Bud Cummins, the attorney representing the family of former Clinton National Airport executive Bryan Malinowski, testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee Wednesday morning. Bryan Malinowski died as a result of a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) search warrant where he fired at agents.
An affidavit shows Malinowski sold guns at gun shows from his personal collection at a rate the ATF alleged crossed a line for when a private seller is required to get a federal firearms license (FFL). Private sales do not require background checks and is commonly referred to as the gun show loophole where those who cannot legally possess a gun can easily acquire one. Bud Cummins told U.S. House representatives that the line he allegedly crossed is very “murky” and the ATF should have taken less drastic action.
During his testimony, Cummins questioned the legality of the ATF search warrant execution. Among the key questions is whether the ATF announced their presence before entering Malinowski’s residence. The doorbell video provided by Malinowski’s attorney is the only video known of the raid. It shows agents approaching the home and covering the camera. It is now known that agents were not wearing body cameras, which is against ATF policy. However, according to a statement from the Department of Justice, body-worn cameras are a phased implementation for ATF that has not started in Arkansas. The Arkansas attorney also said that there were 57 seconds between when ATF agents covered the lens of the front door camera and when Malinowski was shot in the forehead with retaliatory fire. All of this happened well before sunrise.
The ATF rule change on private sellers implemented on May 11, 2024, is also in the court system. Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin is working to stop the rule’s implementation. His office said it is still waiting on a ruling. The ATF removed any language of the gun sales having to be linked to a person’s “livelihood” or main source of income. The current rule implemented applies to those who sell guns “predominately to earn a profit.” Malinowski could sell many firearms but did not rely on gun sales as his primary source of income because he was the highest-paid official in Little Rock’s government.
The ATF director is now set to testify before the subcommittee at 9 a.m. today.
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