When someone wants to buy a gun and applies for a license, the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives can investigate his past and see if he has a criminal record.
But for the person selling the guns? Not so much. While ATF can delve into the business records of alcohol wholesalers, it doesn’t have the authority to look into hidden gun store ownership. This discrepancy seems foolish at best, deadly at worst.
A West Milwaukee gun dealer, Badger Guns (now Badger Outdoors), sold firearms used to shoot six police officers in Milwaukee in less than two years. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the store’s license was never revoked, even after a recommendation to do so. That caught the attention of Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, who wants tougher regulations on gun stores. She has contacted the ATF and the Justice Department for explanations of their policies and procedures, with a push for more AFT staff and regulatory authority.
She’s right. The ATF is understaffed and isn’t given proper regulatory authority when it comes to gun sales. Why police sellers of liquor more closely than sellers of guns?
Even if the ATF isn’t able to beef up its staff, it could make better use of a regulatory tool at its disposal — the “demand” letter, which requires gun dealers that didn’t cooperate in tracing guns or have been found to sell a high number of crime guns to file additional paperwork. Begun in 2000, the letters have dropped off in the past five years. The agency needs to use this tool as a way to monitor problem dealers.
Moore’s crusade isn’t about controlling gun ownership for regular citizens. It’s about ensuring that gun sellers operate above-board and do their best to keep guns away from criminals.