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TN ATF arrests two in firearms sting
Josey1
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ATF arrests two in firearms sting
By: MIA RHODARMER
Source: The Monroe County Advocate
06-18-2002
TELLICO PLAINS - Two Tellico Plains men are among the 23 people Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents arrested on federal weapons charges earlier this month. During the one-year investigation in East Tennessee and Western North Carolina, undercover ATF agents purchased or seized more than 1,600 crime guns from individuals at flea markets, gun shops and personal residences.
Arrested during an early morning raid on June 6 were Paul Belcher, owner of Tellico Pawn, who faces eight counts of weapon charges and Olen Allman on 15 counts of weapons violations.
The charges against Belcher are for transactions taking place between April 16 and May 30 and include:
Selling a Taurus .40-caliber pistol to a convicted felon;
Selling a Sturm Ruger .44-Magnum revolver without keeping record of the person's name, age, and place of residence;
Selling a Sturm Ruger .44-Magnum revolver and a Bushmaster .223 rifle to someone living out of state;
Transferring a Taurus .40-caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check;
Selling a Hafdasa .45-caliber pistol to someone living outside the state;
Transferring a Hafdasa .45 caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check;
Selling and disposing of a Helwan 9 mm pistol and a Bryco .380-caliber pistol to a convicted felon;
Transferring a Helwan 9 mm pistol and a Bryco .380-caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check.
Agent Grant McGarity said Belcher was arrested at his business on June 6. McGarity said in addition to the criminal charges there are administration actions ATF can take against Belcher.
However, he did not elaborate on what those actions might be and said they will wait to see what happens with the criminal charges.
Belcher is scheduled to appear July 10 for a pre-trial conference in Federal Court in Knoxville. The jury trial is set for Aug. 14.
Allman's pretrial conference is set for July 10 with jury trial on Aug. 12. The charges against Allman date from Sept. 9, 2001 - June 5, 2002 and include:
Engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a firearm dealer's license;
(Counts 2 - 12 and 14) Having previously been convicted in court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, Allman was in possession of the following weapons that had been shipped in interstate commerce: a Norinco SKS assault rifle, a .380-caliber pistol imported by EAA Corporation, a Llama .38-caliber revolver, nine Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolvers, a Western Auto Supply .22-caliber revolver, a Smith and Wesson .357-caliber revolver, a Rossi .38-caliber revolver, a Phoenix Arms .22 caliber pistol, a Baikal pistol, a Charter Arms .44-caliber revolver, and a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun.
Selling, without a license, a Charter Arms .44-caliber revolver and three Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolvers to an unlicensed person living outside the state.
Selling and disposing of a Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolver and a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun to a convicted felon.
Belcher and Allman have been released on their own recognizance with a $20,000 bond.
The year-long investigation is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods to reduce illegal firearm trafficking in the tri-state area. "Firearms trafficking is an ATF investigative priority," said Special Agent in Charge James Cavanaugh.
Harry S. Mattice Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee said, "Project Safe Neighborhoods is our newest approach to fighting gun violence. Prosecuting people who sell guns illegally in Tennessee is one of the top priorities of my office. This case is about those individuals and businesses that are supplying firearms to prohibited persons."
Mia Rhodarmer can be reached at 337-7101 or by e-mail at mcanews2@xtn.net. http://www.monroe.xtn.net/index.php?table=news&template=news.view.subscriber&newsid=89040
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
By: MIA RHODARMER
Source: The Monroe County Advocate
06-18-2002
TELLICO PLAINS - Two Tellico Plains men are among the 23 people Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents arrested on federal weapons charges earlier this month. During the one-year investigation in East Tennessee and Western North Carolina, undercover ATF agents purchased or seized more than 1,600 crime guns from individuals at flea markets, gun shops and personal residences.
Arrested during an early morning raid on June 6 were Paul Belcher, owner of Tellico Pawn, who faces eight counts of weapon charges and Olen Allman on 15 counts of weapons violations.
