Experimental study to determine angle of fire on selected solid targets by 9mm semi-automatic pistol

Abstract

Crimes involving the use of firearms represent a significant area of forensic investigation. In legal proceedings of criminal events that involve the use of firearms and ammunitions, the expert forensic officer should be able to produce crucial information to the court. The existence of bullet holes is a significant aspect in crime scene reconstruction. It is a terminal ballistics study using various solid targets. The study is aimed to conduct an experimental firing study by using 9 mm pistol fired on selected solid targets viz. plywood, ceramic tiles, glass plate, aluminium metal sheet and PVC sheet and examined the damaged characteristics. The range of firing was fixed as 10m in all shooting exercises. The shooting exercise was conducted at Sungai Buloh shooting range by trained firearms experts, Polis Di Raja Malaysia, Bukit Aman. Kuala Lumpur. The result of the investigation showed that the angle of impact is below 90 degree in all the targets.