Mo. lawmakers pass bill lowering concealed gun age

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri residents old enough to legally drink alcohol also could get permits to carry concealed guns under legislation given final approval Friday in the last hour of Missouri's annual legislative session.

The legislation would repeal the current minimum age of 23 that was set when lawmakers overrode a veto by then-Gov. Bob Holden to enact a concealed-carry law in 2003. Instead, it would allow people to get conceal-carry permits beginning at age 21.
The House passed the bill 125-25 on Friday, following a 27-6 vote Wednesday by the Senate. The bill now goes to Gov. Jay Nixon.

Nixon spokesman Scott Holste declined to say whether the governor supports lowering the age to obtain concealed gun permits, saying only that the bill will receive a thorough review.

Most states have laws allowing residents who meet certain qualifications to carry concealed gun. The National Rifle Association says Missouri's current age restriction is the highest among states that allow concealed gun permits. The most common threshold is age 21, though some states grant concealed gun permits to people as young as 18 and a few states allow people to carry hidden guns without need of a government permit.

The bill lowering the state's age threshold "is a milestone event here in Missouri to allow law-abiding citizens to protect themselves," said Sen. Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown, one of the bill's sponsors.

The legislation passed with barely a hint of the contention that had dominated the concealed-guns debate in Missouri for more than a decade.

Missouri lawmakers pushing for concealed gun permits had been rebuffed for years by some Senate Democrats, including former Gov. Mel Carnahan, before they finally agreed to put the issue to a statewide vote in April 1999. The ballot measure — the first ever in the nation on the issue — was rejected by 52 percent of the vote, with strong urban opposition overcoming rural support.

Four years later, the Legislature enacted a law allowing concealed gun permits by passing legislation and overriding Holden's veto. That occurred by the slimmest possible margin — needing the votes of then-Sen. Jon Dolan, who took a leave of absence from a military deployment in Guantanamo Bay, and then-Sen. Michael Gibbons, who switched from a "'no" vote on the bill's passage to a "yes" vote on the veto override.

Gibbons cited Missouri's age requirements as one of the provisions that made the concealed guns law among the more restrictive possible and thus helped make him feel comfortable voting for it. Gibbons, who now is a lobbyist, said in retrospect that he also would have supported the veto override if the age limit had originally been set at 21.

Munzlinger had proposed this year to lower the minimum age necessary for a concealed gun permit to 18. But he settled on 21 as a compromise with other lawmakers who were hesitant to go that low.

"I had very, very strong concerns about lowering it down to 18," said Sen. Joseph Keaveny, D-St. Louis. But "I'm happy with what he's done with the age."
Keaveny nonetheless was one of the six senators — all Democrats — who voted against the bill. All the "no" votes in the House also were from Democrats.

The bill's House sponsor, Rep. Jeannie Riddle, R-Mokane, said she believes the age still should be lowered to 18 and hopes to revisit the issue in a future legislative session.
"Missourians, and all Americans, are considered adults at age 18 for nearly every purpose," she said.

The legislation also would change one of the training requirements for getting a concealed gun permit to mandate that people shoot at least 50 rounds each with a revolver and a semiautomatic pistol instead of a total of 50 rounds with any handgun.
Although guns otherwise are prohibited at the Missouri Capitol, the legislation would allow state elected officials and their employees to carry concealed firearms in the building if they have permits.
___
Guns bill is HB294.
Online:
Legislature: http://www.moga.mo.gov/

http://www.necn.com/05/13/11/Mo-lawmakers-pass-bill-lowering-conceale/landing_politics.html?&blockID=3&apID=2551b3350a0f4cd08c53b309353425dc

Doctors, groups clash over asking patients about firearms

By Rita Rubin, USA TODAY

Three states are considering laws that would penalize doctors and other health care providers for asking patients or their parents whether they have a gun at home.

The National Rifle Association and other pro-gun interest groups argue that doctors violate patients' Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms by inquiring about gun ownership. Doctors say they ask only because of safety concerns. Prohibiting them from asking about guns likely violates the First Amendment, at least one constitutional law expert says.

Two weeks ago, the Florida Legislature became the first to pass such legislation. Republican Gov. Rick Scott, known to support gun rights, is expected to sign it. A similar law moved out of committee in the Alabama House of Representatives April 21, while another remains in committee in the North Carolina Senate.

