reloads and the law

Cpo1944 · Mar 20, 2011

A friend of mine who always sounds authoritative and knowledgable , but rarely is,
has told me that the use of home made ammo in a shooting incident is cause for the innocent shooter to be prosecuted by the law.
I wonder if any of you fine Truly knowledgable folks have heard of such BS?

ronnie gore · Mar 20, 2011

reload

absolute bs, i am retired law enforcement, the scummy lawyers can use it against you if the person you shoot sues in a civil case , but nothing crimminal about reloaded ammo.

P&R Fan · Mar 20, 2011

As far as I know there is no law against it. This has been discussed quite a bit here, and people believe strongly on both sides of the issue. The problem is, when a shooting happens, it will be examined very closely by the courts. In some cases there will be a prosecutor who doesn't like guns, and he may bring up the reload issue to make the shooter look like somebody who "tried to concoct the deadliest bullets he could". Is it BS? Absolutely, but it has happened.
Where this is more prevalent is the civil arena. An attorney out for a monetary settlement will bring it up ad nauseum. The fact there is no law against it doesn't matter, you will still have to defend yourself against these scurrilous accusations, and that may bankrupt you. For me, the risks arent worth what I would save over factory ammo costs. You may have a different opinion and that's fine.
If you want further information from someone who has seen this firsthand, check out the writings of Massad Ayoob. He has written on this extensively and testified about it in many civil and criminal cases.

writerinmo · Mar 20, 2011

Heard of it... dismissed it as the idiotic statement that it is. I know of no coroner who would even know it was a reload unless it was a bullet you cast yourself, and even then all they would note would be the caliber and type of bullet. I can't even imagine a police officer even asking "Did you shoot him with a bullet you bought or one you made?"

It would have to be a "VERY" questionable shooting for a DA to even begin to concern themselves with something along those lines... now if you shot them with a .22 and their freakin' head literally EXPLODED off his body, then they might wonder.

Dave T · Mar 20, 2011

I used to get lots of people in the CCW Certification classes I taught who thought this. My answer/explanation was always: if the shooting is justified it won't matter what ammunition you use...and if the shooting is un-justified it won't matter what ammunition you use.

It could become an issue in civil court but unless you are putting blasting caps or C4 in your hollow point handloads I think a competent attorney on your side can show your ammunition is irrelevant.

Dave

Cpo1944 · Mar 20, 2011

P&R Fan said:
As far as I know there is no law against it. This has been discussed quite a bit here, and people believe strongly on both sides of the issue. The problem is, when a shooting happens, it will be examined very closely by the courts. In some cases there will be a prosecutor who doesn't like guns, and he may bring up the reload issue to make the shooter look like somebody who "tried to concoct the deadliest bullets he could". Is it BS? Absolutely, but it has happened.
Where this is more prevalent is the civil arena. An attorney out for a monetary settlement will bring it up ad nauseum. The fact there is no law against it doesn't matter, you will still have to defend yourself against these scurrilous accusations, and that may bankrupt you. For me, the risks arent worth what I would save over factory ammo costs. You may have a different opinion and that's fine.
If you want further information from someone who has seen this firsthand, check out the writings of Massad Ayoob. He has written on this extensively and testified about it in many civil and criminal cases.

My thoughts exactly and I didn`t buy into it at all , but talking to that fella is like talking to the bricks.
I never use reloads for actual defense anyway ,but one could find it`s way into the cylinder-not that it matters.
I really like that SCURRILOUS word wish I knew how to work it into a conversation.

computeruser · Mar 20, 2011

Is your friend an attorney? Judge? If not, he should stick to things he knows about.

Cpo1944 · Mar 20, 2011

computeruser said:
Is your friend an attorney? Judge? If not, he should stick to things he knows about.

This guy knows everything about everything, Or so he thinks.

I`m beginning to not want him for a friend anymore.

Old cop · Mar 20, 2011

Jack: I agree w/others in that this is total BS. I worked as a LEO for 30 years and this never came up. As to your choice in friends, your last post may be a wise choice.

