Medico-legal features of rifled weapons discharge fatalities in Rome (Italy) and analysis of the differences in internal bullet wound paths between suicide and homicide.

The article focuses on distinguishing suicide from homicide in firearm-related deaths through analysis of autopsy findings, particularly internal bullet wound paths, based on a retrospective study of 64 rifled weapon discharge fatalities from the University of Rome Tor Vergata. Suicides predominantly involved single, contact or near-contact shots to the right side of the head with consistent leftward, upward, and backward bullet trajectories, whereas homicides showed multiple shots with more variable wound locations and paths, including rightward, frontward, and downward trajectories. The study emphasizes that while certain bullet path patterns correlate with the manner of death, internal wound direction alone cannot definitively differentiate suicide from homicide without integrating circumstantial, ballistic, and autopsy evidence. Demographic and contextual differences were also noted, such as suicide victims being older, mostly male, found at home with the weapon present, and often having psychiatric histories, while homicide victims were younger, more frequently female, found in public or varied locations, and rarely had the weapon recovered at the scene. The authors recommend comprehensive data integration for accurate forensic conclusions and suggest further research to refine the forensic utility of bullet trajectory analysis.