Planned Complex Occupation-related Suicide by Captive-bolt Gunshot and Hanging*

Abstract

Planned complex suicides are committed by using two or more previously planned methods simultaneously to make sure that death will occur even if one method fails. Herein, we presented a case of occupation-related planned complex suicide, committed by captive-bolt gunshot and hanging. A 29-year-old man, who worked as a butcher, was found dead in the stable, hanging by the neck with a captive-bolt gun embedded in the forehead region of his head. The hanging was complete. Along the bolt canal were bone fragments, and at the end of the path was the punched-out fragment of the skin and soft tissue. There were no fractures of the hyoid bone and laryngeal cartilages, and a superficial hemorrhage was present in the right sternocleidomastoid muscle. Our case underlines the utility of forensic autopsy and death scene investigation in reconstructing the mechanism of death, as well as the dynamics of the event.

The punched-out tissue complex (skin-bone ”imprimatum“) in shots from captive-bolt guns: does it act as a secondary projectile?

“…In some suicides, apart from the slaughterer's gun, another suicide method such as hanging is applied [18,23,29,31,32,35,37,38,40,46,51,59,62]. Exceptionally, even shots to the neurocranium need not cause immediate unconsciousness so Fig.…”

Injuries and vital reactions patterns in hanging

“…Че сто се ком би ну је и са дру гим на чи ни ма из вр ше ња са мо у би ства, ка да су у пи та њу или тзв. пла ни ра на ком плек сна са мо у би ства, где осо ба уна пред ис пла ни ра и упо тре би исто вре ме но нај ма ње два на чи на за из врше ње са мо уб ства, ка ко би смрт ни ис ход био си гу ран [9,10,11], или тзв. не пла ни ра на ком плек сна са мо уби ства -по што је пр ви на чин из вр ше ња са мо у би ства био не у спе шан, од мах се на ли цу ме ста осми шља ва и при ме њу је дру ги, сле де ћи, ко ји бу де успе шан, а то је обич но ве ша ње [9,12,13,14].…”

Mechanical asphyxia by hanging and gunshot to the head: A series of rare planned complex suicides

“…4,7,[15][16][17][18] In particular, the combination of hanging and gunshot is considered particularly rare 4,19 with only a few such cases reported. In these cases, hanging resulting in mechanical asphyxia was followed by gunshot using different weapons, such as a black powder derringer and, in one case, a manipulated bullet, 6 a captive bolt gun, 20 a muzzle-loading pistol, 21 and a pen gun. 22 There is only one case reported in the literature where a man who shot himself twice (to the chest and abdomen) subsequently hanged himself in the upper floor of his home.…”