The charges against Belcher are for transactions taking place between April 16 and May 30 and include:
Selling a Taurus .40-caliber pistol to a convicted felon;
Selling a Sturm Ruger .44-Magnum revolver without keeping record of the person's name, age, and place of residence;
Selling a Sturm Ruger .44-Magnum revolver and a Bushmaster .223 rifle to someone living out of state;
Transferring a Taurus .40-caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check;
Selling a Hafdasa .45-caliber pistol to someone living outside the state;
Transferring a Hafdasa .45 caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check;
Selling and disposing of a Helwan 9 mm pistol and a Bryco .380-caliber pistol to a convicted felon;
Transferring a Helwan 9 mm pistol and a Bryco .380-caliber pistol to someone who was not a licensed firearm dealer without conducting a criminal background check.
Agent Grant McGarity said Belcher was arrested at his business on June 6. McGarity said in addition to the criminal charges there are administration actions ATF can take against Belcher.
However, he did not elaborate on what those actions might be and said they will wait to see what happens with the criminal charges.
Belcher is scheduled to appear July 10 for a pre-trial conference in Federal Court in Knoxville. The jury trial is set for Aug. 14.
Allman's pretrial conference is set for July 10 with jury trial on Aug. 12. The charges against Allman date from Sept. 9, 2001 - June 5, 2002 and include:
Engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a firearm dealer's license;
(Counts 2 - 12 and 14) Having previously been convicted in court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, Allman was in possession of the following weapons that had been shipped in interstate commerce: a Norinco SKS assault rifle, a .380-caliber pistol imported by EAA Corporation, a Llama .38-caliber revolver, nine Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolvers, a Western Auto Supply .22-caliber revolver, a Smith and Wesson .357-caliber revolver, a Rossi .38-caliber revolver, a Phoenix Arms .22 caliber pistol, a Baikal pistol, a Charter Arms .44-caliber revolver, and a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun.
Selling, without a license, a Charter Arms .44-caliber revolver and three Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolvers to an unlicensed person living outside the state.
Selling and disposing of a Smith and Wesson .38-caliber revolver and a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun to a convicted felon.
Belcher and Allman have been released on their own recognizance with a $20,000 bond.
The year-long investigation is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods to reduce illegal firearm trafficking in the tri-state area. "Firearms trafficking is an ATF investigative priority," said Special Agent in Charge James Cavanaugh.
Harry S. Mattice Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee said, "Project Safe Neighborhoods is our newest approach to fighting gun violence. Prosecuting people who sell guns illegally in Tennessee is one of the top priorities of my office. This case is about those individuals and businesses that are supplying firearms to prohibited persons."
Mia Rhodarmer can be reached at 337-7101 or by e-mail at mcanews2@xtn.net. http://www.monroe.xtn.net/index.php?table=news&template=news.view.subscriber&newsid=89040
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Comments
By Jane Prendergast, jprendergast@enquirer.com
The Cincinnati Enquirer
New cooperation between Cincinnati police and federal weapons agents means federal prison time for more local criminals who use guns.
It used to be rare that someone arrested by Cincinnati police on gun charges went to federal court.
FEDERAL TIME
There's no flat formula that dictates what prison time a gun offender gets in the federal system, but it often winds up being longer than convictions under state laws. Sentences can vary depending on a suspect's prior record.
These are among the possible federal penalties for gun crimes:
Up to five years: For altering a gun's serial number; having or firing a gun in a school zone.
Five years minimum: For using, brandishing or carrying a firearm in a way designed to further or carry out a drug-trafficking crime or a federal crime of violence.
Up to 10 years: For giving or selling a handgun to someone under 18 who you knew intended to carry, possess or discharge the handgun or otherwise use the handgun or ammunition during a violent crime; for stealing guns or having anything to do with guns you knew were stolen.
At least 30 years: For having a gun during a second violent crime or drug-trafficking offense.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice.
But earlier this year, officials from Cincinnati Police, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and county and federal prosecutors agreed to work together more closely to address escalating violence in the city.
