A number of news stories have stated that 'large quantities' of US-purchased guns are being used by Mexican drug cartels. That is a claim made by BATFE, and our Dear Leader's Enforcer, Eric Holder, agrees.
The stories and charges were based on at least one case tried in Arizona, where a gun dealer was hauled into court, charged with selling over 700 weapons to a "straw buyer."
The Court issued a Directed Verdict in favor of the gun dealer. In other words, the MSM, BATFE, and Eric Holder were all.........ahhhhh.........wrong.
There is no proof whatsoever that any prohibited possessor ended up with the firearms. To
be sure the state produced witnesses who were claimed to be “straw” purchasers. But, as noted by the Ninth Circuit [United States v. Moore, 109 F.3d 1456 (9th Cir. 1997), cert. denied, 522 U.S. 836)] the straw man doctrine means that a person violates 18 U.S.C. § 922 (a)(6) (the statute passed by Congress noted above) “by acting as an intermediary or agent of someone who is ineligible to obtain a firearm from a licensed dealer and making a false statement that enables the ineligible principal to obtain a firearm.” There was no testimony in this case that lawful purchasers bought for an unlawful one.
According to Arms and the Law, there will be an appeal (!) which may or may not violate the principle of double jeopardy.
Meantime, Eric's Boyzzzzz and BATFE will have to find another excuse for trying to pass another "Assault Weapons" ban.
The other painfully ridiculous hole in this anti-gun witchhunt is that, without respect to where the guns are coming from, the commonly used weapons in the cartel war are fully automatic rifles and to a lesser extent, high explosive military ordinance (like grenades). Here in the States, the former is illegal except for EXTREMELY tightly controlled limited quantities and the other is just flat out illegal.
ReplyDeleteEven if you buy into their dishonest assertion that the US is the source for these weapons, how would new laws stop these already illegal items?
None of it matters...once the Dems start down the path of complete dishonesty, there's no arguing with them. This is one of the biggest straw man arguments they've concocted to date.