Posted on 08/19/2008 8:03:48 AM PDT by T-Bird45
Agents test fire weapons to narrow leads in the June 8 killing of the girls near Weleetka.
WELEETKA — More than three dozen guns from the Weleetka area were test fired over the weekend as authorities worked to narrow their leads into the June 8 slayings of two girls.
Jessica Brown, spokeswoman for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, said more than 60 letters were sent out to registered owners of .40-caliber handguns, asking them to voluntarily submit their weapons for testing on Saturday and Sunday at the Okfuskee County Courthouse at Okemah.
Brown said about 40 of those owners showed up with their guns, which were test fired outside the courthouse.
She said about five owners contacted the OSBI to say they no longer owned the weapons, although they did provide the names of the new owners.
"We'll be checking on them," Brown said, as well as the 15 or so registered gun owners who did not volunteer for the test firings.
The fact that the OSBI is looking for a .40-cailber handgun is the newest revelation into the murders of Skyla Jade Whitaker, 11, and Taylor Paschal-Placker, 13.
Both were shot several times and left for dead about four miles northeast of Weleetka. Two guns were used in the killings, although authorities never would identify either one of the calibers used — until now.
Brown would not identify the other caliber of bullet used in the slayings.
She said OSBI agents have yet to analyze the bullets from those test firings to see if they match the bullet used in the slayings of the girls.
Also, Brown noted, agents know the make of the .40-caliber gun used in the slayings, although she would not divulge that information.
OSBI agents have also tracked the sales of .40-caliber ammunition sold in the area, "and there's been plenty," Brown said.
State agents are still working on the theory that two shooters were involved, and that they are from the Weleetka area.
Agents have already noted that given the remote location of the crime scene, the killers would have to be familiar with the area. The nearest highway is U.S. 75, about three miles away.
The girls were shot a total of 13 times. The youngest, Skyla, was shot eight times, according to the state medical examiner.
Of the two, Skyla was shot the most with the .40-caliber weapon, according to Brown. Autopsy reports released a week ago said spent bullets were recovered from both bodies.
The medical examiner noted two different sizes of bullets, which were described as small- and medium caliber.
Skyla and Taylor were described as best friends. On that Sunday afternoon, Skyla was visiting Taylor at her home when they decided to go for a walk to the Bad Creek bridge, about a half-mile north of the Placker home.
Authorities said the two had made it to the bridge and were returning to Taylor's home when they were ambushed. Their bodies were found by Taylor's father around 5:30 p.m. that day in a shallow roadside ditch, fewer than 1,000 feet from the Placker home.
A makeshift memorial of stuffed animals, flowers and crosses still marks the crime scene.
From the outset, OSBI agents have been mum on the findings of their investigation.
What was known was that they recovered spent bullet casings from the scene, along with a tire track. They've also located some witnesses who were in the general area around the time of the killings.
They are still looking for an elusive person of interest who also was seen in that area.
That person was described as a Native American male, wearing a long ponytail. He was described as in his mid-30s with a slender build. He was seen driving a white Ford or Chevy pickup truck.
Since June 8, OSBI agents, aided by the Okfuskee County Sheriff's Office, plus other state and federal officers, have been working to solve the crime.
Several weeks ago, the OSBI released part of the recording of the 911 call made by Taylor's mother in the hopes someone withholding information into the killings would come forward after hearing the tape.
The killings shocked the nation and drew international attention.
Brown would not say when or if test firings will be conducted for the other caliber gun used in the slayings.
She said anyone with information about a .40-caliber weapon should call the OSBI at (800) 522-8017.
The murderer most likely would not. If some teenager took his parents' weapon while they were away at work, and replaced it before they got home, this tactic might actually find that out. It's reaching, but they don't have much else with which to work. I'm a little concerned they're so sure it's a Glock, though. Tell-tale signs might be a bulge on the casing due to the casing being slightly unsupported towards the bottom rear of the chamber, or the mark left by the firing pin, but there are multitudes of .40 caliber pistols, and some of those casings are going to look similar from whatever weapon they're fired.
But, but, but... this proves the authorities are doing something, right. And afterall, if those evil gun owners didn’t own guns, this never would have happened.
I am unfamiliar with this requirement .
On August 5, 2008, at hit ad run occurred which resulted in the death of a pedestrian.
Our forensic experts have concluded a dark red vehicle (insert make here since paint colors can be traced to manufacturers) was involved and after we looked through the DMV documents we have concluded you are the owner of a dark red vehicle (make here again).
