Backroom Report... Monday - November 24, 2008
A recent article in the Cartersville Daily Tribune opened my eyes to a policy of the Bartow County Sheriff’s Department that merits a closer look… the subject is what the department does with firearms that it has seized.
Let’s say deputies pull over a car and discover a large quantity of illegal drugs… the driver is arrested on a charge of possession of drugs with intent to distribute. In this case the car is impounded and later auctioned off under federal RICO statutes with the proceeds going back to the sheriff’s department.
That’s why I was shocked to see that the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office doesn’t also auction off firearms that it has confiscated… or at least trade the guns for new firearms for officers. Instead the agency has the guns melted down.
Now I’m not picking on Sheriff Clark Millsap… I think Clark has done a decent job and I voted for his reelection back on Nov. 4th… but there does seem to be a disconnect between Millsap’s previous statements that he supports the 2nd amendment and his policy of melting down firearms… and here’s how I got there…
In the drug scenario… the driver is the guilty party… not the car. The drug dealer just happened to be using that particular car to transport the drugs.
In the case of someone being in possession of a firearm during commission of a crime… it’s the individual who has committed the crime… not the gun. Yet by melting down firearms, the sheriff’s department is treating the gun as the problem.
The reason for melting firearms given by the sheriff’s department in the Tribune article is that they’re concerned about the guns getting back on the street. Using that logic, when a drug dealer’s car is later auctioned off I guess we should all be scared that the new buyer may also use the car to run drugs like the previous owner did… it’s a silly argument.
If someone supports the second amendment…as Sheriff Clark Millsap has said he does… then that person must treat firearms as legitimate items that law abiding citizens should be free to own and use… not as evil objects that must be destroyed for fear of their future possible misuse… Heck, almost anything from a butter knife to a piece of knitting yarn can be misused to cause serious bodily harm.
When a law enforcement agency auctions off firearms, background checks can be done to ensure that sales are only made to citizens legally eligible to own a firearm. By melting down the guns… Bartow County is missing out on needed revenue and sending a misguided message that guns are evil. I hope Sheriff Millsap will reverse his current policy.
That’s my opinion… we welcome yours… Thanks for listening and I’ll see you next Monday… for a complete transcript of this morning’s comments, go to NewsTalk1270.com (End of complete transcript of commentary that aired on NewsTalk AM 1270 – WYXC at 7:35 AM Monday, November 24, 2008)
Let’s say deputies pull over a car and discover a large quantity of illegal drugs… the driver is arrested on a charge of possession of drugs with intent to distribute. In this case the car is impounded and later auctioned off under federal RICO statutes with the proceeds going back to the sheriff’s department.
That’s why I was shocked to see that the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office doesn’t also auction off firearms that it has confiscated… or at least trade the guns for new firearms for officers. Instead the agency has the guns melted down.
Now I’m not picking on Sheriff Clark Millsap… I think Clark has done a decent job and I voted for his reelection back on Nov. 4th… but there does seem to be a disconnect between Millsap’s previous statements that he supports the 2nd amendment and his policy of melting down firearms… and here’s how I got there…
In the drug scenario… the driver is the guilty party… not the car. The drug dealer just happened to be using that particular car to transport the drugs.
In the case of someone being in possession of a firearm during commission of a crime… it’s the individual who has committed the crime… not the gun. Yet by melting down firearms, the sheriff’s department is treating the gun as the problem.
The reason for melting firearms given by the sheriff’s department in the Tribune article is that they’re concerned about the guns getting back on the street. Using that logic, when a drug dealer’s car is later auctioned off I guess we should all be scared that the new buyer may also use the car to run drugs like the previous owner did… it’s a silly argument.
If someone supports the second amendment…as Sheriff Clark Millsap has said he does… then that person must treat firearms as legitimate items that law abiding citizens should be free to own and use… not as evil objects that must be destroyed for fear of their future possible misuse… Heck, almost anything from a butter knife to a piece of knitting yarn can be misused to cause serious bodily harm.
When a law enforcement agency auctions off firearms, background checks can be done to ensure that sales are only made to citizens legally eligible to own a firearm. By melting down the guns… Bartow County is missing out on needed revenue and sending a misguided message that guns are evil. I hope Sheriff Millsap will reverse his current policy.
That’s my opinion… we welcome yours… Thanks for listening and I’ll see you next Monday… for a complete transcript of this morning’s comments, go to NewsTalk1270.com (End of complete transcript of commentary that aired on NewsTalk AM 1270 – WYXC at 7:35 AM Monday, November 24, 2008)
posted by Chuck Shiflett @ 11:35 PM
1 Comments:
At 4:44 AM,
Anonymous said…
Dear Chuck,
I really enjoy reading your articles and I agree with you on just about everything you voice. I don't however feel as if he has done a "decent" job. And I have good reasons not to. I agree with you %100 that this is not right to melt guns. But I don't think for one second that all of these guns are actually destroyed. I have my own opinions as to what they do with them. I would hope and pray that these guns are properly entered into the national data base systems first to see if they may be linked to any murders or any other serious crimes.
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