Consultants in forensics and firearms say it is potential that a younger man engaged on a Queensland crayfish farm was shot useless by one other particular person.
The Brisbane Coroners Courtroom on Tuesday heard it was additionally possible that Jeffrey Lawrence Brooks by accident shot himself within the chest on March 13, 1996.
A police investigation decided Brooks died after attempting to retrieve a shotgun from a utility car and setting off the set off within the course of.
His dad and mom, Wendy and Lawrie Brooks, by no means accepted that clarification and claimed he was killed by co-workers who noticed the aquacultural scientist as risk to their jobs and stolen crayfish racket.
Through the closing day of proof on the reopened inquest into Brooks' demise, NSW Police ballistics skilled Lucas van de Walt testified that the 24-year-old was shot at shut vary at Beenleigh, south of Brisbane.
"The wound of the deceased was good on the sides. There was no signal of the (shotgun) pellets spreading," Van de Walt stated.
"That places the muzzle of the firearm in actual shut proximity when fired."
Van de Walt stated his job of reassessing the case's ballistic proof was made tougher by Queensland Police's determination to destroy the shotgun within the years after the unique investigation.
Van de Walt stated he discovered the same Harrington & Richardson shotgun to the 1901-era mannequin concerned in Brooks' demise and ran exams with the identical barrel size and comparable ammunition.
One other signal of an in depth vary shot was that Brooks' chest was struck after which penetrated by an increasing plastic "wad" part of the shotgun shell.
"I'm of the opinion that the muzzle of the shotgun was between 10 and 80 centimetres from Brooks' left shoulder in the course of the discharge of the firearm," Van de Walt stated.
Throughout cross examination by the Brooks household's solicitor, Van de Walt stated it was "potential" Brooks was shot by another person whereas he was sitting within the utility or kneeling on the bottom resulting from his wound's downward angle.
Victorian Institute of Forensic Drugs pathologist Dr David Ranson testified that he had seen a variety of firearm homicides and the sufferer was normally struck within the head, centre of the chest or stomach.
"It is actually very tough to tell apart on the pathology factors alone. (The shoulder) will not be a major goal to kill any individual, nevertheless you've got to just accept most capturing eventualities are dynamic with the sufferer transferring," Ranson stated.
"I do not assume on a purely pathological foundation I might distinguish between murder or accident - each stay potentialities."
Ranson stated it was "potential" somebody stood above Brooks and shot down at him and "possible" that he might have by accident shot himself whereas reaching by means of a car window to seize the gun.
Coroner Donald MacKenzie stated the inquest's findings, due in March, was going to be a "tough train to place in writing".
"To the Brooks household, I hope that the final seven days have been of help to you in opening up the fissures of the unknown on this matter."
Talking exterior courtroom, Lawrie Brooks stated the skilled forensic testimony "hadn't actually cleared issues up in some way".
Wendy Brooks stated she nonetheless believed her son was murdered.
"We're hoping for a discovering of murder as a result of we nonetheless imagine in our coronary heart and there was nothing that has come up within the inquest that has modified our thoughts," she stated.