[Dangers of blank firearms--risk of injury and expert assessment]

Starters' pistols have a wounding potential which strongly depends on the shot range and the combination of weapon and ammunition. The detrimental effect consists of five aspects: gas pressure, particles, thermal effect, chemical irritation and shooting noise. Fatal injuries are caused by contact shots in the head, neck or chest. Shots from less than 5 cm distance can lead to loss of the eye. Particles work as small projectiles at distances of less than 50 cm and cause powder tattooing, concerning the eye however severe cornea injuries are possible. The thermal effect can be observed with shooting distances of up to 30 cm. The chemical irritation depends on the kind of irritant and the exposure of the victim. The acoustic trauma leads in some cases to irreversible lesions of the inner ear, depending on the distance and the position of the victim to the weapon. To provide evidence of shooting, the polyvinyl-alcohol method (PVAL), adhesive films and the examination of clothing are recommended. For the shot range, determination imaging procedures (microfocus X-ray, infrared optics etc.) and analytic methods like X-ray fluorescence (EDX) are used. A reconstruction of injury cases is performed with gelatine models (Fackler system) used in wound ballistics.