FORENSIC

BALLISTICS
WHAT IS BALLISTICS?
 Broadest sense– The term “ballistics” is defined
as the science of motion of
projectiles.“Science” refers to the systematized
body of knowledge; “motion” refers to
movement or mobility; and “projectiles” refer to
metallic or non- metallic object propelled from
firearm.
 Narrowest sense – The term “ballistics” refers to
the “science of firearms identification”which
involves the scientific examination of ballistics
exhibits – fired bullets, fired shells, firearms, and
allied matters used in crimes.
ORIGIN OF BALLISTICS

 Ballistics is derived from the Greek word

“ballo” or “ballen” which literally means “to
throw”.
 Its root was also said to have derived from the
name of an early Roman war machine called the
“ballista”–a gigantic bow or catapult which was
used to hurl missiles or large objects such as
stones at a particular distance to deter animals or
enemy forces.
 WHAT IS FORENSIC
 The word “Forensic” as applied to ballistics, or to any
other subject, suggests a relationship to courts of justice
and legal proceedings and the term was derived from the
Latin word “forum” meaning marketplace, where people
gather for “public disputation” or “public discussion”.
Thus the title “Forensic Ballistics”aptly describes the
subject under consideration – the science of investigation
and identification of firearms and ammunitions used in
crimes.
 The terms “Ballistics”, “Forensic Ballistics” and
“Firearms Identification”, have come to mean one and
the same thing in the minds of the public, and they can be
used interchangeably.
BRANCHES OF FORENSIC BALLISTICS
 Interior (internal) Ballistics– refers to the properties and
attributes of the projectile (bullet) while still inside the gun.
These include the following:
 Firing pin hitting the primer
 Ignition of the priming mixture
 Combustion of the gun powder
 Expansion of the heated gas
 Pressure developed
 Energy generated
 Recoil of the gun
 Velocity of the bullet in the barrel
 Rotation of the bullet in the barrel
 Engravings of the cylindrical surface of bullet
EXTERIOR (EXTERNAL) BALLISTICS
 Exterior (external) Ballistics – refers to the attributes and
movement of the bullet after it has left the muzzle of the
gun:
 Muzzle blast - the noise created at muzzle point of the gun
due to the sudden escape of the expanding gas coming in
contact with the air in the surrounding atmosphere at the
muzzle point
 Muzzle energy – energy generated at the muzzle point
 Trajectory – the actual curve path of the bullet during its
flight from the gun muzzle to the target
 Range – the straight distance between muzzle and target
 Accurate

 Maximum
 Velocity – rate of speed of bullet per unit of time
 Air resistance – resistance encounter by the bullet while in
flight
 Pull of gravity – downward reaction of the bullet toward the
earth due to its weight
 Penetration – dept of entry on the target
TERMINAL BALLISTICS
 Terminal Ballistics – refers to the effects of the impact of
the projectile on the target:
 Terminal accuracy – size of the bullet grouping on the target
 Terminal energy – energy of projectile when it strikes the
target
 Terminal velocity – speed of the bullet upon striking the
target
 Terminal penetration – depth of entry of the bullet in the
target
FORENSIC BALLISTICS
 Forensic ballistics – refers to the investigation and
identification of firearms by means of ammunitions fired
through them. This is the real branch of the science
which the police use as their guide in field investigation.
 Field investigation – this is conducted by the police
investigator
 Recognition

 Collection

 Markings

 Preservation

 Transmittal of evidence to Crime Laboratory

 Technical examination – this job perform by the firearm
examiners in the laboratory
 Marking of evidence

 Test firing of firearms to obtain bullet and test shell for

comparison purposes
 Photomicrography under the bullet comparison microscope

 Preparation of comparative charts

 Making of reports on the finding and observation of the

firearms examiner
Legal proceedings (court trial) – wherein the ballistics report
of the firearm examiner and the ballistics exhibits , fire
bullet, fired shell, firearms and allied matters are presented
during the trial of the case in the court of justice
ORIGIN OF FIRE ARMS
 The development of fire arms followed the invention of
gunpowder in WESTERN EUROPE early in the 13th
century
 Followed by the invention of gunpowder by Berthold
Schwartz and Roger Bacon a German Monk and English
Monk
 One of the earliest recorded used of firearms in warfare
was an attack in Seville, Spain in 1247
 1346 – cannon was used by King Edward of England