We request that you take a day of your vacation time to come to our location and submit your vehicle to an inspection to verify that you were not the culprit.
Thank you for your time.
Multiply this by several investigations and we will have lines of people having to take time off from work to justify to Big Brother that we are Innocent.
We did not do anything so we should submit to any and all requests like this.
Sorry. I forgot to add the sarcasm tag after this line!
...and I forgot to mention, Glock barrels usually have a right-hand hexagonal twist. I believe most other .40 caliber weapons put a left-hand twist on the bullet itself. Probably more likely to gather this information from the bullet than the casing.
They retain the transaction info for some 6 months (they say) as a quality control measure.
The NRA has brough suit against NICS for building a database of gunowners using the "audit log." NRA vs. Reno
It’s not a requirement, nor is cooperating with a ‘voluntary testing’ program by the local PD.
What ran thru my mind when the guy in the pickup wqas mentioned was; Some guy stopped and asked if they wanted a ride. They said no and he took it personal, so he shot the little bitches that were too good to ride with him.
>The probability of finding the pistol in this manner is not very good.<
Now they guy freaks out and knows he has to dump the gun or at least change barrels. They should have kept it quiet IMO.
I would be tempted to write a return letter to the OSBI that might go something like this:
Dear Special Agent Rosser,
Please note that within the United States currently the most popular police sidearm carried by law enforcement officers is the .40-caliber Glock pistol, in either it's G22 or G23 model configuration.
Since approximately 65% of the LEO “pistol market” is dominated by .40-caliber Glock handguns, may I suggest that you send a similar letter to ALL law enforcement personnel in Oklahoma requesting that they voluntarily bring in their .40-caliber Glocks for similar ballistic testing.
Best Regards,
Towed_ Jumper
hehehehe....
L
Exactly. The barrel will be removed and destroyed. A replacement will be purchased with cash from some supplier...preferably one that keeps no records.
One can only hope the criminal is an illiterate who never gets wind of the investigation.
I dunno. It’s like agreeing to let a cop look through your vehicle during a routine traffic stop.
If you allow him, you’re giving up your 4th Amendment rights. Same with this.
Too many people watch C.S.I. and think that giving a DNA sample (or somesuch) is necessary to “clear themselves.”
Sorry, but I don’t need to “clear myself.” If they think I’m guilty of something, the burden of proof is upon THEM.
If they think my firearm...errr...if I had any...was involved in a crime, then they need to abide by the rules, and show proof of it.
Does anyone know if ANY Oklahoma LEO’s are issued .40’s. I would assume there is some deptartments. Have ANY Oklahoma LEO’s been “asked” to cooperate with this “test”? When they have gone through their own, then they can start looking at citizens.
Yes, the Clinton administration was trying to do an end run around the legislation. That was however a while ago.
The legislation allowed for records to be kept for a short period of time in order to verify that the system was operating properly, however the data could legally be used for no other purpose.
Anti-gun organizations lobbied to allow NICS records should be used to combat terrorism, but it go shot down and never became law.
I believe that the reason the NRA lawsuit basically went away is that the Ashcroft, when he was Attorney General changed the policy so that NICS records are destroyed within 24 hours of a successful NICS check. Audit information for a check that remains in an open state because enough information was available can be retained for not more than 90 days, which is reasonably needed to make sure the system is working properly, though 90 days still seems to long for those cases.
A record of instances where someone failed a NICS check is retained forever.
http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2006/julqtr/pdf/28cfr25.9.pdf
AND I have to show my social security card so they can run the numbers and make sure I'm not a “deadbeat dad”. It's true of all males.
The presumption of innocence is gone. Now you are accused and must prove your innocence.
“The OSBI will test fire your pistol onsite, then return it to you. The shell casings and projectiles will be retained for comparison purposes.”
Sounds like they want a fingerprint of your gun to keep on file for all future unsolved shootings.
In addition, those casings could be stolen (along with other materials from the evidence room as has been known to happen at police crime labs across the country) and dropped at the scene of a crime implicating you.
Dear Special Agent Whateveryournameis,
Since there is no provision for gun registration in Oklahoma law, and since our courts have ruled that maintenance of any gun registration database that links a specific firearm with a specific owner is illegal, please bring the following when you visit my attorney and me:
Otherwise, please bring the names, titles, and contact information for yourself and every individual in your chain of command -- up to and including the Director of the FBI -- so that appropriate criminal complaints may be filed.
Have a nice day.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.