Easiest Weapon To Accidentally Murder Someone With

First - rofl. Where else would you find a forum of accidental murder weapons?
Second - FYI, one of the mods might move this to story research.
Finally, to answer your question, a lamp would work just fine. Especially if it was one of those older lamps with a heavy base, the heavier the better. A really solid knock on the head could kill him. It may or may not cause bleeding, but if it breaks the skin and he dies immediately or soon after, keep in mind that his heart will stop beating so the amount of blood loss could be small. Otoh, if he gets a good gash and the accidental perpetrator doesn't run for help ASAP, there could be a lot of blood. Or the skin might not break at all, thus no blood.

I'll be thinking on this question. Will post more later.

hey!
pen in the eye\temple, make the person trip (or push him) he hits a sharp object\angle of object with his head. push someone down stairs...


"trapped by his friends" uhhh maybe he needs better friends
just kidding
any thing can turn into weapon, because people just quite fragile... especially in certain places.

(i feel like my answer sounds really disturbing)

Unimportant said:

Why not a handgun, if the story is set in the US?

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Even here, I don't think a handgun is a common bedroom item. If the story says it's there though, use it.

There's a term: one-punch homicide. His bare fists could do the job, if the victim just fell and hit their head wrong - or if he hits their chest hard enough, in the wrong place. He wouldn't even necessarily have to hit them, if he swings and the victim stumbles trying to duck out of the way, losing their footing and striking the wall/door frame/edge of a table or desk on the way down.

Otherwise, yeah, a lamp would be easy to grab and right on the nightstand or desk. He might have an old trophy or a bookend on a shelf that could do the job. If he plays sports, maybe a baseball bat.

A lamp would work. A blow to the head can kill, and it doesn't even need to be hard enough to knock the person out.

Look up epidural hematoma, for example, which is how the actress Natasha Richardson died. She fell while skiing, got right back up and laughed it off, but died a few hours later from bleeding within her brain.

A block of cheese, because I love cheese. Seriously, however, lamp does fit the scenario.

I would still opt for cheese. Gouda or Gruyere.

Nobody "accidentally" "murders" anybody. "Accidentally" is the wrong adverb. "Negligently" is more appropriate, and is recognized by law in cases judged to be "negligent homicide", or maybe some level of "manslaughter".

caw

Brightdreamer said:

There's a term: one-punch homicide. His bare fists could do the job, if the victim just fell and hit their head wrong - or if he hits their chest hard enough, in the wrong place.

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I was going to go here. Sometimes, it seems like everyone ever killed in a bedroom "hit their head on the corner of a table." Or a counter, or a dresser.

But there *is* a real thing where inappropriate chest compressions can actually stop a heart. A "heart punch" can be a deadly thing, given the right circumstances. The link is about generic trauma to the heart, but I don't see where a punch is excluded. The study in that link is two decades old. I think there's more known today, but it at least shows that this can happen.

And since it's used in wrestling entertainment all the time, I could see a young perpetrator having no idea that it could happen. That might bring an added layer of tragedy to the death.

blacbird said:

Nobody "accidentally" "murders" anybody. "Accidentally" is the wrong adverb. "Negligently" is more appropriate, and is recognized by law in cases judged to be "negligent homicide", or maybe some level of "manslaughter".

caw

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i "agree" with "this."

I'd say that a fist could be the best possible choice. Maybe the friend falls, they laugh it off, and then either from the punch or knocking their head when they fell, the friend dies.

Other than that, anything easy to swing and solid. A trophy, a lamp, an ornamental solid glass globe. Something heavy and solid.

To extend to previous list.

A piece of furniture such as a decorative piece of wood from a bed frame (some have "spheres" of wood that sit on top of post (or in the post) that can be easily removed and thrown and cause serious damage).

Death by dildo would be interesting. (it's a common bed room item isn't it?)

Seriously I think you nailed it with Lamp because that's the first thing to come to mind. He picks up a brass lamp (old model) chunks it and boom.

Now if the bedroom floor is wooden then a piece of ice can be used the attacker slips on it and then bam.

A thick book.

A video game controller.

A remote control.

Some bizarre decoration hanging on the wall.

A piece of abstract art even.

Or a clock on a nightstand.

That's all I have.

Maybe not hitting the friend, but how about a clever dare? Have him wire up a 9-volt to two thumbtacks and dare his friend to pierce each thumb with the thumbtacks. The current will run through the friend's body and stop his/her heart.

I too thought accidental murder would be called manslaughter. But maybe it's different in the USA (different legal systems have different terms).

Regarding how it happens - a blow to the side of the head (temporal bone of skull) is more likely to result in a serious enough bleed into the brain to kill someone, as there are more blood vessels on the side of the head and the skull is thinner. The front and back of the skull are better protected, because that's where you're more likely to hit your head following a fall (from an evolutionary point of view).

I think a plausible scenario would be that he's struck, falls, and hits the side of his head hard on a piece of furniture (e.g. the corner of a bedside table, if you're in the bedroom) - he could have been hit with a weapon, or punched (as suggested above).

If the victim has been drinking, then that increases the risk of bleeding into the brain, and therefore death following a head injury.

With this kind of injury, the person may not even lose consciousness right away, or they may be unconscious for a short time, then come round and appear normal. Later on they deteriorate. Common symptoms of bleeding in the brain (which could start immediately or not appear until later) are all the things they list on the card that you get given in A&E (emergency department) when you're sent home after a head injury. Or they could lose consciousness right away and not regain consciousness at all.

There are of course many other ways that someone could be killed accidentally. But the above is a fairly common way that someone might die after a fight or fall that does not seem all that serious at the time.

