Gunshot wound trajectory analysis using forensic animation to establish relative positions of shooter and victim

- Bullet trajectory analysis is necessary to determine the relative position of the shooter and victim.
- Forensic animation is a key tool in cases with conflicting witness testimony to establish the most probable scenario.
- An immediately incapacitating gunshot wound informed the sequence of gunshots and the positions of the shooter and victim.

Forensic pathologists who autopsy the victims of gun violence are often called upon to answer questions in both criminal and civil proceedings about the relative position of the shooter and the victim. In this case report of an officer-involved shooting incident, the statement of the police officer appeared to be in direct contradiction to the statements of other eyewitnesses, the evidence at the scene, and the final resting position of the decedent's body. Trajectory analysis of two gunshot wound pathways (only one of which was instantaneously incapacitating) was performed to assess the veracity of the officer's statement and forensic animation was used to create a court exhibit. A discussion of the current peer-reviewed literature is included.