Bloomberg refusing to release 'evidence' collected at gun shows

The New York Post is reporting that NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who was recently named on this website as one of the Ten People Who Are Threatening Your Ohio Gun Rights, is refusing to turn over the evidence the city gathered, after sending private investigators into five states to catch gun dealers making illegal sales, to the federal agency that investigates illegal guns.

From the story:

Analysts said the impasse may have slowed the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms in its investigation of and possible action against gun dealers that broke the law.

The city won't turn over the evidence, which includes videotapes of gun dealers allowing so-called straw purchases of guns, until the ATF signs an evidence-sharing agreement that would prohibit the agency from "publicly disclosing evidence without notice and consent from the city," the mayor's criminal justice coordinator, John Feinblatt, said.

The inability of the two sides to come to an agreement is due in part to what the ATF perceived as the mayor's infringement on its jurisdiction, analysts and law enforcement sources said.

There is another reason for which the city could be reluctant to turn over this evidence - one which is not mentioned in the story.

During the course of the “investigation,” Bloomberg’s investigators may have committed felonies by lying on BATFE Form 4473. It is also being reported that Bloomberg’s actions may have interfered with "on-going investigations" by the BATFE.

Michael Bloomberg may be the Mayor of New York City, but he still has a profound affect on our Ohio gun rights. In an attempt to spread his restrictive New York City gun laws all over the country, Bloomberg has hosted two anti-gun summits with other big city mayors. You can read more about the summits here and here.

The Second Amendment Foundation has spoken out on this news. Click on 'Read More' for an SAF press release, which calls upon Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to prosecute New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for obstruction of justice.

SECOND AMENDMENT FOUNDATION WANTS BLOOMBERG PROSECUTED FOR OBSTRUCTION

BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is calling on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to prosecute New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for obstruction of justice, for failing to turn over evidence of allegedly illegal firearms transactions to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

In his letter to Mr. Gonzales, SAF founder Alan Gottlieb noted reports in a New York newspaper that Mayor Bloomberg has been stonewalling the information his maverick investigation allegedly uncovered during a sting operation earlier this year. That so-called “investigation” was highly criticized by law enforcement when it was first announced more than three months ago.

“Bloomberg’s vigilante operation may have compromised genuine on-going BATFE investigations,” Gottlieb said. “The city’s refusal to turn over so-called ‘evidence’ in this rogue investigation is very suspicious.

“Allegations of criminal wrong-doing,” Gottlieb noted in his letter, “do not necessarily mean the retailers victimized by the mayor’s self-generated publicity have actually committed any crime, yet Bloomberg’s grandstanding has literally convicted them on television and in news columns.”

The city turned over two videotapes that purport to show illegal gun sales, but Gottlieb is not convinced this is valid evidence of wrongdoing. Bloomberg filed civil lawsuits against 15 dealers in five states.

“If these retailers actually committed crimes,” Gottlieb said, “then why weren’t criminal charges filed? Is it possible that Bloomberg’s high profile ‘investigation’ may have actually turned up nothing of a criminal nature involving the gun dealers targeted by his vigilante investigators?

“Simply because Bloomberg is a billionaire does not put him above the law,” Gottlieb concluded. “It also does not give him license to destroy by innuendo and frivolous lawsuits the livelihoods of firearms retailers because he dislikes how they make a living. Bloomberg’s political thuggery and obstruction must stop.”