who served as the former director of the Bureau of Alcohol Firearms and Explosives under President Joe Biden from 2022 to 2025 preached his affirmative stance on the resolution “Resolved: Get Tough on Guns and on Crime” to the Yale Political Union on Tuesday evening who also served as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio and was the first Senate-confirmed director of ATF in over seven years was introduced by YPU President Leo Greenberg ’26 to an audience of around 80 students “In the wake of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Chevron-deference and new executive orders to protect gun possession Dettelbach’s work and thinking about guns and violent crime in the U.S is more relevant than ever,” said Greenberg in his introductory address Dettelbach began the debate by explaining the role of the ATF calling it “the violent crime agency of the federal government.” He stated that ATF while a small agency employing only 5,000 to 6,000 individuals is highly collaborative with state and local law enforcement in tackling its mission of fighting against violent crime Dettelbach emphasized that the ATF serves two core functions serving both as an enforcement agency with “2,500 badge-carrying gun-carrying federal agents” and as a regulatory agency chiefly for the explosives and firearms industry the test of whether we should adopt any particular measure as a government at least from ATF’s standpoint of ‘First “Because if it’s legal and it will save lives Reflecting on the United States’ current crisis of violent crime Dettelbach described the scale of the country’s acute crime problem in comparison to other wealthy nations citing data from a 2021 study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation The 2021 study found that the United States among other nations of over 10 million people that were classified as “wealthy,” ranked first in the world for firearm homicide rates The US rate of firearms-related homicides per 100,000 is three times greater than the second-highest country “[We are] 45 times more violent than Spain We’re 450 times more than the United Kingdom [and] that’s not a place where you want to be,” he said Dettelbach then explained that following the COVID-19 pandemic the United States suffered “a very significant spike in firearms violence and violent crime.” In a somber moment 2022 — the day before his confirmation hearing in the U.S Senate — 19 children and two teachers were “massacred in Uvalde perpetrated by a teenage gunman with a legally purchased AR-15 was the deadliest shooting ever at a Texas public school.  Dettelbach urged the audience that the fight against violent crime is not hopeless nor partisan and expressed his belief that further progress can be made beyond what the country has already done “We drove violent crime down from that spike to its lowest point in 50 years because of the concerted effort of all Americans attributing the success to a two-pronged strategy.  Dettelbach explained that the two prongs of putting “trigger-pullers” behind bars and making it legally tougher for those individuals “to so easily arm themselves with such lethal weaponry” are crucial He elaborated that by catching and identifying people who are inclined to pull the trigger against other human beings the government would not only be punishing prior acts of violence but also “highly likely to prevent future shootings.” “There is absolutely no reason why we cannot respect the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens and at the same time drive down firearms violence in the common sense of the matter,” said Dettelbach Dettelbach emphasized how imperative it is that action takes place to eliminate the black market for firearms and for stricter laws on background checks to be enacted He also stated that the “tens of thousands of deaths in this nation every year” as a result of gun violence are not just numbers but “brothers and sisters and friends.” John Byler ’28 argued that guns themselves do not cause violence but are rather “symptomatic of other root causes” that the government should take action to address “If we implement policies that invest in education in places of poverty not only will crime decrease but citizens will be happier and healthier,” said Byler “We must address the problem of crime with a holistic approach Byler added that gun control is a “slippery slope” and can lead to citizens losing the power to legitimize a democratic government In agreement with Dettelbach’s affirmative stance William Berry ’27 argued that violence is best prevented through the enforcement of gun regulations though the enforcement of law is distinct from the punishment of criminals.  “Being tough on guns is the best mechanism for being tough on crimes,” said Berry “You don’t have to be tough on criminals to be tough on crime.” David Dumontet ’28 argued that the federal government does not have the “unchecked ability” to regulate guns and that tough-on-crime policy “does surgery with sledgehammers.” “How much of our lives are we willing to give away to bureaucratic efficiency for the hope of saving life,” said Dumontet but I am of the opinion that it is of the minimum.” the affirmative prevailed 58-4-2 on “Resolved: Get Tough on Guns and on Crime.” The Yale Political Union is the oldest collegiate debate society in the U.S. Steve Dettelbach oversaw the agency’s efforts to crack down on rogue gun sellers and deadly innovations Last week, a spokesperson for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) confirmed to The Reload that the agency’s director days before President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office said the resignation was “typical in a transition and consistent with the memorandum sent to all presidential appointees on Dec Last February, while on the campaign trail, Trump promised National Rifle Association members that he would “sack the radical gun-grabber Steve Dettelbach” on his first day in office In his resignation letter ATF Director Dettelbach thanked President Biden “It was the honor of my professional career to serve at ATF in your Administration As you said when nominating me to be ATF Director ‘The mission of this agency isn’t controversial It’s public safety.’ I have now seen the brave and talented people at ATF live out your words for years Dettelbach also noted that “the country has experienced two years of historic decreases in the violent crime rates fought hard and risked everything to gain that ground which tasked the ATF with revoking the licenses of gun dealers who willfully violate federal gun laws Such “qualifying violations” include transferring a firearm to a prohibited person failing to run a required background check failing to respond to an ATF tracing request or refusing to permit the ATF to conduct an inspection Notably, under Dettelbach, the ATF hosted its first ever Gun Violence Survivors’ Summit giving over 200 survivors of gun violence a chance to discuss how their lives have been impacted with members of law enforcement the ATF installed a permanent exhibit called the “Faces of Gun Violence” at its headquarters to honor those who were lost and remind ATF personnel of their lifesaving mission providing valuable insights about gun trafficking in the U.S. including the top manufacturers of crime guns the ATF also opened a national CGIC training center in Wichita Trump has yet to name a replacement to head the ATF, but according to a recent New York Times interview creating a leadership void at the bureau akin to the seven-year stretch of interim directors that preceded his own appointment.” The previous leadership void benefitted the gun industry. The ATF is known for being chronically under-resourced, and without a leader, it’s harder for the agency to make the case to congressional appropriators for additional funding and staff. As the ATF’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget request to Congress noted “With recent spikes in firearm-related violent crime there has been a corresponding increase in demand for [the] ATF’s expertise and resources enhanced regulatory oversight of firearm licensees and support to law enforcement agencies.” Full funding and support for the ATF is critical to the ATF’s public safety mission and strong leadership — like that which Dettelbach has demonstrated throughout his tenure as director — is necessary to ensure that the ATF in partnership with state and local law enforcement can protect the public from violent crime.  For example, the ATF needs the leadership and resources to prioritize and inspect gun dealers, but the ATF only inspects a fraction of the country’s tens of thousands of gun dealers each year the ATF developed a reputation for letting repeat offenders who racked up significant violations off the hook “What I am concerned about is that people will take their eye off the ball that they’ll either get complacent or political or some combination of those things,” leading to cutbacks at the ATF “That will result in more people getting killed.” Paid for by Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund. Please note that contributions to the Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund are not tax-deductible. If you are interested in other ways to give, including making a tax-deductible gift, visit our site or call 646-324-8250. Additional Financial and Regulatory Information I agree to receive email updates from Everytown organizations Learn how to describe the purpose of the image (opens in a new tab) Leave empty if the image is purely decorative The Voice of Our Nation's Law Enforcement Officers July 2, 2024 by National President Patrick Yoes sits down with Steven Dettelbach Director Dettelbach has served as Director since 2022 and in over his 30 year career has been involved in investigating nearly every type of criminal organization Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio where he managed high level criminal litigations and complex civil cases Director Dettelbach has proven himself to be a purveyor of justice and a proud friend of the FOP National President Yoes discusses with the Director the ongoing gun epidemic and what can be done to manage and protect our communities from gun violence LISTEN  SEE PAST EPISODES SUBSCRIBE TO PODCAST Law enforcement officers have one of the toughest and most dangerous jobs in the United States The brave men and women of law enforcement are charged with the enormous responsibility of keeping our streets and neighborhoods safe Be sure to tune in to Blue View a weekly podcast presented by the National Fraternal Order of Police and other notable leaders to gain insight into the issues and current events surrounding the law enforcement community Each episode will leave you with a better understanding of what law enforcement officers face daily we can rebuild the trust between police officers and the communities they serve Filed Under: Blue View Podcast Copyright © 2025 Fraternal Order of Police. | Website design and development by Steve Dettelbach, director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), announced in a letter to President Joe Biden (D) that he will resign from his post on January 18 two days before Donald Trump (R) is inaugurated as president of the United States “It was the honor of my professional career to serve at ATF in your Administration. As you said when nominating me to be ATF Director, ‘The mission of this agency isn’t controversial. It’s public safety,’” wrote Dettelbach “I have now seen the brave and talented people at ATF live out your words for years Dettelbach was nominated to the position after Biden’s first nominee, David Chipman, was unable to make it through the nomination process Dettelbach was a clear proponent of every gun-control measure Biden desired “Dettelbach was ultimately confirmed, and under his ‘leadership,’ the ATF did everything it could to execute the Biden agenda of eviscerating the Second Amendment. It also faced an incredible number of legal challenges to rules the agency implemented without corresponding legislative mandates from Congress,” wrote the NRA Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) His tenure as head of the ATF was marked by numerous attempts to circumvent and stifle the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans attempting to redefine what exactly constitutes a firearm and much more Incredibly, Dettelbach was unable to define what an “assault weapon” is during a congressional hearing despite previously championing bans on such firearms while running for attorney general of Ohio just a few years prior He has also been instrumental in reinterpreting the dubiously named Bipartisan Safer Communities Act which the NRA prophetically warned would be abused in pursuit of an anti-gun agenda Dettelbach attempted “to create a new rule that controls when individuals engage in sufficient commerce in firearms so as to need to be licensed under federal law as a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) Biden’s ATF went well beyond statutory authority to fabricate presumptions of when an individual needs to be an FFL The rule even hedges its bets against its own legality by claiming it is not meant to apply in criminal proceedings (the most common enforcement actions against unlicensed dealers),” as reported by NRA-ILA Perhaps worst of all was the war on gun stores under Dettelbach’s “leadership.” In short an executive order from Biden directed Dettelbach’s ATF to make life as difficult as possible for firearms dealers This was done by implementing a “zero-tolerance policy,” which may have punished the “rogue,” “dishonest” gun dealers Biden claimed to be after but also unfairly penalized law-abiding dealers for simple paperwork errors the number of federal firearm licensees decreased by more than 1,600 since Biden took office “The new ‘zero-tolerance’ policy has a clear aim of reducing the number of federally licensed dealers which will in turn make it more difficult for law-abiding Americans to exercise their Second Amendment rights,” reported NRA-ILA Dettelbach’s resignation is welcome news for those who understand and cherish the Second Amendment-protected right to keep and bear arms America’s 1st Freedom will keep you informed on whoever incoming-President Trump nominates to fill this post The fact that the cutting edge of firearms technology can branch off in directions old laws never foresaw is inevitable—so is the predilection of gun-control types to try to ban anything new the Biden administration “reinterpreted” federal law to achieve its gun-control