• Energy Research

Blunt force injuries are produced by a variety of objects, including hands and feet (which is human strength) and many different weapons. Some of these objects produce distinctive patterns of injury of potential evidentiary value. This article presents a series of 53 homicides by blunt trauma along the period from 1982 to 2012, representing 16% of all homicides treated by the University Institute of Forensic Medicine in Brescia (northern Italy). Fifty-seven percent (30 cases) of the victims were male. The mean age of the victims was 47.9 years. The weapon most frequently involved was human strength. Not surprisingly, head trauma was the most common cause of death (66%). Forty-seven percent (25 cases) of the victims survived their assaults for varying periods. Homicides due to blunt trauma are still a relevant challenge for the forensic pathologist, who must obtain a complete and accurate history of the crime (including details regarding the crime scene), interpret patterns of injury and other findings at autopsy, and correlate all of the findings to make an accurate ruling of the cause and manner of death.

This retrospective study analyses post-mortem examination data of 251 homicide victims recorded by the Brescia Institute of Forensic Medicine between the years 1982 and 2012. The following variables were considered: year, month and day of death; gender, age and nationality of the victim; type of injurious mean; cause of death; homicide-suicides events; multiple murders; scene of death; toxicological data. Victims were usually young (30% was in the 21-30 years class) and males (64%). Although the victims were mostly Italians (73%), from 1990's more and more foreign victims appeared, following the migratory flow that affected Brescia County. The offenders frequently used firearms to kill their victims (41%), in particular for multiple murders. Sharp instruments were used mostly by foreigners. The study also emphasized 20 homicide-suicide events, mostly committed between intimates and family members.