One American gun manufacturer’s license was revoked by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives on Wednesday. The said gun manufacturer went bankrupt but then rebranded itself.
The revocation of Nevada-based JA Industries, LLC, formerly known as Jimenez Arms came after one lawsuit alleged that the Justice Department lack of action and proper oversight before issuing the license.
The Nevada-based JA Industries, LLC was founded by Paul Jimenez weeks after he filed bankruptcy for his problematic gun manufacturing company Jimenez Arms in Jan. 2020, the lawsuit revealed.
Here’s an excerpt from the USA Today report:
Kansas City filed a lawsuit against Jimenez Arms in 2020 alleging the pistol manufacturer created a public nuisance by fueling illegal gun trafficking in the city with its low-quality zinc alloy pistols that can retail for $150. The family of a shooting victim also sued the company.
Jimenez declared bankruptcy shortly after the suit was filed, then quickly obtained a new federal firearm license for the same owners in the same city.
That prompted extraordinary actions by Everytown, which bought up the entire inventory of Jimenez pistols and gun frames at a bankruptcy auction and had them destroyed.
The group then filed a separate lawsuit along with Kansas City and the state of Illinois against the ATF for awarding the new company a license – the suit that led to Wednesday’s action. It alleged that because of false statements to the ATF and the unlawful shipment of guns to a gun trafficker, Jimenez was disqualified from holding an FFL.
“I think this is an undisputed important step toward shutting down a manufacturer that flouted federal law and facilitated gun trafficking,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown. “It shouldn’t have taken three lawsuits to get ATF to do its job. I can only hope this marks a beginning of a new era at ATF where it starts to serve as a watchdog of the American people rather than a lapdog to the gun industry.”
Newsweek also reported a statement from the owner president of Everytown for Gun Safety, John Feinblatt, on Wednesday:
“We can only hope this decision marks the beginning of a new era at ATF, one that is consistent with President Biden’s commitment to holding rogue and reckless members of the gun industry accountable for breaking the law and putting lives in danger.”
At a Thursday press conference, Feinblatt said, “For decades, a small minority of bad actors in the industry have actually operated like they’re above the law, and this can be traced directly back to Washington because nearly 20 years ago Congress bowed down to the [National Rifle Association] and granted the industry a level of immunity.”
He added, “Despite Congress’ best efforts, the gun industry is not completely untouchable. We just needed to find the weak spots in their shield, and Jimenez Arms served them up to us by shipping guns to someone who wasn’t a licensed dealer and turned out to be a trafficker.”
After the JA Industries’ license has been revoked, the lawsuit filed against bureau is expected to dismissed, the court filling said.
Sources: The Epoch Times, Newsweek, USA Today