Guns test-fired in Okfuskee Co.- Looking for .40-caliber handgun

[christine2448]

Guns test-fired in Okfuskee Co.


Associated Press - August 19, 2008 1:05 AM ET

WELEETKA, Okla. (AP) - Investigators looking for a .40-caliber handgun test-fire dozens of guns over the weekend in the search for the killer or killers of 2 girls in June.
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Jessica Brown says

60 letters were sent to registered owners of .40-caliber handguns, asking them to voluntarily submit their weapons for testing.
Brown says 40 owners showed up and their guns were fired outside the Okfuskee County Courthouse in Okemah yesterday and on Saturday.

Five owners told the OSBI they no longer owned the weapons, but they provided the names of the new owners.

Brown says investigators will talk to them and the 15 or so who didn't show up as requested.

http://www.kswo.com/Global/story.asp?S=8862281

 

[Claycat]

This is from the person who first talked about receiving a letter to bring in his gun. Interesting info:

http://www.topix.com/forum/city/weleetka-ok/TOJFJV92HAR4RS395/p521#c13441

Actually, upon looking at the isp addy, it was posted by a different person. Oh well, it seems like good info.

 

[willow]

I have a question. Have they ever said what caliber the other gun was that was used in the murders? Maybe they're more interested in other guns you own and have used besides the Glock. That would be interesting. Just throwing that out there.

 

[Tom'sGirl]

I have a question. Have they ever said what caliber the other gun was that was used in the murders?

As of yet, no they haven't willow!

 

[willow]

Thanks, Tom's Girl. That's what I would do then.

 

[Reannan]

OK....I hate to admit this, but I feel it is pertinent. I feel strongly about gun control, and I do not intend to hijack this thread and get into that topic, HOWEVER. I can easily see where someone who feel strongly about gun control would NOT take their gun down to local LE for "testing" in a murder case. It is the perfect example of a constitutional "privacy" issue juxtaposed with the "state's" right to know. You see, from a paranoid (not necessarily bad thing) point of view - just having your gun tested - equals having your gun registered. Doesn't sound like a bad idea at all - unless you are living under a totalitarian regime. OK - now everyone can flame away, but I just had to say that I can understand where someone wasn't willing to go rushing down to have their gun entered into a ballistic database.

 

[DLTinOKLA]

OK....I hate to admit this, but I feel it is pertinent. I feel strongly about gun control, and I do not intend to hijack this thread and get into that topic, HOWEVER. I can easily see where someone who feel strongly about gun control would NOT take their gun down to local LE for "testing" in a murder case.

Yeah, I've wrestled with this issue myself because of my own feelings about gun control. Heck, I own a .40 SW too although I'm in SW Oklahoma and its not a Glock. What would I do in a similar situation? As a father of an 11 year old girl the anger and justice side of me wants these scumbags caught and strapped on that table at big Mac. (Well honestly, I would much rather them put up a fight when the LE catches up with them and they end up getting shot multiple times! :clap: ) So part of me says sure I would run down to the local courthouse and have my gun tested if needed to help solve a crime of this nature. But then part of me says "wait!" Something just isn't right about this! I think it might be setting a dangerous precedent. So I struggle back and forth on what to think and what to do.

Our rights are set in place to protect the innocent from abuse, so just what are we willing to give up to catch the guilty? The OSBI strange request has just opened up a can of worms and I can't see how it will help solve this crime. Why in the world didn't they just come out from day one and say they were looking for .40 caliber weapon? I think they stood more of a chance of someone coming forward then than they do almost 3 months later! I'm trying to keep my faith in the OSBI concerning their investigation of this murder but its getting harder and harder as the days go by!

 

[Tom'sGirl]

Quote:
Originally Posted by GetSmart
There is a whole group of people out there that no matter what... they are not going to even try to understand why they were doing this..

Example of statements posted on other forums
The ACLU will take care of it once someone calls them.
This sort of thing HAS been ruled unconstitutional before
You can have my gun when you get a warrant!!
Since there is no legal requirement to register a gun in Oklahoma my answer would have been "get a warrant". This way you could not be charged with lying to the LEO.

Yep GS, it's a hot topic right now!

Police tell owners: 'We're inspecting your guns'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=72906

On the forums page for the Oklahoma Shooters Association, the readers were even more alarmed.

"Why don't they just test fire all the .40 cal handguns in Oklahoma? Yeah, that's the ticket," said one person. "I hate to perhaps sound callous about the tragedy, that's not my intent at all, but this is some of the goofiest stuff I've ever heard of."

"What the OSBI stupidly did was ensure that, if the real murderer still has the murder weapon and got one of these letters, he will now WITHOUT DOUBT destroy it POST HASTE," said another.

