing
• Examination of the internal injuries
caused by the bullet
• Testimony of the witness
Determination of the trajectory of the
bullet inside the body of the victim
• External examination
• Shape of the wound entrance
• Shape and distribution of the contusion
collar or abrasion collar
• Difference in the level between the entrance
and the exit wounds
• By probing the entrance of the wound
Determination of the trajectory
• Internal examination
• Actual dissection and tracing the course of
the wound at autopsy
• Fracture of bones and course in visceral
organs
• Location of bone fragments and lead
particles
• X-ray determination
Exit wound:
• Maybe slit-like, stellate or irregular
• Edges are everted
• Portions or inner tissues are protruding
• Shored gunshot wound of exit
 Entrance wound VS Exit wound
• Appears to be smaller than • Always bigger than the missile
the caliber • Edges are everted
• Edges are inverted • It does not manifest any
• Usually oval or round definite shape
• Contusion collar or contact • Contusion collar is absent
ring is present • Tattooing always absent
• Tattooing may be present • Underlying tissues maybe seen
• Underlying tissues are not protruding from the wound
protruding • Maybe absent if missile is
• Always present after fire lodged in the body
• Paraffin test maybe positive• Paraffin test always negative
How to determine the number of fires
made by the offender
• Determine the number of spent shells
• Determination of the entrance wound in
the body of the victim
• Number of shots heard by the witness
Instances when the number of GSWs of
entrance is less than GSWs of exit in the body
• A bullet entered the body but split into
fragments which made separate exits
• One of the bullet entered one of the natural
orifice of the body
• Two or more bullet entered the body through a
common entrance
• In near shot with a shotgun, the pellets entered
the body in a common wound and dispersed
inside the body making several exits.
Instances when the number of entrance wounds
is more than the number of exit wounds
• When one or more bullet is not through
and through
• When all the bullets produce through
and through wounds but one or more
exited in the natural orifices of the body
• When different shots produced different
wound of entrance but produce a
common exit wound
Instances when there is entrance wound
and no bullet is found in the body
• When the bullet is lodged in the
gastrointestinal tract and expelled through the
bowel or the pharynx and expelled by
coughing
• Near fire with blank cartridge produced a
wound of entrance but no slug
• The bullet may enter the wound of entrance
and upon hitting the bone is deflected to have
the wound of entrance as the exit wound
Problems in identification of gunshot
wounds:

• Alteration of the lesion due to natural

process.
• Medical and surgical intervention
• Embalming
• Problems inherent to the injury itself
• X-ray examinations
Special considerations on bullets:
• Souvenir bullet
• Bullet migration
• Bullet migration
• Tandem bullet
 Evidences that gunshot wound maybe
suicidal:
• The shot was fired in a closed room.
• The weapon is almost always found near the place where the
victim was found. Or grasp by the victim (cadaveric spasm)
• The shot was fired at close range.
• The location is accessible to the wounding hand.
• The shot is usually solitary.
• The direction of the fire is compatible with the usual trajectory
of the bullet
• History of mental illness
• Presence of gunpowder in the hands of the victim.
• Fingerprint of victim in the butt.
• No disturbance in the place of death.
Evidences that gunshot wound maybe
homicidal:
• The site or sites of wound of entrance has no
point of election.
• The fire is made when the victim is usually at
some distance from the assailant.
• Signs of struggle(defense wounds) maybe
present.
• There maybe disturbance in the surroundings.
• Wounding firearm is not usually found in the
scene of the crime.
• Testimony of the witness.
Evidences that gunshot wound maybe
accidental.
• Usually there is only one shot.
• There is no special area of the body involved.
• Consideration of the testimony of the assailant
and determination as to whether it is possible
to be accidental by knowing the relative
position of the victim and the assailant.
• Testimony of the witness
The following should be included in the
report of the physician:
• Complete description of entrance and exit
wounds.
• Location of the wound
• Direction and length of the bullet tract
• Organs or tissues involved in its course
• Location of the missile if lodge in the body
• Diagram, photograph, sketch, or drawing
showing the location and number of wounds
Determination of the length of survival
of the victim:
• Nature of the gunshot wound
• Organs involved
• Presence or absence of complications
• Amount of blood loss
• Physical condition of the victim
Questions that the physician is expected
to answer in court:
• Could the wound or wounds be inflicted by the weapon presented to
him?
• At what range was it fired?
• What was the direction of the fire?
• May it be possible that those gunshot wounds are self-inflicted?
• Are the signs of struggle in the victim?
• May it be possible for the victim to fire or resist the attack after the
injury was sustained by him?
• Did the victim died instantaneously?
• Where was the relative position of the assailant and the victim when
the shots were fired?
Shotgun
Shotgun:
• It is a shoulder-fired firearm having a
barrel that is smooth-bored and is
intended for the firing of a charged
compound of one or more round balls
or pellets.
