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‘Assault rifles’ found in Austin dumpster, or media bias?
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(Photo courtesy of Oleg Volk)
KVUE reported that on Tuesday, police found “assorted parts from assault rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition” in a dumpster in north Austin.
However, the Statesman reported that police found “eight upper receivers for an AR-15 rifle” and “about 2,000 rifle rounds.” KXAN reported that while “AR-15 receivers” were found, there were no parts with serial numbers.
The straight scoop
Mark Wilson, Acting Resident Agent in charge of the Austin branch of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) said they found 8 upper receivers with barrels for AR-15 semi-automatic rifles. When an AR-15 is fired by pulling the trigger, a new round of ammunition is fed into the upper receiver, and on the next trigger pull the bullet is fired out through the barrel. Therefore, upper receivers are a passive component group, which is why the ATF does not classify them as firearm.
However, the firing and feed mechanisms are part of the lower receiver. John Kochan of KR Training–which provides advanced firearms training for civilians and police–says the lower receiver “contains the fire control group (trigger, hammer, etc.) and also has the grip, and rear stock, and recoil spring.” This contains the active components which the ATF classifies as a firearm.
Wilson said that since these recovered parts have no serial numbers, piecing together the story behind their origin and destination will be a challenge. However, it is possible that somebody could buy upper receivers in order to help somebody who has lower receivers build a complete firearm. These currently retail for $800-2,000, depending on manufacturer and components.
Wilson said the ATF also recovered about 1600 rounds of ammunition capable of being fired by an AR-15, plus about 1000 rounds of miscellaneous pistol ammunition. The ammunition’s total retail value is around $900-1,000 and Wilson values the AR-15 parts at $4,000.
Since true military assault weapons–firearms that fire multiple rounds for one trigger pull–have been severely restricted on the civilian market since 1934, reporting these gun parts as “parts of assault rifles” shows KVUE’s ignorance and/or bias.
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For in-depth analysis of tools to promote the right of self-defense, read Four Hundred Years of Gun Control: Why Isn’t It Working?, which deconstructs the gun control agenda and motivates more people to support our civil right of self-defense.
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- Minneapolis: A great couple of days in the Midwest
- National: Is Sotomayor Obama's 'declaration of war' on gun owners?
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- St. Louis: Suppressors (aka 'silencers') are for safety
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