California has the most extensive gun control laws in the nation. There's almost nothing I'd put past them to try. That includes things like background checks for ammo, among many other things.
Proponents of gun control look at the state as a shining beacon of what may be.
They tend to ignore an awful lot to do so, though. They have to ignore the harsh reality that there's an entire criminal underclass that buys and sells guns and ammo, completely ignoring every regulation on the books.
An arrest in Oakland should shatter the illusion for at least some of them.
Three man have been charged with selling either methamphetamine or guns to undercover federal agents, including one Oakland man who allegedly used his houseboat on the Oakland marina to peddle firearms and brag about his knack for making customized bullets.
...During one meeting, Kazakevich reportedly bragged about his ability to make or acquire bullets for nearly every occasion. He showed them his personal handgun, later agreeing to sell it for $1,000, and said he crafts “rubberized bullets” that “just make a dent in (expletive’s) head, knock him out,” mercury bullets that, “when you hit something, it blows up,” and “highly illegal” armor-piercing bullets that go through “police jackets.”
Kazakevich’s lawyers argued that prosecutors were falsely painting their client as a dangerous man and a potential flight risk.
“Vadim Kazakevich does not pose a danger to the community or to any person, and certainly not by clear and convincing evidence – unless one presumes him guilty of the charges,” a defense motion says, later adding, “Regarding flight risk, the government speculates that it is possible that the houseboat Mr. Kazakevich has lived in for the past three years in the Oakland Marina is operable. In fact, it is not. It has no engine.”
Engines can be installed, but that's not what's particularly important right now.
What is, though, is how Kazakevich reportedly sold guns and "customized" ammunition, all without any regard for the law. Of course, there's that whole mercury bullet myth, which suggests he never actually shot anything with a bullet like that, or, if he did, it was something like a watermelon that's going to explode no matter what kind of bullet you use, but he was more than willing to make and sell them to people.
Then there's the "rubberized" bullet thing, which has me shaking my head.
Still, he allegedly sold a gun and offered to do all kinds of things that he acknowledges were illegal.
And at least some of this happened while ammo control was still applicable in California, not that brief span when it wasn't. He was clearly willing to bypass that law as well.
See, the truth is that criminals don't obey the law. That kind of goes along with the whole "criminal" thing.
While these guys will stand trial, and should be presumed innocent until proven guilty, the fact that they were charged with something like this should at least wake people up to the fact that rules and regulations only apply to those who choose to obey them.
It won't stop the depraved. And unfortunately, it won't stop anti-gun lawmakers in Sacramento from adopting more gun control laws restricting our Second Amendment rights that criminals will ignore.
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