Self-constructed shooting devices utilizing manually-impacted firing-pins (suicide machines)

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dc.contributor.authorHartwig, S.
dc.contributor.authorCorneillie, S.
dc.contributor.authorSchmidt, S.
dc.contributor.authorByard, R.
dc.date.issued2010
dc.description.abstractThree cases of suicide are described where deaths were due to single gunshot wounds to the head from self-constructed shooting devices. The victims were twin brothers aged 27 years, and a 53-year-old male. The firearms were manufactured by the victims who used machined metal tubes with 12-gauge shotgun and 7.65 mm ammunition, respectively. The mechanism of action in all cases relied upon direct impact on the firing pin rod; with a hammer in 2 cases, and a rock in the third. Homemade firearms are manufactured globally for use in criminal activities, although they tend to be found more often in countries and among groups where there is limited access to commercially manufactured weapons due to economic or legal constraints. Most devices use either a standard sprung hammer or trigger mechanisms. Given the unusual and cumbersome nature of the firing mechanism in the reported cases, it is likely that these firearms were specifically manufactured for the purpose of suicide.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilitySven Hartwig, Michael Tsokos, Sven Schmidt and Roger W. Byard
dc.identifier.citationAmerican Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, 2010; 31(2):192-194
dc.identifier.doi10.1097/PAF.0b013e3181c297f5
dc.identifier.issn0195-7910
dc.identifier.issn1533-404X
dc.identifier.orcidByard, R. [0000-0002-0524-5942]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/61669
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherLippincott Williams & Wilkins
dc.rights© 2010 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1097/paf.0b013e3181c297f5
dc.subjecthomemade firearms
dc.subjectsuicide
dc.subjectdirect impact firing pin
dc.titleSelf-constructed shooting devices utilizing manually-impacted firing-pins (suicide machines)
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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