 

[Tom'sGirl]

OK....I hate to admit this, but I feel it is pertinent. I feel strongly about gun control, and I do not intend to hijack this thread and get into that topic, HOWEVER. I can easily see where someone who feel strongly about gun control would NOT take their gun down to local LE for "testing" in a murder case. It is the perfect example of a constitutional "privacy" issue juxtaposed with the "state's" right to know. You see, from a paranoid (not necessarily bad thing) point of view - just having your gun tested - equals having your gun registered. Doesn't sound like a bad idea at all - unless you are living under a totalitarian regime.

OK - now everyone can flame away, but I just had to say that I can understand where someone wasn't willing to go rushing down to have their gun entered into a ballistic database.

No flame from me Reannan, I agree with you...........none of the firearms in my family in the past, or present have been registered, or do we intend to do so!

 

[Claycat]

I have often wondered if LE's guns were tested. Many LE own Glocks. I believe it is very common for them to have such a weapon. I'm just hoping their guns were checked as well.

 

[ArizonaGiGi]

I want to know the answer to that also. I am skeptical of LE and the investigation at this point. I mean, I am considering anything and everything and that is one of the possibilities, hard as it is to fathom.

 

[YellowDog]

I agree. Glocks are more or less the gun of choice for police officers, aren't they?

 

[ArizonaGiGi]

I agree. Glocks are more or less the gun of choice for police officers, aren't they?

That's what I have heard. hmmmmmmm

 

[USARDOG]

Question. Where are the other bullets? From the little girls, only what... 2 bullest were recoverer, a large caliber bullet, and a smaller caliber one. Where are the remainder? In the soil, in the trees? It would tell a lot about where the girls were standing when they were shot. What was the brand of the bullets used? Perhaps this can be learned from the bullets recovered?

40 cal is quite popular, as are Glocks...

Perhaps someone could bring me up to speed on the shell casings... Where are the shell casings? Obviously, they were shot with at least 1 semi auto... They toss cases everywhere. Were there any shell casings recovered? If so, it would be unusual to not have fingerprints on them. If no casings were recovered... It would be unusual to have the killers be able to pick up all of them... In the heat of the moment. Other choice would of course be, the bodies were moved.

Stolen 40 cal semi's in the area?

 

[Ruflossn]

Question. Where are the other bullets? From the little girls, only what... 2 bullest were recoverer, a large caliber bullet, and a smaller caliber one. Where are the remainder? In the soil, in the trees? It would tell a lot about where the girls were standing when they were shot. What was the brand of the bullets used? Perhaps this can be learned from the bullets recovered?

40 cal is quite popular, as are Glocks...

Perhaps someone could bring me up to speed on the shell casings... Where are the shell casings? Obviously, they were shot with at least 1 semi auto... They toss cases everywhere. Were there any shell casings recovered? If so, it would be unusual to not have fingerprints on them. If no casings were recovered... It would be unusual to have the killers be able to pick up all of them... In the heat of the moment. Other choice would of course be, the bodies were moved.

Stolen 40 cal semi's in the area?

Great questions. They are questions that have been asked by many. Unfortunately, LE has not released much info. I do not think the bodies were moved. (LE also believes the girls killed where the bodies were found.) When time permits, I will re-eval. my notes and see if I have any other info. on the shell casings etc.........

 

[USARDOG]

I don't believe it would be possible to fire that many shots into someone, and have them standing the whole time. Quite unlikely, especially not 2 young girls. It would seem to me, some of the shots must have been fired with the girls down, so there should be spent bullets recoverable from the soil of the area. Wonder if anyone has gone over the ground with a metal dector? I would hope so. If no bullets were recovered, it could mean that the bodies were moved.

 

[ArizonaGiGi]

this probably belongs in the rumor room but it was said by locals that OSBI removed two whole tree's that were behind the girls because there were bullets in them.

 

[USARDOG]

I guess I have a little different take here. If I owned a 40 cal Glock, and it was registered, I would have no problem having it test fired to help move this case along. My beef is with registration, not with what I do with a gun, because I am a law abiding citizen.

These people need to be caught, and if I have to have a little inconvenience to help that, so be it.

 

[USARDOG]

A complete bullet from each gun used in these killings has been recovered, and so can be matched with bullets test fired from those same guns if they are ever found. However, bullet cases will often yield fingerprints. because to load a semi auto without leaving fingerprints requires the loader to wear gloves.

Does anyone know of cases being recovered? Being that at least 1 semi automatic was used, if not both, therefore, if no cases were recovered it says a couple of possible things.

1. The killers were so cool that after killing these girls on a public road, in broad day light, they took the time to pick up every single case scattered during this crime. Remember this was a public road, many shots were fired, and while not much traveled by outsiders, this road does see quite a bit of local traffic. The killers had to be quite concerned that someone would come along any second.

2. They were not killed on that exact spot but somewhere slightly different.

So, my question is, where are the cases? Were cases recovered? Were there fingerprints found if cases were recovered.

 

[Lauren - CA]

I think it has been determined that the girls were killed where they stood. No time to react. Jessica Brown stated this during a news conference.