Son found a bullet

[Jophiel]

Let me preface this by saying my gut instinct is "Eh, no big deal". I'm asking in case someone who knows better says it is a big deal.

A couple streets down from my house lives a state trooper. I've never met him (or her) but see the car parked outside. The other day my son (age 12) said he found a bullet casing in front of their house while walking home. He showed it to me and it's not a casing, it's an intact 9mm hollowpoint bullet.

I know enough to not get all upset as though a bullet is going to bite him or something but is there any circumstance in which this should be addressed? Perversely, now my concern isn't that he found it but that I'd follow my instinct to ignore it when I shouldn't. I did take the bullet out of his possession.

[Disposable Hero]

Hmmm....not being of the American ilk I don't know exactly how it works over there but over here if I found a bullet I'd hand it into the local police station and tell them the circumstances of the find. Its possible the state trooper may have dropped it and would be very relieved to get it back and in any event finding a bullet is the sort of thing the police need to know.

Or just go and knock on the state troopers door and tell him/her of your sons find.

[Johnny L.A.]

You might want to knock on the trooper's door (when s/he is there, so that you talk to him/her instead of his/her SO) and explain that your son found the round in front of their house. Don't be confrontational or angry, and don't accuse him/her of being careless. Sometimes things fall out of pockets.

[Johnny L.A.]

Its possible the state trooper may have dropped it and would be very relieved to get it back and in any event finding a bullet is the sort of thing the police need to know.

Or just go and knock on the state troopers door and tell him/her of your sons find.

You got in before me, Speedy.

IANA trooper, but I'd be mortified if I'd accidentally dropped a potentially dangerous object outside my house. I'd be thankful that no harm was done, and would be extra vigilant in the future.

[Superhal]

It's no big deal. I would actually praise your son for doing the right thing: finding an adult right away, not playing with it, and understanding that it is dangerous.

I can't count the random crap I see every day just walking around my neighborhood:
1. empty meth bags.
2. used condoms.
3. marijuana joint butts.
4. broken glass, beer bottles, wine bottles, etc.
5. knives.

I haven't seen a gun yet, but a bullet wouldn't even make me pause.

[Nadir]

Yep, no big deal. Offer to return it secure in the knowledge the trooper and you now know you probably have a neighbor you can trust.

[Terraplane]

Throw it in the trash. Unless you have a 9mm I guess. If so, free bullet!

[TravisFromOR]

Do law enforcement officers even use hollow point ammunition? (I mean in the line of duty--not for personal use.)

[Jophiel]

Do law enforcement officers even use hollow point ammunition? (I mean in the line of duty--not for personal use.)
For the record, I don't have any question that it's a hollow point. It looks just like this (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Hollow_point.JPG).

The hollow tip is what made my son think it was a used bullet since he has no idea what a hollow point is.

[runner pat]

Do law enforcement officers even use hollow point ammunition? (I mean in the line of duty--not for personal use.)

Yes in the vast majority of departments.(If not all.)

Better record of putting a stop to the bad guys and less chance of over-penetration and danger to bystanders.

[appleciders]

A housemate of mine found a bullet outside our house in college. I have next to no experience with guns, but my housemate does and was of the opinion that it was from a hunting rifle, not a pistol. We weren't sure what to do with it, so, being good chemistry students, we rusted it out in a tin can filled with salt water.

We lived in a good neighborhood in a small town, so there really wasn't a feeling that this was something malicious, just a mistake.

[aceplace57]

Throw it in the trash.

Not a big deal. It's easy to have a bullet fall out of an open box of shells. Heck, Walmart sells boxes of shells.

It's not dangerous unless someone messes with it. Hitting it with a hammer is a bad idea. ;)

[Johnny L.A.]

It's not dangerous unless someone messes with it. Hitting it with a hammer is a bad idea. ;)

You can also tape a ball from your pachinko machine to the base, and throw them. Ask me how I know. :D

[TravisFromOR]

For the record, I don't have any question that it's a hollow point. It looks just like this (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Hollow_point.JPG).

The hollow tip is what made my son think it was a used bullet since he has no idea what a hollow point is.

I wasn't doubting that it was a hollow point. I was just curious as to whether it was from the officer in question or someone else. (I've had .22LR shells fall out of my vehicle on occasion. Perhaps it was a visitor.)

[Shagnasty]

I am relieved you aren't that worried about it. Some people would be but firearm cartridges are really stable as a general rule. You can drop them, throw them, leave them in a hot car etc. and they just shrug it off. Don't run your own experiments on this. I and many others have done for you. Until you get the gun to go with it or a teenage boy hell-bent on getting it to go off somehow, it will just sit there for decades or more completely harmless.

