NEWS (UK): Bullet found in doorway

Rovi

From http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/walthamforest/walthamforestnews/display.var.1013959.0.bullet_found_in_doorway.php-

Bullet found in doorway
By David Williams

LIVE ammunition has been found lying in the doorway of a busy high street shop.

The .22 calibre short round bullet was found at the entrance of the 99p Stores in Walthamstow High Street on Wednesday morning, November 1.

Haroon Khan, who has a firearms licence and is a member of a local gun club, was alarmed to discover live ammunition in a Walthamstow doorway.

The bullet, of Swiss origin, was still in its brass casing, complete with enough gunpowder for it to fire itself.


Mr Khan said that if it had been struck hard enough or exposed to heat it could have gone off.

"This sort of thing should not be lying around. It was live, primed and active," he said. "But rather me pick it up than a little kid.

"How can you feel safe when you are finding things like this on the street?
"To get hold of one of these is not easy. You have to go through a scrutinised search, you need a licence and you have to belong to a club."

Ammunition of this kind would ordinarily be used in a small handgun or pistol, and both can be owned legally under licence.

But to leave strictly controlled goods out in the street would be enough for a firearms licence to be revoked.

The bullet has been examined at a Metropolitan Police laboratory and details about it kept for future reference.

A police spokesman said: "Recovering firearms and ammunition is a priority for the police. We take the same view of ammunition as we do of a gun.

"If it goes bang, it is still lethal."

Police are treating the unattended ammunition as a crime. Mr Khan alerted them at 10.16am, and they arrived at his shop to pick up the bullet at 11.32am.

7:00pm Thursday 9th November 2006

A .22 Short?
Is this hysteria gone mad, or am I reading too much into it?

I suppose, possibly, there might be some forensic/fingerprint value to this sort of thing 'found on the street' (ie. lost by some gangbanger as he went about his 'business'), but the whole 'end of civilization as we know it' tone kinda gets me down.


I'm reminded of the day a year or two ago when I was giving a retired (from the Army) friend of mine a mini tour of the farm.
He had brought along another retired friend of his, who turned out to be retired from the Gardai.
The ex-Garda's eyes went out on stalks when he started finding clusters of .22 brass about the place, and was picking it up with much oohing and aahing.
He tossed it away when he started coming across 9mm and .223 brass, and gave up shortly thereafter.

civdef

Is this hysteria gone mad, or am I reading too much into it?

It's England, you're not reading too much into it.

Ammunition of this kind would ordinarily be used in a small handgun or pistol, and both can be owned legally under licence.

Great reporting there, only 9 years out of date.

Mr Khan said that if it had been struck hard enough or exposed to heat it could have gone off.

It'd probably do more harm if you swallowed it than if it went off outside of a chamber.

johngalway

civdef wrote:

It'd probably do more harm if you swallowed it than if it went off outside of a chamber.

They're saving that for the Sunday supplement. I only read the world news bits of the paper anymore as the rest is just such hysterical or cynical bull****. All of the people passing that live round were in more danger crossing that road I'm sure. More junk from the rags.

Clare gunner

Isint it a sad comment on the UK?A hundred years ago one English lord was proposing that there be a rifle in every cottage to defend the empire.To today where a 22 short is treated like somone misplaced their WMD!
Within a hundred years a nation that had a proud tradition of riflemen,trained from cadetships or yeomanary,has degenerated into a totally paranoid,hysterical sheep like race when it comes to firearms.
A nation who was once rated as the cradle of demoracy,had an empire where the sun never set,was known for it's subjects to be allowed to keep and bear arms,and that their houses be it a hovel or a castle was theirs and involate to the either forces of law,and having the right to use force of arms to defend their castle against all comers.Which they could buy for reasonable enough money,in any gunsmith,ironmonger,or general store,without much let or hinderance up to the 1920s.Inc full auto weapons.
To a country that has more intrusive surveillance on it's subjects than some of it's old enemies like Russia or China,be their in their now very easily violated homes by either side of the law or on the streets,and more repressive gun laws on ownership than those two mentioned.
Dunno why they keep calling it "Great" Britan.Nothing great over there anymore.:(

Sparks

Clare gunner wrote:

Isint it a sad comment on the UK?A hundred years ago one English lord was proposing that there be a rifle in every cottage to defend the empire.

Er, CG, not to be too politically incorrect, but a hundred years ago that English lord was probably thinking about having those rifles pointed in our direction

A nation who was once rated as the cradle of demoracy

What, Greece?

had an empire where the sun never set

because God wouldn't trust an englishman in the dark --Duncan Spaeth


(Sorry for the poking, but it was just too tempting )

Clare gunner

I knew somone would Sparks.:D
and actually I am wrong it should have been the Mother of Parliments,not the cradle of demoracy.:rolleyes:
Wonder did said Lord know about the Irish rifle team that beat the US rifle team in Creedmore in 1877,after beating the English in 1873 in Wimbeldon??Maybe that is why he was suggesting that?;)

jaycee

Mother of Parliments

Actually ... the oldest form of parliment was in Iceland. :rolleyes: