“Until the final hours of the trial, both the defense and government focused the case on whether the single 12 gauge shotgun shell that was found in Mr. Witaschek’s D.C. home was operable. The judge, however, never ruled on it.”
Is there such a thing as a muzzle-loaded, 12 gauge shotgun shell?
No, the 12 ga shell was inert, it had no primer and had no connection to a muzzleloader.