Bullet Ricochet: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

The urban environment provides many surfaces from which bullets or shotgun pellets may ricochet. Factors that determine whether a ricochet will occur include the nature of the target surface, the angle of incidence, the shape of the projectile, and its velocity. Investigators of shooting incidents in which ricochets may have played a role must pay attention to the nature of the wounds suffered by the shooting victims, the deformation of the bullets or shotgun pellets, the presence of trace evidence on the bullets or shotgun pellets, ricochet marks on surfaces at the scene and the probable geometry of ricochet.