Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Border Brouhaha?

Monday, October 24, 2022

Border Brouhaha?

(No, Not THAT Border)

There seems to be some controversy brewing near our border, but not the one you might be thinking about. About 120 miles south of our northern border, at a September gun show held in Great Falls, Montana, people noticed something that seemed odd.

According to a report from Montana’s Independent Record, the Cascade County Sheriff’s Office received “a complaint that a man at the Montana Expo Park (where a gun show was being held) was acting suspiciously by taking photographs of vehicles.”

When officers arrived, including Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter, and the man in question was contacted, he told the officers that he was a police officer from another city, and he was working with a task force running an ongoing surveillance operation of gun shows in the United States, allegedly in an effort “to catch Canadians smuggling illegal firearms into Canada.” He was even working with a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agent, who was also on the Montana Expo Park property and was tracked down.

Of course, there’s nothing unusual about federal law enforcement partnering with state and/or local law enforcement to thwart criminal activity. There are countless examples of these kinds of task forces putting any number of law enforcement agencies together to work in concert.

But this time was a little different.

You see, the other city is the City of Lethbridge, which is in Canada, and the task force was apparently organized by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). What brought attention to the Lethbridge police officer was that he was reported to be in a black SUV with Canadian license plates, driving around the property while photographing vehicles.

Usually, if US authorities are going to give foreign agents permission to operate in the US, they will notify the local authorities. After all, one wouldn’t want an international incident to arise because local officials stop, arrest, or have an even more troubling interaction with a representative of a foreign government conducting what they may believe to be illegal, clandestine operations on US soil.

The ATF agent told Sheriff Slaughter that his office had contacted city police about the operation, but the property is under the jurisdiction of Cascade County, which falls under Sheriff Slaughter’s purview. If the ATF’s intent was to notify the appropriate local law enforcement, you would think it would take the time to figure out under which jurisdiction the operation was being run.

Sheriff Slaughter’s report on the incident noted, “I told (the ATF agent) that because he did not tell me about the operation, they were no longer allowed to continue conducting it.” This did not seem to sit well with federal agent, as the report added, “(The ATF Agent) then stated he does not have to tell me, insinuating that because he is a federal agent he is not required to do so.”

In spite of the federal agent’s attempt to seemingly flex his federal muscles, Sheriff Slaughter said both the ATF agent and the Canadian police officer left.

What, exactly, was going on remains unclear. Sheriff Slaughter pointed out that the two law enforcement officers gave different descriptions of the operation taking place. The Canadian operative claimed the purpose was to catch Canadians who were trying to smuggle firearms from the US into Canada, while the ATF agent said the investigation was focused on a specific American.

What is also unclear is why the ATF did not contact Sheriff Slaughter, but claims it did contact the city police, even though they did not have jurisdiction over the area where the operation took place. Surely the federal government has the resources to figure out a relatively simple issue like jurisdiction.

And although there is no requirement that local officials be notified of an ongoing federal operation, as Sheriff Slaughter pointed out, “They’re supposed to, it’s a courtesy thing. They need to tell us what’s going on, because we’re responsible for that jurisdiction.”

We have seen ATF used by the current administration as a political and propaganda tool to further anti-gun efforts when it cannot accomplish what it wishes to do through legislation. Therefore, it would come as no surprise to see the agency avoid contacting the Cascade County Sheriff intentionally when conducting a firearm-related investigation in his jurisdiction. Especially if there was anything remotely questionable about that investigation.

If the investigation was a legitimate law enforcement exercise, focused on potential criminal activity and based on actual evidence of the same, then that’s fine. But the Canadian operative seemed to imply the task force he worked for was looking at gun shows—plural—in the US, which begins to sound more like a fishing expedition. And if the ATF is part of this Canadian task force, to whom does it answer or report?

Again, perhaps this is all legitimate; but on the chance that it is not, or there is even a small aspect of it that might be questionable, it warrants further exploration. Maybe Congress needs to ask for some details from ATF about allowing foreign law enforcement to operate in the US. Especially when it could involve issues related to the Second Amendment.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Canada ATF
TRENDING NOW
One Big Beautiful Bill Clears Senate, and Heads Back to House

News  

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

One Big Beautiful Bill Clears Senate, and Heads Back to House

Earlier today the U.S. Senate passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” This bill contained a provision that would, among other things, eliminate the burdensome $200 excise tax imposed by federal law on suppressors, short-barreled firearms, and “any ...

U.S. Senate Adds Pro-Gun Tax Relief Language Back into Reconciliation Bill

News  

Saturday, June 28, 2025

U.S. Senate Adds Pro-Gun Tax Relief Language Back into Reconciliation Bill

Overnight, the U.S. Senate added pro-gun tax relief language back into the Reconciliation bill after the Senate Parliamentarian struck out an earlier provision.  While this new provision is not as expansive as the language we advocated for which ...

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

News  

Second Amendment  

Thursday, May 22, 2025

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

Earlier today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.1 the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which included Section 2 of the Hearing Protection Act, completely removing suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA).

Armed Churchgoers Prevent Mass Attack as State Lawmakers Plot More Gun Control

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Armed Churchgoers Prevent Mass Attack as State Lawmakers Plot More Gun Control

Just over an hour away from the state capitol in Lansing, Michigan – even as lawmakers worked feverishly to pass various gun control measures, including expansion of “gun free” zones – a chilling reminder unfolded of the ...

Urge the U.S. Senate to Pass the One Big Beautiful Bill – Contact Your U.S. Senators Today!

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Urge the U.S. Senate to Pass the One Big Beautiful Bill – Contact Your U.S. Senators Today!

The U.S. Senate has cleared a number of procedural hurdles and is preparing to vote on the One Big Beautiful Bill. This vote will likely come within the next day. The One Big Beautiful Bill includes ...

Canada’s Big Ugly Gun Grab: An Update

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Canada’s Big Ugly Gun Grab: An Update

Canada’s Liberal government is pressing on with its harebrained gun ban and confiscation program for “assault style weapons,” but, true to form and precedents, it has been far from smooth sailing.

U.S. Senate Forced to Remove Pro-Gun Language from Reconciliation Bill

News  

Friday, June 27, 2025

U.S. Senate Forced to Remove Pro-Gun Language from Reconciliation Bill

Today, the U.S. Senate was forced to remove the pro-gun language that had been previously included in the Reconciliation Bill currently making its way through the chamber. We explained in a previous article that this language would, ...

North Carolina: Update on Gun Bills Moving through the General Assembly

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

North Carolina: Update on Gun Bills Moving through the General Assembly

Recently, House Bill 193 (H193) was reported favorably out of both the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Rules Committee, with amendments.

Argentina President Milei Continues to Make Improvements to Country’s Gun Laws

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Argentina President Milei Continues to Make Improvements to Country’s Gun Laws

We’ve reported before about Argentina President Javier Milei expanding access to firearms for law-abiding Argentinians.

Connecticut: Governor Signs Firearms Industry Liability Bill

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

Connecticut: Governor Signs Firearms Industry Liability Bill

Recently, Governor Lamont signed House Bill 7042 (HB 7042) into law as Public Act No. 25-43. 

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.