Nine people were shot in the first hours of 2013, and thankfully none died of their wounds. But if you needed any more proof that New York City (and indeed, America, from Omaha to Los Angeles) is awash with way too many mechanisms of death, here is a man in Flatbush ringing in the New Year with bullets fired from his handgun.
Can stray bullets from celebratory gunfire kill you? Yes, although there is debate as to whether those bullets have to be fired at an angle or straight up into the air. According to Slate, smaller bullets fired straight up into the air, such as those fired out of a 9mm handgun, "max out" at speeds between 150 and 250 feet per second, which likely isn't fast enough to kill someone, but enough to deliver "a painful wallop."
But remember, Guns Don't Kill People, People [With Guns] Kill People, and firing a gun into the air lets everyone know that you're strong and powerful and way too cool to spend money on confetti poppers that don't end people's lives. Good thing this guy didn't throw Call of Duty 2 into the air, someone could have gotten hurt!
