Firearms, Tool Marks, and Impressions

Flashcards for reviewing key concepts from the lecture on firearms, tool marks, and impressions.

Firearms are divided into two categories: and .

Handguns and Long guns.

A single-shot pistol is a type of __ that can fire only one round at a time.

Handgun.

Revolvers feature several firing chambers within a __.

revolving cylinder.

Swing-out revolvers expose the chambers by __ the cylinder.

swinging out.

Solid frame revolvers load each chamber __ through a loading gate.

individually.

Semi-automatic pistols feature a __ magazine and fire one shot per trigger pull.

removable.

Shotguns fire ball-shaped projectiles called __.

shot.

Rifles have a barrel with __ and grooves.

lands.

Gun barrel markings are produced by __ which impresses spiral grooves inside the barrel.

rifling.

Striations are fine lines that form the __ characteristics of the barrel.

individual.

No two rifled barrels will have identical __ markings.

striation.

The act of pulling the trigger releases the firing pin and ignites the __.

powder.

The __ determines the distance from which a weapon was fired based on discharge residues.

distribution of gunpowder particles.

Contact with a target or less than 1 inch creates a star-shaped tear pattern known as __.

stellate.

Distance determination with shotguns estimates muzzle-to-target distance by measuring the spread of __.

discharged shot.

Gunshot residue includes testing for __ and antimony on a suspect's hands.

barium.

The process of restoring an obliterated serial number is known as __.

serial number restoration.

__ marks are caused by tools coming into contact with other objects.

Tool.

Class characteristics of tool marks refer to the __ and shape of the tool.

size.

Under no circumstances must a crime scene investigator attempt to fit the suspect tool into the __.

tool mark.

Impressions of shoes, tires, or fabric may be important __ in a case.

evidence.

A sufficient number of points of comparison will support the __ of the findings.

validity.