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A26 u.s. news
Dialuna 2 augustus 2021

US sues Texas to block state troopers from stopping migrants

reroute vehicles back to their border with Mexico, with
point of origin or impound The lawsuit escalates ten- senior officials warning that
them. sions between the Biden ad- the governor’s order could
ministration and Abbott over significantly impede trans-
The lawsuit, filed in federal the governor’s actions on the portation and other federal
court in El Paso, mirrors a border, which have includ- operations.
letter that Attorney General ed jailing migrants on state
Merrick Garland sent the crimes and building new bar- The Border Patrol’s Rio
governor a day earlier, argu- riers. Grande Valley sector, the
ing that the state was usurp- busiest corridor for illegal
ing and even interfering with For months, the two-term crossings, had more than
the federal government’s re- governor has sought to claim 8,300 migrants in custody
sponsibility to enforce immi- former President Donald Wednesday, with an average
gration laws. Trump’s hardline mantle on processing time of 57 hours,
immigration, inflaming pas- said Brian Hastings, the sec-
Abbott, a Republican who is sions on a polarizing issue. tor chief. The sector has re-
facing reelection next year, Civil rights groups and im- leased more than 100,000 mi-
(AP) — The Biden ad- border with Mexico. wrote Garland on Friday to migration advocates have said grants since Oct. 1, including
ministration sued Texas argue that the federal govern- Abbott’s move for troopers 9,000 in the last week.
on Friday to prevent state The Justice Department ment was interfering with his stop vehicles could invite ra-
troopers from stopping asked for an immediate block obligations to protect Texas cial profiling and restrict the The Homeland Security De-
vehicles carrying mi- on Gov. Greg Abbott’s order residents. ability of shelters to take in partment reported that 646
grants on grounds that issued Wednesday, which al- newly arriving families. children traveling alone were
they may spread COV- lows the Texas Department ”It is clear from the argu- taken into custody across the
ID-19, warning that the of Public Safety to “stop any ments in your letter that the Declarations submitted with Mexico border on Thursday,
practice would exacerbate vehicle upon reasonable sus- State of Texas and the federal the lawsuit offered fresh evi- compared with a daily aver-
problems amid high levels picion” that it transports mi- government face a constitu- dence of large numbers of age of 480 over the previous
of crossings on the state’s grants. Troopers could then tional crisis,” Abbott wrote. migrants showing up at the 30 days.

Ammunition shelves bare as U.S. gun sales continue to soar

(AP) — The COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with 8 million of those sales made by first-time hit a target, he said. It’s where shooters learn fun-
with record sales of firearms, has fueled a buyers. damental skills like always pointing their guns in a
shortage of ammunition in the United States safe direction and keeping their fingers off the trig-
that’s impacting law enforcement agencies, “When you talk about all these people buying guns, ger until they’re ready to fire.
people seeking personal protection, recre- it really has an impact on people buying ammuni-
ational shooters and hunters -- and could tion,” spokesman Mark Oliva said. ”If you look at “It’s that old adage: Just because you buy a guitar
deny new gun owners the practice they need 8.4 million gun buyers and they all want to buy one doesn’t mean you’re a guitar player,” Wustenberg
to handle their weapons safely. box with 50 rounds, that’s going to be 420 million said. “Some have the misconception of ‘I shot this
rounds.” target 5 yards away and did just fine so I’m OK if
Manufacturers say they’re producing as much am- someone breaks into my house.’ You’ve got to go
munition as they can, but many gun store shelves The FBI’s National Instant Criminal Back- out and practice with it.”
are empty and prices keep rising. Ammunition im- ground Check System database also documented
ports are way up, but at least one U.S. manufacturer an increase in sales: In 2010, there were 14.4 mil- The U.S. military is not affected by the shortage
is exporting ammo. All while the pandemic, social lion background checks for gun purchases. That because the Army produces ammunition for all
unrest and a rise in violent crime have prompted jumped to almost 39.7 million in 2020 and to 22.2 branches of the military at six sites across the coun-
millions to buy guns for protection or to take up million just through June 2021 alone. try, according to Justine Barati, spokesperson for
shooting for sport. the U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command.
The actual number of guns sold could be much The U.S. shooting team, which won four medals at
“We have had a number of firearms instructors can- higher since multiple firearms can be linked to a the Tokyo Olympics, also had the ammo needed to
cel their registration to our courses because their single background check. No data is available for train thanks to a commitment from sponsors, but
agency was short on ammo or they were unable to ammunition because sales are not regulated and no membership and junior programs have struggled,
find ammo to purchase,” said Jason Wuestenberg, license is required to sell it. said Matt Suggs, chief executive officer for USA
executive director of the National Law Enforce- Shooting.
ment Firearms Instructors Association. As the pandemic raced across the country in early
2020, the resulting lockdown orders and cutbacks The U.S. Biathlon team, training for the 2022
Doug Tangen, firearms instructor at the Washing- on police response sowed safety fears, creating Winter Olympics in February, also has been sup-
ton State Criminal Justice Training Commission, an “overwhelming demand” for both guns and plied with ammo from its sponsor, Lapua, made in
the police academy for the state, said the academy ammo, Oliva said. Factories continued to produce Finland. But local clubs face shortages, said Max
also has had trouble obtaining ammo. ammunition, but sales far exceeded the amount Cobb, president of U.S. Biathlon Association.
that could be shipped, he said.
“A few months ago, we were at a point where our Jason Vanderbrink, a vice president at Vista Out-
shelves were nearly empty of 9mm ammunition,” “Where there is an increased sense of instabil- door, which owns the Federal, CCI, Speer and
he said. In response, instructors took conservation ity, fear and insecurity, more people will purchase Remington ammunition brands, said the compa-
steps like reducing the number of shots fired per guns,” said Ari Freilich of the Gifford Law Center nies are shipping ammo as fast as they can make it.
drill, which got them through several months until to Prevent Gun Violence.
fresh supplies arrived, Tangen said. “I’m tired of reading the misinformation on the
As supplies dwindled, Feilich said, some gun own- internet right now about us not trying to service
Officer Larry Hadfield, a spokesman for the Las ers began stockpiling ammo. the demand that we’re experiencing,” he said in a
Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, said his YouTube video produced for customers aimed at
department also has been affected by the shortage. “Early on in the pandemic, we saw people hoard- quashing speculation suggesting otherwise.
“We have made efforts to conserve ammunition ing toilet paper, disinfectant, and now it’s ammo,”
when possible,” he said. he said. Imports of ammunition from Russia, South Ko-
rea, the European Union and others were up 225%
The National Shooting Sports Foundation, an in- Wustenberg emphasized the danger in first-time over the past two years, according to an analysis
dustry trade group, says more than 50 million peo- gun buyers not being able to practice using their by Panjiva Inc., which independently tracks global
ple participate in shooting sports in the U.S. and new weapons. trade. But at least some U.S.-made ammo is head-
estimates that 20 million guns were sold last year, Going to the gun range entails more than trying to ing out of the country.