 1453 – Mohammaed II of turkey used cannon in his

famous conquest of Constantinople
 The first firearms were inefficient, large and heavy,
making it difficult for common soldier to carry
 The development of cannons proceeded to invention of
small arm weapon
 The first example of small arm appear in 1350
STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT OF MANS
WEAPON
 Stone

 Clubs
 Knives

 Spears and darts

 Slingshot

 Bows and arrows

 Cross – Bows

 Guns
 Missiles
DEFINITION OF FIREARMS
 Legal definition – found in section 877 of Revised
Administrative Code as well as Section 290 of our
National Internal revenue Code.
 Sec 877 “FIREARMS”OR”ARMS” – as herein, used
includes rifles, muskets, carbines, shotguns, pistols, revolvers
and all deadly weapons from which bullets, balls, or other
missiles maybe discharged by means of gunpowder or other
explosives. This term also includes air rifle except such as
being of small caliber and limited range used as toys. The
barrel of any firearm shall be considered a complete firearm
for all purposes.
 Technical definition – a firearm is an instrument used for
propulsion of projectiles by means of expansive force of
gases coming from burning gunpowder.
CLASSIFICATION OF FIREARMS
 According to the Gun Barrel, Internal Construction
 Smooth – Bore firearms - no riflings (land and groves)

 Rifled bore firearms – have riflings (land and groves)

 According to the caliber of projectiles propelled
 Artillery – firearms that propelled projectiles more than one
inch in diameter

 Small arms – propelled projectiles less than one inch in

diameter and operate by one person
 According to mechanical construction
 Single shot fire arms – one shot every loading

 Repeating arms – several shots in one loading

 Bolt action type – reloading is done by manipulation of the
bolt

 Automatic loading type – after the first shot is fired,

automatic loading or feeding of the chamber takes place
 Lever type – loading takes place by lever action on the
firearm
TYPES OF FIREARMS ACCORDING TO
USE
Military fire arm Pocket and home defence firearms

 Pistols  Pistols
 Revolvers  Revolvers
 Rifles  Rifles
 Machine gun  Shotgun
Target and outdoor Mens firearms Unusual or miscellaneous type

 Pistols  Paltik pistols

 Revolvers  Paltik revolvers
 rifles  Paltik rifles
 Paltik shotguns
KINDS OF FIREARMS
Machine Gun Shoulder arms

 Means any weapon which  Rifle – operated from

shoots or design to shoot shoulder, fire only a
automatically or semi single shot
automatically more than
one shoot without manual
reloading.
 Musket - Ancient smote bore and  Carbine – a short barrel
muzzle loading military shoulder
arm designed to fire single round rifle, measuring not
lead ball. longer 22 inches, fires
single projectile

 Shotgun – a smoth bore and

breech loading shoulder arm
designed to fire lead pellets
 HAND ARMS
Pistol
Revolver

A hand firearm equipped  Short barrel hand arm

with a rotating cylinder, designed to fire a single
serving as magazine, projectile through a riffle
successively places a – bore for every press of
cartridge into position for the trigger, usually
firing semiautomatic loading
AMMUNITION
 The Legal Definition of the word “Ammunition” may be
found in Chapter VII, Sec. 290 of the National Revenue
Code as well as in Sec. 877 of the Revised
Administrative Code.
 It refers to ammunition as a “loaded shell” for rifles,
muskets, carbines, shotguns, revolver, and pistols from
which a ball bullet shot, shell or other explosive.
 Technically speaking, the term ammunition refers to a
group of cartridges or single cartridge – meaning
complete unfired unit consisting of bullet, cartridge case,
gunpowder and primer
ORIGIN OF AMMUNITION/CARTRIDGE
 The term “cartridge” evolved from about the turn of
sixteenth century
 Defined as “a case, capsule, shell, or bag of metal,
pasteboard, or the like, containing the explosive charge
and in small arms and some cannon, the projectile to be
fired
 It is Derived from word “charta”, the Latin word for
paper.
 In French word “cartouche” meaning a roll of paper,
which indicates that the original cartridges were not the
brass gliding-metal tipped units which we are familiar
with today
PARTS OF CARTRIDGE
 Bullet - the Projectile propelled  Cartridge Case - the tubular
through the barrel of a firearm metallic container for the
by means of expansive force of Gunpowder. Sometimes called
gases coming from burning “shell” or “Casing”
gunpowder.
 Gunpowder - the powder  Primer - the metal cup
Charge which, when ignited by containing the highly sensitive
the primer flash, is converted to priming mixture of chemical
heated gas under high compound, which when hit or
pressure and propels the bullet struck by a firing pin would
or shots charge through the ignite. Such action called
barrel and the target . “Percussion”
Sometimes called “Propellant”
or “powder charge”
CLASSIFICATION OF CARTRIDGE
 According to type of  According to location of
firearms primers
 Revolver cartridge  Pin fire cartridge -
 Pistol cartridge
 Rifle cartridge
 Shotgun cartridge
 Rim fire cartridge
 Center – fire cartridge
SHOTGUN CARTRIDGE
BULLETS
 A bullet is a METALLIC  The term may also
or NON-METALLIC, include projectile
CYLINDRICAL propelled from shotguns
projectile propelled from although strictly speaking
a firearm by means of the these projectiles designed
EXPANSIVE FORCE of for shotgun are called
gases coming from “shot”, “slug” or “pellets”
burning gunpowder.
CLASSIFICATION OF BULLETS
 According to mechanical  Jacketed bullets – lead
construction covered bay jacket harder
 Lead
material such as gilding
bullets – made of
metal
lead or alloys
ACCORDING TO SHAPE
 Wad type
 Round nose

