The Mission statement of the South African Police Service (SAPS) is to:
- Prevent and combat anything that may threaten the safety and security of any community
- Investigate any crimes that threaten the safety and security of any community
- Ensure offenders are brought to justice
- Participate in efforts to address the causes of crime
During the performance of these duties, officers may encounter lethal force. One such incident involved an officer who was shot through the back and abdomen during a recent shoot out between police officials and a group of suspects attempting to rob a local store. The injured policeman was initially dragged out of the line of fire by his fellow officers, and was still able to return fire after sustaining a gunshot wound.
The officer was rushed to a local provincial hospital by paramedics, and once stabilized moved to Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital ER for further assessment and surgical intervention, initially assessed by the ER doctors, then moved to the ICU. Further examination of the patients injuries relieved a gunshot wound tracking through the lumbar vertebra at the level of L4, and exiting through the anterior abdomen, rustling in the following injuries: paraplegia; damage to the right kidney and a perforated colon.
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A loaded bullet or round consists of the following components:
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The workings of a bullet:
When the trigger of a gun is pulled, a spring mechanism hammers a metal firing pin into the back end of the bullet, in turn igniting the small explosive charge in the primer. The primer then ignites the propellant (gun powder) - the main explosive that occupies about two thirds of a typical bullet's volume. The resulting explosion is directed out of the barrel, and as a result the bullet is fired in this direction at speeds of up to 1250 feet/second.
- Handbook of Firearms and Ballistics. Examining and Interpreting Forensic Evidence. Brian Blackwell. 2nd Edition;2008
The force behind the destruction
Significant injury and death result from the placement and projectile path of the bullet. The head and torso are the most vulnerable areas, and the extent of tissue and organ trauma will depend on terminal ballistics, which are influenced by the type of bullet, its velocity and mass as well as the physical characteristics of the penetrated tissue.
As the projectile transverses through the tissue of the body, it crushes structures along its track, similar in pattern to penetrating injury. A temporary supercavitation bubble results in shearing and compression, and sometimes is capable of tearing solid abdominal structures or stretching inelastic tissue (as seen in blunt trauma). As the tissue recoils and the hot gases dissipate, the soft tissue collapses inward, leaving a permanent wound cavity along the track of the bullet's path.
Additionally, the deceleration of the bullet and the associated transfer of kinetic injury (resulting in injury) may cause damage outside the injury tract. The efficiency of the kinetic energy transfer may be affected by:
- The projectile's fragmentation and deformation (resulting in an increase in surface area)
- The entrance profile and the path traveled through the body
- The inherent biological characteristics of the affected tissue
Maiden N; Ballistics reviews: mechanisms of bullet wound trauma. Forensic Sci Med Pathol. 2009;5(3):204-9. Epub 2009 Jul 31.
Swift B, Rutty GN: The exploding bullet. J Clin Pathol. 2004 Jan;57(1):108.
Swift B, Rutty GN: The exploding bullet. J Clin Pathol. 2004 Jan;57(1):108.
An Injury and Prevention Awareness Project brought to you by Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital Trauma & Emergency Centre.