Dear kathy6-ga;
Thank you for allowing me an opportunity to answer your interesting
question.
While this is not an example of such a revealing forensic study, it
does happen to be the best example I could find at the moment of a
skull fragment that actually has an entrance or exit would made by the
fatal bullet. The reason that I am showing you this example is to make
this point – if a forensic expert had a skull fragment that had the
majority of the actual entrance or exit wound still intact, it would
then be possible in some instances to determine what caliber the
weapon was, the trajectory of the projectile and possibly even the
distance from which the murderer fired the weapon by comparing the
hallmarks of the wound to that of recorded specimens in which the
caliber and so on are known.
See this example of skull fragment with the bullet hole intact:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/725000/images/_725537_hole300.jpg
This type of identification through forensic comparison would be
especially successful in instances where fragments containing both the
entrance wound and the exit would were both intact, or if enough
fragments could be gathered and reassembled, either physically or
through computer aided application so as to depict an accurate
description of the damage. Projectiles of various types of weapons
often cause a predictable amount of damage when entering the skull and
while exiting. So, for example if projectile from ten different types,
brands and calibers of guns are known to cause a clean, round,
one-quarter inch hole upon entering the skull, only two might cause a
particular type of exit wound, thus eliminating eight weapons and
narrowing the forensic possibilities down to the two most likely. Of
these two, a specialist might try to determine if certain types of
powder residue (usually from having been shot at close range) is
imbedded in the bones of the skull, or on the surface of the skull as
determined by a test using a gunshot residue kit (GSR). Another means
of distinguishing between the two types of weapons that we have
narrowed the possibilities to would be to determine if any latent
residue from a particular type of metal (from the bullet jacket or
lead projectile) is present in, or on the fragmented bones. If so,
then the next likely study would be to determine which of the weapons,
if either, was capable of firing a round with the makeup similar to
the metal residue found, potentially eliminating one weapon while
implicating the other.
As mentioned previously, the two wounds (entrance and exit) could very
well serve to identify the caliber of a weapon, and may provide
valuable clues even if one of the would cannot be reconstructed in
it’s entirety. As long as the actual location of the entrance or the
exit of the project is known, the other, more viable location of
entrance or exit can sometimes be indicative of a caliber. If a known
track from entrance to exit can be established, often a caliber can be
identified because of known characteristics. Some calibers tend to
veer and exit in other areas, while some are known to spiral directly
through the tissue and exit through the nearest opposite area of the
body, along the path of a straight line. Still other projectile are
blunt and remove large amounts of tissue and bone on their path
through the body and still others tend to tumble, striking nearby
structures, either penetrating them or glancing off of them. All of
these characteristics can be used to help determine the caliber of a
projectile. In other situations, lead shower can be determined using
xray photography. Lead shower is the breaking up of a projectile into
minute pieces and “spraying” the internal surface of the skull. This
pattern, which can sometimes be attributed to a unique or known type
of gun, can sometimes be telling as well. In the case of shotgun
wounds, forensic experts can sometimes determine if fragments of
fibers from wadding or cups have entered the body, or impacted or
imbedded in the bone, and may be able to determine the type and
caliber of weapon even if the majority of the skull has been virtually
annihilated.
I have seen these studies done successfully over the years, matching a
wound to a caliber, or even the type of firearm used. In answer to the
question of whether or not a “specific” firearm could be matched
through forensic testing to a specific bullet impact found in or on a
particular bone fragment, let me say this – In my 22 year career in
law enforcement, I have never heard, and still to this day, know of no
instance in which a specific firearm has been positively identified as
a murder weapon as a direct result of a forensic examination of only a
single damaged bone fragment and nothing more. In order to say that a
murder was caused by John Doe’s .22-caliber Marlin single-shot rifle
manufactured in the US in August of 1980 serial number xxxxx, for
example, a great deal more evidence would have to be present, as I
mentioned above, in order to establish this undisputable relationship.
Below you will find that I have carefully defined my search strategy
for you in the event that you need to search for more information. By
following the same type of searches that I did you may be able to
enhance the research I have provided even further. I hope you find
that that my research exceeds your expectations. If you have any
questions about my research please post a clarification request prior
to rating the answer. Otherwise, I welcome your rating and your final
comments and I look forward to working with you again in the near
future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.
Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga
INFORMATION SOURCES
BBC NEWS
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/725000/images/_725537_hole300.jpg
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/725537.stm
GUNS AND AMMO – VETERINARY FORENSIC PATHOLOGY
http://www.vet.uga.edu/vpp/ia/SRP/vfp/guns&ammo.html
EXAMINING GUSHOT WOUNDS
http://www.vet.uga.edu/vpp/ia/SRP/vfp/examining.html
(Warning: These graphic images may not be suitable for all viewers)
BALLISTICS AND PRESIDENT KENNEDY'S HEAD WOUNDS
http://karws.gso.uri.edu/JFK/the_critics/griffith/Head_shot_from_front.html
(This article is an example of situations where latent reside would be
valuable)
“Adult Trauma Unit-Case Studies Johannesburg, South Africa”
http://www.firearmsid.com/Feature%20Articles/042002/JohannesburgTraumaUnit2.htm
(Examples of tumbling bullets, separating jackets and classic
projectile bone strikes)
SEARCH STRATEGY
SEARCH ENGINE USED:
Google ://www.google.com
SEARCH TERMS USED:
CALIBER BONE FRAGMENT
FORENSIC CALIBER BONE FRAGMENT
FORENSIC ENTRANCE EXIT PROJECTILE |
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