CRANIAL FRACTURES AND DIRECTION OF FIRE IN LOW-VELOCITY GUNSHOTS

A total of 59 penetrating contact shot wounds to the head caused by ha ndguns was investigated and a comparison was made between the magnitud e and the number of fracture lines at the entrance and exit site of th e vault and at the base of the skull. It was noted that in approximate ly 50% of the cases the extent of fractures at the entrance site excee ded those at the exit wound while in the remaining individuals no rele vant differences or even greater exit fractures were found. Furthermor e, no close correlation between the fracture patterns of the vault and at the base of the skull occurred indicating that differences in the magnitude and the number of entrance ol exit fracture lines cannot pro vide reliable information on direction of fire. Additionally, no furth er conclusions on the gun used can be drawn from differences in the en trance and exit fracture patterns. It can only be assumed that the abs ence of fractures in the cranial fossae points to the use of small cal ibre handguns (less than or equal to 7.65 mm) while a fragmentation of the skull can as a rule be expected after shots from guns with larger calibres (> 7.65 mm).