Why would Violence Policy Center need a FFL?

[Hal]

While he was beating that drum and throwing as much gasoline on that particular fire as he could, Sugarmann alone doesn't get all the credit for the reduction in FFL dealers.

No - he wasn't alone in it & I don't think he was even a minor force in cutting down the numbers.
I'm sorry Sugarmann is such a dip I hate to give him credit for anything)

But - the numbers did get cut & that's just what he wanted to have happen.
I guess I should have worded that different and said he got what he wanted.

 

[Tom Servo]

While he was beating that drum and throwing as much gasoline on that particular fire as he could, Sugarmann alone doesn't get all the credit for the reduction in FFL dealers.

No, but he brought the matter to the administration's attention in the way the NFATCA brought the trust exemption in NFA stuff to the attention of the current administration.

 

[Chris_B]

Well, maybe but I though fraud was intentional misrepresentation of fact from one person to another person, in which the person making the misrepresentation knew it was false, and did it to get the other person to do something, all for the purpose of gain. I glean that from my classic-car days, when the subject of removing a VIN from one car and installing it into another would come up.

based on that, not intending to operate the business but filling out the paperwork as if you were seems to satisfy that definition to me. The lie was told to get what was desired, and the lie was made by falsely filling out the paperwork for a "business" license. What am I missing there?

 

[publius42]

There's no provision for "research" or any such thing. It is an application for a license to do business as a dealer. If Sugarmann or his organization are not dealing in firearms, their license was issued under false pretenses.

There are seldom provisions in a law allowing for misuse to make a political point, since misuse is misuse.

However, the fact that one can get (and repeatedly renew) a license under false pretenses IS the political point to be made from his point of view. He's saying, "Look! The law can be misused! See? I'm misusing it!"

 

[44 AMP]

Isn't Sugarmann the same guy who was in charge of NBC News (?) back when they rigged pickup trucks to blow up, to show how unsafe they were?

 

[zxcvbob]

Why would Violence Policy Center need a FFL?

Because they can get one, and legitimate dealers cannot. The old "Thumb in the Eye" trick. Just like when David Gregory breaks the law on national TV and nothing happens, or Diane Feinstein gets a concealed weapons permit from San Francisco.

 

[TDL]

My understanding is that if you get the FFL01 without the intent of actually engaging in business, that's fraud

Look I think the VPC is a bunch of frauds. The factual errors on their site and publications even about not recently changed laws show they have no use for objective facts. They are a strong arm advocacy organization masquerading as a think tank and a dishonest one as well.

That said, I think their IRS standing is way more in question than their FFL.

My wife worked for a stage theater company in DC that had an FFL in order to avoid problems with prop guns that were used o fire blanks. Quite a few production companies on the west coast have FFL as well. The VPC might be acquiring some firearms or ammunition etc that they wish to familiarize themselves with in which case an FFL makes sense.

Almost no one will ship Ammo to DC firearms to registered gun owners, even though it is perfectly legal to do so. I have a pal who has a c/r ffl in DC who has no problem getting ammo shipped to him.

Again VPC is a bunch of anti-science, dishonest, discredited DBs, but there are IMHO legit reasons why would have an FFL

 

[Chris_B]

tax status or not, I can't see how this person having more than one criminal activity absolves him of other law-breaking