(BATFE) "Am I an Enemy of the US Government?"

**KeithPA** · February 16th, 2007, 08:27 PM

I came across this article in a thread over at AR15.com

I suggest everyone read it and save it for reference. It's quite disturbing, and any AR/AK/HK rifle owner may never know if they may some day need to refer to this some day.

http://waronguns.blogspot.com/2005/0...stitution.html

by Len Savage

Prior to July 7, 2003, I would never have asked myself that question. Now I
find myself reflecting back to that day when I ponder, "How in the world did
this mess get started?".

I am a Federally licensed firearms manufacturer. As a responsible member of
my industry I always worked closely with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). I had always encountered good people at
the local Atlanta field office. Very professional, very prompt, and yes even
courteous.

As a manufacturer I am not required to submit any sample to ATF for review.
I submit samples to be completely open and transparent, and most of all, to
verify compliance with all federal laws. I do not ever wish to make or sell an
illegal product.

On July 7th, 2003, I called Sterling Nixon, Chief of the ATF Firearms
Technology Branch (FTB), to ask the status of a classification of one of my
company's products. To my shock, this guy acted like a hot head. He
immediately told me about being too busy to deal with a "nobody" and hung
up.

I had spoken with his boss on a previous occasion, and still had his number. I
called him and asked, "What's with the new guy (Sterling Nixon)? Mr. Nixon
called me a short time later and warned me to never ever go "over his head"
again. He clearly explained that criminal cases always take precedence over
submission samples at FTB, and FTB was very busy dealing with some federal
cases. He went to say FTB serves every single Federal Court by classifying
firearm-related evidence as firearm, machine gun, short barrel rifle, etc.

I eventually received my classification letter on the product from the FTB
about a month later. However, the letter was an obvious "cut and paste" job
from a previous letter that ATF had sent to my company and was full of errors
(as it described a different rifle). I promptly notified the FTB of those errors. I
was again told because of the high load of criminal cases that their mistake on
my submission must have "fallen through the cracks." I was asked to make
corrections in the margin and fax it to FTB so they could write a revised
classification letter. I did so. Later I received a revised letter -- that I had
essentially written myself.

I became very concerned with other errors the ATF/FTB was making on
submitted samples. How many innocent people may have had their evidence in
criminal cases "fall through the cracks" if FTB was under a large caseload?
Would the agency take short cuts with submitted product samples or worse,
with evidence in criminal trials?

I was soon to find out. The situation was worse than I -- or anyone -- could
have imagined.

Among other things, I was more than a little curious as to how ATF/FTB
conducted examinations on firearms used as evidence in Federal Court.
Around this time, I was asked by defense attorney Monroe Whitesides, Esq.
to examine a rifle the FTB had declared to be a machine gun in the case of US
v Glover. Mr. Whitesides received permission to document the tests and my
examination of the rifle in question, which we did using videotape. Only later
would we understand how important that video was to be.

The day of the test came and it revealed that Mr. Glover, the defendant, had
indeed "fallen through the cracks" at FTB. And that's describing the situation
charitably. Firing tests and my examination of the rifle's mechanisms showed
that the firearm was not an "illegal machine gun" at all, but a malfunctioning
semiautomatic. Any expert who disassembled the rifle would have immediately
discovered this. The FTB's "expert" admitted on tape that he had never
examined the rifle's inner workings, and yet he and his agency were willing,
even eager, to turn the rifle's owner into a felon! The video document
prevented an innocent citizen from being imprisoned.

I shared my growing concerns with ATF during conference calls with both
ATF management, and FTB management. I was knocked speechless one day
(and brother that is HARD to do), by the revelation of both the Chief and the
Assistant Chief of FTB that no documented procedures ever existed for
testing firearms! They went on to tell me they design the test of a
submitted "evidence" on a case by case basis. In other words, they
make procedures up as they go along. (And many of those procedures, as
we shall see below and as I have written elsewhere, are simply outrageous.)
The lack of documented scientific procedure has been confirmed by
Congressional Research Service investigation. There is no documented
scientific testing procedures for firearms evidence in Federal Court!

The firearms "experts" from FTB will look official testifying in court in their
three-piece suits. They will have impressive titles. They will sound technically
knowledgeable. In short they will carry great influence with judges and a jury
(after all they are from the government). I have seen it first hand, it IS
impressive.

But it is simply an illusion. Nothing but smoke and mirrors.

With no testing standard, no use of scientific method, what is to keep
ATF agents from modifying the firearm, then declaring a legal
semiautomatic to be "readily restorable" to the status of "illegal
machine gun"? In fact, they have done this.

I have also seen an "expert" declare -- with a straight face -- that a
lump of steel that is incapable of firing anything is a machinegun
because of unspecified "machinegun features and characteristics."

FTB "experts" have even added external and internal conversion devices to
legal semi-auto rifles during testing, then claimed that that the firearm was --
because of these ATF additions -- an "illegal machine gun." (The ATF-added
devices are by law machineguns in and of themselves, because they when
installed, allow a host firearm to fire full auto as a machinegun.) ATF "experts"
have done this in full view of the entire court! In the case of US v Wrenn, for
instance (another case in which I acted as an expert for the defense) FTB
personnel did not take their conversion devices off prior to coming to trial.

Apparently I had enraged the ATF so greatly by the time of the Wrenn case
that a few months later the agency declared one of my company's products to
be "illegal contraband" and a "machinegun." The ATF had classified this device
as a "non firearm" nine months earlier. I had been in production for months
after receiving the "non-firearm" classification. Now suddenly -- for no reason
other than spite -- my product was illegal. My investment was wasted. I was in
jeopardy of becoming a criminal. Had I sold the device to any customers, they
also would have been in danger of being declared felons.

The re-classification was obviously done to teach me a lesson for showing up
at court cases

With my living and my freedom in jeopardy, I felt compelled to notify the
United States Federal District Court of ATF malfeasance and to notify the
Department of Justice, as well. This harassment of me and my livelihood is
unacceptable behavior on the part of ANY federal agency.

Unfortunately, the result of my protest was predictable: The Department of
Justice (of which the ATF is a subsidiary) claimed to have investigated itself. It
found itself faultless.

Years after I first began asking questions, the FTB still does not have a
documented firearms testing procedure. Today, defense attorneys use the
Congressional Research Service report to demonstrate the ATF's lack of
credibility. And -- no surprise -- prosecution of "mystery machinegun" crimes
have dropped drastically. This is a good thing for justice. For years, too many
innocent people were railroaded into prison.

Unfortunately my own circumstances are less bright. The ATF has forbidden
me to contact it in any way other that written correspondence. This puts me at
a disadvantage to all my competitors, who may still freely call the agency to
ask questions. But that's not the worst. The agency has managed to "lose"
many of my letters. They have not seen fit to answer some of my
correspondence for 14 months. I am for all purposes shut down by the US
Government. They have done this by bureaucratic fiat and bad faith. They
have shut down my business and destroyed my livelihood without cause or
court order, without the due process allegedly guaranteed by that same
government.

Am I now an enemy of United States Government?

Len Savage

President,
Historic Arms LLC

**Farbmeister** · February 17th, 2007, 08:19 PM

I read about Mr. Savage on subguns.com a few years ago.

There is no doubt that the gubment is self serving and will do anything it can to keep itself in power.

From the head of the BATFE lieing on video tape about the NFRTR (sp?) and now with thier machine gun shenanigans.

The IRS and the BATFE are the WORST that the gubment has to offer. They seek to ruin your life with the full weight and endless resources of the federal gubment.

Our 200 year expirment is gonna end soon. With a bang, unfortunately.