Professional paper

https://doi.org/10.46419/vs.51.2.11

Forensic pathology in determing animal abuse – killing animals with firearms

Željko Mihaljević ; Croatian Veterinary Institute, Zagreb, Croatia;
Šimun Naletilić ; Croatian Veterinary Institute, Zagreb, Croatia;

Abstract

Animal abuse has always been considered a crime, and is an important indicator of the criminal potential of a person. A veterinary pathologist is an important link in proving the crime of animal death by firearm in court proceedings. At the Croatian Veterinary Institute, killed horses and dogs are most frequently evaluated forensically. Each case is highly complex, with numerous processing steps. In conjunction with the State Attorney’s Office, the task of the veterinary pathologist is to clearly and unambiguously describe what happened to the animal victim. Material evidence such as: pathologist’s report, projectile, photographs, gunpowder particles on fur, insect larvae and other traces play a crucial role in the judicial process. This paper integrates our experiences with forensic judgments of animal abuse by death by firearm and attempts to logically create an overview of the way pathologist consider and gather evidence in those cases.

Keywords

veterinary forensic; animal abuse; firearms

Hrčak ID:

236164

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/236164

Publication date:

25.3.2020.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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