One of the rules I remember is that we'd always pull the trigger upon receiving an uncharged gun, to avoid it going off uncontrolled later if there was a mixup. Pretty sad to think they couldn't do even that.
> A source close to the union said Local 44 does not know what projectile was in the gun and clarified that “live” is an industry term that refers to a gun loaded with some material such as a blank ready for filming.
1. The person handing off said 'cold gun' which to me implies the weapon was not charged with anything. Please clarify if I misunderstood.
2. The victim was shot at a distance. This makes it probable there was an actual bullet in the weapon. Why assume anything different?
So I still wonder why there would be bullets around on the set.
Sometimes they use dummy bullets to show loading, etc. Those dummy bullets can apparently come apart and get lodged in the barrel, and then a blank is loaded behind them.
Bear with me, I'm european and never laid my hands on a firearm ;)
It's also possible they brought in guns from an unrelated activity (e.g. cowboy action shooting) and failed to check them properly.
"Productions using operational firearms can opt for those intentionally designed to fire blank cartridges — shell casings loaded with gunpowder — or decommissioned firearms tweaked to shoot them. Live ammunition is not allowed on any set."