Institute of Forensic Medicine, University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany.
Sachverständigenbüro Cachée, Pistoriusstrasse 6a, 13086, Berlin, Germany.
Int J Legal Med. 2019 Nov;133(6):1839-1850. doi: 10.1007/s00414-019-02120-2. Epub 2019 Jul 23.
Molecular ballistics connects the molecular genetic analysis of biological traces with the wounding events and complex forensic traces investigated in terminal ballistics. Backspatter, which originates from a projectile hitting a biological target when blood and/or tissue is propelled back into the direction of the gun, is of particular interest; those traces can consolidate and persist on the outer and inner surfaces of firearms and serve as evidence in criminal investigations. Herein, we are the first to present an anatomically correct head model for molecular ballistic research based on a polyurethane skull replica enclosing tissue-simulating sponge material that is doped with "triple-contrast" mixture (EDTA-blood, acrylic paint, and an x-ray contrast agent). Ten percent ballistic gelatin was used as brain simulant. We conducted contact and intermediate-range shots with a Glock 19 pistol (9 mm Luger), a pump-action shotgun (12/70 slugs), and blank cartridge handguns. Each shot was documented by a high-speed camera at 35,000 fps. Apart from the blank cartridge guns, all gunshots penetrated the skull model and created backspatter, which was recovered from the distal part of the barrels and analyzed. The pistol contact shots and one of three shotgun shots yielded full STR profiles. While the shotgun slugs destroyed the skulls, the remaining models could be used for radiological and optical fracture and wound channel evaluation. Known backspatter mechanisms and their respective timing could be confirmed visually by video analysis. Our complete model setup proved to be well applicable to molecular ballistic research as well as wound channel and fracture pattern investigation.
分子弹道学将生物痕迹的分子遗传学分析与终端弹道学中研究的创伤事件和复杂法医痕迹联系起来。特别是来自弹丸击中生物靶标时血液和/或组织被反向推进枪支方向的反向喷溅物（backspatter），具有特别的研究意义；这些痕迹可以在枪支内外表面上凝结和持久存在，并作为刑事调查中的证据。在此，我们首次基于包含组织模拟海绵材料的聚氨酯颅骨复制品，为分子弹道学研究提出了一个解剖学上正确的头部模型，该材料掺杂了“三重对比”混合物（EDTA-血液、丙烯酸涂料和 X 射线对比剂）。使用 10%的弹道凝胶作为大脑模拟物。我们使用格洛克 19 手枪（9 毫米 Luger）、泵动猎枪（12/70 弹丸）和空包弹手枪进行了接触和中程射击。每一次射击都由高速相机以 35,000 帧/秒的速度记录下来。除了空包弹手枪，所有枪支都穿透了颅骨模型并产生了反向喷溅物，这些反向喷溅物从枪管的远端回收并进行了分析。手枪接触射击和三发猎枪射击中的一发产生了完整的 STR 图谱。虽然猎枪弹丸摧毁了颅骨，但其余的模型仍可用于进行放射学和光学骨折和创伤通道评估。通过视频分析可以直观地确认已知的反向喷溅机制及其各自的时间。我们的完整模型设置被证明非常适用于分子弹道学研究以及创伤通道和骨折模式的研究。