desires the Trump administration is working to undo these unconstitutional changes This first-person account from a mandated gun course in New York City is telling Colorado’s latest gun-control measure is facing growing backlash True stories of the right to keep and bear arms As President Trump’s first 100 days of his second administration have now come and gone it’s worth taking a look at what he has done in defense of the Second Amendment thus far ATF Director Steven Dettelbach plans to resign just days before Donald Trump retakes office the ATF told The Reload that Dettelbach submitted his resignation to President Joe Biden with an effective date of January 18th That is the first official confirmation of Dettelbach’s plan since he told The New York Times he planned to step down before the end of Biden’s term The agency did not say who would replace Dettelbach in the interim but described his resignation as a normal part of the transition between presidential administrations Director Dettelbach has rendered his resignation to President Biden effective January 18 “Leading the courageous and incredible men and women of ATF has been the greatest honor of his professional life.” Dettelbach’s resignation marks the end of just the second period in which a Senate-confirmed permanent director led the ATF and puts the agency’s leadership back into limbo It comes as disturbing New Year’s Day attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas which both involved firearms and improvised explosives underscore the important role the polarizing agency is meant to play in national law enforcement and used gun sales handed down by the president who opposed Biden’s executive gun actions and promised to fire Dettelbach during his successful Presidential campaign will have the opportunity to try to replace him with a new permanent director given the difficulty he and other presidents have had since the position became Senate confirmable in 2006 In his resignation letter, which was first published by YouTuber Mr. GunsNGear and independently obtained by The Reload Dettelbach thanked Biden and touted his record “It was the honor of my professional career to serve at ATF in your Administration ‘The mission of this agency isn’t controversial It’s public safety,'” he wrote “I have now seen the brave and talented people at ATF live out your words for years He claimed the ATF helped to alleviate the historic spike in crime coming out of the pandemic during his tenure in office the country has experienced two years of historic decreases in the violent crime rates And Americans are better off for it.” Gun-rights advocates rejected that characterization chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms painted Dettelbach’s tenure as one that further politicized the agency “That’s one less person Trump will have to fire after he takes office,” Gottlieb who backed Trump and has consulted with the transition team at Mar-a-Lago in the wake of the election said in a statement “and it is one less gun prohibition lobbyist on the government payroll.” who argued many of the revocations were due to minor clerical mistakes the Biden-Harris administration has waged war on gun owners and the Second Amendment with Dettelbach leading an ATF that helped make it happen,” he said “The next ATF director must be someone who recognizes law-abiding gun owners as allies which is a battle we all want to win.” Trump has not named a nominee for the position the agency was run entirely under acting directors largely because the Senate rejected his first nominee Gottlieb said the next director must take an entirely different approach to enforcing the nation’s gun laws “We are hopeful the next ATF director will straighten the record by telling Congress the media and the gun prohibition lobby that modern semiautomatic rifles are not ‘weapons of war,’ and that there is not a ‘gun show loophole,'” he said “The next ATF director should know how to disassemble a pistol instead of trying to regulate it out of existence He should lobby Congress for funds to revive restoration-of-rights procedures He should be someone willing to visit a gun show rather than shut it down.” Dettelbach didn’t offer up a potential successor candidate in his resignation letter he said he hopes Trump can get a permanent director through the process because he believes the agency is better served with consistent leadership “I believe very strongly that the president needs to appoint a permanent director,” he told The Times “Republicans control everything at the moment I think having a permanent director gives ATF a stronger voice in everything related to the budget He also thanked Biden for appointing him to the role “Thank you for the privilege of calling the men and women of ATF my colleagues—and calling you my President,” he told Biden in the closing of his resignation letter You must be logged in to post a comment. ATF Director Steven Dettelbach speaks to a reporter in Minneapolis on Monday.Matt Sepic | MPR NewsPlayListen'This is not a partisan issue:' ATF director Dettelbach talks the future of gun safety in the U.S.Go Deeper.CloseCreate an account or log in to save stories We have added it to a list of your favorite stories It’s part of a summit hosted by the Justice Department One of the federal officials in Minnesota for the summit is Steven Dettelbach It’s the agency responsible for enforcing federal gun laws Dettelbach was appointed by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2022 He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about the oversight of gun sales ghost guns and how he’s advising the next administration about reducing gun violence Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all Transcription services provided by 3Play Media Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information President Joe Biden’s last head of the Bureau of Alcohol and Explosives was hired by BakerHostetler where he’s slated to eventually lead the firm’s hundreds of litigators who served as ATF’s director until last week is set to rejoin the Cleveland-headquartered law firm in April as a partner in its 400-attorney litigation practice group and a member of the white collar He will will also take over as chair of the firm’s litigation group by Jan 1 Dettelbach will be based in the Cleveland and Washington DC offices in his third stint with BakerHostetler The former federal prosecutor plans to represent businesses and people in lawsuits He said his experience heading an agency with 5,000-plus employees should prove attractive to corporations with similar or larger head counts As for what the Justice Department will prioritize under President Donald Trump and ultimately inform much of the work he expects to do “The only thing that proves to be a certain in this world is change,” he continued “You have to have a team of lawyers that’s equipped to guide clients through where there’s uncertainty.” The Senate confirmed Dettelbach as ATF’s director in July 2022 the first time the agency had a confirmed director since 2015 He cited drops in violent crime during his tenure leading the agency as one of his proudest accomplishments “Anybody who thinks that happens by accident is fooling themselves,” he said Dettelbach was also with BakerHostetler from 2006 to 2009 and 2016 to 2022 He served as US attorney for the Northern District of Ohio from 2009 to 2016 and mounted an unsuccessful bid for Ohio attorney general as a Democrat in 2018 “His experience overseeing high-performing teams as US attorney and director of the ATF coupled with his prior tenure at BakerHostetler make him the ideal choice to chair our national Litigation Practice Group,” firm Chairman Paul Schmidt said in the release To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Heisig in Cleveland at eheisig@bloombergindustry.com To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chris Opfer at copfer@bloombergindustry.com workflow tools and premium legal & business news Log in to keep reading or access research tools CNN Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins gives an inside look on the grounds of the White House for the week of President Trump's first 100 days of his second term '+n.escapeExpression("function"==typeof(o=null!=(o=r(e,"eyebrowText")||(null!=l?r(l,"eyebrowText"):l))?o:n.hooks.helperMissing)?o.call(null!=l?l:n.nullContext||{},{name:"eyebrowText",hash:{},data:t,loc:{start:{line:28,column:63},end:{line:28,column:78}}}):o)+" \n '+(null!=(o=c(e,"if").call(r,null!=l?c(l,"cta2PreText"):l,{name:"if",hash:{},fn:n.program(32,t,0),inverse:n.noop,data:t,loc:{start:{line:63,column:20},end:{line:63,column:61}}}))?o:"")+"\n"+(null!=(o=(c(e,"ifAll")||l&&c(l,"ifAll")||n.hooks.helperMissing).call(r,null!=l?c(l,"cta2Text"):l,null!=l?c(l,"cta2Link"):l,{name:"ifAll",hash:{},fn:n.program(34,t,0),inverse:n.noop,data:t,loc:{start:{line:64,column:20},end:{line:70,column:30}}}))?o:"")+" Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker President-elect Donald Trump has signaled a shakeup at the ATF pledging to replace current Director Steve Dettelbach on his first day in office While Dettelbach defends his record of reducing violent crime and modernizing gun regulations speculation about his replacement has ignited debate within Second Amendment circles According to the Arizona Daily Independent News Network a failed congressional and senatorial candidate in Arizona is being considered for the role of ATF director has met with the president-elect’s transition team and expressed interest in the position his potential appointment has drawn mixed reactions Critics within Arizona’s Republican circles highlight Masters’ controversial political campaigns and defeats particularly his 2022 Senate race loss to Democratic incumbent Mark Kelly “Masters is not the kind of leader gun owners can trust with power over firearms regulation,” one Arizona campaign consultant told the Arizona Daily Independent Some Second Amendment supporters suggest alternatives who gained praise for resisting COVID-19 restrictions and advocating for constitutional rights “If Trump wants an Arizonan to lead the ATF someone like Sheriff Lamb would be a far better choice,” the consultant added Current ATF Director Steve Dettelbach, appointed by President Joe Biden in 2022, defended his tenure in an interview with NPR He highlighted a reported 10% decline in violent crime during the first half of 2024 compared to the previous year violent crime numbers have dropped for two consecutive years,” Dettelbach said “That doesn’t happen by accident.” He attributed the decline to the ATF’s efforts in identifying violent offenders and providing law enforcement with over 200,000 real-time leads in gun crime investigations last year Congress recently cut $50 million from the ATF’s budget and the agency may face further reductions under Republican control Dettelbach warned such cuts would harm ATF’s ability to support state and local law enforcement and slow firearm trace results critical to investigations calling him a “radical gun-grabber.” He vowed to reverse many of the ATF’s recent regulatory actions though it remains unclear how far those efforts will go It also remains clear who he will ultimately name to head the agency which will go a long way toward possibly restoring some credibility to the agency or could further erode the public’s confidence that the agency servers any purpose beyond suppressing American’s rights Unreported crime is not a statistic in Dettelbach’s criteria for bragging none other than Bloomberg Law had an article about how the FBI wasn’t including stats from NYC any number of left leaning “sources” have tried to sweep that fact under the rug with their target audience of course buying it lock I’m sure our own esteemed TruthMiner will be along shortly violent crime numbers have dropped for two consecutive years,” in fact after the FBI did the very quiet ‘stealth’ update to crime rates not sure why you are bothering to defend your ‘record’ because you are gone even if Trump doesn’t appoint anyone the ATF has comitted more ‘violent crime activity’ in two years than any single U.S the only difference is ya’ll got the excuse of ‘qualified immunity’ all the ATF has been is a gang of ‘criminal thugs’ with you leading them Let’s never forget what they did to Bryan Malinowski in Arkansas Instead of going after thugs in the ghettos of Chicago he sent a small army of heavily armed ATF agents to his home pre dawn and shot him to death rather than simply arresting him at work or out and about being that Bryan Malinowski had no record of being a dangerous person They suspected him of illegally selling some firearms at gun shows and such “They suspected him of illegally selling some firearms at gun shows and such.” what the ATF really did was self-interpret the vague ‘in the business’ thing the democrats created to claim he was selling fire arms without a license because he was ‘in the business’ thus illegally selling firearms they had a fishing expedition search warrant because they didn’t have actual proof or evidence because non existed they needed the search warrant to try to find something and still to date they have found nothing from their warrant they created a condition that looked exactly like a home invasion crashed through the door after covering the ring door bell camera the ATF created the condition where that valid home defense was needed if you or I created the condition under which we defended we would be in prison for murder basically ’cause they said he comitted a crime due to their own self interpretation without any evidence at all all the ATF needed to do was knock on the door or simply serve the fishing expedition search warrant when he was getting in his car outside going to work ATF’s patented “shock-and-awe” tactics I never heard of it before I began visiting this site a few years ago and I spent 25 years in LE The thing they drilled into us at the academy They not only stressed that we could loose our certification for screwing up and costing the agency an ass load loose my retirement as well as much of what little wealth I have I say all of this because I saw several lawsuits at my old agency They were a nightmare for the deputies involved drilled into us at the academy was vicarious liability Sorry someone was speaking to me as I posted the first comment An officer has a qualified immunity against civil rights claims and criminal actions if the officer acted within department guidelines and court decisions defining the scope of police authority and the rights of citizens