Maryland and DC Attorneys General Sue Gun Stores Over Alleged Straw Purchases

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown during an event for media on April 6, 2023, in Baltimore. Kim Hairston/The Baltimore Sun via AP

The attorneys general for Maryland and Washington filed a civil action on Sept. 3 against three Rockville, Maryland-based gun stores, asserting claims of public nuisance and negligence for their alleged role in trafficking guns into the U.S. Capitol through straw purchases.

According to the complaint, filed in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland, Attorney General Anthony G. Brown and District of Columbia Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb are accusing Engage Armament LLC, Atlantic Guns, and United Gun Shop of negligently permitting straw purchases by selling 34 semiautomatic pistols over a seven-month period to Demetrius Minor, in violation of state and federal laws.

A straw purchase occurs when a person buys a gun for someone who cannot legally buy or possess firearms.

Gun violence prevention organization Everytown Law, affiliated with Everytown for Gun Safety, is assisting with the lawsuit.

According to the complaint, Minor was prosecuted in Washington for making straw purchases. He was convicted of illegally transferring guns he purchased from the defendants to prohibited persons, the lawsuit states.

A spokesperson with Brown’s office would not say if any of the gun dealers will face criminal charges.

“Our office has many different strategies for keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous people. Civil actions such as this one allow the Office of Attorney General to seek justice in a different way from criminal prosecutions. The remedies we seek here—including compelling these gun dealers to stop engaging in illegal straw sales and pay monetary damages, including punitive damages, for the harm they caused—will help put a stop to this going forward,” Jennifer Donelan, a spokesperson for Brown’s office, wrote in an email to The Epoch Times.

According to the lawsuit, the gun sellers should have noticed that Minor was making repetitive purchases of the same types of guns.

“The defendants violated the law by facilitating illegal gun sales and willingly conspiring with, and aiding and abetting, Minor’s illegal conduct,” a press release from Brown’s office states.

Eric Tirschwell, executive director of Everytown Law, said in a release that the lawsuit was a warning to other gun dealers.

“This lawsuit puts any other bad-faith dealers who prioritize profits over the law and public safety on notice: traffickers and straw purchasers will be held accountable, but so too will the gun stores that ignore suspicious purchasing behaviors and facilitate the flow of illegal weapons into our cities and local communities,” he wrote.

Lawsuit a ‘Political Witch Hunt’

Representatives of the gun stores deny the allegations, saying they complied with all applicable laws, including the requirement to report transactions to the Maryland State Police.

Andrew Raymond, owner of Engage Armament, called the lawsuit a “political witch hunt” and denied breaking any laws.

“We comply with all state and federal regulations,” he told The Epoch Times.

Lawrence Keane, a senior vice president and general counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, said there is a difference between making a straw purchase and making an illegal sale.

He said that as part of the purchasing process, a buyer is required to confirm in writing that they are not buying the gun for someone else. The gun dealers would only have broken the law if they knew the buyer was a straw purchaser, he said.

“It’s an illegal purchase, but it’s not an illegal sale unless [the seller] knows it’s a straw purchase. People do not walk in with signs that say ‘I’m here to do a straw purchase,’” Keane told The Epoch Times.