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# Gunshot residue and recovering projectiles

- Procedure

Gunshot residue and projectiles are fragile evidence: protect them, collect them early without damage and package them under chain of custody.

Updated Nov 13, 2026

## Key points

- Protect the body's hands with paper bags, not plastic, before moving it: plastic condenses moisture and damages the evidence.
- A positive result on the hands shows contact with residue; it does not prove who fired: residue transfers by contact, for example during arrest.
- A negative result does not rule out having fired: residue is lost through washing, activity and the passing hours.
- Recover the projectile with gloved fingers or soft-tipped instruments: metal forceps create marks that mislead the laboratory.
- Lead-free or heavy-metal-free ammunition changes the make-up of the residue, and the analysis has to be adapted.

## What it is

When a gun is fired, the primer and powder leave microscopic particles (gunshot residue) on the hands, face and clothing of the shooter and of people nearby. The reference method for identifying inorganic residue is scanning electron microscopy with microanalysis, which looks for spherical particles containing lead, barium and antimony. Residue is lost quickly through washing and activity, and it also transfers by contact. The projectile recovered from the body carries the barrel's marks and lets the laboratory link it to a weapon. Both are lost or altered by poor handling.

## What to document

- The exact site of each projectile and fragment in the body, and how it relates to the holes.
- The number of projectiles recovered against the number of entry wounds, to detect missing projectiles.
- The time the hand samples were taken and whether the body or person was handled, washed or moved beforehand.
- Who handled each item and when, in the chain of custody record.

## How it is done

- At the scene, before moving the body, cover each hand with a paper bag closed at the wrist.
- Sample the hands as early as possible with the laboratory's kit (adhesive stubs or swabs), before washing or fingerprinting.
- Remove the clothing without cutting through the holes, air-dry it and package each garment separately in paper.
- Take radiographs of the body before the autopsy to locate the projectile, its fragments and the jacket.
- Recover the projectile with gloved fingers or soft-tipped instruments; do not mark it on its side surface.
- Gently clean off biological material, let it dry and package it in a rigid padded container, without cotton wool in direct contact.
- Label each item with anatomical site, date, time and who recovered it, and start the chain of custody record.
- Send the projectile, fragments, clothing and hand samples to the firearms and chemistry laboratories.

## Next step: what to do and document

- In the emergency department, keep the injured person's clothing in paper bags and hand over any projectile removed in surgery under chain of custody.
- Record in the medical record the number and site of the projectiles removed and of those left inside.
- If you receive hand samples or projectiles at autopsy, document who handed them over and to whom, with date and time.
- Report gunshot injuries to the competent authority under the duty to report, and describe the findings without interpreting who fired.

## Common mistakes

- Using metal forceps to remove the projectile.
- Packaging wet clothing in plastic: it encourages mould and degrades the evidence.
- Taking fingerprints or washing the hands before sampling for residue.
- Reading a positive residue result as proof that the person fired.

## Test yourself

Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.

## Why are the body's hands covered with paper bags and not plastic ones?

Because plastic condenses moisture that alters the residue and other traces; paper lets the sample breathe.

## Does a positive gunshot residue result on the hands prove that the person fired?

No. It shows contact with residue, which can come by transfer, by being near the shot or by contact with contaminated people or objects.

## Why should metal forceps not be used to remove a projectile?

Because they create new marks on its surface that can be confused with the barrel marks the laboratory compares.

## Which particles does electron microscopy look for in classic gunshot residue?

Spherical particles containing lead, barium and antimony, which come from the primer.

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## Elsewhere in DurgiPedia

- [Mandatory reporting: public health, violence and abuse](https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/mandatory-reporting-public-health-violence-and-abuse/)

## Connections

## Related 6

- [Firearms and ammunition for the doctor](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/firearms-and-ammunition-for-the-doctor/)
- [Range of fire: contact, close and distant shots](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/range-of-fire-contact-close-and-distant-shots/)
- [Chain of custody (cadena de custodia) in the hospital or rural post](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/chain-of-custody-in-the-hospital-or-rural-post/)
- [Law 906 of 2004: evidence and chain of custody (arts. 254–266 and 275–277)](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/law-906-of-2004-evidence-and-chain-of-custody/)
- [Gunshot entry wound](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/gunshot-entry-wound/)
- [The death scene: inspección técnica a cadáver (levantamiento)](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/the-death-scene-inspeccion-tecnica-a-cadaver/)

## Related conditions 1

- [Penetrating trauma (stab and gunshot wounds)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/penetrating-trauma/)

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Educational content on forensic and legal medicine; not legal advice and no substitute for the technical guides of Colombia's National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences. Laws change: each page links the official text and says when it was last checked. For a real case, follow the guide in force and ask the competent authority.

Sources: [Interpol review of gunshot residue, 2022 to 2024](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13472029/) (Forensic Science International: Synergy, PubMed Central, 2026); [Gunshot Wound Patterns: A Narrative Review From a Forensic Medical Perspective](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12791185/) (Cureus, PubMed Central, 2026).

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License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/gunshot-residue-and-recovering-projectiles/