Cpo1944 · Mar 20, 2011

Old cop said:
Jack: I agree w/others in that this is total BS. I worked as a LEO for 30 years and this never came up. As to your choice in friends, your last post may be a wise choice.

Amen Shipmate

acl864 · Mar 20, 2011

jack oconnor said:
This guy knows everything about everything, Or so he thinks.

I think I know this guy. He posts under a lot of different names on most every forum that I go to.

BTW- this topic has been absolutely beat to death on several different forums including this one. The over/under for this thread is about 12 pages if it flairs up again...

Jellybean · Mar 20, 2011

Actually this is a tough question.

Instead of bringing all this up again, as it's been beaten to death several times, try a search and find the old threads.

There are supposed to be jurisdictions that ban the use of reloads for CCW carriers. And there is the possibility that an innocent shooter was found guilty because of his use of reloads. Not the fact that he used them, but because of the ignorance of the people that tried the case.

kewpie · Mar 20, 2011

In my case one of my carry guns is a Star PD .45. Most everyone knows this gun is not made for shooting factory loads due to its 'fragility.' Those who don't know could be shown much expert advice to support/substantiate this fact.

It would seem that using mild handloads in this instance would almost be a positive in behalf of someone who was forced to use such a weapon in self defense. Attorney could take the whole lot of unfired ammo and lab test it to his/her heart's content.

(Maybe it was deliberately loaded to 'disable' only

)

Cpo1944 · Mar 20, 2011

Jellybean said:
Actually this is a tough question.

Instead of bringing all this up again, as it's been beaten to death several times, try a search and find the old threads.

There are supposed to be jurisdictions that ban the use of reloads for CCW carriers. And there is the possibility that an innocent shooter was found guilty because of his use of reloads. Not the fact that he used them, but because of the ignorance of the people that tried the case.

Mr. Jellybean,
I`m sorry to bring back a subject that was "beaten to death"
The fact is I never even thought to do a search, but I will next time.
I`m still computer/forum illiterate.

mkk41 · Mar 20, 2011

As with any of these 'experts' , tell him to find the federal , state or local law/statute/chapter/paragraph/verse. Gun laws are easy to find.

Skip Sackett · Mar 20, 2011

There is a famous law officer that uses a murder case to try to persuade you not to use home made ammo for SD. Whatever.

The truth is, Jelly hit it on the head. Check you local jurisdiction and if you are involved in a shooting, keep your mouth shut. You do have the right to remain silent, use it wisely!

357larry · Mar 20, 2011

Damn, sounds like jack oconnor has met my brother-in-law. He never saw a need to own an encyclopedia or dictionary, he already knows everything!

brucev · Mar 20, 2011

Talk to your local authorities. Find out if it might genuinely be an issue. Act accordingly. Remember that if you ever have to use a weapon in SD/HD, you will be facing major issues. Always best to think ahead and make sure you are not creating problems for yourself in the event of an incident. For my part, I reload practice ammo and full-power hunting ammo. For HD, I use plain Jane Remington 180gr. JHP .40 S&W ammo. At across the room HD distances, effectiveness in my G-22 will not be an issue. And if later the prosecutor wants to be difficult, using the same round and ammo as the local police department will give him one less thing he can look at for problems. JMHO. Sincerely. Bruce.

Bullseye Smith · Mar 20, 2011

My "BS" meter just went off scale and fell on the floor.

Skip Sackett · Mar 20, 2011

I understand caution, really, I get that. What I don't get is the fear behind it. Fear of being labeled, friend, if you carry a gun you already are labeled.

Make the cops do their job, convicting you of a crime. Don't help them by opening your, or mine for that matter, fool mouth. If you are super worried, use new components from the same manufacturer. All Federal cases, all XTP bullets, or whatever.

It's like what happened when the Republicans had control of Congress the last time. The Democrats didn't have to actually have a filibuster, all they had to do is threaten one.. Same here. No where in America, has handloaded ammunition been an issue in a court of law for a good self defense shooting, no where. All someone has to do is threaten for there to be an issue. We all cower in fear. NOT ME.

reloads and the law

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