Buying Guns on the Street

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308win

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The local NPR station was airing excerpts from the 'sniper' trial on the news. A salesman from Vances in Columbus was being cross examined by the defense about the sale of a handgun to Charles McCoy (the 'sniper'). The lead defense attorney (who used to be the county prosecutor) asked if it is easy to buy a gun on the street to which the witness replied "it is extremely easy".

Other than calling advertisers in the paper I wouldn't have any idea who to go to to 'buy a gun on the street'. I guess I don't know anyone living on that side of the law. If I had to buy a gun on the street I would be reduced to going to the East side of Columbus and walking up to the most unsavory person I could pick out and asking him/her to sell me a gun at which point I would probably be a memory to my family.

Just how easy and risky would it be for a person with no experience with the outside the law life to buy a street gun?
 
Well, first of all it's NPR we're talking about. Hardly the objective voice of neutrality. Here's a quick primer:

"On the street" means you have to have extensive connections and money, because in the criminal community, a gun is worth its weight in gold.

"Extremely easy" means anything that doesn't require 163 pages of paperwork, 4 years of waiting, and extensive connections and money. Except here the connections have to be with the gov't or celebrity elite. As opposed to common criminals.

"Arsenal" means any gun or combination that looks like "a bad one they saw in a movie once."

Same goes for "assault weapon."

On a more serious note, even if I wanted to, I doubt I could get a gun "on the street." The folks who have acquired them (through whatever means) aren't going to part with their Symbol of Power easily. At the very least, you'd get a really funny look and get told to get lost if you asked. At worst...well.

Even here in Georgia, the laws are such that (though it's easy for the law-abiding) it's very difficult for criminals to get guns. Retailers don't take chances, and I can only think of one way for Gansta Cleetus to get a gun from one. Most of the guns in the criminal community were taken through some sort of foul play, and are therefore extremely valuable because a) they're hard for the criminal to replace and b) whatever shady methods used to get them probably add to the "allure."
 
We are not talking about scoring a baloon of heroin here.

You look in the paper.
You go to any neighborhood tavern and bring the subject up in a round about way.
You maybe hang out in gun shops and pawn shops and see people who are actively trying to sell a gun.
You might even go to places where people are known to shoot and approach them: Hey, you got a XXX, I always wanted one of those, you want to sell it ? No, well what about for $$$$ ?
What about people you know that own guns ? Think any of them might have one they want to sell ?

People get carried away with this "streets" stuff. The streets are anywhere, not just some dark alley.

I have been offered machine guns on more than one occasion by hoodlums and I am pretty sure they were serious.
 
What is the difference between doing a FTF deal with a local you met on the High Road, and buying a gun "on the street?"

Seems to me that any criminal who wants to can find people selling FTF, and buy it that way. No background check, nothing, just hand over the cash and take the gun. Some sellers might balk at selling to you if you seem shady, but others won't. Some might want your ID (I would) before selling, others won't. It might take you a few more tries to get the gun, but I don't think it would be all that difficult for a criminal.

As for actually going onto the street and buying, if you have the cash it will happen. Obviously it would be harder than buying drugs or some other types of contraband, but not truly hard. Of course, if you actually have the cash on you, and you look like a yuppie (like me) someone might happen to liberate that from you first.

patent
 
In most states a law abiding citzen can buy a gun from another law abiding citzen very easy. Depending on the state the selling may have to keep a record but other then that. Maybe this is what the witness ment?

-Bill
 
I don't have the slightest clue where to find drugs 'on the streets', but I know there are plenty out there.

If I ever had to find a gun 'on the street', I'd probably start at a drug dealer.

If I wanted a gun no questions asked, I'd start at the newspaper.
 
In most states a law abiding citzen can buy a gun from another law abiding citzen very easy. Depending on the state the selling may have to keep a record but other then that. Maybe this is what the witness ment?
Click to expand...

Actually, the reporter commented that the intent of the defense's question is intriguing since he didn't follow up that line of questioning.

The sales person testifying was (maybe also is) an LEO who also works at Vances. Funny thing is that McCoy was a person of interest but not in custody prior to buying the Beretta and taking off for Las Vegas. I am not sure of the timeline for the gun purchase so I don't know if his mother had called the autorities before he bought the Beretta but he sailed through the paper work/background check with no problem. I guess the NCS (if that is what it is called) isn't always up to date re an individual's status. I would think that if the timeline was such that McCoy was being sought for questioning/arrest the law would have notified Vances (gun dealers in general to be on the alert for McCoy; maybe law enforcement doesn't do this?
 
Does anybody remember the ship load of full auto AK's that was intercepted in California several years ago during the Clinton Era? I wonder what market they were targeting. I only saw it on the news one day and then the press quietly dropped it. The Chinese definitly didn't have a legal market in mind when they tried to get them in. My little paranoid mind thinks they were probably headed for "the streets."
 
akviper said:
Does anybody remember the ship load of full auto AK's that was intercepted in California several years ago during the Clinton Era? I wonder what market they were targeting. I only saw it on the news one day and then the press quietly dropped it. The Chinese definitly didn't have a legal market in mind when they tried to get them in. My little paranoid mind thinks they were probably headed for "the streets."
Click to expand...

