AP: Shooters' Guns Came Via Memphis Police
Two guns used in high-profile shootings this year at the Pentagon and a Las Vegas courthouse both came from the same unlikely place: the police and court system of Memphis, Tenn.
Law enforcement officials told The Associated Press that both guns were once seized in criminal cases in Memphis. The officials described how the weapons made their separate ways from an evidence vault to gun dealers and to the shooters.
The use of guns that were once in police custody to attack police officers highlights a little-known divide in gun policy in the U.S.: Many cities and states destroy guns gathered in criminal probes, but others sell or trade the weapons in order to get other guns or buy police equipment.
In fact, on the day of the Pentagon shooting, March 4, the Tennessee governor signed legislation revising state law on confiscated guns. Before, law enforcement agencies in the state had the option of destroying a gun. Under the new version, agencies can only destroy a gun if it's inoperable or unsafe.
Kentucky has a similar law, but it's not clear how many other states have laws specifically designed to promote the police sale or trade of confiscated weapons.
A nationwide review by The Associated Press in December found that over the previous two years, 24 states - mostly in the South and West, where gun-rights advocates are particularly strong - have passed 47 new laws loosening gun restrictions. Gun rights groups are making a greater effort to pass favorable legislation in state capitals.
John Timoney, who led the Philadelphia and Miami police departments and served as New York's No. 2 police official, said he doesn't believe police departments should be putting more guns into the market.
"I just think it's unseemly for police departments to be selling guns that later turn up," he said, recalling that he had once been offered the chance to sell guns to raise money for the police budget.
For more info:
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Memphis Police Department
Shelby County Sheriff's Office
By Associated Press Writer Devlin Barrett; AP writer Lucas L. Johnson II in Nashville, Tenn. contributed to this story
© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Law enforcement officials told The Associated Press that both guns were once seized in criminal cases in Memphis. The officials described how the weapons made their separate ways from an evidence vault to gun dealers and to the shooters.
The use of guns that were once in police custody to attack police officers highlights a little-known divide in gun policy in the U.S.: Many cities and states destroy guns gathered in criminal probes, but others sell or trade the weapons in order to get other guns or buy police equipment.
In fact, on the day of the Pentagon shooting, March 4, the Tennessee governor signed legislation revising state law on confiscated guns. Before, law enforcement agencies in the state had the option of destroying a gun. Under the new version, agencies can only destroy a gun if it's inoperable or unsafe.
Kentucky has a similar law, but it's not clear how many other states have laws specifically designed to promote the police sale or trade of confiscated weapons.
A nationwide review by The Associated Press in December found that over the previous two years, 24 states - mostly in the South and West, where gun-rights advocates are particularly strong - have passed 47 new laws loosening gun restrictions. Gun rights groups are making a greater effort to pass favorable legislation in state capitals.
John Timoney, who led the Philadelphia and Miami police departments and served as New York's No. 2 police official, said he doesn't believe police departments should be putting more guns into the market.
"I just think it's unseemly for police departments to be selling guns that later turn up," he said, recalling that he had once been offered the chance to sell guns to raise money for the police budget.
For more info:
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Memphis Police Department
Shelby County Sheriff's Office
By Associated Press Writer Devlin Barrett; AP writer Lucas L. Johnson II in Nashville, Tenn. contributed to this story
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Crime in this country has been dropping for about 15 years. It has dropped faster in the states that restrict guns.
According to Forbes Magazine, Memphis is the second-most dangerous city in the U.S.
That's based on violent crimes per 100,000 people.
Their list of the 15 most dangerous cities is as follows:
Detroit, Mich.
Memphis, Tenn.
Miami, Fla.
Las Vegas, Nev.
Stockton, Calif.
Orlando, Fla.
Little Rock, Ark.
Charleston, S.C.
Nashville, Tenn.
Baltimore, Md.
New Orleans, La.
Baton Rouge, La.
West Palm Beach, Fla.
Charlotte, N.C.
Philadelphia, Pa.
As you can see, the list is dominated by the South where the gun laws are lax.
I've lived in the South all my life, and I do not envy the knuckle-draggers who think they have to have a gun everywhere they go.
Ballad of Terry Hoskins
Just like the pen does not write the word, guns do not kill people.
Wake up anti-gun people, use your head for something other than a hat rack.
If you spent your time, money and efforts in actually trying to find out "WHY" people kill people, you would do the WHOLE WORLD a favor. You just might stop all the wars on earth.
Violent crime in Orlando went down 33% in one year.
The "they'll just use knives or clubs" argument does not hold water.
Would the Pentagon shooter have tried to attack armed policemen with an edged weapon?
How many times have you heard of a drive-by clubbing?
Every time a gun injures or kills in self-defense, it is used:
11 times for completed and attempted suicides (Kellermann, 1998, p. 263).
7 times in criminal assaults and homicides, and
4 times in unintentional shooting deaths or injuries.
http://www.bradycampaign.org/facts/gunviolence/gunsinthehome
You might as well be placing it right in the criminals hands.