reloading question

I think it would be appropriate to prove something did happen rather than something wouldn't happen. Kinda like the burden of proof isn't on the "show me" side but rather on the "it can happen" speculation/theory...

I agree, this topic has never been proven nor disproven. Sorta depends on one's mind set...
 
I’m a lawyer and i load my own defensive ammo. I think the “don’t do it, you’ll look guilty” folks are not correct on assessing the risks. But to each their own. There’s lots of good factory ammo out there if that’s what they want to carry.

After lots of testing I’ve become partial to Speer gold dots over a max load of HS-6, pick your caliber.


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I'm glad to hear you say that , right now my 38 special is loaded with some 160 grain cast lead wadcutters that I use in target shooting . An extremely accurate load that I can shoot well and , most importantly , they are tailored to shoot to the guns fixed sights.

No factory ammo I have tried shoot exactly to the sights ...so I developed one and decided to take my chances in front of a jury if handloaded was a problem . Louisiana is not too hard on gun owners .
Gary
 
44 AMP said:
The one case I'm aware of (thanks to that known gunwriter) was not a self defense case. In a nutshell, the wife was dead, the husband said she shot herself. The crime lab said she didn't, based on the amount of gunshot residue, she was shot from several feet away. That made it murder, and husband was so charged.

To further complicate the matter, the reloaded ammo used came out of a box that had (at least) two DIFFERENT loads in it. One light, one not.

The defense argument was that the prosecution was wrong, that she shot herself, the lab was wrong, the light load left less GSR and so APPEARED to be a regular load fired from further away.

There was apparently no way to determine what the round FIRED had been loaded with. As noted, your records are suspect, simply because you are the accused. As mentioned, there is no way to prove that the round(s) fired were the same as your records (if any) indicate.

Likewise there is possible doubt that even remaining unfired rounds in the gun are the same as the round(s) fired. Because you handloaded them.

Factory ammo is a "known standard" that the court accepts. Handloads are not, and cannot be.
That sounds like the case Frank Ettin has discussed, and I think his discussion is in one of those links I posted to previous threads on this forum. 44 AMP has the essentials correct, as far as my recollection is concerned.

As I believe I have mentioned, I'm risk aversive. If I'm going to be on trial for having killed someone, the last thing I want to go is give the prosecution anything they can use to attack me.
 
It won't matter one way or the other in at least 99.9% of the cases. It is a topic with grandiose ideas, hyperbole, speculation, hypotheticals, with scant if any practicality.
 
If you were ALSO describing the chance of failure with premium, quality defensive handgun ammo as well, I would totally agree.
 
Wow, great response for Do you reload your own defensive bullets. I never considered the lawyer aspect of the question. Mostly because I'm not sure it has a part in the equation. Whatever a layer says about my defensive reloads the same argument can be made for the store brand. There's some real hot loads out there and some junk. So I don't see a winnable argument either way.
As far as switching between 147 gr and 95 gr bullets I never noticed a difference. I run the same bullets for about 6 months then shoot them up at the range just to make sure they work in either one of my 9's. Then I replace them for another 6 months. I'm stuck on jury duty for the next 2 weeks but I'll try some target practice with the 2 to see if one shoots higher or lower than the other.
 
I used my own reloads during an on-duty shooting where my assailant died. Our state BCI inventoried my remaining rounds in my pistol, and test-fired a couple of them for their report. This was 1984, and I was within department regulations and policy at the time. It was a non-issue at the grand jury and at the federal civil trial, which both returned decisions in my favor. That was one specific case. I've heard of one or two that went the other way. You have to decide what you want to do. Do as little or as much research you need to do to make your decision. Since 1984, I have sometimes carried factory and sometimes carried my handloads. Personally, I think your placement of fired rounds and the circumstances that caused them to be fired will be the most important questions. You can always get a hot rod prosecutor who will do whatever they can to put you in jail, that's politics of the specific area. You can also have a prosecutor who thinks you did a good, legal job. Hope you never have to find out.
 
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