When the Only Tool You Have Is a Hammer

An 11-year-old boy was arrested in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and charged with carrying an unlawful weapon after school officials found nails in his pocket. His father says the nails were left over from a Boy Scout project. But police say the boy gave them conflicting reasons for having 10 nails, including that they were for self-defense because a suspicious man had been seen in his neighborhood. A police spokesman said anything that can be used as a weapon can be classified as unlawful on school grounds. "Is a pencil a weapon? Is a pen a weapon? Is a paperclip a weapon?" asked the boy's father.