Federal prosecution doesn't always offer more time behind bars, but it can, depending on a variety of factors, including whether the defendant has a past record of violence and whether drugs were involved. But when a case does meet those requirements, the defendant generally is less likely to get out on bond and can be sent out of state to serve time.
In the first case under the new cooperative system, Christopher Godby of Madisonville was sentenced in April to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to illegally acquiring 11 guns.
Mr. Godby enlisted other people to buy guns for him because a previous felony conviction disqualified him from buying them himself. Police said the 34-year-old resold the guns on the street, including the one a teen-ager used to shoot 2-year-old Devonte Ross in a highly publicized Over-the-Rhine case last July.
Mr. Godby likely would have faced a significantly shorter sentence in the state system, perhaps 18 months, said Cincinnati Police Lt. Steve Kramer. And he possibly would have been able to make a plea bargain, which federal prosecutors are opposed to under the new program.
"Now, these people are going to jail for a long, long time," Lt. Kramer said. "If people on the street get the idea that if they bring a gun, they're going to do federal time, we hope they decide not to bring the gun."
Called Project Disarm
The local-federal cooperation, called Project Disarm, is similar to Project Exile in Richmond, Va.
Richmond officials credit the project for helping reverse that city's homicide rate because gun criminals got longer sentences, less access to bonds and were sent out of state to serve their terms.
The program started in 1997, the year 140 people were killed in Richmond. In 1998, the number of gun killings dropped to 78. Armed robberies declined 30 percent. Homicides dropped another 21 percent in 1999. Defendants are sentenced to an average of 56 months.
Locally, 208 cases have been reviewed so far for possible federal prosecution, said Chris Tardio, agent-in-charge of the ATF's Cincinnati office.
Of those, he said, 12 are in various stages of federal prosecution, three more await a prosecutor's decision and officers are researching another 12 to present to the U.S. attorney's office.
The program dovetails with U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft's promise that his administration would work harder on prosecuting gun crimes, including hiring more prosecutors to pursue people who buy guns illegally.
"It's just a matter that these cases had never been identified to the federal system before," Mr. Tardio said. "It's a major cooperative effort that has not been undertaken in Cincinnati before."
Hamilton County Prosecutor Mike Allen said he wants to talk with Greg Lockhart, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, to see if there's a way to take even more cases.
And the team is working on getting a federal grant to publicize its efforts from President Bush's crime-reduction plan, Project Safe Neighborhoods.
The campaign would stress that authorities need community help in finding illegal guns.
"If they don't tell us who has the guns, we don't find out until they're used," said Tim Oakley, the assistant U.S. attorney who handles the prosecutions. "Then it's too late."
A similar PR campaign in Colorado in 2000 featured O.J. Simpson lawyer Johnnie Cochran saying a good attorney could get a suspect off - unless that suspect was caught with a gun.
Gun confiscations are on the rise in Cincinnati. The number hovered around 900 per year for the past several years, but might top 1,200 this year, Lt. Kramer said.
Among the other locals currently awaiting federal trial:
Troy Allbecker, 26, of Oakley, who is charged with being a felon in possession of an unregistered firearm. He was arrested in January by Cincinnati Police District 2's Violent Crimes Squad after a teen-ager to whom he was trying to sell a sawed-off shotgun fired the gun at another teen, causing severe injuries.
Dwight Plair, awaiting trial on accusations of being an "armed career criminal," faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years because he was in possession of guns and has three prior convictions for violent crimes, Mr. Oakley said.
When arrested in June 2001, Mr. Plair was found with eight rifles and semiautomatic handguns, plus more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition. He had been convicted in 1968 of shooting at a Cincinnati police officer http://enquirer.com/editions/2002/06/19/loc_apolice_feds_go_after.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
My concern is that it will be used on law-abiding citizens for minor gun offenses such as carrying a pistol for self protection. My other concern is that it may pave the way for the feds to take over local law enforcement from states and cities anfd further erode state's rights. Remember.........our great grandparents voted to make the
federal income taxes legal after the U.S. Supreme court threw the law out. And what a mess we now have with the IRS.