Punch in qualified immunity into your search bar and you will find articles and/or published decisions discussing the doctrine The most recent SCOTUS decision involved three Muslim men who were placed on the no fly list despite of a complete lack of evidence of any involvement in terrorist activities you spent 25 years in law enforcement and never knew what qualified immunity is on my phone it looked like below at the time The formatting of the site all looks in line on the browser I use on the phone so it hard to tell sometimes what is above or below I trust President Trump on his choices and I voted for him again https://americanmilitarynews.com/2021/11/video-senate-candidate-releases-viral-second-amendment-ad-1-4-million-views-and-counting/ “This is a short-barreled rifle,” Masters said in the ad while holding a firearm “The Second Amendment is not about duck hunting It’s about protecting your family and your country,” Masters continued “What’s the first thing the Taliban did when Joe Biden handed them Afghanistan And I approve this message because without gun rights Some of these nominations are payback for political support He can be a placeholder until we DOGE the AFT “If you’re not a bad guy” There is nothing in the constitution about the Government deciding who is a bad guy and only those the Government approves having the right to keep and bear arms The 2nd Amendment protects an absolute right to keep and bear arms; the government has no authority to make any rules about who has that right and who does not Why does an org we should abolish need a leader unless it’s to tear it down from the inside Remind Trump his biggest mistakes were putting in the wrong people he’s put the time in while campaigning to get it right this time I think his sons have better access this time and have been providing solid advice and NOT the Republican National Committee of RHINO’S All we get from the article is the purely conclusory statement that “Masters is not the kind of leader gun owners can trust with power over firearms regulation,” one Arizona campaign consultant told the Arizona Daily Independent The best choice for the top job in the ATF is nobody The best choice for the second-from-the-top job in the ATF is also nobody all the way down to the entry-level janitors and mail clerks Replace “nobody” with “none of the above” and we might just have a wildly successful campaign–ala Brewster’s Millions !! The Most Dangerous (note: and unhinged) Gun Control Argument You Will Ever Read h ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kxLwzSB-2Q have to post them with a space between the ‘h’ and ‘ttps’ or it goes to moderation from which it may never return because the ATF shouldn’t even exist!!!!!!!! Going to the range with my new Christmas present How about cutting the ATF’s budget to ZERO?! the first step should be for the ATF to step out of the direct enforcement business entirely — they can remain a regulatory agency (under appropriate supervision) and should continue to provide investigative support to federal but actual enforcement itself needs to be handled by professional law enforcement agencies If the ATF believes someone has committed a federal crime they can provide that information to the FBI then the FBI can review the information to decide if they have probable cause to obtain a search warrant and to make an arrest Likewise if the ATF thinks someone has committed a state crime they can pass that information to the state police who can determine if action is appropriate but it puts the responsibility where it belongs it would allow greater Government Efficiency by eliminating the need for large numbers of ATF “Special Agents” being used to make these SWAT-style raids) What would the ATF have to investigate regarding guns if the Constitutional protection of the right of the people to keep and bear arms was followed Only a secret-gun-controller would advocate for the ATF to do anything at all with guns – and that’s what Mark Smith is: an in-secret gun controller whose real job is to convince all of us to accept “reasonable” gun control ATF is going to have to lie low and wait for another Democrat presidency h ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dLn8g8zcvs This is how you avoid having to put “Fired” on your resume Was there a “golden parachute” clause in the contract You mean the dude who has a song referencing sharing a 13yo with a cop My opinions are that the Founders made it explicitly clear what the 2A was for The EO stopping the return of M1s is an tremendous error homemade firearms are a right of free people and that the government has restrictions NFA restrictions violate the restrictions of government in the BoR and that the ATF should be used to help firearm owners not abuse them I received an Email from the American Firearms Association last night stating that Dettelbach has tendered his resignation effective January 18 I have forwarded that Email to TTAG so they can post it ATF is a violent and murderous terrorist entity that should be banned from each state and disbanded Dittle’sSELF should be in federal prison They’re getting bogus warrants again and murdering people Time to reinforce your doors and prepare for a firefight when they enter .308 semi auto “pistol” recommended If you sell regularly at gun shows and don’t have an FFL If strangers have been coming to YOU out of the blue to buy guns We need to find a way to “fed proof” buyers Imagine being a sht stain little traitor like that to set people up over a harmless non crime they like to throw grenades in your kids’ bedrooms while they sleep Somebody must make a way to put bars on windows that aren’t so visible and would block a grenade from a terrorist A mobile shield that you can fire from behind while defending your home from a home invasion is a must there are two separate “Dale”‘s posting on this site today and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" and insights to help you stay informed on the latest trends in gun culture The role of the gun industry in America’s gun violence epidemic Our team is examining a decade's worth of data from the Gun Violence Archive for insights into one of the most devastating public health crises in the United States The National Rifle Association is one of the most powerful special interest groups in America We’re investigating how it spends its money and programs grappling with the gun violence crisis Sign up now to get our latest stories and eye-opening briefings The 2024 presidential candidates couldn’t be further apart on gun policy. Vice President Kamala Harris has called for universal background checks and an assault weapons ban while former President Donald Trump favors loosening concealed carry laws nationwide Though neither platform is likely to clear Congress a Trump victory could give him the power to dismantle three years of gun violence prevention measures enacted under President Joe Biden who has arguably done more to try to stem gun violence than any president in decades we will roll back every Biden attack on the Second Amendment — the attacks are fast and furious — starting the minute that Crooked Joe shuffles his way out of the White House,” Trump told National Rifle Association members gathered for a convention in Dallas in May.  Here’s a look at the Biden-era policies most likely to be on the chopping block Trump’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment Firearms and Explosives — the lead law enforcement agency charged with regulating the gun industry — never had a permanent director under Trump when he was president former federal prosecutor Steven Dettelbach became the first Senate-confirmed director of the agency in more than seven years we will sack the anti-gun fanatic Steve Dettelbach,” Trump told the NRA in May Biden also ordered the ATF to issue annual reports on gun trafficking with a fourth volume expected by the end of Biden’s term “I don’t think we will see that under a Trump administration and that will make it really hard for researchers and law enforcement to understand how guns are moving and trafficking and which policies are best,” said Nick Wilson the senior director of gun violence prevention at the Center for American Progress Action Fund Biden launched the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention last year to coordinate federal efforts for a more holistic approach to the issue it serves as a clearinghouse for the administration’s messaging and policymaking on gun violence.  The office launched a resource center to help states implement red flag laws which temporarily disarm people deemed to be a danger to themselves or others supported communities affected by mass shootings and helped carry out Biden’s executive orders (more on those below) Before Biden even took office, gun reform advocates urged the office’s creation as a visible symbol of the federal government’s commitment to addressing the crisis they fully expect the office — currently overseen by Harris — to be shuttered as soon as Trump takes office.  there’s no more White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention,” said Adzi Vokhiwa vice president of policy at the Community Justice Action Fund including Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Representative Maxwell Frost of Florida introduced bills to make the office permanent but the legislation stalled in a narrowly divided Senate and Republican-controlled House.  That likely means the office will be gone “on Day One” of a second Trump presidency “The progress we’ve made has saved lives but it has also given a lot of victims’ families the sense that their advocacy means something,” he said “They’re going to be talking to a brick wall if Trump is in the White House and to the extent anybody in the White House talks to them Should Trump decide to keep the office, it would be at his whim — possibly refashioned as a repository for pro-gun policies or, as some gun rights advocates have suggested an outfit to push Second Amendment expansion “The obvious choice is for the Trump administration to completely dismantle it,” said Devin Hughes founder of the gun violence research outfit GVPedia “More likely, however, they will use the office as a platform to spread disinformation on gun violence that is favorable to the gun lobby, with someone like John Lott at its head,” Hughes said, referencing the debunked economist and Trump administration alum whose skewed crime statistics are touted by Republican lawmakers and the gun lobby Passed in 2022 in the wake of mass shootings in Uvalde the BSCA was the first significant gun reform law in nearly three decades receiving bipartisan support in the Senate Fully repealing the law would require an unlikely 60 votes in the Senate and a Republican majority in the House but Trump plans to unwind as much of it as he can via executive action and a revamped ATF that favors gun rights over gun regulation “President Trump will appoint an ATF director who will review these extremely burdensome regulations that make Americans less safe,” an unnamed representative of the Trump campaign told the NRA’s America’s First Freedom magazine in October calling it “unfortunate” that Biden signed the law “The reason that the Biden administration is pushing these rules is to make sure that their national gun registry, which President Trump will also undo, will be able to track more people who own guns,” the Trump campaign told the NRA’s magazine. (Neither the BSCA nor any of Biden’s executive actions create a national gun registry, which is prohibited by a 1986 federal law but the NRA and gun rights advocates liken expanded background checks to a backdoor gun registry.) Some Republicans may support such a move by Trump. That includes Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who was the lead GOP negotiator on the BSCA. Cornyn has faced criticism from gun rights proponents for supporting the bill and was booed at the 2022 Texas Republican Party’s state convention after Biden signed it we will roll back every Biden attack on the Second Amendment — the attacks are fast and furious — starting the minute that Crooked Joe shuffles his way out of the White House A spokesperson for Cornyn pointed to a letter to the editor the senator wrote in May criticizing the ATF’s interpretation of the law: “I stand by the reforms in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act but I reject the Biden administration’s unconstitutional attempt to exploit this law in order to implement its radical gun control agenda counter to the will of Congress and the people who elected us.” who oversees federal and state policy efforts at Community Justice said the ATF’s regulatory change was legally justifiable at least three lawsuits are challenging it “But I think that a Trump administration would just choose to not defend them and not defend the actions of anything that was done under the Biden-Harris administration That would really be dangerous for public safety It would undermine ATF efforts to slow down trafficking of firearms.”” Trump or a Republican-controlled House could also hamper enforcement by cutting ATF staffing or reducing funding which has long been sought by Republicans in Congress “If they fire all the licensing inspectors then it’s going to be very hard to enforce the rule,” Wilson said The BSCA also set aside more than $13 billion in funding to support state crisis interventions like red flag laws community-based violence intervention programs but a Trump administration could alter grant programs to favor other crisis interventions over red flag laws or try to shift money from community-based programs to law enforcement initiatives “It matters who is in these positions within the different parts of the executive branch who’re actually responsible for reviewing applications and directing funding,” Vokhiwa said Trump’s campaign told the NRA’s magazine that he plans to appoint a pro-gun attorney general — responsible for overseeing much of the funding —  “who will stop the weaponization of government against lawful gun ownership and who will prioritize traditional law enforcement by catching and punishing criminals.” who was the lead Democratic negotiator of the BSCA and helped shepherd it through the Senate said he believes Trump would try to roll back as much of the law as he can “You have to open up your imagination about what a second Trump presidency is going to look like,” Murphy said You may see him outright refuse to implement laws he doesn’t like and potentially short circuit Congress and try to impose certain gun industry priorities on the country without going through the legislative process.” Federal law prevents funding from being shifted to other purposes, but Trump could simply refuse to distribute the funds. Trump has repeatedly said he would violate the federal Impoundment Control Act which limits the president’s ability to unilaterally refuse or redirect congressional spending.  