Flood the zone
I want answers. I want to know if CNN broke the law or just lied. People have been contacting their senators and the ATF. Now, I ask that you contact CNN.
You can highlight editorial errors here.
General online contact info is here.
Their address is:
One CNN Center
Atlanta, GA 30303
or
190 MARIETTA ST NW
ATLANTA, GA 30303
And their phone number is (404) 827-2600
February 24th, 2005 at 6:09 pm
It really does look like an either/or situation. Either they broke the law or they misled their viewers.
February 24th, 2005 at 9:29 pm
Neither. See Matt Rustler’s latest. Apparently, CNN has a “we were too damned stupid to know we were breaking the law” defense.
February 24th, 2005 at 9:45 pm
A defense doesn’t mean the law wasn’t broken necessarily.
February 24th, 2005 at 11:20 pm
Technically, that’s true. Assuming the gun left Texas in Griffin’s possession, 18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) was broken, and 18 U.S.C. 922(a)(5) probably was also. But it doesn’t mean much if these violations were not willful, as 922 doesn’t have any enforcement mechanisms of its own. So CNN could come out tomorrow and saY “Yup, we broke the law all right! Watcha gonna do about it?!”
February 25th, 2005 at 12:05 am
Xrlq – while it appears that indeed there are no provisions for imposing penalties without a willful volation, the fact that a violation actually occurred may still give rise to a separate action.
I am thinking something along the lines of negligence per se but in a criminal sense. My understaning is that some of the recent Corporate Governance statutes include those types of provisions – though I have no knowledge of what the provisions actually are (and may be completely off base here)
In any case, as SU keeps pointing out (correctly) just because there is no penalty available under the act doesn’t mean that a violation didn’t occur (though, of course, this would provide some support to ATFs claim that they wouldn’t prosecute because intent was missing)
February 25th, 2005 at 1:41 pm
There is no criminal equivalent of negligence per se. I agree that in theory, a crime technically was committed. However, since that crime carries no penalty whatsoever, it would be felony stupid for the ATF to get involved beyond the level I advocated before – a strongly worded “don’t do this again, or else” letter. It would be nice, though, if Fox News would pick up the story, just to make sure everyone understands what CNN’s defense is.