title: [Homicides by sharp force with nearly complete penetration of the weapon].
abstract: Despite a large number of publications on sharp force injuries, there are no specific reports on homicides with nearly complete penetration of the weapon into the body of the victim. We present three cases in which the crime was committed in this unusual way. The victims were males aged between 28 and 71 years. They were killed by multiple sharp force. The weapons used were knives with a total length of up to about 20 cm, which penetrated into the body (almost) completely including the handle. Involved body regions were the front and back of the chest and the neck. In one case, two different sharp weapons were found in the trunk. The injuries inflicted on the internal organs by the penetrating knives caused massive bleeding and were the leading cause of death. Additional remarkable features were complex patterns of injury by further sharp and blunt force and, in one case, tying. The victims were highly intoxicated (by alcohol and, in one case, illegal drugs), which made them nearly incapable of acting. All perpetrators were male, between 23 and 33 years of age, strongly influenced by alcohol and loosely acquainted with the victims. The kind of committing the offence seems to be explainable only against the background of an absolute will to annihilate ("overkill").
authors.affiliation: Universitätsmedizin Göttingen.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Grellner
authors.forename: Bianca
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Navarro
authors.forename: Dieter
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Buhmann
authors.forename: Reinhard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Urban