Whatever happened to that Reservist drill sergeant with the malfunctioning AR15?

This is what happens when you allow malum prohibitum and victimless laws. You punish people, by taking their life away, for a law that is not wrong or evil within itself.

4,000,000 rounds is 1000/day, 200 weekdays a year, for 20 years.

Hard-working gun.

Olofson had contact with vigilante groups and professed to be part of the sovereign movement, which doesn't acknowledge federal laws as applying to them

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Hmmmm..........maybe why the ATF was after him?

Question:
Without any modifications

Can this type of malfunction happen in new production AR-15s?

How does this type of malfunction happen?
It will go FA after 2k round, or after 10k rounds?

What do you do if it happen? Send it back to the manufacturer (Do they all accept repairs)? What do you tell them happened?

Can it be fixed by replacing the trigger mechanism?

I ask this because Im new to the BR community, have a little over 1k rounds through my AR and dont know a damn thing about fire control groups or whatever causes this. I dont even know how to clean the gas tubes yet. Do I have to worry about my AR doing this crap in a year or two?

You don't have to worry about it doing THAT, exactly. It did THAT because of a combination of parts not found on modern commercial ARs.

But you can expect to experience occasional doubles over the years. It may never happen to you, but it may. Due to ammunition, conditions, cleaning or maintenance issues, or wear to certain parts, that is. "Bump-firing" can encourage this antisocial behavior by your firearm, as can certain "limpwristing."

That's what scares me about this case -- the feds' position seems to be that a gun which can be made to double -- meaning ANY autoloading firearm -- is a machinegun.

I first heard about it through the following videos.
Watch part I here. Here is part II.

Update: 1/22/08

The case went before the 7th Circuit for Appeals today. The MP3 of the argument can be had here: http://www.ca7.uscourts.gov/tmp/KD10POY2.mp3 (right click - save target as). Basically the 3 judge court will determine if the ATF's definition of automatic applies to what happened to Olofson's AR-15. Olofson's lawyer made a pretty good case that the gun is not automatic since the gun shot multiple rounds with one trigger, but stopped firing without exhausting its ammunition or releasing the trigger. Or that's what I heard in the argument, and i'm obviously biased. Also, I noted that the 3 judge panel did not seem to be very familiar with firearms at all.

From what ar15.com said, an opinion will be released in 2-6 weeks.

In before the lock!

The JPFO was on top of this from the beginning, as I recall with the ATF fails the test video.

It's hard to know who or what to believe, but I'm leaning towards the idea that no criminal intention existed.

i don't know about any of you guys, but i can make almost ANY bolt action fire that way (multiple shots)

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Now that's a puzzler?????

Olofson's lawyer made a pretty good case that the gun is not automatic since the gun shot multiple rounds with one trigger, but stopped firing without exhausting its ammunition or releasing the trigger

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Similar to the three round burst in the M16's?

Olofson's lawyer made a pretty good case that the gun is not automatic since the gun shot multiple rounds with one trigger, but stopped firing without exhausting its ammunition or releasing the trigger.

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Interesting argument, but IMO is unlikely to carry much weight.

The definition of a machinegun in the US Code is:
"The term "machinegun" means any weapon which shoots, is designed
to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot, automatically more
than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of
the trigger. The term shall also include the frame or receiver of
any such weapon, any part designed and intended solely and
exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended, for use
in converting a weapon into a machinegun, and any combination of
parts from which a machinegun can be assembled if such parts are in
the possession or under the control of a person."
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/casec...chapters/b/parts/i/sections/section_5845.html

You'll note all it says is the weapon "shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot, automatically more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger." The definition says nothing about releasing the trigger or exhausting the ammunition.

Olofson's lawyer made a pretty good case that the gun is not automatic since the gun shot multiple rounds with one trigger, but stopped firing without exhausting its ammunition or releasing the trigger.

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Some guns have a 3 round burst selection. They fire multiple rounds per trigger pull, and stop firing without exhausting the ammunition or releasing the trigger. They are still classified as machine guns.

ETA: sorry DMF, I didn't get down to your post.

My take on it: A guy, knowing what he was doing was illegal, hired a lawyer to stake his defense on what amounts to a veritable ideological defense, as opposed to a legal one, and he predictably lost.

I have no issue with the result, given the "facts" known.

Now, an unknowing owner who put up a reasonable defense which may have won a pro-2A victory? Well, that isn't what this is, but that would be something that I'd like to see.

This is the kind of person that gives all law abiding firearm owners a bad name. If he doesnt like our great countries laws then maybe he should pack up and go find another one to live in. At first this case sounded like he might have been set up until I read the whole story, no doubt why he was convicted so quickly.

This is the kind of person that gives all law abiding firearm owners a bad name. If he doesnt like our great countries laws then maybe he should pack up and go find another one to live in.

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...and this is what Dr. King should have done, right?


