Rapid Ballistics Testing Unveiled For Bucks County

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — Authorities in Bucks County won't have to rely on State Police or labs in Philadelphia and neighboring counties to process ballistics evidence.

The Bucks County District Attorney's Office on Thursday unveiled a state-of-the-art ballistics laboratory in Levittown that will allow authorities to analyze firearm-related evidence at a faster pace.

“It’s not only solving cases here in Bucks County and surrounding counties, but it is solving cases in surrounding states, so this is a game changer as it relates to combating gun violence in our community and our surrounding communities,” Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn said during a press conference announcing the facility.

The new ballistics laboratory features a reinforced shooting room, which includes a water tank designed to keep test-fired bullets intact for comparison. Authorities said the technology enables experts to quickly process and compare ballistic samples and enter data into a national database, expediting criminal investigations.

The lab will work in conjunction with Bucks County's participation in the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, a tool used by law enforcement to help connect firearms to crime scenes throughout the country by comparing images of fired bullet casings from crime scenes with those from recovered firearms.

The county received a $3 million Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency grant two years ago to primarily support the development of a county-wide Gun Violence Task Force, the hiring of Firearms Examiner Greg Welsh and all his equipment, as well as advanced investigative equipment used during gun violence investigations.

The lab’s creation cost $167,850, funded through the grant, Schorn said.

“This means that Detective Welsh, our expert, now has the tools at his disposal to immediately examine evidence, either recovered from a shooting scene or evidence from a firearm, turn that investigative material around within hours, if the need arises,” Schorn said. “Typically, this type of analysis would take months, so as you can imagine having these resources and our expert available to do that means that actionable leads will be developed in these cases that will serve all of Bucks County, all of our law enforcement community here in Bucks County.”

“We cannot go a day in this country without hearing news of a gun crime committed somewhere. Thankfully, here in Bucks County, those crimes are rare, but they do occur,” she said. “It certainly is essential,” he added. “We are really pleased that we have this level of equipment. We think that Bucks County is the envy of most of the counties of the Commonwealth for a lot of reasons, and having this equipment is another reason.”

At the news conference, Welsh demonstrated the lab's capabilities, firing a test shot into the water tank and retrieving the bullet and casing. He then showed how fired casings are compared using a forensic microscope.

Welsh said that each firearm leaves a unique signature, caused by the manufacturing process of the firearm through the tools and force used to make the firearm. When the gun is fired these unique signatures are transferred from the firearm to the fired bullet and the fired cartridge case.

“If you needed answers immediately, I can go and start working on it as soon as the evidence is submitted and give the primary detective the answers he was inquiring about,” Welsh said. “At the end of the day, we want to get the answers, and we want to get the correct answers for these investigations.”

(Bucks County District Attorney's Office)