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Self‐inflicted Firearm Discharge from Heating Using a Gas Burner
Author(s) -
Osawa Motoki,
Matsushima Yutaka,
Kumar Alok,
Tsuboi Akio,
Kakimoto Yu,
Satoh Fumiko
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.13051
Subject(s) - cartridge , barrel (horology) , gas burner , combustor , spare part , poison control , forensic engineering , waste management , engineering , medicine , medical emergency , chemistry , operations management , mechanical engineering , organic chemistry , combustion
A male in his 70s was found lying dead in the living room of his house. A gunshot entrance wound was observed in the left orbit, with a lead slug and wadding left in the skull, which exhibited fatal cranio‐cerebral trauma. A cartridge had been discharged from a handmade launcher, or zip gun, that had been fixed to a spare gun barrel on a pipe chair, by heating the launcher from the side using a gas burner. The deceased had owned guns for hunting in the past and had returned the license, but he had retained a spare barrel and live cartridges at home. In this unique case of suicide, a zip gun was discharged by heating with a gas burner.