Unimportant said:

Guns are certainly not my area of expertise. But this paper -- which may or may not be reliable, and admittedly is well out of date -- suggests that about 30% of handguns are stored loaded and unsecured, and 37% of handguns are kept in bedrooms.

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Well, duh. If it's being kept for home defense (as many handguns are, I assume, since they're not hunting weapons as a rule), and you awaken in the night and realize someone is climbing in your window or walking down the hall towards your bedroom, the gun won't do you much good if it's in the kitchen, or locked away in a gun safe in the rec room.

But I doubt most people keep guns in their teenage kid's room, so if he's got one in his bedroom, there would need to be a reason for it that makes sense.

I'd go with the heavy lamp or baseball bat, though. It is possible to be killed from a single punch or blow to the head. There is also commotio cordis.

Murder is never accidental - no matter where you live.

I'd send J.A.R. But that's just me.

A badly installed ceiling fan falling could be a fun visual. There are always plenty of ways to electrocute someone.

But I personally would go with something a little more absurd (like a John Irving death). Like the two are playing video games, one gets upset and throws the controller, the TV falls, breaks, the other (soon to be dead) one stands up and trips over some dirty underpants/pile of porn mags/some item significant to the MC, falls, slicing his neck open on the broken TV. Something like this lays the groundwork for guilt and self-blame easily--and makes a horrific scene.

Roxxsmom said:

Well, duh. If it's being kept for home defense (as many handguns are, I assume, since they're not hunting weapons as a rule), and you awaken in the night and realize someone is climbing in your window or walking down the hall towards your bedroom, the gun won't do you much good if it's in the kitchen, or locked away in a gun safe in the rec room.

But I doubt most people keep guns in their teenage kid's room, so if he's got one in his bedroom, there would need to be a reason for it that makes sense.

I'd go with the heavy lamp or baseball bat, though. It is possible to be killed from a single punch or blow to the head. There is also commotio cordis.

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Very true. However teenagers could have hunting rifles and shotguns in their room. If they're family is big into hunting and the parents feel as if their child has sufficient weapon handling skills.

AndreF said:

Very true. However teenagers could have hunting rifles and shotguns in their room. If they're family is big into hunting and the parents feel as if their child has sufficient weapon handling skills.

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This is certainly possible, but I don't know how common it would be.

Personally, I came from a family of hunters and my brother and I were both proficient shooters from a young age. However, the guns were still kept in a safe when not in use. That's a standard gun safety practice, especially with kids or teens in the house (even if you trust your own teen, you might not trust his/her idiot friends).

Additionally, there are other practical reasons to store them apart:

1) Guns are valuable and could be stolen.

2) Keeping a rifle or shotgun in the bedroom would smell weird. The smell of gun oil is not unpleasant, but it is strong and distinctive. (A handgun is small enough to be easily stored in a drawer where the smell is contained. Unless you had a dresser with really wide drawers, you'd be hard-pressed to find a comparable storage area for a rifle or shotgun).

3) They're used for a specialized outdoor activity and were therefore stored somewhere other than the bedroom, just like the fishing gear and the bicycles.

I suppose if we had asked we might have been permitted to display one (it never really occurred to us), but it would have been stored unloaded (the ammo also stayed in the safe). An unloaded rifle/shotgun is basically just a heavy metal pipe with a handle, so it could still work for accidentally killing someone with a blow to the head.

If he's feeling crowded, he could just push his friend away. Friend trips over something and hits his head on a corner of the nightstand.

It all depends on how you write it, of course; but to me, a push is very different in intent than grabbing something and hitting a person over the head with it.

Depends on what you want for your story.

Unimportant said:

Guns are certainly not my area of expertise. But this paper -- which may or may not be reliable, and admittedly is well out of date -- suggests that about 30% of handguns are stored loaded and unsecured, and 37% of handguns are kept in bedrooms.

"Guns in America: National Survey on
Private Ownership and Use of Firearms
by Philip J. Cook and Jens Ludwig"

Editing to add: People who are willing to physically hit someone with their fists or a held object are usually not the type to feel 'trapped by a friend'. Guns, on the other hand, are a distance weapon requiring no physical contact with the other person, so psychologically may be more appropriate for such a person to use as a threat.

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I guarantee the real number is far, far above 37%, but not in a teen's bedroom. An unloaded gun is just a poor club, and a secured weapon is useless, even for a club. There certainly are some, but I am an expert, and I don't know a single gun owner who doesn't keep a loaded, unsecured handgun in the bedroom.

The number of people buying firearms of all sorts has gone up dramatically in the last six years from fear that a democratic controlled government would place more restrictions on certain types, including handgun.

Teens can legally own a gun, but can't actually buy one until he's eighteen. I started hunting at age seven, and owned my own rifle and shotgun at age eight. I also had full access to a revolver at age ten. This really isn't uncommon, but it is uncommon to have a handgun stored in a teen's bedroom. Technically, it isn't illegal in the majority of states, but it can be used against the parents, should something bad happen, be it accidental or intentional.

The psychological part is difficult. I can't remember a single case of one teenager shooting another in his own home out of fear. We've had a number of accidental shootings, but that's about it.

In most states, you can legally shoot someone for three reasons. 1. If you legitimately feel your life is threatened. 2. If you have reasonable belief that you will suffer severe physical injury. 3. In defense of property.

If this is a gun owning family, it is possible, even likely, that a teen would have a rifle and shotgun in his own bedroom. It's somewhat unlike, but possible, that he would have a handgun.

I would suggest something sharp, there are a lot of arteries near the surface (e.g. carotid) that could cause a person to bleed out. All it would take is a frantic slashing motive. And it would be a change from the usual 'fell over and hit their head' scenario.