Classes of shot in a shotgun shell:
• Birdshot: small pellets around 200 to
400 in a shell. Use for hunting.
• Buckshot: larger than birdshot pellets.
Ex: 12 gauge shotgun
• Single projectile: there is only a single
shot
Types of shotgun:
• As to the number of barrel:
• Single barrel shotgun
• Double barrel shotgun
• As to the manner of firing and reloading:
• Bolt action
• Lever action
• Pump action
• Autolaoading
Shotgun wound entrance:
• Contact or near contact:
• Round entrance depending on the angle
• Burned skin increases the diameter
• Gunpowder tattooing is concentrated
• Singeing of hair
• Wadding sheath recovered in the bullet
tract
Shotgun wound entrance:
• Long range shot: (more than 6 inches from the
skin)
• At 2-3 feet, there is a single wound entrance
• At 3-4 feet, serrated or scalloped circumference
• At 5-6 feet, there is abrasion at the entry of wad
• At 6 feet, the shots have a separate entrance.
• Smudging may be observed up to 15 inches
• Gunpowder tattooing maybe observed up to 24 inches
Importance of gunpowder in the skin:
• Determination of the distance of the gun
muzzle from the victim`s body when fired.
• Gunpowder is found in the skin if fired not
more than 24 inches
• Determining whether a person has fired a
firearm.
• Metallic primer and gunpowder residue maybe
found in the dorsum of the hand.
Determining the presence of gunpowder:
• Gross examination or examination with
the use of hand lens.
• Fine black powder residues in the entrance
wound and dorsum of hands or clothes
• Microscopic examination:
• Fine particles
• Chemical tests
Test for the presence of powder
residues:
• On the skin:
• Dorsum of the hand or entrance wound
• Dermal nitrite test (paraffin test, diphenylamine
test, Lung`s test, Gonzales test)
• Low melting paraffin removes powder particles in
the crevices of the skin. It is treated with Lungs
reagent for nitrites.
• On clothings:
• Walker`s test
Paraffin test:
• Not conclusive of the presence of gunpowder
(fertilizers, cosmetics, cigarettes,urine)
• A negative result is not conclusive. A well-
constructed firearm will not discharge any
residue or the hand was subjected to
intensive washings
• It may give a positive result after 3 days even
with extensive washing
Firearm Identification
Factors to be utilized in firearm
identification:
• Caliber of weapon
• Can be determined from the firearm itself,
shell, cartridge or wound entrance
• Fingerprints
• Can be found in the butt, trigger and guard
• Fouling of the barrel
• Odor of the smoke; chemical analysis of the
washing from the barrel
Factors to be utilized in firearm
identification:
• Serial number
• All firearms bears a serial number
• Restoring serial number if tampered
• Cleaning
• Polishing
• Etching
• Ballistic examination
• Study of physical forces reacting on
projectiles or missiles
Ballistics
• Internal ballistics
• Study of what happened in the chamber and the
gun barrel after the pull of the trigger
• External ballistics
• Deals with what happened to the bullet or projectile
from the moment it leaves the barrel to the time it
hit the target.
• Terminal ballistics
• Concerns with the effect of the bullet on the target
Basic principles involved in firearm
identification:
• The quality of metal of a gun is harder than
the bullet. The surface condition of the gun
can easily be impressed on the bullet or shell.
• Physical characteristics of certain types of
caliber. Lands, grooves, direction of the twist
• No two firearms can be manufactured with
identical surface characteristics.
Instruments use in firearm
identification:
• Comparison microscope
• Bullet recovery box
• Hand lens
• Instrument for scraping ID marks
• Caliper
• Analytical balance
Types of markings:
• Impression type mark (stamp mark)
• Striking of the firing pin on the percussion cap
• The impact of the base of the cartridge on the
breach block of the gun
• Striation or serration mark
• Rifling marks on the surface of the bullet
• Extractor may produce serrations
• Ejector may produce serrations
Marks found in the shell:
• Marks of the firing pin (in the percussion cap)
• Marks from the extractor (found in the rim of
the shell)
• Marks from the ejector(found in the head of
the shell)
• Marks from the breechblock
• Marks on the cylindrical surface of the shell
(brought about by the surface of the firing
chamber or by the magazine.
Marks found in the bullet:
• Number of lands and grooves
• Direction of the twist of the rifling
marks (to the right or to the left)
Summary of firearm identification:
• Gross examination:
• Caliber of the bullet
• Presence/absence of deformity/loss of part
• Presence of foreign elements (blood, soil)
• Identifying marks placed by previous possessor.
• Microscopic examination:
• Determination of the class characteristics (riflings,
grooves)
• Determination of individual or accidental
characteristics (firing pin mark, breechblock mark,
extractor mark, ejector mark)