 Pointed nose  Semi-wad type

RIFLE BULLETS  Tracer bullet - contain a
 Ball compound at the base
bullets – soft lead
when the bullet is
cores inside a jacket
projected the flight of the
bullet can seen
because of the flash of
smoke from burning
permits

 Armor piercing –
hardened core fired in
vehicle and other armored
targets
 Incendiary bullet –  Explosive (fragmentary)
contain a mixture that can bullets
be set on fire by impact
CARTRIDGE CASES
 It is a tubular metallic or non – metallic container which
holds the bullet, gunpowder and primer
FUNCTION OF CARTRIDGE CASE
 It holds the bullet, gunpowder and primer assembled into
one unit
 It serve waterproof container for gunpowder

 It prevents the escape of gases to the rear as the

sidewalls of the cartridge case are forced against the wall
of the chamber by pressure
PARTS OF THE CARTRIDGE
CLASSIFICATION OF CARTRIDGE CASE
 Case shape
 Straight bottleneck

 Tapered
 Head forms
 Rimmed – diameter of base bigger than the body use in
revolvers – cal. 30, .32, .38 and .357
 Semi- rimmed – automatic pistols and machine gun like UZI,
super .38 and 9mm
 Rimless – the diameter of base same as the body use in cal.
45, cal. 45 thompson
 PRIMER
Definition Origin

 Is  Alexander John Forsyth –

that portion of the
cartridge which consists the first conceive the idea
of a brass or gilding metal of using detonating
cup. compounds for igniting
 The cup contains a highly powder charge.
 The first priming mixture
sensitive mixture of
chemical compound was composed of
which when struck by the potassium chlorate,
firing pin would detonate charcoal and sulphur in
or ignite, called powder form.
“percussion”
PARTS OF PRIMER
 Primer cup – the container of the priming mixture
 Priming mixture – highly sensitive chemical mixture
contained in primer cup
 Anvil – the portion of the primer against which the
priming mixture is crushed by blow from firing pin
 Disc – piece of small paper or disk of tin foil which
pressed over priming mixture
COMPOSITION OF PRIMING MIXTURE

 Potassium chloride (initiator & fuel) --- 45%

 Antimony sulphide (elements of fuel)---23%

 Fulminate of mercury (initiator)----------35%

GUNPOWDER
 The gunpowder or power charge in a cartridge is the
propellant which, when ignited by the primer flash, is
converted to gas under high pressure and propelled the
bullet or shot charge through the barrel and to the target
ORIGIN
o Gunpowder is Originated from China
o Gunpowder invented in 9th Century and appeared
in 11th Century
o gunpowder weapons began appearing in
the Muslim world, Europe, and India

o gunpowder appear in texts written by English

philosopher Roger Bacon in the 13th century
o 14th century Bertold Schwartz
CLASSIFICATION OF GUNPOWDER
Black powder Smoke less powder

 Oldest of the propellant  Name given to a number

 Consist of irregular grain of propellants used
in firearms and artillery.
 When fired produced
large volumes of grayish
 Produce negligible smoke
when fired.
smoke
  Unlike Black powder which
they replaced.
COMPOSITION OF GUNPOWDER
Black powder Smokeless powder

 Potassium nitrate 75%  68% insoluble

 Sulphur – 10% nitrocellulose
 29.8 soluble nitrocellulose
 Charcoal – 15 %
 2% paraffin