Michael Cargill is getting a lot of attention and press. First, we had Heller in 2008, then McDonald in 2010, and Bruen in 2022. It’s looking like Cargill V Garland is going to be in 2023. The Cargill case is going to bring us back the right to possess bump stocks.
To start this episode, I have a quick video meeting with Cargill to update us on what’s going on with getting his case to the Supreme Court. We talked at the end of March 2023, but things changed during the first week of April and you’ll hear the recent happenings.
Cargill has a lot going on. He’s the owner of Central Texas Gun Works (CTGW), located in Austin, TX, which offers several levels of training courses from handgun basics to private security qualifications. The store offers rentals and purchases as well. If that isn’t enough, he also does a radio show that is focused on guns, training, and all things Second Amendment related.
He spent 12 years in the Army. Then joined civilian life; he worked doing telecommunication then opened a trucking company, and finally opening a gun store. He was tired of his family and friends being victims of crime, not having firearms or training to go with them. His grandmother, at 70 years old, was going back to college to be a nurse and she was robbed and raped. That was the catalyst to open up CTGW. He also pushed for campus carry, which became law in Texas.
Not new to the court and judicial system, Cargill fought the city of Austin for not allowing the citizens to carry in their building. He filed a case and took them to court, he testified, then he won the case. After that he looked at the Federal government.
When he found out that Congress didn’t give permission to the ATF to make laws but the ATF was acting like they did, he decided it was time to go after them as well. During the Trump administration after the shootings at the country concert in Las Vegas, the ATF decided to go after bump stocks. The issue isn’t whether bump stocks are or aren’t machine guns, it’s that the ATF is not supposed to make or interpret laws; they’re just supposed to enforce them. This could have implications over all the nonsense that the ATF has been doing, including going after the pistol braces.
Looking for an attorney at the same time an attorney was looking for a client, Cargill found who was going to take his case. This has been going on since March 2018. They lost in the first Federal court as the judge thought bump stocks were shotguns, so they appealed to the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans. After an en banc panel, Cargill won 13-3.
Unfortunately, the judge didn’t declare what relief Cargill was to be awarded. Was it going to be legal for him to own them, for people in the state of Texas to own them, for the people in the 5th Circuit to own them, or for the whole United States to own them. On April 6, just before it was too late to move forward, they filed writ of certiorari to be heard at the Supreme Court.
What amazes me is that Cargill is doing this on his own dime, hoping to get some help from the 2A groups out there. If you’d like to support him with this, please go to https://www.michaelcargill.com/ to donate. When the SCOTUS rules in his favor, we’re all going to reap the benefits!
Favorite quotes:
- “I’m going to open up a gun store and start teaching you guys.”
- “I decided at that point, that I was going to make sure everyone in my family, including the females, everyone, had the tools they need to protect themselves.”
- “If you stand on the Second Amendment community, my job is to put my foot on your throat.”
- “If the Supreme Court rules in our favor, all 50 states, the ATF cannot take your brace, cannot take your trigger, cannot take your AR pistol, cannot come after different parts and pieces of your firearm.”
- “I’m on a mission. I’m all about playing chess, not checkers.”
Riding Shotgun With Charlie
Riding Shotgun With Charlie isn’t about firearms. It is about having an intimate conversation with 2 people talking. You’re the fly on the rearview mirror. Many of the passengers are involved in the firearm community.
This is a more intimate conversation than a phone, radio, or Skype interview. You get to see the passengers. And you’ll see where the road and the conversation take you!
www.ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com.
