# Dropping gun at crime scene? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 2, 2010, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705 "2010-12-02T20:03:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/1 "2010-12-02T20:03:48Z")
In various TV shows and movies like the Sopranos the hitman will drop his gun right where he pulls the trigger. What is the reason for this and does it happen in real life hits? Why not just throw the gun in a river if they don’t want to be found with the gun. Maybe this is a just a TV/movie invention. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/2 "2010-12-02T20:07:52Z")
If the shooter has taken due measures not to leave fingerprints on the gun, it is safer to drop it at the crime scene. Carrying it away introduces the risk of getting caught with it. That connects it to you and you to the crime. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/3 "2010-12-02T20:10:06Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > In various TV shows and movies like the Sopranos the hitman will drop his gun right where he pulls the trigger. What is the reason for this and does it happen in real life hits? > > Why not just throw the gun in a river if they don’t want to be found with the gun. Maybe this is a just a TV/movie invention. This is talked about at length in Mario Puzo’s Godfather novels. According to him professional hitman will always leave the gun at the scene, as the risk of being traced via the gun is insignificant compared to the risk of being caught with the murder weapon. Of course even if that was true “back in the day” (I’ve no idea what Puzo’s actual knowledge of such things was), that was before the days of modern forensics. So it may not be true now. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/4 "2010-12-02T20:13:36Z")
I opened a thread about this topic a while ago: [“Leave the gun. Take the cannollis”](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=474732). ---
**Author:** ![Wakinyan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wakinyan/32/352_2.png) [@Wakinyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wakinyan)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/5 "2010-12-02T20:14:07Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > This is talked about at length in Mario Puzo’s Godfather novels. According to him professional hitman will always leave the gun at the scene, as the risk of being traced via the gun is insignificant compared to the risk of being caught with the murder weapon. In that particular movie, I seem to recall that they made a point that the gun was “untraceable”; it didn’t matter if the police found it, what would matter – this is my guess what the motif of dropping it was – if they found it on Michael. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/6 "2010-12-02T20:33:59Z")
I never bought that for a second. It seems better to wipe it and then drop it off in a location where someone else will find it and touch it. Better their prints on it then yours. And if you drop it off in decent place \ another crim will pick it up and use it in another crime and throw the cops off all together ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/7 "2010-12-02T20:36:22Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Why not just throw the gun in a river if they don’t want to be found with the gun. Because the river is Lord knows how far away. The floor is right there. With a properly untraceable gun that shows no fingerprints, there’s really no downside to dropping it on the spot. Why carry it with you and risk getting caught with it? Floor: simple, instantaneous, it’s done with. River: got to find the river, got to transport the gun to it, takes too long, involves unnecessary exposure to being caught with gun. So the real question isn’t why not throw it into a river, but rather why not drop it onto the floor right away? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/8 "2010-12-02T20:53:21Z")
We had someone throw a murder weapon in a lake and the cops found it because one of the group told them where to look. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/9 "2010-12-02T21:04:13Z")
Remember too, in Michael’s case, everyone knew he was having dinner with the Turk & the police captain. It’s not like it was unknown to law enforcement that he was the shooter. So the problem for the police became proving it, not identifying suspects. If he drops the gun & walks out, and is stopped by police one minute later, that doesn’t hurt him at all, since the only evidence is eyewitnesses who can be bribed/coerced by the Corleones. If he’s stopped a minute later with the gun, there’s not a thing that can be done to save him. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dropping-gun-at-crime-scene/562705/10 "2010-12-02T21:10:10Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > We had someone throw a murder weapon in a lake and the cops found it because one of the group told them where to look. Wow, how much time did they pin on you for that, Bijou?