Posted on 02/16/2018 10:58:07 AM PST by EyesOfTX
The Evening Campaign Update (Because The Campaign Never Ends)
While advocates on both sides of the largely-irrelevant gun control issue are talking past one another every hour on the hour on all the cable TV networks, one way to really, truly improve on the current system for preventing such acts in the future is becoming crystal clear: The FBI must be removed from the equation.
First, let’s look at this killer’s background:
- Law enforcement had had to be called to his home an almost unbelievable 39 times during the four years leading up to Wednesday’s act of mass murder; - He was well known by family, friends, fellow students and teachers to be prone to violence; - He had in fact been expelled from school for acts of and threats of violence; - He had been in and out of at least one mental institution; - He had been under the care of a psychiatrist and had been taking anti-psychotic medications.
In spite of all of those things and more, this 19 year-old who could not purchase a beer at the corner 7-11 managed to pass the FBI background check to legally purchase a semi-automatic rifle from a local gun dealer. Apparently, all that violent behavior and mental health issues raised no red flags with the nation’s “premier law enforcement agency,” which the FBI loves to call itself.
But that’s not all, oh, no.
On Thursday we find out that the FBI was actually informed about this kid way back in September, when he posted terroristic threats in a comment linked to a YouTube video. A concerned citizen reported these threats, along with the kid’s unusually-spelled name, but the FBI claims it was unable to identify the kid, because “No other information was included with that comment which would indicate a time location or the true identity of the person who made the comment,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Lasky during a news conference.
Wait, what? Why not? After all, the shooter used his real, oddly-spelled name when leaving the comment. How many people in America use that exact spelling and have the same last name? A dozen? Is that too many to cull through for the nation’s “premier law enforcement agency?”
But set the oddly-spelled name aside. Why couldn’t the nation’s “premier law enforcement agency” trace the IP address of the computer from which that comment was posted? There are probably a million Millennial males living in their grandmother’s basements right now who could have done that in about 2 minutes. But the nation’s “premier law enforcement agency” couldn’t manage it, or more likely couldn’t be bothered to deal with the matter. After all, the nation’s “premier law enforcement agency” was far too preoccupied with framing General Mike Flynn and trying to dummy up a fake case against a sitting President of the United States to allocate any real time to trying to prevent something as menial as a potential mass murder.
Now today, we discover that the FBI was notified about this mentally ill, violent potential killer yet again, this time on January 5. How do we know that? Well, from the FBI’s own damn statement on the matter, which was issued Friday morning:
FBI Statement on the Shooting in Parkland, Florida On January 5, 2018, a person close to Nikolas Cruz contacted the FBI’s Public Access Line (PAL) tipline to report concerns about him. The caller provided information about Cruz’s gun ownership, desire to kill people, erratic behavior, and disturbing social media posts, as well as the potential of him conducting a school shooting.
Under established protocols, the information provided by the caller should have been assessed as a potential threat to life. The information then should have been forwarded to the FBI Miami Field Office, where appropriate investigative steps would have been taken.
We have determined that these protocols were not followed for the information received by the PAL on January 5. The information was not provided to the Miami Field Office, and no further investigation was conducted at that time.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said:
“We are still investigating the facts. I am committed to getting to the bottom of what happened in this particular matter, as well as reviewing our processes for responding to information that we receive from the public. It’s up to all Americans to be vigilant, and when members of the public contact us with concerns, we must act properly and quickly.
“We have spoken with victims and families, and deeply regret the additional pain this causes all those affected by this horrific tragedy. All of the men and women of the FBI are dedicated to keeping the American people safe, and are relentlessly committed to improving all that we do and how we do it.”
My God, how much more evidence of the FBI’s utter and complete incompetence, it’s utter and complete lack of interest in preventing such mass murders, do we as a society now need? Director Wray’s statement, placing responsibility on “all Americans to be vigilant and…contact us with concerns” is at this point an absolutely pathetic joke. What reason does anyone have to contact an agency filled with incompetent stumble-bums who clearly have no interest in acting on such information to begin with?
There is no magic bullet to preventing these mass school shootings from happening in our country, and anyone who tells you they have one is either an idiot or a liar. But one piece of any possible solution is at this point crystal clear: The FBI must – MUST – be removed from the equation. Its responsibilities related to conducting background checks, enforcing gun laws and identifying and acting on potential threats to our school children need to be carved out of its mission and assigned to some other agency or combination of agencies. Perhaps the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms or U.S. Marshalls service have personnel who actually care about protecting human lives.
Because the FBI is just too darn busy with its political, election-reversing priorities to be bothered with such mundane duties any longer.
That is all.
Follow me on Twitter at @GDBlackmon
Today’s news moves at a faster pace than ever. Whatfinger.com is my go-to source for keeping up with all the latest events in real time.
This is the first time I’ve read that cops were called to his house 39 times. All I’ve heard is that he had no criminal background.
He had a driver’s license. The FBI could have found him. Once they did the ATF could have queried FFLs. The FBI and ATF should have been able to locate Cruz before the school shooting and the time of the youtube notice.
