Fatal and non-fatal injuries caused by crossbows

Today in modern times, traumatic injuries caused by crossbows are a rarity. The largest collection of cases so far is presented in this study, consisting of four fatalities (two homicides and two suicides) and two non-fatal injuries (grievous bodily harm and an accident). All the victims were male having an age between 31 and 54. The weapons, which were used, were mainly high-performance precision crossbows with telescopic sights and hunting bolts. The parts of the body involved were the facial/head area in three of the cases and the thorax in three of them. There were either deep or total penetration injuries to the cranium and thorax with the bolt remaining in the wound in four out of six…