An Unplanned Complex Suicide by Multiple Blank Cartridge Gunshots and Cutting. Issue 2 (25th July 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kučerová, Štěpánka; Zátopková, Lenka; Vojtíšek, Tomáš; Ublová, Michaela; Hejna, Petr
• Is Part Of: Journal of forensic sciences. Volume 64:Issue 2(2019)
• Page Start: 616
• Page End: 621
• Publication Date: 2018-07-25
• Subjects: forensic science -- forensic pathology -- blank cartridge gun -- blank firing gun -- multiple gunshot wounds -- complex suicide; Medical jurisprudence -- Periodicals; Forensic sciences -- Periodicals; Forensic Medicine -- Periodicals; Gerechtelijke geneeskunde; Gerechtelijke chemie; Gerechtelijke psychiatrie; 363.2505
• DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.13881
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-1198

Abstract

Abstract: Blank firing guns are readily accessible in most countries due to an absence of legal regulations. These weapons are capable of causing lethal injuries. We report a rare case of secondary (unplanned) complex suicide committed with a knife and blank cartridge pistol. A 59‐year‐old man was found dead with three superficial incisions in his neck and a gunshot wound to the chest. The external examination revealed an entrance wound in the left chest region consistent with contact shooting. The appearance of a muzzle imprint suggested two discharges. The autopsy showed a slightly hemorrhaged but otherwise intact pericardium, blood in the pericardial sac, and a channel‐like defect in the anterior wall of the left cardiac ventricle. The cause of death was attributed to cardiac tamponade. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of unplanned complex suicide involving an unmodified blank firing gun.