The American Academy of Pediatrics' position on firearm-related injuries states "the absence of guns from children's homes and communities is the most reliable and effective measure to prevent firearm-related injuries" to them.

Timothy Wheeler, a retired surgeon in Upland, Calif., founder and director of Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership, cites the position statement as proof that pediatricians want to ban firearms. Pediatric residents "think it's normal to ask about guns in the home," he says. "They don't understand that it is an ethical boundary violation."

Louis St. Petery, a Tallahassee pediatric cardiologist and executive vice president of the Florida Pediatric Society, says prevention, not politics, drives children's doctors to inquire about firearms. "We have a gun in our home," St. Petery says. "I'm not against guns."

The first funeral of a patient he ever attended was that of a 2-year-old who was shot and killed at home by a 5-year-old sibling, St. Petery says. "I'm afraid that some people are going to stop asking" because of the new legislation, which imposes a $500 fine for the first violation, he says. "As a result, I think more children will be injured and killed by improperly stored firearms."

Pippa Abston, a Huntsville, Ala., pediatrician , blogged a few weeks ago, "Dear NRA, You are not the Boss of me!"

"We're not talking to parents about gun control," Abston said in an interview. "We're talking about safety."

She says she worries lawmakers will try to restrict doctors' freedom to talk to patients about other "hot button" issues, such as vaccines.

Constitutional law expert Erwin Chemerinsky of the University of California-Irvine says banning doctors from asking about guns likely is unconstitutional because it restricts speech on the basis of content, which is "allowed only if it serves a compelling interest and there is no other way to achieve it."

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/healthcare/story/2011/05/Doctors-groups-clash-over-asking-patients-about-firearms/47130758/1

House votes to let guns into bars

Speaker credits pro-gun groups for winning over some opponents

Thursday, May 12, 2011  03:08 AM

By Jim Siegel THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

A divided Ohio House voted yesterday to allow concealed-carry permit holders to take guns into restaurants, bars and open-air arenas that serve alcohol as long as they do not drink.

"I say we're not expanding Second Amendment rights. We are restoring Second Amendment rights," said Rep. Terry Johnson, R-McDermott, one of the measure's sponsors. "How sad we have to do that. We have had substantial infringement upon our constitutional rights."

The bill passed 56-40 and moves on to the Senate, which has passed a nearly identical version of the legislation. House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina, said he expects the chambers to decide within a week which bill will be voted on for final passage.

The House bill also would loosen restrictions on how guns are transported in vehicles, allowing loaded guns to be carried without being holstered or put in a case.

Supporters argued that police cannot be everywhere and often are called too late to stop a murder. "We're making one less victim zone in Ohio, because right now, a bad guy knows that that's a place where law-abiding citizens will not carry a firearm," Johnson said.

Business owners still could post signs banning guns from their establishments.
Four Republicans voted against the bill, including Rep. Mike Duffey of Worthington, who said he would support allowing permit holders to carry guns into restaurants but not into bars, strip clubs and nightclubs.

"Do you want guns in bars? My common sense said no," Duffey said. "There are always limitations to every right and freedom, and our rights generally end where someone else's life starts. I don't play a lot of games with that."

Republican Reps. Todd McKenney of New Franklin, Kirk Schuring of Canton and Nan Baker of Westlake also voted no. Democrat Debbie Phillips of Athens voted yes.

Batchelder said a few weeks ago that he didn't have the votes to pass the bill, but pro-gun groups turned up the pressure. "We picked up votes. It's that simple," Batchelder said.

Rep. Anne Gonzales, R-Westerville, noted that she can carry her gun into Einstein Bros. Bagels but not into Lindey's restaurant in German Village because it sells alcohol.

"Am I somehow less responsible because someone else is having a drink with their dinner?" she said.

According to data from the Legal Community Against Violence, seven states have laws similar to the Ohio proposal. Seven states prohibit guns in places that serve alcohol, and many others allow guns into restaurants or are silent on the matter, generally leaving it up to local laws.

Earlier yesterday, Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman joined Scott Heimlich, owner of the Barcelona restaurant in German Village and vice president of the Central Ohio Restaurant Association, to urge legislators to defeat the bill, which Coleman called a "toxic mix" of guns and alcohol.

