Real Time and In Situ Measurement of Rifling Angles with a Hand-Held Digital Device: A Technical Implication to the JFK Assassination Case

Forensic Studies Program, School of Criminology, Criminal Justice, and Emergency Management, California State UniversityLong Beach

Corresponding Author: John Zheng Wang, Forensic Studies Program, School of Criminology, Criminal Justice, and Emergency Management, California State University-Long Beach, Tel: 562-985-4741; E-Mail: [email protected]

Received Date:   26 Sep 2018  
Accepted Date:   08 Oct 2018  
Published Date: 1 1 Oct 2018

Copyright © 2018 Wang JZ

Citation: Wang JZ. (2018). Real Time and In-Situ Measurement of Rifling Angles with a Hand-Held Digital Device: A Technical Implication to the J.F.K. Assassination Case. Mathews J Foren. 1(1): 005.

ABSTRACT

November 22, 2018, marks the 55th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, one of the most traumatic murders in U.S. history. Two official investigations were conducted by the Warren Commission's Report in 1964 and the House Select Committee on Assassinations' Report in 1979. Several scientific studies have also been conducted to find the truth about the murder. However, none of the studies has focused on the rifling angle comparison between the alleged murder weapon (CE 139) and the nearly intact bullet (CE 399). Although the bullet was the only useable physical evidence found on Governor Connally's stretcher, the bullet and the rifle have not been used in any forensic examinations, mainly because these two pieces of evidence are the protected items under the National Archives. Via a quasi-experimental test, this study introduces a new hand-held device that can measure and compare the rifling angles inside a gun barrel and on the surface of a bullet. This device provides unique examination features: real-time image, digital measurement, and in situ measuring position, thus non-destructive, non-contact, and quantifiable. The testing results indicate that the rifling angle comparison may suggest a new examination direction to determine if the CE 399 was actually fired by the CE 139.

KEYWORDS

J.F.K. Assassination; Firearms Examination; Rifling; Rifling Angle; Lands and Grooves; Bullet-Weapon Correlation; Rifling Twist; Rifling Pitch; Quantitative Forensics.