I would just throw it away as well. It won't go off in the trash or in a landfill either. As noted, you can buy boxes of them at Wal-Mart.

[Walmarticus]

I'd totally ignore it. As far as carelessness with weapons goes, dropping a bullet is WAY down on the list.

[thelurkinghorror]

I am relieved you aren't that worried about it. Some people would be but firearm cartridges are really stable as a general rule. You can drop them, throw them, leave them in a hot car etc. and they just shrug it off. Don't run your own experiments on this. I and many others have done for you. Until you get the gun to go with it or a teenage boy hell-bent on getting it to go off somehow, it will just sit there for decades or more completely harmless.

I would just throw it away as well. It won't go off in the trash or in a landfill either. As noted, you can buy boxes of them at Wal-Mart.

And, as I believe we covered on here before, if you had a house fire, the exploding rounds would push the bullets only a few inches. A bigger danger is the lighter cases. I think Mythbusters did this, too.

[flatlined]

You can also tape a ball from your pachinko machine to the base, and throw them. Ask me how I know. :D

I read. I tried. Just another reason why I shouldn't be online :)

[Johnny L.A.]

Actually, I was using 7.62 NATO blanks with the powder removed. But as a 12-year-old the primers made a satisfying pop. :)

[MacCat]

Your trooper neighbor isn't named Barney Fife, is he? If so, a very big deal, and he would really like to have it back...

[Mangetout]

The OP established that it's not an empty casing, but is it just a bullet, or is it an unfired round of ammunition? Those two terms don't mean the same thing, do they?

[Martini Enfield]

The OP established that it's not an empty casing, but is it just a bullet, or is it an unfired round of ammunition? Those two terms don't mean the same thing, do they?

"Bullet" technically only refers to the projectile (the thing that gets fired out of the barrel). "Cartridge" (or "Round") refers to the entire, complete thing- case, primer, powder, and bullet; all present and correct. An empty casing on its own is exactly that- a "case", or "brass".

If you want to get super technical about it, there are people (I'm not one of them) who will argue that "Bullet" only refers to a specific type of projectile, typically one with a rounded nose (like you see for use with Old West guns). Projectiles with a pointed tip (like most rifles cartridges use) are Spitzers, and hollowpoint projectiles are, well, self-explanatory.

[2square4u]

If you want to get super technical about it, there are people (I'm not one of them) who will argue that "Bullet" only refers to a specific type of projectile, typically one with a rounded nose (like you see for use with Old West guns). Projectiles with a pointed tip (like most rifles cartridges use) are Spitzers, and hollowpoint projectiles are, well, self-explanatory.

Well, that's well beyond nitpicking and halfway into OCD. None of the large ammo and reloading supply manufacturers call their projectiles anything but "bullets". Cite (http://www.lapua.com/en/products/reloading/bullets), cite (http://www.sierrabullets.com/), cite (http://www.hornady.com/bullets), cite (http://www.swiftbullets.com/), cite (http://www.speer-bullets.com/) and cite (http://www.nosler.com/). And another cite (http://www.barnesbullets.com/).

To the OP: A live round is no biggie (a bullet is even less, as has been pointed out by others, that's just a slug of metal), but if you're not able to destroy the evidence in a safe manner yourself (i.e. shooting it in a gun chambered for that cartridge), I'd hand it over to proper authorities for safe handling. An inventive 12-year-old might just lose half of his eyesight by doing fun things with it.

ETA: The last paragraph is from experience. I'm quite amazed that only one of my then-buddies blew out one of his eyes playing with that stuff. :eek:

[Reply]

It's no big deal. I would actually praise your son for doing the right thing: finding an adult right away, not playing with it, and understanding that it is dangerous.

I can't count the random crap I see every day just walking around my neighborhood:
1. empty meth bags.
2. used condoms.
3. marijuana joint butts.
4. broken glass, beer bottles, wine bottles, etc.
5. knives.

I haven't seen a gun yet, but a bullet wouldn't even make me pause.

Damn, where do you live?

[Martini Enfield]

Well, that's well beyond nitpicking and halfway into OCD. None of the large ammo and reloading supply manufacturers call their projectiles anything but "bullets". Cite (http://www.lapua.com/en/products/reloading/bullets), cite (http://www.sierrabullets.com/), cite (http://www.hornady.com/bullets), cite (http://www.swiftbullets.com/), cite (http://www.speer-bullets.com/) and cite (http://www.nosler.com/). And another cite (http://www.barnesbullets.com/).