"We have to start injecting some common sense into these discussions," Coleman said.
He suggested that if lawmakers think it's a good idea to carry guns in bars, they should also allow guns into the Statehouse. Gov. John Kasich recently said he wants to install metal detectors at the Statehouse because he is concerned about security.

Heimlich said he does not doubt that concealed-carry permit holders are well-behaved, law-abiding citizens. "But alcohol changes all of us just a little bit. Some get silly, and for some it might bring out some anger issues."

Heimlich also expressed concern about liability issues and insurance costs associated with the bill, and he questioned how he could enforce the ban on drinking by those who carry guns.

"Do we do pat-downs or ask every guest before we serve them a glass of wine?" he said.

Law-enforcement groups also opposed the bill.

The bill brought out impassioned, personal speeches, such as one by Rep. Vernon Sykes, D-Akron, who talked about two shootings involving his mother: one in which she shot his father, who was drinking, and the other in which his mother was killed by a family friend who was drunk.

"Alcohol and firearms, they don't mix," he said.

McKenney tried without success to strip the guns-in-bars provision from the bill. He said he is a member of the National Rifle Association, but "this issue is all about alcohol, not guns."

"We must consider the worst possible places that we are endorsing concealed-carry owners to walk into," he said. "We're not just talking about Applebee's and Olive Garden."

The House yesterday also approved House Bill 54, a less-controversial gun bill that supporters say would harmonize Ohio law with federal law by allowing people with minor drug convictions to apply for full gun-possession rights.
jsiegel@dispatch.com

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/05/12/house-votes-to-let-guns-into-bars.html?sid=101

Concealed-carry bill on hold: Gun legislation fails to get House votes

By Travis Morse

The Journal-Standard

Freeport, Ill. —

New legislation allowing state residents to carry concealed weapons has stalled in the Illinois House of Representatives, but sponsors plan to bring the bill forward again later this month.

State Rep. Jim Sacia, R-Pecatonica, a sponsor of the bill, said the legislation needed 71 yes votes to be approved by the House on May 5, but only received 65. Even so, the bill did get enough support to qualify for “postponed consideration,” which means it will likely be voted on again soon, Sacia said.

“It will come back up in May,” Sacia said, adding that he has been an ardent supporter of the proposed law. “I spoke passionately in favor of the bill, citing my 30 years in law enforcement, which has convinced me it is the right thing to do.”

If approved, House Bill 148 would allow county sheriffs across Illinois to issue permits to carry concealed firearms to state residents who are at least 21 years of age and who meet certain requirements. Among other things, the bill requires applicants to complete extensive training, including classroom instruction and live firing exercises, and to submit to a criminal background check.

In order to obtain a permit, applicants cannot have been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, or of a misdemeanor involving violence in the last 10 years. In addition, applicants cannot be free on bond or have any outstanding warrants, and they also cannot have a history of mental illness or disease.
Illinois and Wisconsin are the only two states in the U.S. that do not allow some form of concealed carry. Wisconsin is working on similar legislation.

Stephenson County Sheriff David Snyders is the co-chairman of a special subcommittee that is advising the Illinois General Assembly on the proposed concealed-carry law. He is one of 13 Illinois sheriffs serving on the subcommittee, which was created by the Illinois Sheriff’s Association.

Snyders Monday reaffirmed his support for the legislation. If approved by the Illinois House, the concealed-carry law would move on to the Senate.

“I’m disappointed it didn’t pass,” Snyders said. “Hopefully, it will come up again. ... The majority of law enforcement, in general, favors this legislation.”

Constitutional Right

To Sacia, law-abiding citizens should have the right to exercise their right to bear arms, as is guaranteed to them by the Second Amendment. He said states that allow residents to carry concealed weapons tend to be safer, and that the criminal element obtains their firearms illegally.

“Its time has come,” Sacia said of the law. “There is substantial evidence that when law-abiding citizens have the right to carry a firearm, you are in a safer society.”

The law has met its fair share of opposition, primarily from Chicago area legislators, the Illinois Governor’s Office, and the Illinois State Police, Sacia said.

