Elma Man Indicted on Gun Charges and for Making False Statements

BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Bernard T. Grucza, 38, of Elma, New York, with making false statements during a firearm purchase, possession of a firearm by a person subject to as domestic violence order of protection, and making false statements. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, the defendant made false oral and written statements to South Georgia Outdoors in an effort to obtain a Beretta 9mm pistol. In addition, Grucza made false written statements to Big Daddy Guns in order to obtain a Ruger .380 caliber pistol.
The indictment also states that between July 13, 2013 and October 16, 2013, the defendant possessed a Ruger .380 caliber pistol despite being the subject of a restraining order issued by Elma Town Court. The indictment further states that Grucza made false statements to special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives that he had destroyed the Ruger .380 caliber pistol and thrown out the parts when in fact he had not.
The defendant will be arraigned on February 10, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr.
The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Cannon; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian P. Boetig; the Erie County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Timothy Howard; and the Hamburg Police Department, under the direction of Michael Williams.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty

Prosecutor: 2 Men Plotted Against Government Sites

A prosecutor says two Georgia men plotted to make poison to use against government officials and federal buildings, while defense attorneys said the pair were simply talking big but committed no crimes.

Jurors heard opening statements Tuesday in the trial of Samuel Crump and Ray Adams.

Crump and Adams were among four men arrested in November 2011 after surveillance by an undercover informant who infiltrated their meetings at homes, during car rides and at a Waffle House restaurant. They face charges of conspiring and attempting to make ricin.

Two other men, Frederick Thomas and Dan Roberts, pleaded guilty in April 2012 to conspiring to get an unregistered explosive and an illegal gun silencer. U.S. District Judge Richard Story sentenced each of them to five years in prison.

Judge rules Chicago gun ban is unconstitutional

A federal judge ruled Monday that Chicago's ban on virtually all sales and transfers of firearms is unconstitutional.
"The stark reality facing the City each year is thousands of shooting victims and hundreds of murders committed with a gun. But on the other side of this case is another feature of government: certain fundamental rights are protected by the Constitution, put outside government's reach, including the right to keep and bear arms for self-defense under the Second Amendment," wrote U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang.
"Chicago's ordinance goes too far in outright banning legal buyers and legal dealers from engaging in lawful acquisitions and lawful sales of firearms," he continued.
Chang explicitly did not rule out other types of regulation, short of a complete ban, in order to "minimize the access of criminals to firearms and to track the ownership of firearms.
"But the flat ban on legitimate sales and transfers does not fit closely with those goals," Chang wrote.

The judge stayed his ruling to give the city time to file an appeal.
The FBI's latest annual crime report showed Chicago had 500 homicides in 2012, up from 431 in 2011 and more than any other American city.
Still, Chicago does not have the highest homicide rate in the United States.
That unwanted distinction belongs to Flint, Michigan, with one homicide for every 1,613 residents, according to the FBI data. Detroit is close behind, with one killing for every 1,832 residents.