The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-12-28
(Raltimore American.O

The important part played in many
murder trials by a fiattened and mis-
shapen bit Of lead or steel. once in the
form of a bullet, often leads 10 the de-
velOpment of some curious facts Just
such a fact as this was adduced at the
recent murder trial of Charles P. link,
before Judge Dobler and jury in the
criminal court, part two, when the man
was found guilty OF murder in the sec
ond degree through the killing Of his
child-wife. Emma May link, at her
home on Hopkins avenue on April Il,
1902.
Dr.. Nathaniel G. KeirIe, city post
norton examiner for Baltimore for
more than twenty years, who has per
formed autopsies upon more than z,O0O
bodies, many of them murder cases.
made a short statement upon the stand
in testifying as to the nature of the
wound that caused the death Of the
young wife that might have raised a
vital question in many trials. States
Attorney McLane asked the surgeon
whether the death injury was caused
by such a pistol as recovered by the
police, a .32-caliber affair, and, al
though the witness held IN his hand
the bullet recovered from the head of
the victim, he said; 1T might have"
In explanation of this vague answer.
Dr. Keirle said the bullet had appar-
in passing through the woInan's skull
and through the brain. In other words,
bullet Of a .3S-ealiber pattern might
possibly assume the apparent proper
tons OF a .32-caliber ball in the very
act of infiicting the death injury. In
the case in question the ball pene-
trated TO the opposite skull wall, crack
ing the bone. and was further dis
torted and mashed out Of original
shape OF this forceful contact
Where the bullet is lost by complete
penetration of the head or body, and
where there are elements of doubt as
to whether a rife, pistol or other
weapon Of a certain size was used,
some interesting questions arise. II
the body is decOmpoSed it is extremely
difficult to base any conclusions on the
size of the bullet BY the appearance of
the wound itself This is rendered
doubly difficult because the edges of the
wound decompose more rapidly than
the remainder of the body. and in case
OF bioating the wound is not apt to
maintain its original size. This IS more
noticeable in summer than in winter,
and especially when the body is not
embalmed-
Then the metal of the bullet must be
taken into consideration. A steel bui-
let, or a steel iacketed bullet, as some
/ times fired from a rife, is more apt
/ 70 pass entirely through the body at q
certain range than is the lead bullet
The thoroughly lead bullet. or the soft
nosed bullet, steel projectile with q
lead head. spreads at the tip, or. tech
nieaIIy speaking. mushrooms, on con-
tact with an object. It, therefore
makes larger would of ir~ress thar
/ the steel affair. and much larger
| wound OF ezress.
Blackened edges OF wounds are more
/ likely to have been caused by a LEAD
eullet. although the ball with a lea6
/ tip could also produce this result. Re
! garding powder stains, smokeless o.
otherwise, nothing OF great value IS [,
be gained when the shooting occurs a
a distance greater than twelve or fif
teen feet. At the trial referred TO. Dr.
Keirle stated that from powder mark
on the face he judged that the sho
had been fred at distance of no
more than three feet. which conclusion
was later backed up by the assertion
made on the stand By the prisoner him
self
The velocity OF the bullet may affec