Innocent Bystanders
State Rep. Monique Davis, D-Chicago, said she has many concerns about the concealed-carry bill. One of her chief worries is that it could result in more innocent bystanders being hurt during a shooting incident. If a criminal opens fire in a crowd, and several law-abiding citizens fire their guns at the criminal, it may increase the number of injuries that occur, Davis said.

Before such a law were passed, Davis said she would like to see police receive additional training about how to deal with an armed citizenry. Also, the gang problem in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs needs to be addressed before concealed carry is allowed, she said.

“I’m (worried) about unintended consequences,” Davis said, adding that Chicago and downstate Illinois have very different cultures when it comes to firearms. “Downstate, kids grow up with guns and they don’t shoot each other. They hunt. It’s not the same in the city. ... I absolutely support children in Chicago learning what a gun is and what its parts are.”

State Police
Captain Scott Compton of the Illinois State Police confirmed Monday that his agency has come out against the concealed-carry bill, under the direction of Gov. Pat Quinn.

http://www.journalstandard.com/highlight/x837707757/Concealed-carry-bill-on-hold-Gun-legislation-fails-to-get-House-votes

Florida Bill Outlaws Asking Patients About Guns
by Emily P. Walker, Washington Correspondent, MedPage TodayReviewed by
May 09, 2011
WASHINGTON -- The Florida state legislature has passed a bill that would make it illegal for pediatricians and other physicians to ask patients or their parents whether they have guns in their home.

Pediatricians often ask the question at initial well-child visits as a platform to discuss how to safely store guns in the home in order to prevent accidental shootings.

But under the law -- expected to be signed soon by Florida's governor -- doctors would face a $500 fine for inquiring about gun ownership and recording it in a patient's medical record. That fine would increase if a physician asked about guns at more than one visit.

The National Rifle Association (NRA), the main backer of the legislation, says questions about firearms don't belong in the doctor's office.

The association also charges that the American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing an anti-gun agenda and that such questions in a medical setting infringe on patients' Second Amendment rights.

"The NRA is way off base by saying we're trying to interfere with their Second Amendment rights; they're interfering with our First Amendment rights," Louis St. Petery, a pediatrician in Florida, told MedPage Today.

"Forty percent of households have guns, so we routinely ask, 'Is there a gun in the home?'" said St. Petery, who is executive vice president of the Florida Pediatric Society. "We want to be sure the parent understands how to safely store that gun so children don't get injured or killed."

He said asking about guns is just part of a litany of questions for new patients aimed at reducing risks for preventable disease and accidents. He also inquires whether his patients have had their necessary vaccinations, whether they have a swimming pool, and whether they wear seat belts.

Although many pediatricians ask that same question about gun ownership -- which is, in fact, recommended by the AAP -- St. Petery's motivation is personal. Early in his career a 5-year-old patient found a loaded handgun at home and killed a 2-year-old sibling.

It was the first funeral of a patient St. Petery and his wife, who is also a pediatrician, ever went to and it left a "tremendous impression" on them, he said.

"Parents who choose to have weapons need to be sure they are properly stored," he said, adding that unlocked guns are not just a danger for young children, but also for adolescents who have emotional issues and may be considering suicide.

St. Petery said that in his 35 years of practice, he's never had patient who seemed annoyed or angry when he asked whether they owned a gun.

The Florida bill originally would have made it a felony for doctors to inquire about gun ownership, punishable by up to a $5 million fine or prison time. But a compromise with the Florida Medical Association lowered the charge and also allows doctors to ask about guns if they fear their patient is in immediate danger.

St. Petery doesn't like that compromise and said doctors could still be reported to the state medical society and have to hire a lawyer to fight the charges.

Marion Hammer, a Florida-based NRA lobbyist and former president of the powerful gun-rights group, said physicians have no right to ask about gun ownership.

"We take our children to pediatricians for medical care, not political judgement or to be harassed by people who have a different agenda other than medical care," she told MedPage Today.

"It's all politics," she said, adding that the AAP advocates banning guns.

PolitiFact recently fact-checked that statement and determined that Hammer's claim is "mostly true." The AAP has policy statements on its website in support of banning handguns and assault weapons, but the group doesn't explicitly advocate a complete ban on guns.

Various materials on the AAP's site advocate gun safety along with a number of other safety tips, such as making sure kids wear bicycle helmets and not placing an infant in front of an airbag.

