Recently, Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) Director of Communications Ladd Everitt spent time with Maryland gun dealer Andy Raymond, who flirted with the idea of selling a newly-marketed “smart gun.” Here is Ladd’s recounting of their day together…
Six years ago, I traveled to the state of Washington and ended up—quite accidentally—spending a day talking and shooting with Brian Borgelt, the disgraced former owner of Bull’s Eye Shooter Supply who was responsible for arming the D.C. Snipers, John Allen Mohammed and Lee Boyd Malvo. It was easily one of the most valuable days I have ever spent working in the gun violence prevention movement. No magic happened—Brian and I didn’t suddenly find ourselves agreeing about gun policy. But the experience did give us a chance to move away from labels and stereotypes and see each other as human beings. Not inherently “good,” or “evil,” just human beings—in all our imperfect glory.
I was following in the footsteps of CSGV President Emeritus Mike Beard, who spent much of his career promoting a national ban on handguns, but still was able to form personal friendships with some of the most radical voices in the pro-gun movement. As Mike noted, “That human element—which is present even between individuals with huge divisions in ideology and philosophy—has been one of the pleasant surprises of my lifelong journey through this movement, and something I still cherish.”
Sacrificial Lamb
My own journey provided me with another opportunity to experience that human element recently when I began exchanging emails with Engage Armament owner Andy Raymond. Andy had become the subject of national headlines because he decided to sell the Armatix iP1, a “smart” handgun that requires its operator to wear a matching watch/wristband in order for the weapon to function (thereby preventing unauthorized users from firing it). Actually, to put it more accurately, Raymond had decided to carry the gun until pro-gun activists began to threaten to kill him, his girlfriend and his bulldog. Then he changed his mind.
The insane level of vitriol directed at Andy, as usual, was a result of fearmongering by the National Rifle Association (NRA). In a statement from November of last year, the NRA belittled smart gun technology, stating, “’Smart Guns’ is a made-up term for a conceptual firearm that incorporates technology that theoretically permits the gun to be fired only by the authorized user. Failed attempts to develop and market ‘smart guns’ have been going on for years.” Then they stoked paranoia in their base, claiming, “The ‘smart guns’ issue clearly has the potential to mesh with the anti-gunner’s agenda, opening the door to a ban on all guns that do not possess the government-required technology.” In truth, New Jersey is the only jurisdiction in the country that has enacted a law requiring the use of smart technology once it becomes viable, and there only for handguns. And New Jersey legislators have made it clear they are willing to repeal that law immediately if the NRA will stop preventing the free sale of smart guns.
The real reason the NRA opposes the technology, of course, is that they don’t want any precedent established that the gun industry can be regulated for consumer health and safety. Consider that the industry has been exempt from regulation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) since 1972. Since that time, the industry has had no problem innovating in order to make their products more lethal. But safer? Forget about it. Consider, too, that legacy gun manufacturers like Smith & Wesson and Ruger hold few if any patents for the 21st century technologies being used to childproof and microstamp guns. The NRA is intimately connected with the gun industry and their goal is profit and control, not reduced gun violence.
That’s not necessarily good news for average gun dealers like Andy Raymond, however. Andy, too, was profit-driven in his desire to sell the Armatix iP1. “If this gets more people, especially those on the fence, to go out and enjoy their Second Amendment freedoms, to go sport shooting and realize how much fun it is, then I am all for it,” he said. “This is really not a bad thing.” Andy also pointed out how hypocritical it is for the NRA to essentially ban smart guns: “You are not supposed to say a gun should be prohibited. Then you are being no different than the anti-gun people who say an AR-15 should be prohibited.”
Unfortunately, reason and logic rarely carry the day in the pro-gun movement. The threats kept coming, and Andy got scared, sleeping in his store out of fear that it would be burnt to the ground. Then he did something truly unfortunate—he got drunk and filmed himself announcing he would not sell the Armatix iP1. All his frustration and anger came pouring out, and he cravenly attempted to redirect the fury of his pursuers to a new target, saying, “If you’re going to kill somebody, shoot the politicians who make these fucking [gun violence prevention] laws. If that’s who you want to fucking go at, shoot the people who make these laws. Take ‘em out in the street, and gun ‘em the fuck down. There’s a goddamn reason why we got [guns]. There’s a fucking reason why we got ‘em. And that’s to defend our fucking freedom.” This was his attempt to re-establish his credentials in the pro-gun movement, and it was a pathetic and sad one.
