ATF, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
and Firearms IndustryJoin Forces to Stop Illegal Purchases
of Firearms in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas

"Buy a gun for someone who can't and buy yourself 10 years in jail."

McAllen, Texas – The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas and representatives from the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) – the non-profit trade association for the firearms industry – today jointly announced a major campaign to reduce significantly the illegal straw purchases of firearms in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

The program, called Don't Lie for the Other Guy, was developed to raise public awareness that it is a serious crime to purchase a firearm for someone who cannot legally do so or for someone who does not otherwise want his or her name associated with the transaction.  The program is also designed to educate firearms dealers on how to better detect and deter potential straw purchases. The campaign drives home the message that anyone attempting an illegal firearm purchase faces a stiff federal penalty: Buy a gun for someone who can't and buy yourself 10 years in jail.

"The straw purchase of firearms is the first step in illegal firearms trafficking and the first step towards a prison cell," said Special Agent in Charge Dewey Webb of the ATF Houston Field Division.  "If you illegally purchase a firearm as part of a straw purchase scheme, you are just as responsible as the person who uses that firearm in a crime.  ATF will strictly enforce the federal firearms laws to stop and prevent guns from getting into the hands of criminals."

United States Attorney Don DeGabrielle stated, "What may seem like a relatively innocuous false statement to a firearms dealer is actually a very serious federal criminal offense—one which often enables even more serious crimes to occur both in the United States and in Mexico.  Our office will prosecute these cases."

NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane said, "This program has been welcomed by firearms dealers as a valuable educational tool to better enable them to spot would-be straw purchasers and prevent illegal straw purchases. Our goal in reaching out to the public is to warn them that they would be committing a serious crime by attempting to purchase a firearm for someone who cannot legally possess one. We applaud and appreciate the support of the ATF and the United States Attorney for joining with members of our industry in this cooperative effort."

Residents and visitors to the Rio Grande Valley will see Don't Lie for the Other Guy billboards, transit signs and posters throughout the cities of Brownsville, Harlingen and McAllen, Texas, and will hear the campaign's strong message via radio and television public service announcements (PSA). Outdoor media signs will be displayed anywhere from four weeks to several months, and the PSA will be played for the next month.

The kick-off press conference, originally planned for July 30, has been cancelled in consideration of the power outages and flooding affecting the Rio Grande Valley following Hurricane Dolly.  ATF, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the NSSF recognize the hardship being incurred by the residents of the Rio Grande Valley and regret the inability to present the Don’t Lie program directly to the community.

The Don't Lie for the Other Guy program is a vital component of ATF’s outreach efforts to educate firearms dealers and their employees on how to better recognize and deter the illegal purchase of firearms through straw purchases. This program is an important tool for ATF to accomplish the Bureau’s mission of preventing terrorism, reducing violent crime and protecting the public.

The campaign is reaching out to firearms retailers in the Rio Grande Valley and distributing Don't Lie retailer kits. Each kit contains a training video and brochure for the storeowner and staff as well as point-of-purchase displays aimed to deter this illegal activity.

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Don't Lie for the Other Guy is a joint program of the ATF, NSSF and the U.S. Department of Justice's Project Safe Neighborhoods (a program that according to the ATF's 2005 Annual Report led to a 50 percent drop in firearms related violence during it's first four years, 2001-2005).

Funding for the program comes from a grant for the United States Department of Justice and NSSF. This joint funding provides for program administration, media outreach and ongoing firearm retailer education. ATF will continue to work with retailers in their efforts to identify and deter straw purchases.

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