musta been really good booze!

[canadian]

Woman didn't realize she'd been shot
X-ray reveals small-calibre bullet in chest
Feb. 13, 2006. 08:29 AM
JERED STUFFCO
STAFF REPORTER
The Toronto Star


A 22-year-old woman shot in the chest while dancing at an Oshawa nightclub didn't realize she had been wounded with a gun until the next day, police said.

The woman was on the dance floor at Motion nightclub at about 2:30 a.m. on Friday when she felt a sharp pain in her chest, police said. She went to a friend's home nearby, inspected the wound and thought it had been caused by a piece of broken glass.

When she found the wound still bleeding the next morning the woman, whose name hasn't been released, decided to go to the hospital. An X-ray revealed a small-calibre bullet was lodged in her chest.

"It would appear she was an innocent bystander," said Durham Regional Police Staff Sgt. Dave Morrissey, who added that the victim was still in hospital yesterday.

[santhere]

 

it's horrible of course but bloody funny!

[Walker]

That's insane! Maybe it's just as well she didn't know, would have likely cut into her drinking and dancing time.

[canadian]

I never knew that 'innocent bystander' actually meant 'ditzy blonde'. 

[doolols]

i wonder how small 'small calibre' is? Is there anything smaller than .22? Just under a quarter of an inch would still make a pretty big hole 

[SharonBell]

Well, gosh, she probably just thought her bra strap broke.  I mean, like, that can be pretty painful...

[Walker]

i wonder how small 'small calibre' is? Is there anything smaller than .22? Just under a quarter of an inch would still make a pretty big hole 

There's a .17 cal, but it's a wildcat, centerfire cartridge with a really high velocity (over 4K ft/sec). On humid days it leaves a vapour trail. If someone got hit by one of those it would make a huge mess. The bullet would explode on contact and fragment all through the victims body.
It would have likely been a .22 with a solid bullet, not a hollowpoint, because the velocity is usually only around 1.5K ft/sec, so it will enter the body without fragmenting and remain inside. Still pretty effective for killing, but not this time.
Most handguns have a higher calibre bullet too, often over 45 cal, with 9mm being likely the most common.

[Ed]

Actually, a .22 makes a very small hole in skin - a bit like being stabbed with a pencil.  A 9mm isn't a lot different, nor are any others, come to think of it (except wadcutters) - it's the exit wounds that are big.  Get hit with a high velocity round, like the old NATO standard 7.62mm and the impact is massive enough to rip your arm off.  A chest wound would show a pencil diameter sized entry wound, but the exit wound would be the size of a hand with outstretched fingers.

A standard .22 rimfire round consists 50 grain (weight) of lead, propelled by 1 grain (weight) of cordite (gunpowder), if memory serves.  If fired from a rifle, the bullet is accurate to around 200 yards max, but will travel for up to a mile.  We used to have to fire into a cylinder of plastercine (a bit like playdough) and then cut it in half to see the damage.  It's quite alarming to see - there's a small entry point, but once inside the plastercine, there's a clear shockwave created by the mushrooming of the bullet and the momentum being arrested.  It leaves a teardrop shaped hole about the size of a golfball, maybe a bit smaller, and stops roughly three inches in.  Plastercine is used because it's roughly the same density as human muscle, apparently.

Must have been a big girl not to feel it (or completely shitfaced... or both )

[doolols]

Hmmm.  There's some slightly alarming knowledge being displayed here 

Interesting, though.  Thanks - it'll come in useful, some time.