This kind of bovine excrement really pi55es me off. Was the 19 year old ever convicted of a felony crime or misdemeanor crime punishable by more than one year in jail? Was the 19 year old ever adjudicated mentally deficient by a court of law? Was the 19 year old ever convicted of misdemeanor domestic abuse? If not, then on what grounds should the 19 year old have been stripped of his constitutional rights by the FBI, by the NICS system, or by the FFL who sold him the rifle?
How many other "troubled" individuals should have their constitutional rights revoked in advance of any prohibiting behavior? Are we now the office of pre-crime? Are we now going to act on the concept of prior restraint - revoking rights or even jailing individuals because someone thinks that they might commit a future crime?
Yeah, this a-hole had serious issues, and local and state law enforcement and school officials had ample opportunity to respond appropriately to get this individual help or to charge him with a crime and remove him from society. But unless and until the individual is charged and convicted of a crime, there is little that the FBI or NICS could have done to strip him of his constitutional rights. Or yours.
This was very well said.
The Media is pathetic.. Except for a handful.. most of them are either incompetent or fraudulent. We Never get ‘the truth and nothing but the truth’ from them. Most of the time we have it figured out before the do!
Would beefing up the US Marshall’s office and giving them more responsibility be a better idea?
And put up a sign that says:
“Warning the teachers in this institution are armed and have been trained in the use of firearms.”
Yes, because they want such events to be crises for the left to use.
The FBI has become bag men for the DNC. The only mystery is why the federal government is paying their salaries.
All the FBI has to do is to run the serial number of the rifle with the manufacturer, who will report to which distributor they sold the firearm.
Then the FBI gives the serial number to the distributor who will report the name of the retailer that they sold the rifle to.
Then the FBI simply goes to the retailer with the serial number of the rifle, and the FFL dealer will produce the Form 4473 that was filled out at the time of the sale of the gun. (FFLs are required to retain all 4473s for the duration of their time in business, then to forward them to the ATF if they cease to be a business.)
On that 4473 will be a unique NICS approval number, proving that the individual on the 4473 passed the NICS check, the name of the individual who purchased the firearm, and what ID was used to identify the individual.
There is a process that is deliberately difficult enough that it can be used to trace an individual weapon used in a crime back to its owner, yet not able be used to trace all weapons owned by an individual.
At least on a federal level. States like California, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois maintain their own firearms ownership lists. Other states like Florida do not.
So another problems appears brightly:
Bureaucracies exist to perpetuate themselves not to solve problems.
Why didn't the FBI copy / contact a local sheriff or the local PD to have them check on the kid, or even their own records?
Policing at its best is a local function, and the FBI should be restricted to national or inter-state issues.
Does the FBI understand that the CC: field can be used?
Or is that violating some obscure rule?
I agree as the FBI is full of AFGE union members who damn sure are not going to work more then the ghost hours all other federal employees, such as the VA, do.
Our civil service is a damn joke and we pay their salaries plus you name it. Look at the idiots who head our national intel agencies plus the CIA and FBI. Our Gov dept heads and staff live in the highest dollar suburbs of DC. An E-4 who ran recon in my unit after I left works for the State Dept. He lives like a CEO. These Govt. clowns get online advanced degrees that we pay for and then they become GS 14-15’s who we pay more for. I respect the men I served with who did the combat CIA OPS like the ones who were on the ground in Afghan when our SF teams jumped in. The others-NO.
The FBI did not have a serial number before the killings and the rifle was found.
My post pointed out the negligence of the FBI by not finding Cruz after the youtube comment last Sept. They had four months to find him. Perhaps finding a missing NFL jersey is more important.
“He had a driver’s license. The FBI could have found him.”
Sure they could. But they are scumbags.
No decent people work for the FBI. Not one. They are all scum. The bad drive out the good, always.
“””Perhaps the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms or U.S. Marshalls service have personnel who actually care about protecting human lives. “””
BATF? nahh, don’t think so
How about the FBI being relegated strictly to helping local law enforcement by simply handling the info part of it, like the gun reg database and national crime labs, national crime records etc. No investigating, no ops, no raids.
They could also handle interstate transport of federal criminals and defendants.
My profound apologies for my error.
I assume you've seen this: FBI Statement on the Shooting in Parkland, Florida
Cruz just recently purchased the rifle (after the tips).
Given that the FBI had been given two tips to check this guy out and failed, Cruz should have been on the FBI reject purchase list, but wasn’t.
Wrong, wrong, wrong! The FBI is the premiere law enforcement agency in the world, and each and every one of their agents is a paragon of laser-focused competence, dedicating 24 hours of each day to solving and preventing criminal activity (and nothing else! You betcha!).
Is Mr. Blackmon really suggesting that the Hollywood TV shows and movies the FBI sponsors is wrong about the FBI? How dare he!
As good as this gent’s rant was, he COMPLETELY forgot The Las Vegas Massacre.
That has now been bollocksed into a cocked hat.
You can flag people in that database without denying their right to buy a gun.
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