There is also a mechanism for Congress to cancel spending at the president’s request of the Center for American Progress Action Fund “Trump could send a message to Congress saying ‘The NRA told me that they don’t want this money going to the community.’ That triggers a bill that could be voted on so Congress would only need a simple majority to rescind the money.” Biden has announced more than 50 executive actions on gun violence since he took office in January 2021 most of which could be easily rescinded or ignored under a Trump administration “I take Trump at his word: He said he’s going to roll back all the progress we made on guns under President Biden,” Murphy said I think he’ll do whatever the gun lobby tells him to do.” In one of his first executive orders, Biden directed the ATF to issue regulations on ghost guns and other unserialized firearms, requiring buyers to undergo background checks. The new rules are currently before the Supreme Court, which appears likely to uphold them.  Gun violence prevention advocates believe most of that work will be rescinded or halted “The bottom line is a Trump administration would be devastating for public safety,” Vokhiwa said “It would walk back the progress that we’ve seen over the last several years particularly for Black and brown communities that are most impacted by this issue.” Your tax-deductible donation to The Trace will directly support nonprofit journalism on gun violence and its effects on our communities The FBI thwarts dozens of domestic terror plots each year The 900-page plan would upend that — with dire consequences for vulnerable groups The director of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) apologized to the widow of Bryan Malinowski during a congressional hearing today But he otherwise defended the ATF's raid of the couples West Little Rock home sparked by Malinowski's interest in buying and selling firearms Steve Dettelbach appeared this morning before the House Judiciary Committee - which has oversight of ATF He reminded the lawmakers that a federal judge found probable cause that the 53-year-old airport executive had violated two federal laws Dettelbach urged them not to get ahead of the facts of the case Many of which remain unknown with the results of a criminal investigation still pending He sparred with republicans in particular over the need to raid the Malinowski house early in the morning on March 29 It led Malinowski to fire a shot at what he believed were intruders "You've got a citizen - the highest paid municipal official in Little Rock making $260,000 a year running the airport - no criminal background history and he's dead at a pre-dawn raid," says Representative Jim Jordan (R)-Ohio we are very sorry when those things happen an agent was shot that day and I'm sure you are sorry that that occurred also All the more reason to not have the no-knock warrant take place and follow the rules." Dettelbach said the agent who was wounded is still recovering He said agents were not wearing body cameras because the devices have only been rolled out to about one/third of ATF's field divisions testified before Congress following the death of Little Rock Airport executive spoke to the Judiciary Committee yesterday ATF Director Steven Dettelbach warns against further funding cuts of an agency tasked with tracing firearms and generating leads for gun cases nationwide More than 600 law enforcement personnel from around the country are convening in Minneapolis this week for a summit that began Monday with applause for the city’s recent street gang takedowns and a plea from one national leader for Congress to halt budget cuts for the agency tasked with tracing firearms Leaders from all federal law enforcement agencies joined Minneapolis police and other state and local authorities for an annual three-day summit of the National Public Safety Partnership (PSP) a Justice Department training and technical assistance program in its 10th year and which now counts Minneapolis as one of its participants “People are looking at what’s been accomplished here as a road map for a successful anti-violent crime strategy,” U.S Firearms and Explosives Director Steven Dettelbach said in an interview Monday Monday’s PSP summit kicked off with a heavy focus on Minneapolis’ federal gang crackdown — which required partnerships between federal Luger and Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara were also scheduled to lead a panel on their strategy as part of the classes open only to law enforcement attending the event “We went from a city where violent crime was never the topic of conversation to a city in which violent crime is the topic of conversation,” Luger said in his opening remarks Monday the city of Minneapolis became one of 67 cities to participate in the PSP program The partnership typically requires a three-year commitment and O’Hara on Monday told reporters the city has so far tapped the program for training on shootings as well as help improving how the department tracks and responds to crime O’Hara said the department will again seek federal funding to help establish a “real-time crime center” that could help with processing evidence backlogs and assist in investigations Dettelbach began Monday by imploring the room to make the case in their respective corners of the country for Congress not to slash ATF’s budget further next year He said Congress cut the bureau’s budget by $50 million last year and he has since heard talk of a far steeper cut next year “That will mean that we will not be able to provide the services to you We can’t take that kind of cut without talking about closing down whole areas of operations in this country.” Dettelbach later said in an interview new firearms trafficking and straw purchasing statutes passed as part of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022 have led to more than 1,000 new charges. Dettelbach and others Monday credited programs such as the PSP with helping drive down violent crime in many corners of the country in the past year. While O’Hara said Minneapolis recently exceeded its 2023 homicide total, overall shootings are trending downward in the city this year. “Our partnerships in the gang cases, working those in concert with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, we are looking to make an impact and you can already see the fruits of our labor,” added Alvin Winston, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Minneapolis division, in an interview Monday. Stephen Montemayor covers federal courts and law enforcement. He previously covered Minnesota politics and government. News & Politics Minnesota’s kindergartners have been below the recommended 95% threshold for years and more parents are getting exemptions for the MMR vaccine Where are children most vulnerable to infectious spread Hennepin County is highlighting salvage businesses in May to encourage residents to reuse construction materials and limit what gets sent to landfills Doğukan Günaydin was arrested March 27 by plainclothes officers from the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minneapolis Groups advocating the Second Amendment said that they are more hopeful that President-elect Donald Trump will shift the ATF to more pro-gun policies now that the agency’s chief has announced plans to step down two days before Inauguration Day In a note to Secrets, the spokeswoman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that Director Steve Dettelbach told President Joe Biden of his plans after the White House provided guidance for leaving service before the new president was sworn in TRUMP CABINET PICKS: WHO’S BEEN TAPPED TO SERVE IN THE PRESIDENT-ELECT’S ADMINISTRATION “Leading the courageous and incredible men and women of ATF has been the greatest honor of his professional life,” Kristina Mastropasqua said of Dettelbach. Dettelbach highlighted a drop in violent crime as a key success during his leadership of the ATF “That progress did not occur by accident,” he said The ATF has a leading role in the investigations of the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans and the vehicle explosion at the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas Gun groups cheered his departure in part because they claimed the ATF under Dettelbach turned against firearms owners and suppliers He has been criticized for the ATF’s flip-flop on the legality of gun accessories, such as pistol braces on AR-style weapons and a crackdown on gun stores and gun shows ‘MY WORD AS A BIDEN’: JOE DAMAGES PUBLIC TRUST WITH FLIP-FLOP HUNTER PARDON President @RealDonaldTrump challenges the ATF at #NRAConvention"I will order the ATF to stop bullying gun store owners…and instead go after drug dealers, human traffickers and criminal cartels." pic.twitter.com/ow9TUeacIz “That’s one less person Trump will have to fire after he takes office,” said Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Chairman Alan Gottlieb “and it is one less gun prohibition lobbyist on the government payroll.” GREATEST COMEBACK? HERE’S HOW TRUMP STACKS UP IN WHITE HOUSE HISTORY Trump has been under pressure to curb the powers of or just eliminate the ATF he pledged to turn the agency’s attention to crime Biden has spent years trying to ban guns and used his powers as president to push limits but most major gun control threats went nowhere He lost any high ground when he pardoned his son Groups, including the National Rifle Association and Gun Owners of America have been in talks with the Trump transition team on who they would support for a new ATF director though they declined to provide any names to Secrets However, NRA CEO and Executive Vice President Doug Hamlin told Secrets that he expects Pam Bondi to play a major role in selecting the new ATF director SEE THE LATEST POLITICAL NEWS AND BUZZ FROM WASHINGTON SECRETS the senior vice president of Gun Owners of America “We want someone who is going to rein in the agency and destroy the illegal gun registry Andrew Clyde (R-GA) would be perfect for the job it will be difficult to remove another Republican from the House’s slim majority.” it is critical that the new director halts the weaponization of ATF against gun owners and the firearms industry.” Gottlieb said he wants somebody as director who is familiar with guns and supports the Second Amendment “We are hopeful the next ATF director will straighten the record by telling Congress the media and the gun prohibition lobby that modern semiautomatic rifles are not ‘weapons of war,’ and that there is not a ‘gun show loophole.’ The next ATF director should know how to disassemble a pistol instead of trying to regulate it out of existence He should be someone willing to visit a gun show rather than shut it down,” he said in a statement The ATF just recently announced that current Director Steven Dettelbach has submitted his resignation to President Joe Biden ATF Chief of Public Affairs Kristina Mastropasqua confirmed the news to the public Leading the courageous and incredible men and women of ATF has been the greatest honor of his professional life.” We can presumably expect that the incoming administration will appoint either a new interim director or if the ATF gets its wish  walked the agency through regulations on pistol braces and oversight of licensed firearms dealers (like myself) We’ve covered a lot of the things the ATF has been doing over the last couple of years here at TFB but Mr Dettlebach’s name rarely came up in any of those news pieces Presumably reflecting on his experiences in his resignation letter He went on to emphasize the progress made during his tenure: “As I leave ATF Dettelbach also shared how important consistent leadership is to the agency: “I believe very strongly that the president needs to appoint a permanent director… I think having a permanent director gives ATF a stronger voice in everything related to the budget and other things that come up.” He ended with a word of thanks: “Thank you for the privilege of calling the men and women of ATF my colleagues—and calling you my President.” The ATF hasn’t announced who will take over in an interim capacity although rumors abound that people like venture capitalist Blake Masters and a few others are being considered for the new appointment Dettelbach’s departure is likely going to be viewed by most gun owners as a positive since he was appointed to the office by a historically anti-gun administration We’d obviously like to hear your thoughts and predictions about Mr as well as who might replace him as the next interim director Reloader SCSA Competitor Certified Pilot Currently able to pass himself off as the second cousin twice removed of Joe Flanigan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ballisticaviation/ More by Luke C. WASHINGTON — Many federal agencies are bracing for the Trump era — but few are likely to face the powerful backlash that awaits the Bureau of Alcohol which pursued an aggressive gun control agenda under President Joe Biden has been more proactive on gun control than at any time in its recent history It has pushed through rules to curb the proliferation of untraceable homemade firearms known as ghost guns clamped down on devices that make firearms deadlier and regulated unlicensed firearms sellers who operate at gun shows or online That earned praise from gun control groups and drew the enmity of Republicans He is almost certain to pick a proponent of gun rights as director or simply leave the job vacant leaving the small and embattled bureau rudderless and vulnerable may come from the Republican-controlled Congress which is threatening to cut the budget for the federal agency Its core function is fundamentally apolitical joining with local enforcement to trace weapons used in crimes and dismantle trafficking rings by providing intelligence and technical assistance “People who don’t think that law enforcement has anything to do with driving down violent crime are just wrong — it didn’t happen by accident,” said Dettelbach sitting in his slightly disheveled office at the bureau’s Washington headquarters this month “What I am concerned about is that is that people will take their eye off the ball or some combination of those things,” said Dettelbach Midwestern style belies his willingness to take actions that have elicited political attacks and legal challenges and there is little doubt that difficult times lie ahead — perhaps in the form of even deeper funding cuts aimed at punishing the agency for the flurry of regulatory actions he undertook We’re going from having a real partnership with somebody like Steve Dettelbach who is accessible and believes in safe communities isn’t as concerned about the ravages of gun violence that’s been the biggest lie ever.”