Is it legal to bring an unarmed emptied/spent casing to school?

Question

I am a bit experienced with firearms and know how to handle them. I take them out to the range and fire them. My friend is a hunter and recently gifted me with a SPENT 30-08 Springfield casing AT SCHOOL. Now in my school handbook it states:

It shall be a Class I felony for any person to possess or carry, whether openly or concealed, any gun, rifle, pistol, or other firearm of any kind, or any dynamite cartridge, bomb, grenade, mine, or powerful explosive on school property.

it also states that

Infraction 2
Possessions, uses, or transfer of anything deemed as a weapon.

This is not classified as a weapon since the shell was ejected, the powder was burned, and the casing was deemed "Harmless".

I am asking this because my elementary school completely shut me down for having a bullet scale not behind powder or in a casing and they almost expelled me about 10 years ago if my grandfather hadn't stepped in.

I need an answer here to calm my father down. I live in the United States in South Carolina.

Answer 1

The first passage quoted appears to be from the North Carolina General Statutes section 14-269.2 (Weapons on campus or other educational property) The roughly corresponding section of South Carolina law is SECTION 23-31-215 (Issuance of permits.) subsection (M) (5). It is quite different in both wording and content.

I do not find the second quoted passage in an online search, and I presume it is of the school's own writing.

If you were in elementary school "about 10 years ago" it would seem that you are probably in high school or college now. Rules for those institutions are often quite different from elementary school and from each other.

I have no way to evaluate what the school regulations on such subjects might be, but it is probably safer to leave your empty casing at home, although no rule you have quoted or that I can find online would prohibit it.

An expended cartridge or casing is not a "gun, rifle, pistol, or other firearm of any kind" and so this provision of NC 14-269.2 would not apply, even in North Carolina.

An expended cartridge is not likely to be defined as a "weapon" either, and so the second quotes passage should not apply, although it is possible that the school regulations define "weapon" differently so that an expended cartridge is included.

I have no way to know what other provisions the school regulations might include that would be relevant.

Answer 2

While it is not illegal, since it is kind of "gun related" schools tend to have zero tolerance even if it is not a threat. Still it is stupid it happened to you but if you only get like some detention or a 2-7 day suspension I wouldn't contest it. But if the punishment is more than you think is worth it to bear, you have a good chance at contesting it since it isn't dangerous at all even if you possessed a firearm. If it was a live round that would be much harder to contest but since you said it was just a spent casing it should be easy.