In a gunshot wound from intermediate range (15–60 cm), the zone of 'tattooing' (pseudo-tattooing) on the skin differs from 'blackening' or 'fouling' in that:

• A Tattooing is due to soot deposition and can be washed off; blackening is unburnt powder embedded in skin and cannot be washed off
• B Tattooing is due to unburnt/partially burnt powder grains embedding in the dermis and cannot be washed off; blackening/fouling is superficial soot that can be wiped off ✓
• C Tattooing and blackening are both due to soot; their only difference is distance — tattooing at closer range, blackening at further range
• D Tattooing results from lead particulate deposited by the bullet ricochet; blackening comes from primer flash

Explanation

Tattooing (stippling, pseudo-tattooing) is caused by individual unburnt or partially burnt powder grains that travel with the bullet stream and embed themselves into the dermis as discrete punctate abrasions — they CANNOT be wiped off because they are mechanically embedded in the skin. Blackening (fouling, smudging) is superficial soot deposition on the skin surface that CAN be wiped off with a damp cloth. Both are seen at intermediate range; tattooing extends to a slightly greater distance than blackening. This distinction is important in determining firing distance during autopsy.

Reference: The Essentials of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology (Narayan Reddy), 34th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.