— Keith Ellison congressional Republicans succeeded in cutting the bureau’s budget they inserted a $47 million cut to its modest $1.6 billion annual budget at a time when other federal agencies were seeing increases to keep pace with inflation Trump repeatedly promised to immediately fire Dettelbach and to quickly reverse many of the Biden administration’s most important changes Dettelbach said he planned to quit before Trump took office has singled out a rule that increased regulation of so-called stabilizing braces that make it easier to use a pistol as a long gun that is easier to aim He has also pointed to Dettelbach’s effort to expand background checks on weapons sold at gun shows to include private kitchen-table gun sales and online firearms marketplaces “Under a Trump administration all of those Biden disasters get ripped up and torn up during my first week but maybe my first day in office,” Trump told a gathering of gun rights activists during the campaign That Dettelbach has become a favored target of the right is unsurprising many on the left viewed him as something of a middling pick — after Biden’s first choice Dettelbach’s aggressive approach eventually earned him the support of officials in liberal states who have worked closely with ATF and are now bracing for four years of policy reversals and the possibility of even deeper budget cuts “We’re going from having a real partnership with somebody like Steve Dettelbach isn’t as concerned about the ravages of gun violence,” said Keith Ellison the Democratic attorney general of Minnesota that’s been the biggest lie ever,” he added referring to a common refrain by Trump on the campaign trail “But we need a partner who is doing everything they can to stop mass shootings coupled with a bungled gun trafficking investigation during the Obama administration known as Operation Fast and Furious have made the bureau a scapegoat — and fundraising magnet — on the right Many of its 2,600 agents and 700 inspectors are politically conservative gun owners themselves hostile to what they perceive as Dettelbach’s liberal agenda according to interviews with the bureau’s rank-and-file over the past year But even career officials sympathetic to Trump are concerned that the anticipated about-face could adversely affect the bureau’s core functions of interdicting gun trafficking processing gun and ballistics traces and offering assistance to local law enforcement One other person who seems to have privately voiced some of those concerns is Pam Bondi Trump’s choice to run the Justice Department who worked with the ATF as Florida’s attorney general has expressed a preference for a relatively nonideological replacement for Dettelbach to fulfill the campaign’s law-and-order promises according to two people familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity Transition officials have told gun rights groups that they do not expect Trump to pick an ATF director before next spring but caution that he is just as likely to tap somebody on impulse Those said to be under consideration are: Blake Masters a far-right conservative in Arizona who is close to financier Peter Thiel and who mounted a failed bid for Congress; Peter J a former bureau official who wrote a book on the “Fast and Furious” scandal; Larry Keane head of the gun manufacturers’ trade association; and several current and former top ATF officials said he would have wanted to remain in his job if Vice President Kamala Harris had been elected He has spent his final days visiting field offices around the country where he has emphasized the advances law enforcement made under his leadership: expansion of the bureau’s crime gun intelligence centers increasing the reach of ATF’s national ballistics database slowing the proliferation of deadly and illegal gun accessories known as Glock “switches” and streamlining the inspection process of federally licensed dealers Asked if he was alarmed that many of his would-be successors had publicly vowed to reverse every policy action he took Dettelbach offered a somewhat surprising answer: He was more concerned that Trump would appoint no one at all creating a leadership void at the bureau akin to the seven-year stretch of interim directors that preceded his own appointment “I believe very strongly that the president needs to appoint a permanent director,” he said “Republicans control everything at the moment Stay secure and make sure you have the best reading experience possible by upgrading your browser We’ve got a dedicated section for the AR-15 here We’ve built dozens of AR’s and we’ll cover all the best AR-15 upgrades such as handguards We dedicate every day to thoroughly testing and researching top firearms We also sort through countless offers to highlight the ones truly worth your attention Learn all the important stuff about handguns...with none of the attitude Welcome to a weekly series here on Pew Pew Tactical dedicated to the gun news you need to know keep reading for this week’s notable news headlines… ATF Director Steve Dettelback is officially out The 59-year-old director of the Bureau of Alcohol Firearms and Explosives handed in his resignation this week Effective January 18, 2025, a couple of days ahead of Trump’s inauguration, Dettelbach’s resignation letter has been making its rounds around social media for a few days. The ATF confirmed the authenticity of the letter in a statement to The Reload. 2025,” ATF Chief of Public Affairs Kristina Mastropasqua told The Reload “Leading the courageous and incredible men and women of ATF has been the greatest honor of his professional life.” Dettelbach was confirmed by Congress in 2022 after President Biden’s first pick was forced out of the running amid controversy The ATF has not confirmed who will step in after Jan Washington D.C.’s magazine ban faces opposition as the District of Columbia was hit with a lawsuit regarding its ban on “high capacity” magazines residents William Wehr-Darroca and Gary Stemple with backing from the Firearms Policy Coalition The magazine ban criminalizes magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds with up to three years in prison and a $12,500 fine Calling it “unconstitutional” and “arbitrary,” the complaint argues that the magazine ban violates the Second Amendment and that standard-capacity magazines are protected under it the complaint states that many AR rifles and full-sized pistols ship with magazines over 10 rounds and should “Although the ban describes magazines that can accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition as ‘large-capacity,’ this is a misnomer,” the complaint says “Magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition are a normal factory feature and are more accurately described as ‘standard capacity magazines.’” “The magazines at issue in this case are not ‘dangerous and unusual,’ but instead are standard components of firearms in common use for lawful purposes that law-abiding Americans possess by the hundreds of millions.” The suit asks the federal court to overturn the ban and allow D.C residents to possess standard capacity magazines once more A bipartisan bill increasing public shooting ranges on public land passed through the Senate and is on its way to the White House H.R. 6492 later renamed the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act was a bipartisan bill introduced to Congress last year Outlining numerous improvements to public land This portion of the bill requires the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S Forest Service to create additional shooting ranges on public land if a shooting range does not already exist supported by numerous pro-2A organizations would increase public access to shooting ranges “We are incredibly grateful that Congress recognized the public safety and recreational benefits of this legislation,” Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel, said in a statement “This is a tremendous win for America’s gun owners and recreational target shooters and demonstrates what can be achieved when Congress works together for commonsense legislation that will improve access to safe firing ranges available to the public.” The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk for signature Hand-Picked Ammo & Firearm Discounts Subscribe to Pew Pew Tactical's sales and deals email is there any pending legislation for ammo capacity increases in NY or NYC Get Our Top Shooting Drills and Zeroing Targets ($47 value - but FREE for a limited time) And stay in touch with newsletters of our best articles on techniques We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe President Joe Biden's pick to head the Bureau of Alcohol testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing the morning after the killing of at least 19 children by a teenage gunman at a Texas elementary school On the wall outside the director's fifth-floor suite at ATF headquarters hang photographs of the men who have led the agency. The final photo dates to 2015, when the last Senate-confirmed boss left office. Now, seven years later, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives finally has a new confirmed director: Steve Dettelbach attorney steps into the ATF job at a critical time Domestic extremism and the sort of undercurrents of violence and domestic extremist actions is rising," Dettelbach said in an interview with NPR Those are all things that are in the wheelhouse of ATF to address And I hope to be able to to work with the ATF and the other partners to address them and try and make things better." A series of mass shootings that killed 38 people over two months — at a school a grocery store and an Independence Day parade — has shocked the nation and put pressure on the federal government to act I'd be naive to say that those things aren't going to to continue to happen," Dettelbach said when asked if there would be more shootings like those in Uvalde Dettelbach was also adamant that despite the steady drumbeat of mass shootings "it is not acceptable to accept firearms violence is part of our national narrative "It's not part of the way that people in our country want to raise their families It's not part of the way that the people who own firearms want to live," he said ATF and others in law enforcement owe it to the survivors and victims to do everything in their power to deal with the problem of gun violence pointing out that gun violence isn't just mass shootings There's a steady drumbeat of shootings that almost never make the news but that kill more than 100 people every day And the government has a duty to help and to protect all of those people as well "So to say that the pressure is on is an understatement," he said "But the pressure is on because it's our job in law enforcement to help people be safer President Joe Bidens nominee to lead the Bureau of Alcohol Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Steve Dettelbach speaks during an event about gun violence in the Rose Garden of the White House April 11 There's no one particular thing driving the recent violence and the mix varies in different parts of the country That means that the strategies to combat it have to be tailored in order to succeed and since ATF is a small agency it will need to work with state and local partners to succeed And that may mean helping solve cold homicides in one part of the country and focusing on violent gun cases or gun trafficking in another "I think what I would say is we have to be open to new ideas and creative ways of trying to work together to to fight this problem," Dettelbach said Driving down violent crime is a goal of law enforcement writ large which has put a lot of stock in getting a Senate-confirmed ATF director in place President Biden sees the confirmation of an ATF director as an important piece of the administration's response to the surge in gun violence His first pick for the post failed to win confirmation due to fierce opposition from gun rights groups A long list of nominees put forward in recent years by Republicans and Democrats have faced a similar fate Dettelbach managed to squeak through the Senate with bipartisan support Dettelbach says he wants to serve as an advocate for ATF to ensure it gets the support and resources its needs But he also will work to make sure that it gets the respect he says it deserves and that the public knows and values of the agency's work "ATF was crucial in running the trace that helped catch the Highland Park shooter just two weeks ago," Dettelbach said about the Independence Day shooting in Illinois People need to know that that wasn't easy." His job is to "remind people of the facts so that ATF men and women who are out there risking their lives can be working with the public who understand what they're doing to help the public be safe," he said That also involves trying boost morale at an agency that has faced years of instability Both tasks are challenging in the best of times let alone in the middle of what the president calls an epidemic of gun violence Become an NPR sponsor This purchase is available as a free download with your MyC-SPAN account C-SPAN.org offers links to books featured on the C-SPAN networks to make it simpler for viewers to purchase them C-SPAN has agreements with retailers that share a small percentage of your purchase price with our network C-SPAN earns money from your qualifying purchases C-SPAN only receives this revenue if your book purchase is made using the links on this page Any revenue realized from this program goes into a general account to help fund C-SPAN operations Please note that questions regarding fulfillment or issues relating to your book orders should be directed to the Webmaster or administrator of the specific bookseller's site and are their sole responsibility MyC-SPAN users can download four Congressional hearings and proceedings under four hours for free each month There are three ways to set in and out points for a clip: Check your selection with the "Preview Clip" option If you are editing the times of an existing clip you