Firing a warning shot?

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How much trouble would you get into if you fired a warning shot straight in the air (with good reason that is- like if you thought your life was in danger, but you didn't have enough reason to shoot the possible assailant). But lets just say that the police didn't accept your reason, and they wanted to charge you with whatever law you broke. It's always good to know these things so when the situation comes up, you'll know what to do I suppose.

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Pretty serious trouble. IMHO warning shots are probably justified in very few circumstances if any, so there is a good chance you would catch a charge. In general you are justified in drawing and firing on an attacker or you are not, there isn't much grey area. If you have a scenario in mind, let us know maybe we can figure out what your options would be.

Let's see you could catch brandishing, willfull discharge of a firearm, reckless handling of a firearm and maybe a bunch of other felonies depending on what the bullet hits or where you are when you fired. In an urban area theres a good chance that it could hit a habitation or a innocent person, and you could catch charges for manslaughter if it kills someone. Better just to keep your warnings verbal, as there is no requirement to fire a warning shot and considering how much personal defense ammunition costs, much cheaper. Also, take a cue from the police they do not make a policy of firing warning shots, nor do I know of any school of instruction that recommends it, outside of Hollywood movies.

Here are links to Va Code pertaining to your question.
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-280
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-282
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-286
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-279
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-56.1
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-286.1

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If you fear your life is in danger, shoot the MF'er. Warning shot can get you in a heap of trouble as LW stated.

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mercutio545 wrote:

How much trouble would you get into if you fired a warning shot straight in the air (with good reason that is- like if you thought your life was in danger, but you didn't have enough reason to shoot the possible assailant). But lets just say that the police didn't accept your reason, and they wanted to charge you with whatever law you broke. It's always good to know these things so when the situation comes up, you'll know what to do I suppose.

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Longwatch covered it, I agree with his conclusion.

But aside from all of the other ramifications, you may have to prove that you weren't trying to hit anyone if you did fire a 'warning shot'... So, your best option would have been to fire into the ground where it will not ricochet. That way you can at least say "I put one in the dirt to let him know that I was serious". Even ina best-case scenario would still be viewed by many as adumb move.

Still, 'warning shots' are pretty useless and uncalled for inmost defensive positions. Basically, if you aren't justified in shooting, you shouldn'tintroduceyour gun into the mix,in the first place, as a threat. But, if you are unwilling to defend yourself with lethal force without hesitation, you should reconsider the tools you are using.

molonlabetn

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I wouldn't say there is NEVER a time and place for a warning shot, but I think that it would be a rare scenario indeed.

There are plenty of good reasons NOT to fire a warning shot, the legal and safetyreasonsare already mentioned.There are tactical reasons why it is probably ill-advised as well. For example,it's one (or more)less round in your gun. A round you might wish you had if you empty your gun. Psychologically, the bad guy might be scared off by a warning shot-- on the other hand he might be emboldened by the thought that you really don't have the will to shoot him. What if, in a worse case scenario, your gun misfired? How would the bad guy react to a mere click?

In the unlikely event of a justifiable warning shot, I'd place it as close to the target as I could and call it a "missed shot." LOL

But seriously, if you're in a situation where you're justified in pulling the trigger in the first placeyou're justified in putting one between the eyes. A gunfight is not the time for hesitation. I consider a warning shot to be a form of hesitation. If a person has reservations about shooting someone they might want to rethink whether they want to carry a gun for defensive purposes.

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If you must fire a warning shot, I would not shoot into the air. I would aim center chest. If he does not heed the warning follow up with a few more.

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How bad would it be if you fired the warning shot and the next round stove piped!

I don't know if it would be all that bad legaly, You could say you shot at him and missed.

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A warning shot, if fired, should be shot into the ground. although rare, people have been hit, even fatally, by bullets fired into the air. Bullets fired into the air have gone upto a mile away and hit someone. If it does, you will be charged with a crime.

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lockman wrote:

If you must fire a warning shot, I would not shoot into the air. I would aim center chest. If he does not heed the warning follow up with a few more.

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I couldn't agree more!

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How can firing a bullet into the air hurt someone? On the acent it would have the acceleration associated with the bullet/weapon and on the decent only have the aceleration of gravity behind it.

for what its worth:
http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2006/04/episode_50_bullets_fired_up_vo_1.html

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The link you posted showed that the Mythbusters had confirmed that it has caused injury to people. Thats good enough for me.

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Hmmm...

Premium JHP ammo is expensive! Why would Iwaste 4 shots on a scum-bag,when I could get the job done with 3? That's an extra $.50-$1.00!!! Plus, I'd have enough to worry about,consequent toa situation which required me to discharge my weapon... Since the presentation and dischargeof a firearm during a confrontationis deadly-force, no matterwhatone says they were aiming at.

No warning-shots... Unless you want to call it: "Laying down suppressive fire" :uhoh:

Every situation is different, that's why it's best to rely on yourmost-powerful weapon first... the one between your ears!

Make every shot count.

molonlabetn

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molonlabetn wrote:

No warning-shots... Unless you want to call it: "Laying down suppressive fire" :uhoh:

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LOL Good one!