Wait a minute,...


...don't we make fun of Alec Baldwin for THREATENING to do this???

i hope he gets out and at least vhe didn't try any "alien sovreign " nonsense in court

By his history, I would not doubt that he will be back into the system in a few years with another illegal scam, only next time it will include being arrested for "felon not permitted firearm possession" in addition.
When I first read about this I thought that maybe it was a person who got caught up in a single mistake, but after researching further into this I realize that its a case of someone committing a felony and knowing without a doubt that he was doing so by his choice.
Dr. King was not committing a crime, he was well withing his 1st ammendmant rights, he was not breaking the law. Anyone with an ounce of common sense and education wouldnt put this guy in the same paragragh as Dr. King. Maybe putting him in the same paragraph with Tim McVeigh is more appropriate.

Anyone with an ounce of common sense and education wouldnt put this guy in the same paragragh as Dr. King

well put


Maybe putting him in the same paragraph with Tim McVeigh is more appropriate.
probably better put

4million rounds? that's over 500 rounds every single day.
for 20 years.
He'd spend a fortune on tylenol for his joints let alone the cost of the ammo!

i find that hard to believe. but what do i know?

This guy broke the law. If he was some civilian then nobody would even THINK of trying to defend what he did.
He sounds like one of those idiot hiphop guys who get caught w/ illegal MGs

They don't deserve any special treatment, why should this dude?

unless of course there's something i'm missing here...people like this hurt the cause.

Anyone with an ounce of common sense and education wouldnt put this guy in the same paragragh as Dr. King

well put

Maybe putting him in the same paragraph with Tim McVeigh is more appropriate.
probably better put

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+1

But wait, there's more. If you call now, you'll get:

He sounds like one of those idiot hiphop guys who get caught w/ illegal MGs

They don't deserve any special treatment, why should this dude?

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I won't get into musical tastes, but that statement sounds a bit racist. I would also question its accuracy. Any proof that "idiot hip-hop guys" are any more likely to be in posession of an illegal MG over any other group, such as ditchbank white supremist inbred okies?

BTW, I don't mean any offense to any ditchbank white supremist inbred okies out there...I just wanted to make sure that your demographic was represented fairly. Heck, For all I know we could be related. My family tree has some pretty crooked branches. hahaha

racist?
i wasn't aware that that hiphop was a race? i am actually a big hiphop fan - i'm not a fan of these nuckleheads that break gun laws.

i didn't say that they are more likely than another group but how about off the top of my head...TI. Or DMX. or jarule. or Lil' Wayne. or judakiss. or fabo. or tupac. or any number of hiphop artists who have broken various gun laws - some as severe as that TI jackass. (ok fine, i did like tupac)

i'm not implying in anyway HipHop artists represent any "group" or race of people other than the narcissistic celebrity mindset. i was merely pointing out that this guy is no better than one of these gansta rappers who tries to, for whatever reason, operate outside the law when it comes to firearms and should be treated as such.

i never said they are more likely to be in possession than another "Group" But since the group i am talking about is celebrities, then i'll stand by the statement. HipHop artists as a group do get into more gun-trouble than say Boy Bands. Rock bands. Or R&B artists.

i've never been called racist before...

My point wasn't to start a big fight over something stupid, but it was to point out that by pointing out hiphop (whatever you said) most people will think exactly what I thought. While hiphop is not a race, with few exception, the hiphop group is indeed predominantly black, or to put it another way...non-blacks are heavily under represented. And since there wasn't anything to suggest race (unless I missed it somewhere) making a comparison like that wasn't necessary, inflammatory and irrelevant to the discussion. You made a comment about hiphop and machine guns (MG's), but then just list non MG issues.

But then you backpeddle and try to say that the group you were referring to were celebrities. But then go on to post nothing but black hiphop artists. ??? There is no way for anyone reading your post to make the stretch that what you meant was celebrities.

And while you state that you have never been called a racist before, guess what? You still haven't. Saying that someone made a statement that sounds racist is far from actually calling them a racist.

But then you completely missed the humor part of the ditchbankokie thing as well. That really offended me since I thought it was pretty good. I'll just have to assume that logic and humor this early in the morning is beyond you. That's ok though, since i cant type or function a computer this late/early. Not good since I have a computer class in 45 minutes.
I would likethis to end now so that the thread doesn't get locked, agreed?

no, i laughed at that - i meant to add something snarky about that too - but i forgot while i was editing my opus

but yes - no bickering - i wasn't trying to backpedal. i'd love to talk hiphop w\ anyone who'd listen - i think i am more bitter about the state of music today than prejudiced. most modern music including rap blows... My wife made me watch TI on ellen the other day and he was awful...he pisses me off. i think maybe THAT's coming out more than anything else

but fair enough - he reminds me of <insert not representitive stereotype here> and should be punished accordingly.

sorry if i offended you!