For the Chinese Mafia more likely. The interest of the Chinese in American street hoodlums wouldn't have been the motivation to attempt such a thing.
 
I worked at a gas station many years ago. There was a guy who regularly stopped by with a trunk full of Jennings and Ravens for sale at $50 a pop.
I guess you'd have to consider that "the street". Where there is a demand, there will soon be a supply.
 
take a look at my other THREAD

look up my reaserach on street/stolen guns thread

i went around and found out the info form the locals here.

$200-250 i can have a 9mm or .357 in about an hour.

if i want one of those rifles stolen from Fremont, it will take most of a day,
250-300.
 
All guns sold

end up on the street. Maybe in a police vehicle or in a WWII vets motor home.
"On the street" as used means/implies something shifty or illegal and not above board.
If the attorney had siad "Isn't it true, that in this state you can open a newspaper classified and find a gun for sale legally" he would have said that I bet. Any good lawyer doesn't ask a question he doesn't know the answer to or uses the question to paint a picture for the jury with it....
CT
 
Once when I was in a gun store a young unsavory looking minority individual started telling me about his homie who sells the same guns for half the price. I told him I wasn't interested.
 
In any decent sized city just go the the area where the homeless panhandle late at night. It's usually an area with a large numbers of bars and night clubs. The druggies spend all day breaking into cars and shoplifting. They then walk around at night looking to sell or trade.

When I was working in downtown Seattle I was offered nice Canon/Nikon/Olymous cameras for $25-30. New laptops usually brought $50-$100. 21 Speed bicycles were $30-$50. Palm Pilots were $10. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Never was offered a gun though but if I had asked around I probaly could have had one in less than two days.
Don't kid yourself that guns are that big of a deal to street people. They're for sale just like anything else. Most of them have no idea about guns except they shoot bullets. They don't know that a Jenning is junk. To them a gun is a gun. They'd rather have drugs anyway.
Now I ain't talking about gangstas or preofessional thief. I'm talking about the low level street thief. They're the ones who break into your car when it's parked in front of the local gun free zone.
They're the ones who slip into your apartment while you're at work and take only the small stuff they can fit into their backpacks.
They are the ones who steal the guns that the gangstas end up with.
They are the ones who will steal to order. They get together and compare what each other has boosted. It's a true sneaker network.
 
This story may have been talking about DC too- anywhere where there is no legal way to buy/sell/own handguns there's going to be a more active black market...
 
For anything that is not covered by the NFA, it would be as simple as searching some gun forums for a FTF in your area. Classifieds as well. If you have the cash you will get a gun.
 
LA riots

After the L.A. riots, a news reporter decided to see how easy it was to purchase a gun in the streets.

In several hours in a couple of days...he just drove up to a possible "connection" and asked. The individual "hooked" the reporter up.
(Drive here, meet so and so at a certain time, blah blah blah) At the right time, the reporter drove up (usually to the projects) and asked, was taken to a place inside the buildings, shown the merchandise, and handed over the cash.. In some cases he was given "additions" (additonal guns)to "sweeten up the deal."

For example, for $150 cash he bought a brand new Sig 226 in box and a brand new S & W revolver (chromed) was thrown in to help the buyer out.

That afternoon, the reporter was able to purchase an AK-47 with 4-30 round mags. The seller had converted it to fire full automatic. It sold for $90 cash out the door. The seller even fired the weapon in the lobby of the building to show that it worked.

The next afternoon, the reporter was able to purchase from another individual, LNIB a nickled .357 revolver for $50.

At the end of the report that reporter said that he was extremely nervous because these individuals had multiple loaded weapons on them which they
could have used at any given time on him to steal his money.

From some of the LEOs I know, it is fairly easy to make a "street" purchase. There are definitely risks involved. Most of us regular citizens aren't willing to take those risks.
 
Don't kid yourself that guns are that big of a deal to street people. They're for sale just like anything else. Most of them have no idea about guns except they shoot bullets. They don't know that a Jenning is junk. To them a gun is a gun. They'd rather have drugs anyway.
Click to expand...

very accurate info, pretty much what i am finding here.

ha! also- 3 times have been threatened with the "lifted shirt" or gun that wasn't there.
druggies cant hold onto anything you can trade for drugs, its those hardcore gangster/robber types that are really scary
 
HI -- I hope said reporter turned himself in and demanded to be prosecuted for each and every violoation, state and federal, that he commited, just to show that crime doesn't pay!!!
 
Freedom of the press

Hi Prudent,
I believed that he claimed that he was just doing an investigation for the press...you know, freedom of the press and all that.
The newspaper didn't say what he did with those AW's....
Jerks!
 
In a big city with the right connections and money I'm sure it's fairly easy. Put it this way, drugs are extremely easy to find in the big cities, so if you know a dope dealer you start there.
 
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