Fincher and other Militia of Washington County members were featured in a March 2006 front-page report in The Morning News, firing the weapons. That report, according to federal law enforcement officials, was what prompted them to begin investigating Fincher and the group.--The Morning News
So a couple pictures and some quotes in the local paper is enough to prod the feds into sticking an informant in the midst of citizens exercising their natural rights guaranteed by the Constitution?
That's quite different from
the attitude they conveyed in regards to actor
Mark Wahlberg*, where they said:
"Because you saw this individual possessing a gun in a movie trailer, it is not known whether or not this item meets this definition. The possibility exists that it could have been a movie prop and made to function as a real weapon through the use of special effects."
Wahlberg, you'll recall, "pled guilty to two counts of criminal contempt, each count carrying 'a maximum penalty of ten years in a house of correction or ten thousand dollars or both.' The Commonwealth's Sentencing Memorandum supported "the recommendation that the Defendant be sentenced to two years at the Deer Island House of Corrections, ninety days committed, with the balance suspended for two years."
As I wrote earlier, "Title I of the Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibits certain classes of persons from 'purchasing, receiving or transporting firearms or ammunition in interstate commerce.' Among these are persons 'convicted of or under indictment for a felony ... Such persons correspondingly are prohibited from purchasing or otherwise acquiring any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped in interstate commerce.'"
Hmmm...seems "interstate commerce" factored in the Fincher case as well...
And per
18 USC Chapter 44, Sec. 922, "Unlawful Acts":
It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or otherwise dispose of any firearm or ammunition to any person knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such person - (1) is under indictment for, or has been convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year;
and
It shall be unlawful for any person...who has been convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year; to...possess in or affecting commerce, any firearm or ammunition; or to receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
Interstate commerce again--and it looks like it could trip up not just Pokey-Poke, but anyone who employs him and provides him with "any firearm."
Which brings us to my old pals on
Calguns Forums, where
a couple of interesting pictures were posted, along with a reference for the gunsmith who provided the studios with the weaponry used in them (via interstate commerce). Surely
BATFU has enough to look into this--if they wanted to.
Now understand: The gunsmith is surely innocent of any infraction, as knowledge is a component of any violation. He is dealing with licensed armorers and completing all required transaction records in accordance with federal law--records BATFU has access to, so their earlier excuse rings hollow. But he would be able to verify whether or not the prop he supplied was a functional firearm--again, as would BATFU, with a simple phone call. Whether the studios that employ Mr. Wahlberg know of his criminal past becomes more problematic.
Also understand this: I would never report this to the feds, although I won't let the possibility that they lurk here from time to time inhibit what I have to say--as far as I'm concerned, Mr. Wahlberg should have exactly the same claim to the Second Amendment we all do, as should all others free to live outside of custodial restraint imposed via due process.
I merely point out that Mr. Fincher is no less deserving of the same freedom, and that the government has knowingly subjected him to a different standard of enforcement.
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*"I believe Charlton Heston is America's best villain because he loves guns so much. Maybe he should get the award for being president of the National Rifle Association."--Mark Wahlberg, MTV Movie Awards
[Thanks to TF for the picture link]
