Actually, the evidence was turned over to the ATF, was reviewed and in a letter written back to Bloomberg in February by Michael Battle he stated that no criminal charges against the gun dealers were going to be brought forward because no laws had been broken. However, in that same letter, an ATF investigation was launched into Bloomberg's activities to see if any laws had been broken.
Here's what happened:
Bloomie used old BATF trace data to trace some of the guns seized in illegal activities (which is legal and vital to stopping the flow of illegal guns) to several dealers outside of NYC. The only thing that trace data will provide is Point of Sale, and that's where it ends.
Several guns were apparently traced back to the stores that he would eventually sue. So, instead of working with the State AGs where these stores are located, he sent Private Investigators, not NYC agents, into the stores usually as a "husband and wife" team with the husband asking all the questions with the wife milling around the store until it came time to fill out the paperwork, in scenarios like this: Watch the Video (video can also be found here at this link:
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=600&sid=1137641).
Then, Bloomie went to an anti-gun federal judge and using a very liberal interpretation of New York City Anti-Nuissance laws presented the dealers with a civil suit in federal court. That's correct, a civil suit.
The ATF then got involved, and demanded to see the "evidence" that Bloomie had. Bloomie resisted and only folded with the threat of a court order from the ATF. The ATF then reviewed the evidence and in a letter to Bloomie dated 3 Feb 06, stated that no charges would be filed against the gunstores because no laws had been broken. That same letter also stated that an investigation was being opened up on Bloomie's actions as they may have compromised ongoing investigations by the ATF, and for potential straw purchases. That investigation is still ongoing at this point from what I can tell.
VCDL entered the picture shortly after the suits were filed, and after some discussions, decided to assist 2 dealers who needed assistance, but didn't have many other methods. That's where the Bloomberg Gun Giveaway was formed. Basically, a raffle ticket was to be given to customers who spent more than 100 dollars at the store to assist the owners out by driving business to them so they could afford to resist the civil lawsuits. The first drawing was supposed to be held 3 days after the VA Tech murders on 19 April. It was postponed to yesterday.
On Tues or Wed this week, Fairfax County VA suddenly started raising Cain about how this raffle was illegal and violated State Gambling laws. The laws are kind of "grey" in this area, so VCDL met with them yesterday morning and came up with another raffle that wouldn't violate the law, basically giving raffle tickets to all who came to the meeting. A separate drawing would be held at another time for the original supporters of the two stores.
2 Guns were won last night, but the winners still have to go through the background check, etc. prior to taking possession of them.
In a nutshell, you have Bloomie suing gun dealers in 6 or 7 different states in civil court (where one can sue for anything) trying to enforce NYC Public Nuissance laws. He used private investigators to conduct the "stings" and didn't cooperate with local, state, or federal law enforcement. If he were really serious about stemming the flow of illegal guns, he'd work with these agencies and throw federal criminal charges at the dealers. By now, it's fairly obvious he's using the media attention to grab liberal voters and force his will on small businesses as he's building momentum for an Independent run for the White House. With the current field out there, he might stand a chance.
This is where we currently stand.