U.S. governors urge Turks and Caicos to release Americans as Florida woman becomes 5th tourist arrested for ammo in luggage
U.S. governors urge Turks and Caicos to release Americans as Florida woman becomes 5th tourist arrested for ammo in luggage
problems literally only americans have. is it really too much to ask to store guns and ammunition safely?
Whoa there, I do believe that's heresy in the United States. Punishment is a range day with someone entirely too enthusiastic about esoteric gun details like barrel twist.
Fucks sake. Why should they.
It's literally a victimless crime committed unintentionally. Most people oppose 12-year prison sentences for harmless accidents.
I mean, you’re travelling internationally, check your damn bag. You think if a couple of Turkish dudes got caught with ammo in their luggage they’d do great in the states? Don’t like getting in trouble overseas? Don’t break the laws overseas.
I think getting smacked with a cane for smoking weed is dumb. Still won’t catch me with weed in Singapore though. Best believe I triple checked my bags when I left Europe too.
Victimless crime. Who says they're not smuggling ammo into the country to use for criminal activity? You only need to fire a single bullet to kill someone.
It's more than correct that they're detained and go to trial. I don't think anyone is actually sentenced yet?
I also assume 12 years is the upper limit for possession here.
I don't understand how ammo ends up in someone's luggage. It's not like people pack their ammo in luggage to go to the gun range. but I know someone that works for TSA and I believe they said finding bullets in luggage is the most common way people get in trouble.
I want to know why. Are they going to gun stores while traveling and saying, "holy shit! Hornady Critical Defense 9mm for $20 a box‽ I can't pass this deal up!" That's the only thing I can think of.
I have various bags that get used for range trips and travel. I am METICULOUS about clearing the gun stuff out of a bag when I’m done. Same with my vehicle, as I cross an international border from time to time and don’t want my truck getting ripped apart. Every bit of gun stuff that goes in the truck on range day is accounted for and removed when I get home.
The real answer is simple. These people are irresponsible fuckwits that give responsible gun owners a shitty name. You can see it every time you go to the range. People shooting the ceiling, people turning around with a pistol in hand and muzzling the whole room. There are a metric fuck ton of people with guns in the US that shouldn’t be considered qualified to own them.
TLDR: Bring backpack to the range finish with a round left put it in the backpack. Forget to take it out. Go on vacation months later "Oh I should bring my backpack for hiking".
Seeing a great deal and spontaneously buying it is understandable, but why would they open up the box and allow ammo to roll around loose in the car?
Correct.
Source: I travel a lot and often do this.
This typically isn't people putting it in luggage (like suitcases) but backpacks or other non-dedicated range bags.
You definitely might use the same backpack or tote to go out to the range as to go on a weekend trip. Drive to a hunting holiday with friends, then use the same bags for a trip to Disney with the kids. If you're going somewhere, you use the bags you have.
It’s simple. I don’t need different bags for specific purposes. That’s wasteful. I just use the same bags for range time and travel. Obviously I couldn’t tell you how a whole ass gun gets left in there, but I could see a few accidental rounds or casings.
I got stopped going into Canada and their dog got a hit on my bag in the back of my truck. They accused my wife and I for over an hour of trying to bring weapons into Canada. Told them the dog has a good sniffer and that I frequently use that bag at the range, but that I was in fact just traveling to visit national parks and that if I was bringing in guns to their country it wouldn’t be through a major point of entry and would be in the thousands of miles of semi-unmonitored border.
If you’re driving to a multi-day camping/shooting event with friends you’ll pack your suitcase. Sounds very plausible to me.
Just use a separate bag for guns and ammo. It's not that hard, and you will never mix them up.
But then you get that awkward situation where you go on vacation, open your luggage to get a fresh pair of socks or whatever, and find that you brought nothing but guns and ammo along with you on your trip.
God I hate it when that happens!
I think they'd be more likely to feel distressed at discovering the opposite had occurred
At least I've got a clean pair of Glocks.
Yeah this is psychotic my ammo bag is never used for anything else except ammo. It would never occur to me to take it on vacation. Why would I even want to? I don't even believe these people.
Exactly. It was one of the first things they told us in the training classes. I still don't understand why they aren't mandatory prior to owning a gun.
Or even better, don't own either! Boom, problem solved!
Or even better, don’t own either!
Easy for you to say. But what an I supposed to do without any bags? Just carry everything in cardboard boxes?
Make the world a safer place, Turks and Caicos.
12 years seems like a long time, but a couple years of prison for bringing a weapon to a country that has illegalized those weapons and states very clearly that you can be prosecuted for bringing those weapons?
Sure.
There was no weapon.
Oh, thanks, I thought I read the woman had ammunition only, but the four earlier tourists were carrying guns. They were apparently not!