The act of drawing or raising your gun should be sufficient warning for anyone but a fool or madman.

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thorsmitersaw wrote:

How can firing a bullet into the air hurt someone? On the acent it would have the acceleration associated with the bullet/weapon and on the decent only have the aceleration of gravity behind it.

for what its worth:
http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2006/04/episode_50_bullets_fired_up_vo_1.html

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That only applies if the bullet is fired straight up, wherupon it would lose its momentum entirely before falling straight back to the point where it was fired from. The bullet would reach the apogee, stop, then fall straight down, attaining the terminal velocity of any falling object, which we know from the Mythbusters episode that you reference would cause minimal and certainly nonfatal damage to any human it might strike.



On the other hand, a bullet fired at any angle other than 90º would continue in a parabolic arc, losing only the velocity attributable to wind resistance, and when striking the object (or person) unlucky enough to be in its path, it would cause nearly the amount of damage it would if that person or object were purposely targeted.

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I'm saving my ammunition. I am with longwatch and molonlabetn. Warning shots are dangerous, illegal in some jurisdictions, and they waste rounds. If I am going to shoot, it will be at the criminal.

ProguninTN

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A projectile that is fired at any angle above level must reach a vertical velocity of zero before beginning descent (assuming it doesn't strike something first). The speed of a bullet (beginning at the apogee) ranges from zero to its terminal velocity. Terminal velocity is dependent upon the density of the air, mass of the bullet, shape of the bullet and its drag. A sleek, heavy, frictionless, fired mid-Winter in Leadville, CO (pun intended) bullet is going to be going a lot faster than a blunt, light, irregular one shot in New Orleans during mid-summer. Call me crazy but I wouldn't want to be hit by either.

If you had a gun powerful enough to shoot a round so that it reached normal muzzle velocity at the edge of the atmosphere, it would never slow down afterwards and thus could easily kill an astronaut or little green man.

Or if you performed this task on the Moon, the V(t) would be sufficient on the fall back to be fatal (assuming there is not enough V to escape gravity on the ascent). Even though g is less for the Moon the lack of air makes up for this. For the converse reason, I strongly advise againstshooting into the air on Jupiter.

OC-Glock19 wrote:

thorsmitersaw wrote:

How can firing a bullet into the air hurt someone? On the acent it would have the acceleration associated with the bullet/weapon and on the decent only have the aceleration of gravity behind it.

for what its worth:
http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2006/04/episode_50_bullets_fired_up_vo_1.html

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That only applies if the bullet is fired straight up, wherupon it would lose its momentum entirely before falling straight back to the point where it was fired from. The bullet would reach the apogee, stop, then fall straight down, attaining the terminal velocity of any falling object, which we know from the Mythbusters episode that you reference would cause minimal and certainly nonfatal damage to any human it might strike.



On the other hand, a bullet fired at any angle other than 90º would continue in a parabolic arc, losing only the velocity attributable to wind resistance, and when striking the object (or person) unlucky enough to be in its path, it would cause nearly the amount of damage it would if that person or object were purposely targeted.

Click to expand...

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apjonas wrote:

A projectile that is fired at any angle above level must reach a vertical velocity of zero before beginning descent (assuming it doesn't strike something first). The speed of a bullet (beginning at the apogee) ranges from zero to its terminal velocity. Terminal velocity is dependent upon the density of the air, mass of the bullet, shape of the bullet and its drag. A sleek, heavy, frictionless, fired mid-Winter in Leadville, CO (pun intended) bullet is going to be going a lot faster than a blunt, light, irregular one shot in New Orleans during mid-summer. Call me crazy but I wouldn't want to be hit by either.

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you forgot to factor in the fact that a bullet fired at any angle besides 90 degrees (straight up) is stabilized by its rotation

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Did I? This is part of the drag component. What makes you think that a bullet won't rotate if fired perpendicular to the ground?





Brigdh wrote:

apjonas wrote:

A projectile that is fired at any angle above level must reach a vertical velocity of zero before beginning descent (assuming it doesn't strike something first). The speed of a bullet (beginning at the apogee) ranges from zero to its terminal velocity. Terminal velocity is dependent upon the density of the air, mass of the bullet, shape of the bullet and its drag. A sleek, heavy, frictionless, fired mid-Winter in Leadville, CO (pun intended) bullet is going to be going a lot faster than a blunt, light, irregular one shot in New Orleans during mid-summer. Call me crazy but I wouldn't want to be hit by either.

Click to expand...

you forgot to factor in the fact that a bullet fired at any angle besides 90 degrees (straight up) is stabilized by its rotation

Click to expand...

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apjonas wrote:

A sleek, heavy, frictionless, fired mid-Winter in Leadville, CO (pun intended) bullet is going to be going a lot faster than a blunt, light, irregular one shot in New Orleans during mid-summer.

Click to expand...

I found an interesting article on how air density and humidity affect bullet performance.

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It actually does, but it doesn't preform any horizontal stability, thus it will reach a V of 0