Posted on 09/10/2008 10:28:44 AM PDT by GSWarrior
A Fruitvale man whose guns were returned to him Tuesday wants a court to invalidate the search warrant under which they were taken 10 months ago.
Bill Martin, owner of A-1 Repossessions, also wants about $50,000 of his legal bills paid.
Martin watched from above, about 75 yards away, on the Riverside Parkway walkway Tuesday morning as Mesa County Sheriff’s Department officials transferred the weapons from one truck to another truck that he hired to transport the weapons.
Martin’s wife, Shelley, and a gunsmith who is familiar with the weapons oversaw the transfer, which took place inside the gated employee parking lot, an area surrounded by chain-link fence.
Martin, who relinquished his ownership of the guns to his wife, was prohibited from overseeing the exchange himself.
Martin’s weapons were confiscated last November when SWAT team members accompanied by federal agents raided his home and business and emptied a fortified cellar of more than 150 weapons and more than 30,000 rounds of ammunition.
Authorities seized the weapons, saying Martin was prohibited from owning them because he was a felon, having been convicted of vehicular assault in 1991.
Colorado law in July 1994 prohibited all felons from owning firearms. Martin contends that his civil rights were restored when he completed a sentence in 1993.
Applying the 1994 law to him retroactively is unconstitutional, Martin contends.
“Anyone who thinks that all felons can’t own guns doesn’t know his butt from a sugar bowl,” Martin said.
Local and federal prosecutors declined to pursue charges against him for the weapons possession.
Mesa County District Attorney Pete Hautzinger said he and Sheriff Stan Hilkey declined to prosecute Martin because the 1994 law obviously didn’t apply to him.
Martin, however, could be prosecuted under the 1994 statute should he possess another firearm. He is now on notice that the state law applies to him, Hautzinger said.
“I think it’s very clear under Colorado law,” he said.
Martin is seeking a hearing before the Colorado Court of Appeals in hopes of invalidating the original search warrant and winning an order for attorney fees, he said.
In the meantime, he said he is unsure of the condition of the firearms, ammunition and other items taken from his home.
He was never provided with a receipt or an inventory of the weapons.
Martin said he will know whether a weapon wasn’t returned because each one had its own place and peg on the walls of his gun locker.
The gunsmith hired to inspect each weapon transferred will make sure each piece was returned in good condition and that there had been no tampering with any of them.
“I fear the government that fears my guns”
Curious. If it was a state law he supposedly violated, why were the Feds involved?
This was a couple streets over from my parents house. I wonder when the door to door seizures of all firearms will start......prolly during the first 180 days of an Obama/Biden presidency.
What is the law regarding felons being in homes where guns are present? Owner or not?
What is the law regarding felons being in homes where guns are present? Owner or not?
[i]This was a couple streets over from my parents house. I wonder when the door to door seizures of all firearms will start......prolly during the first 180 days of an Obama/Biden presidency.[/i]
Same day the Second American Civil War starts.
Dont think for one moment that McCain will not try to seize your guns, too... Anyone so open borders and pro-illegal thinks “global” first instead of America
Curious. If it was a state law he supposedly violated, why were the Feds involved?
Because circus monkeys need their handlers.
You should have reported him for sexual harrassment.
And the correct response to an idiot like this is "None of your damned business, baby killer."
L
Given the alternative, I guess we'll find out.
I like his attitude.
I also agree that they get a real kick out of being seen at raids. They are not the usual primary law enforcement agency during the investigation, but they sure like to get their faces on the TV.
Or worse, make a few of them machineguns on the sly and call F Troop to come in and burn his house down.
Yeah, the training was just a few months before the ATF’s finest hour. Since we were in West Texas (Amarillo), and he was a localy assigned agent, I’m sure he was at Waco. Never saw him again, but if I do, I’ll have to ask him how many kids he killed.
Either one is well within the realm of high probability considering the recent history of law enforcement abuses chronicled here and elsewhere.
I’m glad this guy had the good sense to make the announcement he would be having the weapons checked public, so the cops and media would be on notice he was expecting shenanigans.
Don't worry - they'll stop pretty shortly after they start.
Wars begin when both sides think they can win.
Best regards,
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