The slide will help the legal professional as well as the law students to have an idea on autopsy report of gunshot wound.

1. BY
SOUVIK DHAR
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR IN LAW
IILS

2. An important aspect of describing and
documenting gunshot wounds is the ability
to recognise not only whether the wound
represents an entry or an exit wound, but
also from what range the weapon was
discharged.

3. ENTRANCE WOUND
EXIT WOUND

4.  When a bullet hits the skin surface, it causes
indentation before perforation.
 Following perforation, elasticity causes the skin
to recoil, and the resulting round, circular
defect is of a slightly smaller diameter to that of
the bullet.
 An accurate estimation of the calibre size
cannot therefore be made from measuring the
radius of the wound.

5. IMAGE COURTESY-
https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3454/3747788630_b0924b222c.jpg

6.  Circular defect (unless entrance at an angle –
then more tear-drop shaped)
 Abrasion collar or rim
 Inverted edges
 Stellate shaped in higher velocity weapons, or
hard contact over bony parts of the body
 Slit-like or irregular if bullet deformed or
tumbling
 Presence of soot soiling, powder tattooing,
stippling etc
 Shallow angled wounds may ‘graze the surface

7.  In general, exit wounds are larger than entrance wounds.
They are also more irregular in outline, and their edges
are everted. They exhibit no abrasion collar, and they do
not have any features of secondary muzzle product
projectile impact, such as soot soiling, or powder
tattooing
 As the bullet travels through the body it looses kinetic
energy, and looses stability. As it exits, it may do so at an
angle, or the bullet itself may have been deformed in the
body, for example after striking bone.
 The exit wound in such circumstances may resemble a
knife wound or a laceration caused by blunt trauma. In
addition to the wound caused by the exiting bullet,
secondary projectile damage may be caused by fragments
of bone, particularly in headshots.

8. IMAGE COURTESY –
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Gunshot_skul
l.jpg/300px-Gunshot_skull.jpg

9.  Usually larger than entrance wounds
 Irregularly shaped
 Everted skin edges
 No powder tattooing, soot soiling or
stippling etc
 May have abraded edges (‘shored exit
wounds’)

10.  HARD CONTACT WOUND
 LOOSE CONTCT WOUND

11.  Hard Contact wounds
 A contact wound is described as a ‘hard’ contact wound
where the weapon has been pressed firmly against the
skin surface. The action of pressing firmly causes
underlying tissues to be compressed and indented, and
forms a seal around the weapon’s muzzle. This seal
prevents the escape of the gases of combustion and soot
deposits etc from the barrel of the gun, and they are
forced into the wound track.
 The muzzle becomes hot following firing, and where
contact is made with clothing interposed between the
gun and the body, synthetic material can be melted, and
cotton fibres torn. If contact is made with unclothed
skin, searing or burning of the wound edges occurs.

12.  'Hard contact'
Over soft tissues
 circular hole
 abrasion collar
 bruising
 local reddening (heat and CO)
 little or no surface burning
 little or no propellant soiling/ powder tattooing
 +/- muzzle impression
Over bone
 split/ cruciate wound
 local reddening
 bruising
 little or no surface burning/ propellant soiling
 abrasion collar partially lost on skin tags

13.  When the muzzle of the weapon is not held in
such close approximation with the body (for
example due to the interposition of clothing or
hair between muzzle and body), there exists an
escape route for some or all of the muzzle gases
and discharge products.
 These can form secondary projectiles,
particularly powder flakes or debris, and metal
particles from the barrel of the weapon or bullet
casing etc.

14.  <15 cm
 circular hole and abrasion collar
• flame burn on skin
• burnt hairs
• soot/ smoke soiling
• punctate propellant tattooing marks
• unburnt propellant flakes
• little/ no CO in tissues
 15 - 30 cm
 no soot
 +/- tattooing
 no CO
 rarely flame burns
CONTD..

15.  >40 - 60 cm
 circular hole with abrasion collar
 no burning/ soiling
 no burnt hairs
 no CO
 'Far distant' (at limit of range)
 larger irregular hole
 Irregular abrasion collar
 irregular abrasion rim ('tumbling bullet')