may only set a start and end time within the original clip boundaries The Presidential Prayer Team is a 501c(3) organization We are rated by two national accreditation groups and undergo an annual independent audit to ensure accountability Steve Dettelbach speaks during an event about gun violence in the Rose Garden of the White House on April 11 The Senate voted 48-46 on Tuesday to approve former U.S Attorney Steven Dettelbach to lead the U.S making him the first confirmed head of the agency in seven years Susan Collins of Maine and Rob Portman of Ohio joined with Senate Democrats to approve Dettelbach's nomination "While certainly not a panacea to the gun violence epidemic plaguing our nation Dettelbach at the helm of the ATF will ensure the feds have all hands on deck in the fight to stop gun trafficking prevent illegal possession of firearms and make sure our kids can't get their hands on dangerous weapons," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer Dettelbach will oversee the nation's gun laws at a moment when those policies are under intense public scrutiny A string of deadly mass shootings and increasing gun violence across the country have placed additional pressure on the ATF and other federal agencies attorney in Ohio during the Obama administration Dettelbach has won support from the National Sheriffs' Association and the International Association of Chiefs of Police The White House has touted his background as a career prosecutor with a history of working closely with law enforcement on major cases involving gun crimes "Today's vote is another important sign that both parties can come together to support law enforcement and stand up against the horrific scourge of gun violence," President Biden said in a statement after the vote And it is my hope that we can continue working together to keep Americans safe — especially our children — from mass shootings like those in Uvalde as well as the daily acts of gun violence that don't make national headlines Biden's first nominee for the ATF post withdrew after key Senate Democrats expressed doubt about his background Dettelbach's own confirmation was delayed for several months after Biden first announced the nomination in April The Senate Judiciary Committee was deadlocked on the nomination in May and Democrats were forced to push back a floor vote several times With additional reporting by NPR's Carrie Johnson An official website of the United States government Firearms and Explosives (ATF) dedicated a new “Faces of Gun Violence” exhibit today at a ceremony hosted during ATF’s Inaugural Gun Violence Survivors’ Summit The exhibit honors and memorializes those whose lives have been tragically lost to gun violence “As we remember those we have lost to gun violence the Justice Department promises that we will strive every single day to honor their lives in our work,” said Attorney General Merrick B “We promise that we will not rest until every family and every community is safe from the devastation of gun violence As our dedicated ATF agents pass by the ‘Faces of Gun Violence’ exhibit every day it will stand as a powerful monument to those they are fighting for.” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco Deliver Remarks at ATF’s Inaugural Gun Violence Survivors’ Summit Review the YouTube Terms of Service and the Google Privacy Policy A Tennessee man was sentenced Thursday to eight years and five months in prison for selling methamphetamine possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.. Foreign Terrorist Organization MS-13 leader Yulan Andony Archaga Carías is the highest-ranking member of MS-13 a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization Department of Justice950 Pennsylvania Avenue Office of Public Affairs Direct Line202-514-2007 Department of Justice Main Switchboard202-514-2000 Signup for Email UpdatesSocial Media Multilingual Resources-->Have a question about Government Services This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Community Safety Department Director To Resign Amid Tension With Cambridge Police Department From Lab to Startup: Harvard’s Office of Technology Development Paves the Way for Research Commercialization People’s Forum on Graduation Readiness Held After Vote to Eliminate MCAS 8 Takeaways From Harvard’s Task Force Reports Dettelbach — director of the Bureau of Alcohol and Explosives — called for an assault weapons ban and universal background checks at a Harvard Institute of Politics forum Monday Light opened the conversation by asking Dettelbach for an overview of the landscape of gun violence in America Dettelbach said the country is “not in a very good place,” pointing to the prevalence of mass shootings in the U.S He referenced the recent mass shooting in Lewiston Maine — where a gunman killed at least 18 people — but said the vast majority of shooting deaths do not receive widespread coverage over 120 people who lose their lives because of firearms violence,” Dettelbach said there are somewhere between six and seven Lewistons that occur Dettelbach outlined two “fundamental pillars” to reducing gun violence in America “One pillar is we have to get better — and at ATF we are getting better — on identifying the drivers of violent crime,” he said “We are getting better at identifying those few people who are likely to shoot.” The second pillar is “doing something to either stop or at least slow down the flow of firearms to those people,” Dettelbach added the ATF must prioritize “following the gun,” or keeping track of where a gun was prior to its use in a crime Light noted that there is some resistance to providing additional data that could facilitate gun tracking and asked Dettelbach to explain that reluctance “Congress has said that we’re not allowed to have a gun registry and Congress has said that we’re not allowed to have certain types of searchable databases,” he said because in our constitutional form of government Light then transitioned to discussing America’s gun culture Dettelbach said a significant part of the problem is “apathy” to gun violence which he explained as a “sort of defense mechanism.” “The temperature on this discussion is way too high way too high to actually get things done,” he added “We’re only going to get things done in this country when we can find some level of consensus around certain things.” When asked for his “wishlist” if he could ask Congress for any powers or authorities Dettelbach called for a higher barrier to gun purchases and restrictions on which firearms can be sold “I think it would be helpful if we had universal background checks in this country I think that’s something that makes some sense,” Dettelbach said He added that he supports a ban on assault weapons that we should consider and reinstate a ban on certain types of assault weapons,” he said “I am not trying to be cute when I say this It is emphatically the job of the United States Congress to write a definition” of assault weapons Dettelbach said an overemphasis on individual rights including the Second Amendment right to bear arms impairs the ability to address gun violence as a public safety issue “People who have the view that their rights are the only thing that should be taken into account — it is just not who we are as Americans,” he said Want to keep up with breaking news? Subscribe to our email newsletter. Apply Now Schedule Sign Me Up When it comes to the issue of gun violence in the U.S. the statistics seem overwhelming and the solutions intractable there were more than 48,000 firearm-related deaths in the U.S. according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guns were the leading cause of death of children in this country—greater than automobile accidents and cancer the Kaiser Family Foundation reported.  But these are not insurmountable crises, though change will come incrementally, Steven Dettelbach ’88 said in an address and Q&A in Filene Auditorium on Wednesday.  That’s the only way I think we’re going to make progress,” Dettelbach said.  The event, which was livestreamed, was sponsored by the Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Public Policy and the Social Sciences and moderated by Emma Wolfe the vice president of government and community relations at Dartmouth.  ATF is charged with protecting Americans from explosives But with only about 5,200 staff for the entire country (compare that Dettelbach called ATF’s mission huge but its resources scarce.  I’m scared that we’re now headed to a place where “on the heels of yet more senseless violence and tragedy in this country,” citing the shooting spree at the recent parade for the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs and an incident of domestic violence in Minnesota this week that ended in the fatal shootings of two police officers and a paramedic which in October was the site of a mass shooting that killed 18 people and injured 13.  Dettelbach recalled when the shootings in 1999 at Columbine High School in Colorado and Virginia Tech in 2007 seemed like dreadful but relatively rare explosions of mass gun violence “I’m scared that we’re now headed to a place where Because of technical innovation that gives individuals the tools to make their own weapons—privately made firearms also known as “ghost guns”— automatic machine guns which have been regulated by Congress since the 1930s and were banned for sale to ordinary citizens in 1986 “have come pounding back to American streets like jackhammers,” Dettelbach said.  one million firearms were reported stolen from individuals (There are 415 million firearms in a population of nearly 332 million) The number of actual stolen weapons is likely to be much higher These stolen firearms are used in episodes of often fatal gun violence.  Violent crime was down in many American cities in 2023: by about 11% in New York City 15% in Los Angeles and 19% in Baltimore.  “This is progress—even if it is not enough progress and even if doesn’t feel like progress,” Dettelbach said any strategy has to both identify the people who pull the triggers and cut off the “seemingly easy and endless flow of guns to these same people,” he said law enforcement relies more than ever on partnerships between local police forming Crime Gun Intelligence Centers to solve crimes of gun violence “That collaboration means more than just bodies: it means more ideas CGI want to squeeze every last bit of evidence out of a crime gun,” Dettelbach said This approach is now deemed preferable to flooding high crime areas with police which can have “collateral damage” in neighborhoods with long-standing distrust and fear of the police.  “We will drive down violent crime in this country by focusing on the bad guys,” Dettelbach said But there are larger societal and cultural issues at play that have hindered efforts to reduce gun violence There’s so much mistrust that we can’t even get easy things done on which we already have broad consensus Law-abiding gun owners do not support or endorse widespread gun violence; on the other hand rallying cries that citizens’ Second Amendment rights are in danger are not true “These rights have never been more secure at any time in this country,” Dettelbach said Several audience members asked Dettelbach about the problem of mass shooters who steal weapons that were lawfully obtained by family members or friends.  and children’s and domestic deaths are caused by law-abiding citizens How do we address that?” asked Randy Ringer said Dettelbach’s remarks addressed a wide range of concerns in a bipartisan manner “I felt the director’s comments went far in bridging the gap on a political issue that shouldn’t be a political issue,” he said He ended his day at Dartmouth dining with students from the Tucker Center who take part in interfaith dinner conversations If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or use the online chat at 988.lifeline.org Nicola Smith can be reached at nicola.vt@gmail.com We inspire students to practice good global citizenship while strengthening their own communities Act Now Support journalism that digs deeper into topics that matter most to Arkansans. Donate today to preserve the quality and integrity of local journalism. Alex Thomas has served as the Washington Correspondent for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette since November 2022 He also produces "Arkies in the Beltway," a weekly podcast covering national politics and the Arkansans involved in public policy debates This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2025 audio and/or video material shall not be published rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use The AP will not be held liable for any delays errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing Dettelbach is a Democratic candidate for Ohio attorney general .