I'm not disagreeing with you, just mentioning that, given this board's penchant for having people disagree with others for the sheer hell of it, if I didn't mention there were people out there who did differentiate between different types of bullet, there'd be someone in here saying I had no idea what I was talking about because I didn't mention it.

Instead I do mention it, and get someone implying I don't know what I'm talking about as a result. Le Sigh; I really don't know why I bother sometimes.

[2square4u]

I didn't mean to indicate that you didn't know what you were talking about, and if my post could be interpreted that way, I apologize. My comment was directed towards the people (of whom you're not one) who will argue that "Bullet" only refers to a specific type of projectile.

[Martini Enfield]

I didn't mean to indicate that you didn't know what you were talking about, and if my post could be interpreted that way, I apologize. My comment was directed towards the people (of whom you're not one) who will argue that "Bullet" only refers to a specific type of projectile.

That's OK; It's just that providing over half a dozen linked cites against a fairly simple, off-hand observation just reads (to me, at least) as a form of saying "WRONG! JUST BRIMMING OVER WITH WRONGABILITY! HERE'S THE ACTUAL ANSWER! DON'T LISTEN TO THAT OTHER PERSON BECAUSE THEY'RE WRONG!".

I'm sure that's not how you meant it to come across, of course, and it's all good- just saying that even here, not everything needs to be treated as though it's a component of a postgraduate thesis or dissertation. ;)

[Mangetout]

I didn't mean to spark off this argument - it just wasn't clear to me exactly what it is the OP had found, and whether the concern was one of safety, or if it was a concern about handling something that might be criminal evidence, or something.

[Jophiel]

It's a complete, intact round as shown in the picture I linked (which isn't the one I have but identical in appearance).

Opinions seem to be evenly divided between "give it back" and "toss it in the trash". I suppose I should err on the side of caution and drop on by the trooper's house though not with any great concern.

[Magiver]

I find it odd that a trooper would carry munitions in a manner where it could spill out. I'd take it back to him just so he knows it happened. If one fell out then there may be others which creates a dangerous situation with a lawn mower. I'd tell him this specifically so he realizes the potential risk.

[Dag Otto]

You can drive your quail hunting buddies nuts by calling shotgun shells 'bullets'. So of course, I call shotgun shells bullets.

[Infovore]

You just brought back a childhood memory: I found a bullet near my house one time when I was a small child (I'd say somewhere in the 7-9 age range). I carefully picked it up, took it in the house, and gave it to my mom, proud of myself at how good and responsible I was being by turning it in rather than playing with it.

I got spanked.:rolleyes:

I don't think I ever forgave my mom for that one, because she didn't really communicate well with me *why* was getting spanked and what I *should* have done.

It was weird, too, because Mom wasn't usually that weird about stuff. That one set her off for some reason.

[TravisFromOR]

You can drive your quail hunting buddies nuts by calling shotgun shells 'bullets'. So of course, I call shotgun shells bullets.

Isn't that the real reason Dick Cheney shot his friend in the face?

[MacCat]

Isn't that the real reason Dick Cheney shot his friend in the face?He did get his apology...

[Patch]

For the record, I don't have any question that it's a hollow point. It looks just like this (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Hollow_point.JPG).

The hollow tip is what made my son think it was a used bullet since he has no idea what a hollow point is.

Heh. When I was a kid a friend and I found a pocketful of .22 LR hollowpoints, and I thought the same thing. When I got home my dad corrected me on that one, and they phoned my friend's parents to let them know that Andy also had a pocketful of live ammo. This caused some distress, as his mom hadn't checked his pockets before washing his pants and throwing them in the dryer. :D

[Mr. Duality]

I would just throw it away as well. It won't go off in the trash or in a landfill either. As noted, you can buy boxes of them at Wal-Mart.

It could be put through a compactor in the garbage truck and be crush against something hard which could cause it to go off. Low probability, but possible. I'd say disposing of it in trash is a bad idea.

[Don't Call Me Shirley]

You know, if you put a bullet in the furnace, it will explode...
[/Cosby]

[crowmanyclouds]

... Le Sigh; I really don't know why I bother sometimes.Same reason we all do . . . because we CAN!

Up next; Clip or Magazine? (http://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/ClipMagazineLesson.jpg)

:D
CMC fnord!

[muldoonthief]

Your mother must be pretty low down for you to put a bullet in the furnace.