Author: William Conrad

William Conrad joined the U.S. Army in 1962 and became a criminal investigator in 1969. As a Criminal Investigation Command (CID) agent, he investigated felony offenses involving U.S. Army personnel and/or interests. Mr. Conrad was accepted into the firearms unit of U.S. Army CID crime laboratory where he completed a two-year resident course of instruction in firearm and toolmark identification and was certified by the Department of the Army as a firearm and toolmark examiner in January 1977. In this capacity, he worked on all aspects of firearm and toolmark examinations across all branches of the military. In addition, he was appointed as training officer for several students. In 1982, Mr. Conrad retired from the Army as a Chief Warrant Officer and began work with the Commonwealth of Virginia as a forensic scientist in firearm identification at the Western Regional Crime Laboratory. In 1994, he contracted with the Metropolitan Police Department, Washington, D.C., to design and implement a training program for firearm examiners. After training six examiners and four technicians, Mr. Conrad began work on the FBI's DRUGFIRE program as a subject matter expert. When the program ended, he went into private practice as a forensic consultant where he continues his work today.

Introduction

This module discusses some of the most common types of firearms that an examiner might receive as evidence. The techniques presented can be adapted to any firearm. New models, variations of old models, and new designs are constantly introduced to the firearms marketplace, requiring the firearm examiner to continue to research and study new products.

Many people are exposed to the misuse of firearms through personal experience and misunderstandings. The firearm examiner must overcome misconceptions, and understand and be able to explain the type of firearm, its capabilities and limitations, and how this information correlates with the facts of the case.

The firearm examiner must be able to do the following:

• Classify firearms
• Determine operability
• Explain the safety features of the firearm and their proper function

In addition, having an understanding of how a particular firearm functions allows the examiner to determine what type of identifiable microscopic marks may be present on submitted bullets and cartridge cases.

The quality assurance officer or appointed individual will do an administrative and technical review of the results of the examination and attest that the protocols have been adhered to throughout.

Objectives

At the conclusion of this module the student should be able to do the following:

• Explain the cycle of fire for manufactured firearms
• Describe the evidence documentation required prior to the examination
• Identify the type, caliber, action, and safety features of firearms through visual examination
• Know how to conduct a safety and functionality examination of a firearm before conducting test fires
• Describe how a firearm functions, including its capabilities and limitations
• Describe safety features of firearms and how they function or are determined to be nonfunctional
• Describe the methods of test firing a firearm including full automatic, single-action, and double-action type firearms
• Describe how to perform a drop test

AFTE Knowledge and Ability Factors

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