Bull's Eye Shooter Supply was a gun shop in Tacoma, Washington that gained notoriety following the three-week long murder spree in the fall of 2002 which came to be known as the Beltway Sniper Attacks because they occurred near the circumferential Capital Beltway (Interstate 495) outside Washington, DC. Tacoma, with Mount Rainier in background Nickname: The City of Destiny Motto: {{{motto}}} Official website: http://www. ... Locations of the 15 sniper attacks numbered chronologically. ... The Capital Beltway (in green) The Capital Beltway (Interstate 495) is an expressway-class interstate highway which circles the Washington, DC area. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United...

The Beltway Sniper Attacks

While staying at a Bellingham, Washington homeless shelter, one of the convicted serial killers, John Allen Muhammad, frequently visited Bull's Eye's large shooting range. His accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo told investigators that he stole a Bushmaster XM-15 semiautomatic .223 caliber rifle, from the Bull's Eye store. Bellingham is the county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. ... Serial killers are individuals who have a history of multiple slayings of victims who were usually unknown to them beforehand. ... John Allen Muhammad in court John Allen Muhammad (born John Allen Williams on December 31, 1960) carried out the Beltway sniper attacks in an apparent attempt to extort $10 million dollars through terrorism. ... Lee Boyd Malvo Lee Boyd Malvo (alias John Lee Malvo) (born February 18, 1985), along with John Allen Muhammad, was arrested on October 24, 2002 in connection with the Beltway sniper attacks. ... The Bushmaster XM-15 is a semi-automatic rifle available in cartridges such as . ... A semi-automatic rifle is a type of rifle that, when the trigger is pulled, fires a bullet and loads another cartridge from a magazine, without the need to operate a bolt or other loading mechanism. ... A rifle is a firearm that uses a spiral groove cut into the barrel to spin a projectile (usually a bullet), thus improving accuracy and range of the projectile. ...

At the time of the attacks, the Bull's Eye complex was owned and managed by Brian Borgelt, a former Staff Sgt. with the U.S. Army Rangers. In July, 2003, the BATFE revoked his Federal Firearms License to own and operate the gun store. He transfered ownership to his friend Chris Kindschuh. The BATFE subsequently approved Kindschuh's FFL application. Borgelt continues to own the building, and operate the adjacent shooting gallery also located in it. The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE or ATFE) is a law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. ... // A Federal Firearms License, or FFL, is a license that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business that pertains to the production of firearms and ammunitions or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms. ...

The Lawsuit

On January 16, 2003, the Brady Center's Legal Action Project, on behalf of the families of many of the Beltway Sniper Attacks victims who were killed, including Hong Im Ballenger, "Sonny" Buchanan, Jr., Linda Franklin, Conrad Johnson, Sarah Ramos and James L. Premkumar Walekar, as well as two victims who survived separate shootings in Virginia and Maryland, Rupinder "Benny" Oberoi and 13-year old Iran Brown, filed a civil lawsuit against Bull's Eye Shooter Supply, the gun dealer that lost track of the gun that would beused by the snipers, and Bushmaster Firearms, Inc. of Windham, Maine, the gun distributor and manufacturer which made the firearm which was used in the crime spree, as well as Muhammad and Malvo. Neither man would have been eligible to legally procure the firearm which was used in the murders. (Muhammad, who had a record of domestic battery and Malvo, a minor, were each legally prohibited from purchasing firearms). The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in the United States is a not-for-profit organization headed by James Brady, former U.S. White House Press Secretary to President Ronald W. Reagan. ... Sarah Ramos was a victim of the Beltway sniper attacks She was a 34 year old Babysitter. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 35th 110,862 km² 320 km 690 km 7. ... State nickname: Old Line State; Free State Official languages None Capital Annapolis Largest city Baltimore Governor Robert L. Ehrlich (R) Senators Paul Sarbanes (D) Barbara Mikulski (D) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 42nd 32,160 km² 21 Population  - Total (2000)  - Density Ranked 19th 5,296,486 165/km² (5th) Admission into... Bushmaster Firearms Inc. ... Windham is a town located in Cumberland County, Maine. ...

