bullet shells?

don't firearms leave unique markers on their bullets from the firing chamber/barrel?

from what i know from watching a crap load of CSI, the firing pin (i think) leaves a mark that is spacific to that gun. and they keep a database of pics of them. but thats CSI.

The firing pin of a gun will leave an impression on a bullet casing. If you have a spent bullet casing and a gun, you can make a reasonable argument that that particular bullet casing was used in that gun. A skilled forensics investigator would be able to tell by obtaining the gun, firing a bullet with that gun, and comparing the firing pin marks.

Also since the bullets have to be handled to be put into a clip or the chambers of a revolver, the smooth metal of the shell casing would provide a good surface for a partial fingerprint. Even with DNA and high-tech forensic science, fingerprints are still used to convict people.

yeah....what spike said.....also, the projectile (bullet) also would have markings that could be paired with the gun if the investigator had access and could fire a round from it.

if you're asking this for something you're working on, you should also know that the 'shell' you refered to should really be called a 'casing' or 'shell casing'

Spike just took the words right out of my mouth.

They do not have serial numbers at all. Just the actual firearm has those.

And even though they can trace the casing back to gun, I am pretty sure that most people get caught by loading their guns with their bare hands (not using gloves) and leaving their finger prints on the casing.

What particular kind of firearm are you wondering about anyway? Handgun, shotgun, rifle, or what? The kind of gun may make it easier or harder to trace the shell back to.

^ A handgun

And I figured finger prints were the way to go origionally(s-goddamn-p?!) But an important note, the bullet casing isn't used until several years after it is handled, so do finger prints deteriorate over a matter of time?

That's a good question. It seems like they would, but it probably depends on the environment in which they are kept. Things like humidity, direct sunlight, dampness....etc, would probably make a difference.

I'll look on the net and see what I can find.

[QUOTE=Ritt;1066325]^ A handgun

And I figured finger prints were the way to go origionally(s-goddamn-p?!) But an important note, the bullet casing isn't used until several years after it is handled, so do finger prints deteriorate over a matter of time?[/QUOTE]

I'm almost done reading Helter Skelter. In that book it says, "in 70 percent of the crimes investigated by LAPD's fingerprint men not a single readable print belonging to anyone is obtained."
"A print matching that of a defendant is obtained at only 3 percent of the crime scenes visited by LAPD. Therefore 97 percent of the time they don't find a matching print."

All it would take is too much dust or dirt or too much moisture. Or maybe somebody else touches it. Or the person loading the gun slides his fingers on it when it's sliding in the gun/magazine. Fingerprints are easy to hide and hard to find...

The barrels of fire arms have a spiral groove type surface on the inside that causes the bullet to spin, which makes it more accurate (this was one of the major innovations that made musket type rifles obsolete).

The pattern of the grooves are for the most part unique, like finger prints. The pattern imprints on the bullet through a process called "rifling" when it is fired. A recovered slug will sometimes bear enough of this "print" to be useful for forensics. By comparing the pattern on the recovered slug to those fired from a specific weapon (if the weapon in question is recovered) a match can be made.

A bit of trivia (that may or may not be useful):

There was a brief amount of hoopla over Teflon coated ammunition. They were made so that the bullet would have less friction leaving the barrel (making it faster and more accurate). Allegedly, the plastic coating prevented identification through rifling.

As was posted above, the firing pin will also leave a distinct mark, although this may be complicated by reloaded brass.

It is not unusual for gun enthusiasts to load weapons with handkerchiefs to prevent finger prints from transferring to casings. Cases have been solved through prints on casings.