The entry wound is to the left back, below and medial to the scapula,
centered 14 3/4 inches below the top of the head, 4 3/4 inches to the
left of posterior midline, 6 1/2 inches below the upper surface of the
shoulder, and about 1/4 inch above nipple level….The wound is also
surrounded by a slightly eccentric deposit of black soot and powder
tattoo marks which fan upward and to the left of the defect for 1.1 cm,
and downward and medially for 8 mm….Eight loose flakes of gunpowder
are present surrounding the wound in an 11.5 cm diameter.
The bullet is easily palpated along the right lateral torso, 20 1/4
inches below the top of the head…4 inches below nipple level….
Subsequent autopsy reveals the bullet entered the left posterior chest
cavity by fracturing the posterior 7th rib which is fragmented and
splintered. Bone fragments are carried along the track of the
bullet through the left lower lung lobe, along a 1.5 cm wide
hemorrhagic track through the lung. The bulle then passed across
the left lateral vertebral column at the level of the 8th intercostal
space without producing any fracture, and perforated the aorta.
The track through the aorta contains bone splinters, and an 11X1X5 mm
detached copper petal of the bullet jacket. The bullet then
passed through the right lower lung lobe, the right hemi-diaphram, and
through the liver where a 4.5 cm wide stellate track is present from
the dome of the liver to the anterior right lobe. The bullet then
perforated the anterior reflection of the diaphram and fractured the
anterolateral right 7th rib, lodging in the 7th intercostal space.
The recovered bullet is semi-jacketed, with a 9mm wide base, and one
petal of the jacket missing. The other petals of the copper
jacket are curled backward, exposing the lead core. The number
"1082" is inscribed in the open lead core of the bullet, and the bullet
is placed in a small envelope, labeled, and released to… The
detached copper petal recovered in the aorta is also released to…
The gunshot wound produced a 1,000 cc left hemothrax, and a 650 cc
right hemothrax. The path of the gunshot wound was back to front,
left to right, and downward.
A few other acute injuries are noted to the body:
- Present along the lateral left upper arm, centered about 3 inches
below the upper surface of the shoulder, is a 5X4 cm wide injury
composed of stippled lines of punctate pink abrasions which lie about 5
mm apart, and run upward from anterior to posterior. - Along the lateral right forehead is a 6 mm sparse red abrasion.
- Along the anterior right chin, 1 1/4 inches below the corner of
the mouth, 3/4 to the right of anterior midline, is a 1.2 X 0.7 cm
abrasion. - Along the right anterior chest, beginning two inches below nipple
level and 1 1/2 inches to the right of the anterior midline, and
running downward to the right, is a 5 X 0.1 cm red scratch abrasion. - Along the mid back of the right upper arm is a faint 3 cm wide blue contusion.
- Along the mid medial right forearm is a 3 X 2 mm red abrasion
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