The suit claimed that Bull's Eye Shooter Supply ran its gun store "in such a grossly negligent manner that scores of its guns routinely 'disappeared' from its store and it kept such shoddy records that it could not even account for the Bushmaster rifle used in the sniper shootings when asked by federal agents for records of sale for the weapon." It was alleged that the dealer could not account for hundreds of guns received from manufacturers in the years immediately proximate to the Sniper Attacks. It was also claimed that Bull's Eye continued to maintain poor records during its course of business even after Muhammad and Malvo were caught and the weapon used was traced to their store. Bushmaster was included in the suit because it allegedly continued to utilize Bull's Eye as its dealer despite an awareness of Bull's Eye negligent practices. In law, negligence is a type of tort or delict that can be either criminal or civil in nature. ...

The Settlement

After losing several decisions as the case made its way through the courts in 2003 and 2004, Bull's Eye and Bushmaster contributed to an out-of-court US$2.5 million settlement. Bushmaster agreed to educate its dealers on safer business practices as well.

After the settlement was announced, WTOP, a radio station in Washington, DC reported that Sonia Wills, the mother of sniper victim Conrad Johnson, a Montgomery County, Maryland bus driver who was killed, said her family took part in the lawsuit more to send a message than to collect money from Bushmaster Firearms and Bull's Eye Shooter Supply. "I think a message was delivered that you should be responsible and accountable for the actions of irresponsible people when you make these guns and put them in their hands," she said. WTOP is the only all-news radio station in Washington, DC. WTOP is a class-A station operating on 820 kHz in Frederick, Maryland, WTOP-FM. As of January 4, 2006, WTOP also broadcasts on 103. ... A radio station is a sound broadcasting service. ... Location in the state of Maryland Formed 1776 Seat Rockville Area  - Total  - Water 1,313 km² (507 mi²) 30 km² (12 mi²) 2. ...

Lessons For Other Gun Shops

The case of Bull's Eye Shooter Supply illustrates the potential problems that gun shops might face. // A Federal Firearms License, or FFL, is a license that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business that pertains to the production of firearms and ammunitions or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms. ...

The first lesson is to try to keep employee turnover at a minimum. During Bull's Eye's course of business turnover was rather high with employees only working there for short periods of time.

A high degree of turnover prevented the store's staff from gaining the experience necessary to size up potential customers and decide who to allow into the store. Turnover is the rate at which an employer gains and loses staff. ... A straw purchase is a situation in which a buyer uses an intermediary (a straw purchaser) through which to acquire one or more firearms from a licensed firearms dealer. ...

Turnover may have also contributed to a number of thefts and undocumented sales from Bull's Eye that left a sizable number of guns unaccounted for.

The second lesson is very basic but critical for gun stores in that all records must be accounted for and a proper set of procedures must be in place for storing the records after a transaction.

The high rate of turnover contributed to the poor recordkeeping at Borgelt's shop because each employee would often place records in a different drawer or cabinet and over time records would simply be misplaced. Bull's Eye was cited multiple times by the BATFE for its sloppy recordkeeping prior to the Beltway Sniper Attacks. Federal Form 4473 is a US government form that must be filled out when a person buys a firearm from a Federal Firearm License Holder or gunshop. ... The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE or ATFE) is a law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. ... Locations of the 15 sniper attacks numbered chronologically. ...

The third lesson is to secure all firearms behind a locked display case or behind the counter. This is very critical on weekends where gun shops are likely to be crowded with people browsing. The Bushmaster rifle that was stolen by Malvo was displayed so that customers could handle it. It has been speculated that Malvo shoplifted the weapon when the clerk(s) was(were) not looking. A firearm is a kinetic energy weapon that fires either a single or multiple projectiles propelled at high velocity by the gases produced by action of the rapid confined burning of a propellant. ... Bushmaster Firearms Inc. ...

See Also

• Federal Firearms License
• Straw purchase
• Beltway Sniper Attacks

// A Federal Firearms License, or FFL, is a license that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business that pertains to the production of firearms and ammunitions or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms. ... A straw purchase is a situation in which a buyer uses an intermediary (a straw purchaser) through which to acquire one or more firearms from a licensed firearms dealer. ... Locations of the 15 sniper attacks numbered chronologically. ...

External Links

• Bull's Eye Shooter Supply's Official Website
• Seattle Time Article
• WTOP News Article