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vii)
self-infliction of the other 4 wounds. I have
certainly had experience of persons both shot and
stabbed in the heart who were able to carry out
voluntary purposeful movement for at least one or
two minutes afterwards.
No-one can possibly tell in what order these wounds
were inflicted. I would tend to think, on the grounds
outlined in vi) above, that wound number 1 was either
the final or the penultimate shot. It is possible
on the basis that it was the least accurate (i e fired
when MacLennan was most disabled) that wound 5 was, in
fact, the final shot but there is no scientific means
of being certain of this.
viii) It seems likely from the position of the retrieved
bullets that MacLennan was either standing or sitting
up at the time when at least 2 of the bullets were
fired at any rate, he was not laying down upon the
floor. It would be unlikely in these circumstances
for an assailant to be able to fire two bullets at
contact range into the front of his abdomen. If all
5 shots were fired with MacLennan standing or sitting
this becomes even more unlikely.
ix)
It would be very unlikely, whatever MacLennan's position,
that an assailant would be able to fire 5 shots into
that part of his abdomen at contact range unless he was
a)
totally and instantly disabled by the first shot
(and we have said that, in fact, none of the wounds
would be instantly disabling) or,
markedly under the influence of drink and/or drugs
b)
and there is no real evidence of this
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