My organization, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV), has long been a critic of such insurrectionist rhetoric, and we jumped all over these comments, reposting Andy’s video after he took it down and creating a meme that was shared more than 1,800 times on Facebook.
It was at that point that Andy reached out to me via email and asked us to delete his video from CSGV’s YouTube account (we refused to, but he got YouTube to yank it shortly thereafter). A back and forth exchange ensued regarding insurrectionism and gun policy. At some point, Andy stopped and asked me if I’d like to come to his store to “chit chat.” We’d “just talk” and “keep it civil,” he said. I told him that would be great, and asked him if we might also go shooting. He told me no problem and we set a date.
Leap of Faith
On Friday, May 9th, I drove out to see Andy at Engage Armament in Rockville, Maryland with Christian Heyne, CSGV’s Legislative Director. Upon arriving at the gun shop, we were first greeted by Brutus, Andy’s adorable one year-old bulldog (how any pro-gun activist could threaten this animal is beyond me). We then met his employees, who were uniformly nice and welcoming to us. If they were attempting to disguise their discomfort and/or revulsion at having gun violence prevention activists on their premises, then Academy Awards are in order. We chatted for a bit, took a tour of the shop (which is basically two large rooms), and then headed off to Maryland Small Arms Range with Andy and “Gunsmith.” [“Gunsmith” is an employee of Andy’s who is exceptionally good at working with firearms. If he has a real name we never learned it!]
The experience at the range was invaluable. Andy and Gunsmith brought the following firearms for Christian and I to fire: two AR-15s, an AK-47, an AK-74, an MP-5 (select fire) and a Glock 19 handgun. Most of these weapons were ones that they had customized at their shop. You could tell they were proud of them. Andy, for example, showed me how he had worked on the stock of his AK-47 with a wire brush in order to make it look like it had been recovered from a battlefield.
I had never shot an AR or AK before, and I was surprised at the power of these weapons. I expected much less muzzle creep. Man was I wrong. The kick of these rifles was noticeable, and it was a challenge to hold them level round after round. You could almost feel the incredibly velocity of the round as it left the barrel. The MP-5 submachine gun, on the other hand, was much easier to manage, unless you were firing it on full-automatic, in which case the muzzle began to really jump. I talked about this with Gunsmith. It was really hard to group shots firing in that position—accuracy was near nil even when firing short, controlled bursts. “You would never fire on full automatic in an engagement,” he told me. “Semiautomatic [fire] is much more accurate.” And man was it tough to shoot with the Glock 19 after firing the rifles. Having a stock at your shoulder to steady a firearm really helps. When you’ve got a handgun extended in front of you and your only foundation is your own two hands, things become more challenging. Still, by the end of the session my accuracy with each firearm had increased significantly.
Another gentleman was shooting at the stall beside us and testing ammunition that he had personally made for his rifle. He methodically shot at targets with all his different rounds, attempting to determine which was most accurate and the best fit for his weapon. You could tell Andy and Gunsmith were impressed by him. “Not everybody can do that,” Andy told me, referring to making ammunition from scratch. The guy was nice as could be, great smile and manner, and wonderful stories. He told one about a narrow escape he had after discharging three rounds from a rifle that, unbeknownst to him, became lodged in the barrel. Somehow, miraculously, the gun did not explode. This man wasn’t an extremist. He wasn’t preparing to head to the Bundy Ranch to kill government officials. He was just a guy with a hobby that he really loved. For him, it was firearms. For another guy, it easily could have been cars, comics, woodworking, fantasy baseball, you name it…
When we finished, Andy and Gunsmith insisted on paying for everything. The total bill, including range time and ammunition, was in the neighborhood of $320. It was incredibly generous of them, but it also made me realize how expensive a hobby shooting really is. How do these guys—many of them on modest incomes—afford all of this? Guns, ammunition, accessories, range time, organization memberships, etc. It makes you wonder how many of them are facing serious economic duress because of it.
