Latest news with #FederalFirearmsLicense
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Clarksville gun shop fights to get Federal Firearms License back
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A veteran-owned gun shop has been struggling to stay afloat after losing its Federal Firearms License in 2023. A policy announced by President Joe Biden in June 2021 established 'zero tolerance for rogue gun dealers that willfully violate the law.' Under this policy, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was to revoke the licenses of dealers the first time that they violated federal law by willfully: transferring a firearm to a prohibited person failing to run a required background check falsifying records, such as a firearms transaction form failing to respond to an ATF tracing request refusing to allow the ATF to conduct an inspection in violation of the law In April, the Trump administration repealed the policy implemented by Biden. The Tactical Edge, located on Fort Campbell Boulevard in Clarksville, has been in business for 13 years. At the end of 2022, shop owners William Boswell and Robert Snyder told News 2 that the ATF found 10 minor clerical errors among the nearly 2,500 forms the shop had filed. MNPD: Wanted man dead after exchanging gunfire with officers on Division Street Bridge Snyder said they had made similar mistakes in the past and were always able to fix things without getting their FFL revoked. They decided to hire Nashville-based attorney John Harris to help them try to get a stay but to no avail. '[We] just financially couldn't afford to fight it anymore,' Snyder said. 'The government's got unlimited money. They can have an attorney in there every single day. We just can't do that. It cost us almost $100,000 in legal fees.' On top of that, Boswell and Snyder had to shut down their manufacturing facility, which is where they made the majority of their revenue. The duo said their business has been hanging on by a thread ever since. '[We've just] been trying to do our best with [selling] accessories, gear — stuff like that,' Boswell said. 'We have Fort Campbell right here, so we have a lot of gear and stuff that cater to the soldiers on post. Without the FFL, it has significantly cut down our ability to have an income here.' In late April, Rep. Mark Green (R-Tennessee) sent a letter to Attorney General Pamela Bondi requesting a review of all revoked FFLs for gun dealers and gun store owners during the Biden administration. 'While I am grateful the Trump administration has ended this egregious and predatory enforcement, there are still hundreds of firearm dealers who had their FFLs unjustly revoked,' Green's letter said. 'I implore you to consider issuing an expedient review of all federal firearms licenses revoked under the Biden administration. In many cases, the Biden ATF revoked the FFLs of gun shops with little to no due process. It is time to make this right.' As for Boswell and Snyder, they said they're hoping federal officials follow through with Green's request and that they get their FFL back. Even then, they admit it would be difficult to get back to where they once were. READ MORE | Latest headlines from Clarksville and Montgomery County 'We were growing as a company for a long time, and then basically you have to stop in your track,' Snyder said. 'It would take us probably 10 years to get back to where we were at.' News 2 reached out to the ATF for comment. The agency responded with the following statement. 'ATF is finalizing a new national policy to promote consistent, effective, and equitable responses to violations of the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA), as amended, 18 U.S.C. Chapter 44. When assessing which enforcement actions to take, ATF will be guided by this new policy to consider the nature of the violations, their impact on public safety, ATF's ability to reduce violent crime and respect for the rule of law. Any pending administrative actions against FFLs related to previous policies will be reevaluated using the new policy before a decision is reached on what actions, if any, to take in the case.' Public Affairs Division, Office of Public & Governmental Affairs, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alabama Senate passes voluntary firearm storage bill
Sen. Keith Kelley, R-Anniston, speaks to a colleague on the floor of the Alabama Senate on Feb. 4, 2025 in Montgomery, Alabama. The Alabama Legislature began its 2025 regular session on Tuesday. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The Alabama Senate passed a bill 31-0 Thursday to allow people experiencing suicidal thoughts to surrender a firearm to a licensed gun dealer. SB 40, sponsored by Sen. Keith Kelley, R-Anniston, would provide liability protection for Federal Firearms License dealers who choose to participate in the Safer Together Program, where they may accept surrendered firearms from community members. 'Because it's all voluntary, we hope that more gun owners will do that. More gun shop, retailers will be willing to do that, and so the veteran or the individual going through the crisis can go in and store those arms safely,' Kelley said after the Senate adjourned. The bill is named after two veterans, Houston Lee Tumlin and Hunter Chase Whitley, who died by suicide after returning from active duty. The proposal was first floated in August at the first Veterans Mental Health Steering Committee, where Jason Smith, an Alabama National Guard Resilience and Risk Reduction coordinator and member of the committee, said the program is designed to be voluntary, confidential and temporary, meant to delay access to firearms during periods of crisis. Alabama's veteran suicide rate in 2021 was 35.4 per 100,000 people, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. That was slightly higher than the national average (33.9) but significantly higher than the overall suicide rate in Alabama, which was 20.2 per 100,000 in 2021. Kelley said that providing additional options in times of crisis is 'absolutely critical.' 'I think that has a big role in it. Veterans can understand and talk to other veterans, and a lot of these gun shop owners are veterans themselves,' Kelley said. The bill now moves to The Alabama House of Representatives. The House passed a similar bill on Tuesday, which was assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alabama House approves bill allowing voluntary firearm surrender
Rep. Russell Bedsole, R-Alabaster, walks across the floor of the Alabama House of Representatives on April 25, 2024 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. Bedsole sponsors HB 216 that would create a firearm surrender program for individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The Alabama House of Representatives Tuesday approved a bill that would allow people experiencing suicidal thoughts surrender a firearm to a licensed gun dealer. HB 216, sponsored by Rep. Russell Bedsole, R-Alabaster, passed the chamber on a 98-2 vote. Bedsole said the bill is named for Houston Lee Tumlin and Hunter Chase Whitley, two veterans who died by suicide shortly after returning from active duty. Bedsole mentioned the over 6,000 veteran suicides nationwide within a year of returning from deployment. 'In the state of Alabama, 85% of the veterans who took their life did so by gunfire,' Bedsole said. The Houston-Hunter Act provides liability protection for any gun dealer that chooses to participate in the Safer Together Program, where community members can surrender firearms. A substitution from the House Judiciary Committee limits the places where a firearm can be surrendered to the Federal Firearms License dealers. It was adopted 100-0. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 840 Alabamians died by suicide in 2022. That ranks Alabama 26th for suicides per capita. In the United States, 54% of suicides were done by gunfire, according to the CDC. 'And I would dare say that each of us in this chamber have a personal account of knowing someone that has made a similar choice to take their own life,' Bedsole said. The bill goes to the Alabama Senate.
