good job, hitting the "gun show loophole's" grommet edition

[gejohnston]

A New York felon pleaded guilty Thursday to attempting to illegally purchase a semi-automatic pistol at a Virginia gun show in a case being touted as a key example of the cooperation between licensed firearm dealers and police in stopping prohibited gun sales.

Lamont Reaves, 27, who was convicted in 2007 of a felony crack cocaine offense in New York and also charged with earlier gun offenses, entered a guilty plea in Henrico County Circuit Court to attempting to possess a gun after having been convicted of a felony.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/local/crime/felon-gets-months-for-attempted-illegal-buy-at-gun-show/article_a6f87688-31d2-11e3-ac7d-001a4bcf6878.html

Of course, I think drug addiction should be a public health issue instead of a criminal justice issue, but that is another thread.

[xfundy]

1. Great. One caught, thousands go free.

[Eleanors38]

2. Not really. The Austin police caught a felon and his

Straw purchaser in an illegal purchase at a gun show here. LEO typically keeps tabs of license plate #s, suspicious behavior, photos, etc., both inside and outside of shows. It is better to have one big show with police present, than scattered unmonitored sales. That probably explains why 95+% of crims who obtain guns get them elsewhere.

[Straw Man]

5. If I didn't know better ...

Great. One caught, thousands go free.

... I'd think you were calling for better enforcement of existing laws.

[seattle15]

3. Great, so they caught one out of 500,000

Maybe the cops instead show actually go into the gun show and arrest all of the dealers that have guns with the serial numbers filed-off.

[Straw Man]

4. You watch too much "CSI"

Maybe the cops instead show actually go into the gun show and arrest all of the dealers that have guns with the serial numbers filed-off.

It's against federal and many state laws to possess a firearm with a defaced serial number. Anyone selling such items at a public venue may as well hang a sign around his neck saying "Bust Me."

[gejohnston]

6. If I come across one with serial numbers filed off

or for sale with out them (as in unlicensed manufacture for other than personal use) I'd be the first one to call the ATF. At a flea market near me in Florida some guy was selling reloaded ammo without a manufactures license. The retired ATF agent two booths down, who was also selling ammo, dropped a dime on him.

[Ranchemp.]

7. I have a lot of friends who are ATF agents and they take a very dim view of

serial numbers being filed off or otherwise defaced.
I've worked with these agents and they are dedicated, honest men and women who want to do their jobs to the best of their abilities.

[Eleanors38]

8. Oh, why not 500,000,000, all equipped with a free file per gun.

[virginia mountainman]

9. Filed serial numbers??

WE SHOULD BAN FILES THEN!!!!!

(Just using the logic of the vast majority of gun control advocates)

[GreenStormCloud]

10. I have never seen one.

I go to gun shows regularly. You have an over active imagination if you think that defaced guns are sold at gun shows.

BTW - You can't file off a serial number. They have to be drilled out.

[Glaug-Eldare]

11. Would a milling machine do a nice, professional-looking job? n/t

[DonP]

12. Yeah, but if you have a milling machine why not just make one from scratch?

[GreenStormCloud]

13. It isn't the look of the job, it is the effectiveness.

The serial number is usually stamped into a flat surface. The is nothing for the file to work on. You have a flat surface against a flat surface. To get the serial number out, you have to dig into the surface. That takes a drill, or a milling machine. The drill is a lot cheaper.

[Glaug-Eldare]

14. But the end mill will look a lot cleaner, non ?

Cleaner cut, straighter lines, more consistent depth, just a higher-quality job all around.

[GreenStormCloud]

15. Yes, but the people who would do that rarely care about a neat job. N/T