Still, if the airport explicitly tells you not to carry firearm ammunition into the country under penalty of prosecution, and then you carry firearm ammunition into the country, you can't be shocked by prosecution.
Downvoted for pointing out the facts. lol. Good job Lemminites!
As an american: no mercy. You should always be looking up whether its legal to transfer weapons when you visit another country.
There is zero evidence that any of these people arrested were intentionally bringing ammo into their country. The woman in the article was actually caught with 2 rounds in her bag when she was leaving the country.
12 years for accidentally bringing 4 rounds into a foreign country for a husband and father of two? Regardless of what you think of this guy, that is extreme.
The idea that you just have loose ammo in the folds of your bags instead of crumbs is so insane and also so stereotypical of americans. 12 years is a little much but I have less sympathy since the US constantly locks citizens of other countries away for longer for less dangerous offences.
Like around here if you store ammo inappropriately like this will get your gun license yoinked permanently faster than you can blink. Like the dangerous part of owning guns is the ammo, without it guns are just an ineffective club, and ammo can go off without a gun.
Totally agree. Not being able to account for all your ammunition shows to me a lack of the basic necessary discipline and maturity to handle a weapon.
Oh you sweet summer child. When I was in college, my lacrosse team was traveling for an away game. My teammate forgot he had shotgun shells in his bag. First of all, they didn't find it until the way BACK. Second, he received no legal punishment.
Ammo can go off without a gun, yes, but is significantly less dangerous. The casing just sort of takes off and you have deal with much lower velocity soft casing rather than a bullet. Still can end up with some wounds but the deadliness is practically nullified.
I love this. This is my current favourite part of the timeline where Americans are treated with the same hypocrisy they demand of everyone else globally. Then whine and complain as always, and the other government just doesn't care. Stay strong Turks and Caicos, makes me want to buy one of your citizenships so much more.
Do you have anything that actually indicates any of these people who have been arrested there demanded that this exact thing happen to everyone else globally? Outside of that, it just reeks of dealing with the cognitive dissonance of thinking you care about justice, but having a vengeful attitude towards Americans, probably because you have a low opinion of America's politics.
Cool, let me know how their tourism industry turns out after they finish.
I’m sure getting all of this press is worth it if they scare away the people of the richest nation in the western hemisphere that is closest geographically to their tiny islands.
I’m sure they can replace American tourists.
You know one of the reasons why Cuban tourism was then wasn't then now is so popular? Because Muricans can't go there. Seriously. People would flock from all over North America, except Murica, to Cuba and get to enjoy a civil holiday devoid of a bunch of angry yelling tourists demanding they do thing a certain correct way.
Countries like this in the world today in 2024, will be just fine. American tourism is declining to the point of irrelevance for everybody but the 1% Americans. The Chinese have the crown but COVID paused their global ambitions. There are many tourists that try to go out of their way to avoid American hotspots when on holiday for good reason.
Everyone is for restorative justice until it’s someone or something they don’t like.
12 years is pretty ridiculous. OTOH, you are unknowingly traveling with live ammo. I'm less bothered by the ammo part than the unknowing part, but in combination - yeah that needs to be more than a slap on the wrist.
You have just demonstrated your inability to keep track of the important bits related to your deadly weapon. Maybe you don't need to own a deadly weapon if that's an indicator of how you treat it.
So I'm all for "restorative justice" but I do think this should get more than a stern talking to.
Everyone is for restorative justice until it’s someone or something they don’t like.
Only the left is for restorative justice. The right is for maximum punishment, and no mercy. Especially if you don't look like they do.
OTOH the right seems pretty into personal responsibility - until it's someone or something they do like.
It used to be a fine, which was more than a "stern talking to" and seems pretty reasonable for a careless act that hurt noone.
And if you are for restorative justice, and you think prison time for this is a good idea, then it doesn't matter if other people are hypocrites as you absolutely are.
This is a common hustle. They will try to extort money or will drop a round in your baggage.
Why is it so hard to check your fucking luggage before going on a trip?
Grenada has always needed a sequel.
America’s finest.
It's a shit job with shit pay to deal with assholes all day and you don't even know if you'll get that shit pay if congress can't come up with a deal every few months. I don't blame them.
It's a shit job that shouldn't exist. It's all security theater and always has been.
I blame them. I see people doing literal shit jobs (cleaning bathrooms) every day for shittier pay and they even have a smile in their faces from time to time. They definitely don’t go out of their way to be assholes to everyone around them and spread their misery.
It’s an organization culture thing. I’ve been to airports where they just do their jobs, and I’ve been to ones where they think they’re cops and act accordingly: as bastards.
It's okay - just as long as it's not a slightly larger pack of toothpaste, or god forbid some water. Luckily those get caught, so we're still safe.