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Guest Columnist/cleveland.comCLEVELAND -- I have spent more than two decades as a prosecutor battling hate crimes Along with the FBI, I investigated and brought hate crime cases all over the country as a prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights division and as an assistant U.S. attorney. Then, as the United States Attorney in Northern Ohio the home of the reported neo-Nazi who is accused of killing an innocent woman in Charlottesville I prosecuted cases including an arson at an African-American church and a case involving the stockpiling of an arsenal by a white supremacist I always put on my professional law enforcement hat and ask But my reaction to Charlottesville and its troubling aftermath has been more personal. Maybe it's the video of the neo-Nazi chants that hit home. Maybe it's the disturbing response from the White House I am running for office for the first time (Ohio attorney general) I want to tell people that I am a proud American Jew That has always been an important part of me but I want to talk about my Jewishness now I want to talk about it because the Nazis and white nationalists who marched in Charlottesville wrongly assume that if I do talk about being Jewish But I also want to talk about it because others who are not haters seem to implicitly agree Here's one thing I have learned about running for office: A lot of people give you advice people feel free to give advice that would usually be totally off limits I get advice on my physical appearance and my clothes People also give me advice on how to "handle" my Judaism My name is not "obviously Jewish," they say No need to "push that." It might make people "uncomfortable." Even though I don't agree -- because it profoundly underestimates the Ohio I know -- I have politely listened to that advice No more advice about how to treat my Judaism in my election I want people to ask me about my family who died in the Holocaust I want people to ask about how my Judaism affects me Being Jewish makes me an outsider at some level and helps me to understand how others on the outside can feel It drives me to help protect people who don't have power -- people who are not part of the establishment and want to work hard but see they're not playing on a level field I understand that sometimes people don't get a fair shake whether it's because of their economic situation But that same background also helps me understand the incredible promise of this great nation My family came here and thrived because of that incredible promise and hard work and I want to help every single Ohioan to have a chance at that promise there are some specific things we can do to help fight these violent extremist groups the same way we fight international terrorism First, we must recognize that Charlottesville was not an isolated incident. Anti-Semitic incidents are on the rise And according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there are 35 active hate groups in Ohio alone State attorneys general should work with county prosecutors to form local Anti-Terrorism Advisory Councils (ATACs) as the Department of Justice has done to fight other radical groups These ATACs bring together and train local law enforcement we must follow the advice of groups like the Anti-Defamation League and improve law enforcement data collection around hate crimes Law enforcement must be aware of where hate crimes are occurring so they may properly deploy the resources needed to root it out Third we must pass legislation that labels hate groups like the terrorist threat they are and then devote greater resources to law enforcement so they can disrupt them before commit violence I have overseen cases against Islamic State disciples and other homegrown radicals Both use sophisticated propaganda networks to recruit and target young men We should use existing anti-terrorism models to fight them But first we must have the courage to talk We can only come together and find solutions to these problems if we first own and understand our differences Reach out to one person who is different from you this week owning our differences means beginning an uncomfortable conversation Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio and a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Ohio attorney general and stay informed when readers reply to your comments by using the Notification Settings (in blue) Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, (updated 8/1/2024) and acknowledgement of our Privacy Policy, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/1/2025) © 2025 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us) The material on this site may not be reproduced except with the prior written permission of Advance Local Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site YouTube's privacy policy is available here and YouTube's terms of service is available here Ad Choices CINCINNATI — The director of the Bureau of Alcohol joined US Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio Kenneth Parker local law enforcement and roughly 75 anti-gun violence advocates in a private meeting to discuss life-saving policy measures Monday Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey and Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge for solutions to the city's gun violence problem Theetge said the meeting was an example of one avenue for violence prevention and deterrence "These partnerships are critically important," Theetge said Utilizing people from the community to help foster positive community relationships and provide information to law enforcement was key to reducing violence "This is not something that the police can solve on their own," she said "This is not something that we can just arrest our way out of." McGuffey said the sheriff's office has been meeting with a group called Brothers Inc for more than a year to make those connections "We're embedded with the people who are boots on the ground," she said Federal law enforcement leaders will be in Cincinnati this afternoon talking with local police about violent crime reduction efforts. Here’s what we know. @WCPO pic.twitter.com/rdexf7YNDy Theetge pointed to significant reductions in violence — youth violence in particular — as evidence the connected approach to gun violence reduction has been effective "Right now our juvenile shooting victims are down 44% year to date," she said "Our juvenile homicide victims are down 62% That is a very concerted effort through all of our partners at the CGIC." The CGIC is the Cincinnati Crime Gun Information Center where local and federal law enforcement cooperate to collect data and use that data to target violent individuals and allocate dwindling resources in an effective way "There's a point at which you cannot do more with less anymore and ATF hit that point a long time ago," Dattelbach said The ATF director said his bureau and others need additional funding from the federal government to capitalize on a drop in violence to further drive it down "Let's not get a sore arm patting ourselves on the back but that can change in a moment if we don't stay on top of it," he said a local anti-gun violence advocate who regularly visits shooting scenes "I need all the help I can get," Morris said Morris said if the federal and local law enforcement can capitalize on data through CGIC in concert with efforts by anti-gun violence advocates to prevent violence then maybe his on-scene visits won't be necessary anymore It's the tool I need to put in my tool belt The Trump administration has already ushered in much needed change at the Bureau of Alcohol Robert Leider has been appointed as the bureau’s chief counsel Leider, who will also serve as assistant director of the ATF, is a Second Amendment legal expert and professor at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. He has an extensive written record that demonstrates his adherence to the U.S who has authored numerous staunch defenses of the Second Amendment at the highest level including the majority opinion in the landmark case New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v This move comes less than a month after Trump administration officials notified Pamela Hicks Hicks was appointed to the position by then-President Joe Biden (D) in 2021 and had previously served as deputy chief counsel before that Under Biden, the ATF was weaponized against not only law-abiding gun owners, but also against gun stores. Such is why Biden nominated not one, but two gun-control advocates, David Chipman and Steve Dettelbach, to lead the ATF, the latter of which was confirmed as director by a narrow U.S Some of the ATF’s actions under Dettelbach’s leadership include the “zero-tolerance” policy of Federal Firearm Licensee oversight its overreaching rules on pistol braces and much more Dettelbach stepped down from his post a few days before Trump took office. Dettelbach has since been replaced by FBI Director Kash Patel who was named ATF acting director by President Trump “The appointment of FBI Director [Kash Patel] as Acting Director of the ATF is a great first step by President Trump to reform this deeply troubled agency. For far too long, ATF has focused on how it can manipulate federal statutes to restrict the rights of law-abiding Americans. We look forward to working with Acting director Patel to protect and expand Second Amendment freedoms,” posted the NRA on X Steven Dettelbach, the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, is calling for immediate action to address a surge in crimes involving auto sears small devices that enable semiautomatic weapons to fire like machine guns.  “This is a problem that needs to be focused on immediately,” Dettelbach said “These devices are flooding our communities.” Speaking virtually to the audience of a February 28 gun violence prevention forum in New York City, Dettelbach cited a recent ATF report that found a shocking increase in recoveries of auto sears and other machine gun conversion devices a 570 percent increase over the previous five-year period Machine guns are among the most regulated firearms in the United States Federal law requires anyone who wishes to purchase a machine gun to go through rigorous screening and register the weapon with the government And gunmakers have been prohibited from selling new machine guns to civilians for decades which means the weapons command huge premiums among enthusiasts because of their rarity have made the machine gun accessible again The small conversion devices are easily installed on semiautomatic firearms and difficult for law enforcement to detect that fully automatic weapons were unusually dangerous to the public and law enforcement,” Dettelbach said “They have no place in our communities.” Unlike a semiautomatic gun which fires one cartridge with each trigger pull a fully automatic weapon can fire up to 20 rounds per second until the trigger is released or it runs out of ammo.  and just having these kinds of machine gun conversion devices is against the law,” he added who was nominated by President Joe Biden and later confirmed by the Senate last year is the first confirmed director of the ATF in nearly a decade He did not lay out a specific plan to address the surge in conversion devices in his comments But he said the bureau is “using every tool at its disposal to help prevent and respond to gun violence.” The ATF’s National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment report is the first comprehensive accounting on crime guns in more than 20 years from the federal agency charged with enforcing the nation’s gun laws The report recommended the agency provide more training to federal and local law enforcement agencies on how to identify and submit tracing requests on machine gun conversion devices It also suggested that the agency beef up its own capability to trace the devices and enter into an intelligence partnership with the U.S Customs and Border Patrol to monitor for illegal imports The Trace and VICE News’ reporting found that auto sears and other machine gun conversion devices cost as little as $20 and are usually imported from other countries However, many U.S.-based firearm manufacturers, which the ATF is charged with regulating, are aware that many of their guns are easy to convert Glock switches have become so popular that unwitting customers have mailed them to the company’s headquarters for repairs the ATF has not publicly outlined a plan to require manufacturers to guard against conversion devices focused heavily on health care providers’ role in addressing gun violence from assessing patients’ risk of firearm injury to offering resources to parents on safe firearm storage “It’s an extraordinarily complicated and multifaceted issue but all of the components of it intertwine and are interconnected,” said Michael Dowling The forum spotlighted a growing movement among health systems across the country to more directly address gun violence, especially gun violence affecting children. Last year, new research found that gun violence is the leading cause of death for children the Biden administration is investing hundreds of millions in new funding from the Bipartisan Safer Communities and recent budget bills to support new gun violence research encourage states to pass new and improve existing red flag laws and bolster alternatives to traditional law enforcement The Department of Justice recently awarded $100 million in grants to community-based violence intervention and prevention programs many of which work directly with hospitals to address retaliatory gun violence “Change is needed because the level of gun violence in this country is simply unacceptable,” Dettelbach said “We at the ATF refuse to accept it as some sort of status quo that will persist in the future We refuse to accept the notion that it’s somehow who we are as Americans and our success hinges on our partnerships for that reason.” While Dettelbach said the ATF’s role is as a law enforcement agency he referred to gun violence as a public health crisis that requires a comprehensive solution that goes beyond law enforcement “The public health impact of gun violence is devastating,” he said “I applaud you all for taking on these tough questions because gun violence is not just a law enforcement problem New data suggests inspectors have cracked down after the Biden administration asked the agency to implement a “zero tolerance” policy on lawbreaking gun dealers last June Firearms and Explosives director Steven Dettelbach ’88 spoke to students and community members in Filene Auditorium about gun violence and enforcement Dettelbach emphasized the frequency of tragedies that occur from gun violence and the urgent need to address the issue After a brief introduction from senior class president Kami Arabian ’24 Dettelbach reiterated that the ATF serves “to protect the American people from violent crime.” As the only federal law enforcement agency solely dedicated to this purpose the ATF holds jurisdiction over anything that “booms Dettelbach recounted the ATF’s involvement in the aftermath of national tragedies the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and the Sept 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.  the agency forms coalitions with local police and other federal agents “We are literally working with police officers every single day to identify and catch and prosecute … really violent people,” Dettelbach explained He outlined the ATF’s two-pillar strategy: identifying trigger pullers — individuals who pull the trigger during shootings attacks or other violent incidents involving guns — and disrupting the flow of guns to them.  Crime gun intelligence is one crucial tool the ATF uses to track and trace firearms The director revealed that the ATF has traced 645,000 crime guns — firearms that are used or involved in criminal activities He added that the agency pioneers new DNA extraction methods from crime guns “Whether it’s through rulemaking or [the] inspection process [we are] doing everything on the regulatory side we can to slow down that flow of firearms to the black market,” he said.  Dettelbach then addressed the issue of stolen guns calling for a national education campaign on safe storage He clarified that the ATF’s focus is on responsible gun ownership and emphasized that Second Amendment rights are not being revoked.  “If you’re in the business of dealing firearms under the law you have to run background checks no matter where you sell the guns whether it’s in some other place or online,” Dettelbach said.  The lecture concluded with a Q&A session during which students and community members had the opportunity to engage directly with Dettelbach.  Maggie delaFuente ’27 attended the event after Dettelbach visited her PBPL 5: “Introduction to Public Policy” class that day relating her own connection to gun violence She noted that it seems difficult to change the status quo after Congress enacts gun-related legislation “My brother was at Michigan State [University] when the school shooting happened last year so the issue feels very personal,” she said “… I wanted to hear … what he could do in his role to address the issue  .. It almost seemed Dettlebach was kind of powerless in being able to address the issue outside of what Congress had already signed into law.” Arabian said that he endorses any legal policy to reduce the alarming trend of gun violence.  “I would be for any policy that is legal and reduces some of these very frightening statistics that we discussed,” Arabian said “… Everyday 120 Americans die in a gun-related incident so anything that can legally reduce these numbers and reverse the trends is something I would endorse.”   Arabian noted that Dettelbach did well at bridging the gap between those who disagreed on gun control policy.  Dettelbach brought people from clearly opposed perspectives together,” Arabian said Putting a productive dialogue forward where people are civil and tolerant and respectful of ideas that they happen to disagree with Quinn Allred ’26 criticized Dettelbach’s passive stance on gun ownership highlighting the risk of the bump stock ban’s reversal Allred explained that Dettelbach didn’t adequately address that  lawful gun owners play a significant role in contributing to gun violence government took regulatory action to prohibit the possession and use of bump stocks a firearm accessory designed to increase the rate of fire of a semi-automatic firearm allowing it to simulate the firing speed of a fully automatic weapon This device gained national attention after its use in the 2017 Las Vegas shooting.  which is to me the single most important thing that ATF has done to prevent gun violence in this country is going to get overturned,” Allred said.  Allred expressed his frustration and questioned the expectation to remain calm in the face of ongoing gun violence how are you supposed to just resume as normal?”  Kami Arabian ‘24 is a former Opinion Editor for The Dartmouth.  talks with community members that were personally effected by the October 2023 mass shootings in Lewiston signs while describing future concerns following a visit by Steven Dettelbach with community members that were personally effected by the October 2023 mass shootings in Lewiston Four of the 18 victims of the Maine shootings were deaf While wearing her and her husband’s wedding bands on a necklace concludes his remarks with community members that were personally effected by the October 2023 mass shootings in Lewiston “It seems to me that things that we used to sort of consider memorable shocking events that you might think about and talk about for months or years to come now are happening with seeming frequency that makes it so that we sort of think “That’s just the one that happened this week,’” he said that’s a huge hurdle in addressing the problem.” whose agency is responsible for enforcing the nation’s gun laws met for nearly two hours at Central Maine Community College with relatives of those killed and survivors of the Lewiston shooting along other with law enforcement officials “I’m sorry that we have to be in a place where we have to have these horrible tragedies happen for people to pay attention but they have to pay attention,” Dettelbach said but your voices are very important and powerful voices you should understand that it makes a difference told Dettelbach through an ASL interpreter that the shooting underscores the need for law enforcement to improve communications with members of the deaf community She said they felt out of the loop after the shooting “Nothing we do at this point will bring back my husband and the other victims,” Vozzella said in an interview after the meeting “It hurts my heart to talk about this and so learning more every day about this my only hope is that this can improve for the future.” Dettelbach’s conversation with victims was part of a tour in New England that also included meetings with law enforcement and others to discuss ways to tackle gun violence who has expressed support for universal background checks and banning so-called assault weapons said he regularly meets with those affected by gun violence “Each one of these shootings is a tragedy that takes lives and changes other lives forever And that’s whether it makes the news or not whether it’s the suicide of a child or a drive by in the city murders police” or a student with a rifle “shooting up their school,” he said during a speech at Dartmouth College on Wednesday “I submit to you that it is our patriotic duty as Americans to respond to view this tough news as a call to action.” The head of the nation’s gun regulation agency defended policies to crack down on gun dealers and a new prohibition on stabilizing brace devices Wednesday at a Capitol hearing GOP members at the House Judiciary hearing hammered Steven Dettelbach and Firearms on what they called inconsistent previous guidance on the braces that are due to become illegal to possess without a license June 1 “You told them one thing 10 years ago and now you’re telling them something else,” Republican Chairman Jim Jordan said decrying that owners of the pistol brace devices will become felons overnight signed by Attorney General Merrick Garland and cautioned that unwitting violators likely wouldn’t face prosecution and the 10-year prison penalty given prosecutor priorities More: Biden looks to stem 'ghost guns,' unveils other steps to curb gun violence 'epidemic' More: Dayton shooter used a modified gun that may have exploited a legal loophole More: Conservative Wisconsin law firm sues Biden administration over rule on gun stabilizing brace After the June 1 deadline, millions of braces which effectively allows a pistol to operate as a short-barreled rifle The rules have already been challenged in court and a similar ban on bump stocks were handed a blow by a federal appeals court Tuesday Other appeals courts have upheld the bans in 2020 Critics question crackdown on gun shopsRep read a letter from a constituent he says held a Federal Firearms License for 46 years before being revoked recently for selling to a prohibited purchaser The licensee says he relied on Florida’s background check system that gave the sale a go-ahead “Why should you be able to destroy the livelihood of my constituent?” Gaetz asked Dettelbach defended the new ‘zero tolerance’ policy under President Biden that encourages ATF to revoke licenses for willful or repeat violations “Congress has given us the authority to inspect and make sure firearm dealers are compliant and the vast majority are,” Dettelbach said “A very small minority of those dealers after due process have been revoked.” New data released from ATF shows the 92 licenses revoked in 2022 was the highest rate since 2006 asked if the crackdown has resulted in a reduction in crime “There are lots of causes of gun crime it’s impossible to say any one of them is the silver bullet but it doesn’t mean you don’t work on all of them to address the issue,” Dettelbach said More: New data shows ATF gun store revocations at highest rate in 16 years More: 'Rogue' gun dealers revealed: What to know as ATF names gun shops that flout federal laws OIG report slams gun shop FFL inspectionsLast week, the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General issued an audit of ATF’s gun shop inspection program criticizing what it called “inconsistent” application of penalties that didn’t always follow policy It noted that in 98 percent of inspections with at least one revocable violation “We believe that ATF is at risk of fostering the perception among FFLs that certain violations are tolerated that FFLs will not be held accountable for compliance with federal firearms laws or that ATF’s use of administrative actions is unpredictable or unfair,” the report states More: After repeated ATF warnings, gun dealers can count on the agency to back off; sometimes firearms flow to criminals More: Gun used in Odessa shooting shows risk when chain of illegal sale starts with home-based hobbyist dealers Auditors found more than 2,200 active gun shops that hadn’t been inspected for more than a decade — well outside the goal of every three years It also questioned the effectiveness of a “top 100” list of shops that receive extra inspection scrutiny ATF officials pushed back on the OIG findings but ultimately pledged to implement fixes in many areas Nick Penzenstadler is a reporter on the USA TODAY investigations team Contact him at npenz@usatoday.com or @npenzenstadler the federal government has a Senate-confirmed director in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol Steven Dettelbach was recently sworn in as its leader and takes over at a time when gun violence in America is on the rise Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy Steven Dettelbach was sworn in yesterday as its leader And he takes over at a time when gun violence in America is on the rise We have just shown our audience the reminder of what happened in Aurora 10 years ago what kind of pain still exists in that community We are still seeing way too many mass shootings not to mention gun violence off the charts in this country It's to protect the American public from firearms violence and violent crime And that means the horrible things that you talked about in Aurora the things we have seen in Uvalde and Buffalo and Tree of Life in Pittsburgh and Highland Park the tragedies that happen to hundreds of families every week more than 100 families lose somebody in this country because of firearms violence And working with our state and local law enforcement partners the mission of ATF is to try and push back on that to catch the people who are out there hurting people Is there — I hear you saying you want to catch them that you want to do to reduce the number of guns in this country the role of ATF is to enforce the laws as we get them from Congress We work together with state and local law enforcement to do that And that means also making sure that we have an effective and then the people who are breaking the law who are breaking the rules are held accountable we all know there's something — there are laws on the books right now but something isn't working because of these statistics new laws that you would be willing to put yourself put the ATF behind to advocate for those changes Things are tough right now for law enforcement and for Americans in terms of the threats that we face Domestic extremist violence is on the rise And those are all threats that everyday Americans are facing There are a lot of different proposals out there is to take the laws that have been passed and make sure we're doing everything we can to be fair and effective enforcers of the law some have suggested what the ATF and others need to get behind is raising the age of those who are eligible to buy semiautomatic weapons President Biden has spoken about these kinds of issues and Congress is going to consider the things that they consider and make those decisions The ATF's role is to take what comes out of that debate and make sure that we're doing our best to enforce it We spoke with a former longtime ATF agent who attorneys need to be more aggressive in enforcing the laws that are already on the books He said state and federal prosecutors have chosen not to take many ATF cases in the past has led to the fact that there just hasn't been an incentive for people to give up illegal guns one of the things — I'm a former U.S attorney and a career prosecutor myself for 20 years And one of the things that's really exciting about what's going on now at the Department of Justice is we have set up gun trafficking strike forces I was meeting today with Attorney General Garland and the people who are running those strike forces And those strike forces are led by the U.S And one of the things I heard in that meeting was that with the attention that everybody is now paying to the issue of gun trafficking attorney's offices are in many cases really leaning into this problem So I think we need them as important partners in this I hope that all of them are going to be all in on this something like 2,400 ATF agents spread around the country — I'm told that's a number that hasn't changed in decades — at a budget of which is less than the Chicago Police Department there's not a law enforcement executive or a police chief in the United States who wouldn't tell you that they could use more agents and use more cops But we leverage our ability by those partnerships with state and local law enforcement nobody better in all of law enforcement at standing shoulder to shoulder and partnering with other federal agencies and other state agencies because you said yourself it's a small agency There are not enough ATF agents to cover every crime in the United States what do you — what would your message be today to those who've lost loved ones in this country to gun violence and who — and Americans who are afraid to go out in their community now I have met with a lot of people and families through my career who were victims and had family members who were victims of violent crime And there's nothing that anybody can say that can in any way try to either understand or comfort those people And the fact that we have so many in our country every single day is a tragedy that we simply cannot accept What I would say to them is that I and the men and women at ATF along with our state and local law enforcement partners do not accept or in any way try to minimize or brush aside the tragedies that are occurring every day in this country We will do everything we can to try and make sure that there aren't as many families who have to go through the same kind of tragedies as they are newly sworn-in director of the Bureau of Alcohol © 1996 - 2025 NewsHour Productions LLC PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization Subscribe to Here's the Deal with Lisa Desjardins