A recent report by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel exposing criminal activity by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) prompted us to write Congress through DownsizeDC.org’s Outlaw Stings campaign.
Please do the same.
The hardwired message says simply…
Outlaw sting operations.
You may borrow from or copy this letter…
Undercover stings encourage “law enforcement” agents to behave like criminals.
One example is the ATF's operations in several cities, where agents set up phony storefront businesses such as pawn shops. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal reports (http://bit.ly/1boPIij) some of the crimes they got away with…
* Knowingly purchased stolen property, prompting more burglaries in their neighborhoods
* Damaged the buildings they rented, then abandoned them without compensating the landlords
* Allowed minors to drink and smoke pot on their premisesTo what purpose?
* Befriend mentally-disabled men, impressionable teens, and drug addicts
* Persuade them to acquire and sell guns to undercover agents
* Arrest them and imprison themIn other words…
* My taxes funded these destructive operations and the salaries of agents
* My taxes are then used to cage vulnerable, non-violent people
* Whose “crime” was selling guns, that is, exercising their 2nd Amendment rightsWho are the REAL criminals here?
If it is wrong for citizens to initiate criminal conspiracies, then it is doubly wrong for “public servants” to do so. Agents of The State are supposed to “serve and protect,” not “entrap and sting.”
I am disgusted and ashamed by such “law enforcement” tactics. Pass legislation to forbid sting operations by federal agencies.
—END OF LETTER—
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James Wilson & Jim Babka
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.