THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 23, 1995 TAG: 9508220015
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
Reading the Aug. 1 letter from C. W. Carr, I concluded there is a great deal of public misinformation about the events in the ATF raid on the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas. Although reasonable people with the benefit of hindsight may differ about the tactical decisions made by ATF, the legality of their action seems apparent.
It is a violation of federal law for any individual to own or possess a fully automatic weapon (machine gun) that is not registered with the U.S. government. This law has been in effect for more than 60 years. ATF is the agency responsible for the enforcement of this law and other federal firearms laws.
Prior to the ATF raid, a search warrant for the Davidian premises and an arrest warrant for David Koresh were issued by the U.S. District Court for violating federal firearms laws. Allegations of child abuse and drug activity were not the basis for the issuance of the warrants.
The ATF agents were in the process of carrying out their enforcement responsibilities as directed by the court when Koresh and his followers fired on them with machine guns and other military weapons, including hand grenades.
Both the U.S. Treasury investigation and the investigation conducted by the Texas Rangers concluded that the Branch Davidians initiated the gunfire. Neither investigation nor the congressional hearings disputed that the ATF agents conducting the raid were clearly identified by the Davidians as law-enforcement agents.
If gun activists believe that there should be no legal constraints on the ownership of machine guns, they should express their views publicly and work through the political process to change the law. The fact that members of both political parties have engaged in outrageous rhetoric on this issue does not seem relevant.
When individuals believe that they are justified in assaulting and killing police officers because they do not agree with the particular law enforced by those officers, we are in serious trouble as a civilized society.
THOMAS RADERMACHER
Virginia Beach, Aug. 2, 1995 by CNB