Estimation of the firing range is often critical for reconstructing gunshot fatalities, where the main measurable evidence is the gunshot residue aslo known as stippling and soot, which will be used throughout the study. In the present study, a diverse range of gunshot wounds with four different guns with their appropriate ammunition have been used to gain knowledge about the image and patterns of gunshot wounds depending on the weapon and the firing distance. There were a total of 21 target shootings, there are about 6 targets per weapon used each with varying tested distances (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 in.). By increasing the firing distance away from targets, targets demonstrated a clear decrease of soot pattern (the black powder left by the firing)  and increase of stippling (gunshot residue- burnt gunpowder) diameter. Further analysis showed a linear relationship between the diameter of stippling and the firing range. The amount of soot and stippling was highly dependent upon the gun and ammunition used. The results allowed a basis for estimating the firing range in diverse gunshot wounds, helping to determine the manner of death between suicide or homicide. The reason that the research has to be re-done various times, due to law and individual cases, but the research sets a starting point to where the detectives can initiate study.

Preventing a child from accessing a self-defense weapon in the parents closet when home alone is difficult if the parent does not even know that the child has tried to acquire it. Designing a home monitoring system that can alert parents when children access restricted areas around the home even when they are away from the home could help prevent the child from harming himself or others. To achieve this goal, an Internet connected microcontroller and sensors were used in congruence to detect the presence of a child in a restricted room. The system consists of an Arduino microcontroller connected to a PIR(passive infrared) sensor that could detect when there was motion. Using an internet connection, the microcontroller can send a twitter post to a dedicated twitter account. The twitter account can be linked to a smart phone and alert parents even when they are not around the house. A smart phone could be configured to automatically retrieve the post within minutes of the child’s breaching into the restricted area, notifying parents of the breach.  A system like this would be a great way to monitor a child’s activities at home and help parents control what their child is doing.