Finally, let me say that I was a bit surprised by how many women and African-Americans were at the range. While the majority of employees and clientele were white men, it was more diverse than I would have thought.
A Meeting of the Minds
When we walked out to our cars, something funny happened. Christian could not start his Toyota Prius and had to call AAA to get a tow. I told Andy he had the perfect opportunity for revenge. “Take a picture of the two Liberal dips***s trying to start their Hybrid and post it on Facebook,” I told him. We had a great laugh.
Andy and Gunsmith were kind enough to hang out with us in the parking lot while we waited for the tow truck, and we finally had a conversation about gun policy. We found quite a bit of common ground. Andy had no problem with proposals like expanded background checks or safe storage requirements for gun owners with young children. Like many pro-gun activists, however, he was focused on gun homicide occurring in urban areas. Andy objected to policies that prevented law-abiding citizens in major cities from owning firearms. He specifically mentioned laws that had previously been in place in Chicago and Washington, D.C. which prohibited residents from owning handguns. I told him I found that position reasonable and had little problem with new laws in those cities that allowed for the licensing/registration of handguns. At the same time, I added, it might be nice to do more to prevent the trafficking of illegal firearms into those jurisdictions from outside areas with weak gun laws. Those are guns that typically end up being used in crime.
Andy was also deeply upset about Maryland’s gun laws. He specifically mentioned Maryland’s Assault Weapons Ban. The only reason he was able to own the weapons they brought to the range, he explained to me, was because he had a license as a firearms manufacturer. I told Andy that after firing the AR-15 and AK-47 I was more convinced than ever that those weapons have no place on our streets, in our communities. What would be the problem, I asked, if folks couldn’t own assault weapons, but were free to fire them at a shooting range like we just had? Gunsmith answered that then they wouldn’t be able to “play” with them; “play” meaning to take them apart, customize them, etc.
Andy then reiterated that he also wanted assault weapons if the government attempted to take his guns at some point. He made it clear that if a law was passed that resulted in the government attempting to confiscate some or all of his firearms, he would resist it violently. In a subsequent email, he put it to me this way, “I would defend my freedom the same way I would defend the people I love. I’m sure we disagree on that, but I think you have more faith in humanity than I do.” Andy also seemed wary about some type of collapse-of-civilization scenario, the ones that NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre so often rants about. He wanted to be prepared, he said.
He also asked Christian and I how we came to be involved in gun violence prevention work. Andy seemed genuinely distressed to learn that Christian’s parents had been shot by a gun-toting maniac on a rampage in Thousand Oaks, California. Christian’s father survived, but his mother was killed. Andy told Christian he hoped the shooter didn’t make it out alive that day. He ended up killing himself in a Walmart, Christian explained.
Then the tow truck arrived and we parted ways, still miles apart, but closer than we had been before.
True Tyranny
In hindsight, am I glad I met with Andy? Absolutely. I didn’t expect to “convert” him anymore than he expected to convert me. I merely wanted to make a gesture of good faith, to show him I was willing to listen to him and hear his concerns if he would do the same for me. That mission was accomplished.
Not everyone was happy about it. The staff at CSGV embraced my outreach, but a few gun violence prevention activists I spoke to were critical of me. They felt it was improper for me to visit with Andy because of his threatening and violent remarks; that he was so extreme that the gap between us couldn’t possibly be bridged. He was a hopeless case. I reminded them about Dr. King’s words about building a “beloved community” where differences with former enemies are reconciled. At some point, I told them, we are all going to have to live peacefully with one another. Isn’t that what we want?
In any case, I was never angry at Andy, even after initially watching his video. I saw it as tragic. Here was a guy who was attempting to do the right thing, and who was thrown under the bus by pro-gun activists. His own people were ready to destroy his career—and maybe even take his life—because he dared to violate movement orthodoxy. I can’t imagine anything more “tyrannical” than that, and it’s a memory that will likely haunt him for the rest of his life. He had an opportunity in that moment to overcome his fears and lead, to be great. Instead he succumbed and allowed himself to be diminished by the vitriol and violence of his accusers, like Jim Zumbo and so many others.
I would never treat anyone in the gun violence prevention movement in such a manner, for any reason. And I’m more than willing to extend the same courtesy to a pro-gun guy who showed me he can make peace as easily as war.