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An Unusual Zip Gun Suicide—Medicolegal and Ballistic Examination
Author(s) -
Hejna Petr,
Šafr Miroslav
Publication year - 2010
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/j.1556-4029.2009.01202.x
Subject(s) - medical examiner , homicide , autopsy , poison control , medical emergency , gunshot wound , crime scene , manner of death , suicide prevention , injury prevention , forensic engineering , medicine , criminology , psychology , surgery , engineering , pathology
Home‐made guns are imitations of typical firearms and usually have handgun characteristics. This article presents an unusual case of a suicide carried out by means of a fatal gunshot wound to the head using a home‐made zip gun. A 49‐year‐old male, with a history of paranoid psychosis was found dead in the dwelling place of a family house. The investigation at the crime scene did not lead to suspicion of a gunshot wound because of the unusual nature of the firearm used. A medical examiner diagnosed an opened head injury as the primary cause of the victim’s death. The autopsy findings provided immediate grounds for further inspection of the crime scene. Subsequently, a simple zip gun, which had been overlooked during the scene investigation, was discovered. An undeformed projectile recovered from the victim’s head was consistent with the use of the home‐made firearm. Following the completion of the investigations and autopsy, the death was classified as a suicide.