Fatal injury by air gun: a case report

Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences

article

Dumenčić, Boris¹  Rajc, Jasmina¹  Pavoković, Deni¹  Damjanović, Tena¹ 

[1]Faculty of Medicine Osijek, University of Osijek

[2]Clinical Department of Pathology and Forensic Medicine, Osijek University Hospital

关键词: Accidents;    Death;    Weapons;    Wounds and injuries;    Wounds;    Gunshot;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s41935-020-00182-7

学科分类：心脏病和心血管学

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

The popularity of air weapons is increasing. They are often viewed as toys, rather than potentially lethal weapons. Regulations on purchase and ownership of air weapons differ from country to country. The majority of fatal and non-fatal air gun accidents involve children less than 16 years of age. In this report, we present a fatal case resulting from an accident involving an air gun. An accident happened between two brothers aged 9 and 7 and was initially considered to be a traumatic wound inflicted by falling on a scooter handle. Upon the arrival of an experienced police inspector, the cause of child’s death was called into question and it was discovered that unlicensed, loaded air gun was left unattended in a backyard shed. It was later established that the cause of death was a fatal gunshot wound to the chest and a pointed lead pellet was found in the boy’s liver. The public and governments should be advised that air guns can be dangerous weapons which may cause serious injuries and even death. We believe that air guns should be regulated by the same laws that apply to firearms.

【 授权许可】

CC BY