Jump to content

D.C.’s Police Department Creating Bottleneck for Handgun Purchases


mauserme

Recommended Posts

https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/residents-complain-d-c-s-police-department-creating-bottleneck-for-handgun-purchases/

 

 

 

Residents Complain D.C.s Police Department Creating Bottleneck for Handgun Purchases

Experts warn city could face new Second Amendment lawsuits

 

Stephen Gutowski - JUNE 15, 2020 4:59 AM

 

In an arrangement unique to Washington, D.C., the local police department is the only federally licensed firearms dealer that is open to the public. Residents tell the Washington Free Beacon, however, that legally obtaining a handgun has become nearly impossible due to the department's inaction.

 

...

With no gun stores in city limits, the Metropolitan Police Department obtained its own license to process transfers, but residents say that the agency is hindering their ability to legally obtain firearms.

 

"I have two sellers attempting to send firearms to the police department and neither of them have been able to get a response in close to two weeks," Elby Godwin, a real estate agent and longtime D.C. resident who purchased two handguns back on March 24, told the Free Beacon. "It is hard to tell at this point if MPD is even processing transfers."

 

Christian, a former school teacher and civilian contractor in Afghanistan, bought a gun on June 2 because his girlfriend had grown concerned about potential societal fallout from the coronavirus pandemic as well as the recent civil unrest inside the city. The D.C. resident, who asked for his identity to be withheld out of fear of career backlash over owning a gun, said the department has left him in limbo. When his out-of-state dealer shipped his handgun to the address listed by MPD, the package was not delivered and was instead returned to the post office. He has yet to hear anything from MPD despite multiple attempts to contact the agency.

 

"Just give me an answer," Christian said. "Just give me an answer, you know? That's all."

 

...

The roadblocks the residents have run into have created what one expert described as a "legally dangerous" situation for the nation's capital. The city has been the subject of a string of successful Second Amendment lawsuits over its strict gun laws in recent years, including the Supreme Court's landmark Heller decision in 2008, which struck down the city's total ban on handgun ownership. The lack of either a gun store or public range within city limits has remained a sticking point for many gun-rights activists, and some experts say the department's failure to adequately process transfers could open the door to another legal battle.

 

...

"Almost certainly several people are happy to do [transfers]. No one does because the municipal government makes it so difficult to become an FFL," he said. "The city wants to avoid two things: one, getting sued for making it difficult for people to become an FFL. And it definitely wants to avoid a situation where, in D.C., that part of the federal statute doesn't apply."

 

Dave Kopel, research director at the Independence Institute and an adjunct professor of advanced constitutional law at the University of Denver, said the dilemma could carry far-reaching consequences beyond the confines of Washington, D.C. Plaintiffs could challenge not only MPD's firearm license but also the federal licensing laws that govern handgun transfers.

 

...

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the Senate flips and Biden is elected watch this to go nationwide. The Democrats have been trying for years to get rid of the 3 day limit for NICS to approve (no approval after 3 days the sale can go through). Then a simple Executive Order telling the FBI to stop processing NICS checks and BOOM gun sales are stopped nationwide.

 

Don't think it can't happen.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...