Shotgun wounds
- Finding
A shotgun fires many pellets: close up they make one large hole and, as the range grows, many small scattered holes.
What it is
The shotgun is a smooth-bore weapon that usually fires a load of pellets together with a separating wad. At very close range the load enters as one mass and makes a single large hole, sometimes with powder residue and the wad inside the wound. As the range increases, the pellets separate: satellite holes appear around the central hole and, further away, only a scatter of small holes remains. The spread depends on the weapon, the choke of the barrel and the cartridge, so range can only be estimated by test-firing the same weapon with the same ammunition.
How to tell it apart
- Versus several shots from a rifled weapon: pellets are spherical, numerous and the same size on the radiograph.
- Versus an exit wound: shotguns firing pellets rarely produce exit holes, except in close shots through thin body parts.
- Versus a distant shot with a shotgun slug: a slug does not spread and can look like a rifled-weapon wound.
- A choke or barrel extension reduces the spread: at the same range the pattern can be tighter.
How to recognise it
- Central hole: single and large in close shots, with edges that become scalloped as the spread begins.
- Satellite holes: small and round around the central one; their number grows with range.
- Spread area: the diameter of the zone with pellets is measured on two axes and photographed with a scale.
- Wad or remains of the plastic shot cup inside the wound or in the clothing, in close shots.
- On the radiograph: multiple pellets spread along the track and around it.
How it forms
- On leaving the barrel the pellet load travels together and opens into a cone because of air resistance.
- Each pellet loses velocity quickly, so at range it penetrates little.
- At close range the total mass of pellets gives up a great deal of energy and causes major local destruction.
Shotgun wound by range (a guide; it depends on the weapon and the cartridge)
| Range | What is usually seen |
|---|---|
| Contact | Single hole, muzzle imprint, residues inside, wad in the wound |
| Close | Single hole with clean edges, soot and tattooing around it |
| Intermediate | Scalloped central hole and satellite holes; little or no tattooing |
| Distant | Only small scattered holes, no central hole; superficial wounds |
Next step: what to do and document
- Measure the central hole and the spread area on two axes and photograph them with a scale before any cleaning.
- Request radiographs of the whole segment or the whole body to count and locate pellets and wads.
- Recover a representative sample of pellets and every wad or shot cup, without metal forceps, under chain of custody.
- Keep the clothing dry in paper: it holds residues, pellets and the spread pattern.
- Leave the range estimate to the firearms laboratory, which test-fires the weapon and cartridge from the case.
Common mistakes
- Calculating range from a formula on the spread diameter alone: none is reliable without test firing.
- Not looking for or keeping the wad: it is evidence of the cartridge type and the range.
- Reading a single pellet discharge as several shots.
- Not taking radiographs: pellets, wads and fragments the laboratory needs are lost.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
What does a shotgun wound fired at contact look like?
A single large hole, sometimes with a muzzle imprint, powder residue inside and the wad in the wound.
What do satellite holes around a central hole indicate?
That the pellets had begun to separate: the shot was not at contact but at close or intermediate range.
Why is a formula not enough to estimate the range of a shotgun discharge?
Because the spread depends on the weapon, the choke of the barrel and the cartridge; the same weapon must be test-fired with the same ammunition.
What is the value of a wad found in the wound?
It points to the cartridge type and suggests a close shot; it must be recovered and packaged under chain of custody.
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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: Gunshot Wound Patterns: A Narrative Review From a Forensic Medical Perspective (Cureus, PubMed Central, 2026); The effect of shotgun barrel extension chokes on pellet dispersion and shooting distance determinations (International Journal of Legal Medicine, PubMed Central, 2026).
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