St. Petery denied that he or the AAP advocates inquiring about gun ownership as part of a larger political agenda to overturn the Second Amendment.

He said he's not anti-gun. In fact, he and his wife own an old shotgun that they keep unloaded and locked up.

Hammer said she has no problem with doctors passing out gun safety information to all patients, say in the form of a pamphlet in the waiting room, but she hopes the bill will deter doctors from asking about guns during office visits.

"I hope that if they are seriously interested in safety, they will disseminate safety information to all patients," she said. "And that they will stop asking questions they have no business asking."

Florida's legislature is the first to approve such the measure, but a similar one is being considered in other states, including North Carolina and Alabama, according to NPR.

Note to ATF: When you give guns to Mexican Cartels, they use them

By David Freddoso Created May 8 2011 - 7:55am San Francisco Examiner

When you give guns to Mexican Cartels, , they use them to kill people. That is the finding of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, which involved allowing thousands of guns collected through suspicious purchases to walk across the Mexican border. The guns were later used against U.S. Border Patrol agents. You can read more about the scandal from CBS News here.

Ever since Border Patrol agent Brian Terry was killed in December, the "gunwalker" scandal has been slowly growing. Two guns recovered on the scene of the murder had been deliberately allowed by BATF to walk across the border. The Justice Department continues to evade responsibility for this investigation gone wrong, and Senate Democrats seem to have no interest in holding them accountable.

House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., has been investigating, and receiving minimal cooperation from the administration. He released this statement upon the indictment of Terry's killer:

“The announcement of an indictment against Manuel Osorio-Arellanes for the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry is certainly good news, but leaves critical questions unanswered. The Justice Department still hasn’t said how and why guns purportedly being tracked and monitored by federal law enforcement officials as part of Operation Fast and Furious ended up in the hands of Agent Terry’s killers.  It angers me to think that this death might not have occurred had it not been for reckless decisions made by officials at the Department of Justice who authorized and supported an operation that knowingly put guns in the hands of criminals.  For these officials to imagine that this operation would result in anything other than a tragic outcome was naive and negligent. 

Sen. Charles Grassley and I continue to demand accountability as we investigate this matter.”

This scandal is especially striking given all the complaining and the false numbers that President Obama released at the beginning of his administration over the number of U.S.-bought guns being used by cartels in Mexico.

http://www.sfexaminer.com/print/blogs/beltway-confidential/2011/05/note-atf-when-you-give-guns-mexican-cartels-they-use-them

ATF told gun stores to arm drug cartels

Posted: May 8, 2011 | 2:35 a.m.

On the night of Dec. 14, 2010, a firefight erupted in the Southern Arizona desert.
According to court documents obtained by CBS News, Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was part of a squad that spotted a group of illegal immigrants, some armed with assault rifles. When the illegals refused to drop their weapons -- in a pathetic symbol of the current administration's "college kid" approach to the dangers of the real world -- agents fired "less than lethal" bean bags. The bandits fired back with real bullets.

Terry was shot and killed. His partners returned fire with a rifle and pistol, but it was too late.

In the rank and file of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives -- still generally referred to as the ATF -- discouraging words began to be heard. Was it possible the agency's "Project Gunrunner" -- and a Phoenix spin-off called "Fast and Furious" -- had provided bad guys with the firearms used to kill Agent Terry?

Though official ATF spokesmen initially denied purposely allowing any weapons to cross the border, whistle-blowers spoke to Second Amendment activist David Codrea and others of an operation that provided assault weapons to buyers who would then "walk" the guns over the border and sell them to members of the Mexican drug cartels. The goal was to provide the bad guys with weapons with traceable serial numbers, thus helping manufacture evidence against them.

How many guns? On March 28, Fox News reported "Congress and the Department of Justice appear to be headed for a showdown this week over documents detailing Operation Fast and Furious, the botched gunrunning sting set up by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that funneled more than 1,700 smuggled weapons from Arizona to Mexico."

Demanded from the Justice Department by March 30 were "a stack of records and emails naming the individuals responsible for the gun trafficking operation that may have killed dozens, if not hundreds of Mexicans, and is becoming a growing embarrassment for the Obama administration."

