(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The House Judiciary Committee has sent a series of questions to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives about its fatal March 19 predawn raid on Bryan Malinowski, the former director of the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport.
The Judiciary Committee sent a letter to ATF Director Steven Dettelbach on Monday, following several damning details being revealed about the ATF’s raid—including that the agents weren’t wearing body cameras. Malinowski’s family has also released footage showing the ATF covering a Ring doorbell camera before its raid, suggesting that Malinowski didn’t know who was at the door.
“President Biden’s Executive Order 14074 requires ATF agents … to wear active body-worn cameras during the execution of a search warrant. The Department has since confirmed to the Malinowski family that ATF agents were not wearing body cameras during the raid, a violation of the Department policy,” committee chairman Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said in the letter to Dettelbach.
“It is also unclear whether ATF agents complied with Justice Department policy on ‘no knock’ entries.”
#BREAKING: @Jim_Jordan Demands Details from ATF Director Dettelbach on Fatal Raid pic.twitter.com/sR9pKzUqPP
— House Judiciary GOP (@JudiciaryGOP) April 22, 2024
To Jordan’s point on the no-knock raid, Malinowski’s family says there is no publicly available evidence showing whether agents knocked on the door or announced their presence. His wife Maer said she only heard loud banging immediately followed by the crash of the front door being forced open.
Meanwhile, it has been revealed the ATF’s raid on Malinowski was over a paperwork issue.
Malinowski was allegedly selling guns without having a required federal firearm license, of FFL. Someone is required to have an FFL if selling guns is his or her principal livelihood—though the Biden administration has recently changed that to cover potentially all private gun owners.
Jordan noted the timing of the ATF raid and its impending rule change that could put millions of Americans in the same situation as Malinowski.
“ATF seeks to drastically expand the universe of Americans who would be classified as a ‘dealer’ under federal law requiring them to obtain a license to become a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL), subjecting them to a term of imprisonment of up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000, or both,” he said.
“Mr. Malinowski exercised his Second Amendment rights and was a firearms enthusiast. Even if, as ATF has alleged, Mr. Malinowski violated federal law, it does not justify ATF’s actions that ultimately lead to the use of deadly force.”
Jordan requested a slew of documents from the ATF, including the affidavit and other records that underpinned its search warrant for Malinowski’s home. Jordan also asked for all communications about the planning and execution of the disastrous March 19 raid.
Jordan wants those records by May 6, he said.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