Under Project Gunrunner -- now frequently and sarcastically dubbed "Gunwalker" -- and the Phoenix offshoot Fast and Furious, the ATF encouraged gun store owners to sell to straw buyers, consumers who they suspected of working on behalf of Mexican drug cartels, reported William La Jeunesse at Fox.

Using this investigative technique, records show the ATF "allowed more than 1,700 guns, including hundreds of AK-47s and high-powered, armor-piercing .50-caliber rifles to be trafficked to Mexico," Fox News reported.

Under one of our thousands of unconstitutional gun laws, buying guns to pass along to others is illegal. But gun store owners were reportedly assured by ATF agents the buyers were under investigation and the guns would be intercepted before crossing into Mexico.

'Told to go through with sales'

President Obama, speaking for the first time on the growing scandal, conceded last month that Operation Fast and Furious may have been "a serious mistake," but he claimed, "I did not authorize it; Eric Holder, the attorney general, did not authorize it. He's been very clear that our policy is to catch gunrunners and put them into jail."
An investigation by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, could show otherwise.

Rep. Issa contends gunmen who shot up an SUV carrying two U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents inside Mexico in mid-February, killing Special Agent Jaime Zapata, 32, were also using guns purchased in the United States, and that his investigators will now check to see whether those weapons were linked to Gunrunner.
Humberto Trevino, a senior Mexican lawmaker, says at least 150 people have been shot with ATF-monitored guns.

Two of the gun stores involved were Carter's Country in Houston and J&G Gun Sales in Prescott, Ariz., Fox News reports.

"Let me tell you something about Carter's Country. They have been cooperating with ATF from the get-go," says Carter's Country attorney Dick Deguerin. "They were told to go through with what they considered to be questionable sales. They were told to go through with sales of three or more assault rifles at the same time or five or more 9mm guns at the same time or a young Hispanic male paying in cash. It's all profiling, but they went through with it."

Both gun stores felt betrayed by the ATF, Deguerin says -- first by records leaked to The Washington Post that showed the two stores responsible for dozens of guns found at Mexican crime scenes, now by Operation Fast and Furious.

"You assumed they had your back," J&G President Brad Desaye told Fox. "Absolutely, we felt like partners with ATF in a lot of ways."

Rep. Issa wants details, but on April 1, the California congressman said the Obama administration had failed to meet his deadlines for providing requested documents. So Rep. Issa said he'll proceed to subpoena the ATF.

In England, the Guardian newspaper and its website have been even less charitable toward official "Who, me?" denials, both in Washington and in Mexico City.
"Nearly two weeks after extensive reports on the gun-walking scandal have come to light, no senior figure in Mexico's federal government has yet denounced the ATF's tactics. ..." The Guardian reports.

No major cartel figures arrested

"Since 'Project Gunrunner' began in 2008, over 30,000 cartel-related deaths have been recorded in Mexico. Thus far, the only reported successes from these operations appear to be the arrest of 20 arms traffickers by the ATF this January. Given the immeasurable damage that these operations are likely to have caused, and the little information available on them so far, both governments still have a lot of explaining to do -- and soon," The Guardian reports.

At a news conference in February, the ATF in Phoenix announced 34 suspects had been indicted and that agents had seized 375 weapons as part of Operation Fast and Furious. None of those arrested was a significant cartel figure.

Meantime, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has expressed concern that -- far from being forthcoming -- the ATF has launched a stonewall operation designed to isolate and punish whistle-blowers.

On the House side, Rep. Issa said last month, "I have four investigators working full-time on this, and we're not going to quit until we see, not just an answer, but an absolute guarantee that this cannot happen again. ... The gun shops are often vilified for being the source -- well in this case, they did the right thing, they contacted the agent, and they were told to go ahead. ...

"Two individuals, maybe more, lost their life needlessly because AK-47s got over the border -- not by accident, they got there as part of, effectively, a plot, by the very people who we believe should be protecting us from those weapons getting into the wrong hands."

I doubt we've gotten to the bottom of Operation Gunwalker. But that's what we know, so far.

Vin Suprynowicz is assistant editorial page editor of the Review-Journal, and author of the novel "The Black Arrow" and "Send in the Waco Killers." See http://www.vinsuprynowicz.com/