David Olofson
Encyclopedia
David Olofson is an honorably discharged U.S. Army veteran
who was tried, convicted, and sentenced to 30 months in federal prison by the U.S. Government on the charge of "transferring an unregistered machine gun
" after he lent his 20-year old semi automatic Olympic Arms
AR-15
style rifle to a friend, Robert Kiernicki. At the time of manufacture, this model of rifle was legally manufactured with a few M16
fire control parts because these parts by themselves will not cause automatic fire. Olofson's rifle malfunctioned
at a shooting range
called "The Conservation Club" as a result of the hammer not properly resetting and instead following the bolt forward, emitting multiple rounds and immediately jamming three times in a row. "Hammer follow" is a dangerous and unpredictable malfunction that can happen to semi automatic firearms when a part is worn (or excessively lubricated.) The quick multiple rounds aroused suspicion in someone at the range that the rifle was possibly an automatic weapon, which are not allowed at many public ranges. Police were called and later that day the rifle was confiscated from Robert Kiernicki at his home. Six days after the range incident and confiscation of the malfunctioning firearm, a Green Lake county sheriff's "SWAT" team, in concert with the Berlin police department, and agents from the BATFE (20 officers in all) were sent to David Olofson's home to conduct a "dynamic entry" and arrest him, despite the lack of any violent or evasive behavior on Mr. Olofson's part.
Kiernicki testified that Olofson had told Kiernicki that the third position of the rifle's firing selector was for automatic firing, but it jammed, court records indicate. He also testified Olofson told him he had fired the weapon on the automatic setting at that same range without a problem. According to Len Savage, a weaponry expert who runs Historic Arms LLC, BATFE paid Kiernicki an undisclosed amount of money for his testimony.
David Olofson began serving the 30-month sentence at the federal penitentiary at Sandstone Minnesota in July 2008. All federal courts up to the U.S. supreme court have since denied David Olofson's appeals.
throughout the trial, that: “a machine gun is any
weapon that shoots more than one shot without
manual reloading by a single function of the trigger.” whether Olofson’s AR-15
shot more than one shot at the single pull of the
trigger as a result of a “hammer follow” malfunction
“makes no difference under the statute: If you pull
the trigger of a firearm once and it fires more than
one round, no matter what the cause, it’s a machine
gun.”
Olofson requested the court include the definition of “automatically”
set forth in Staples v. United States: “that once the
trigger is depressed the weapon will automatically
continue to fire until its trigger is released or the
ammunition is exhausted.” Refusing Olofson’s request, the trial court omitted the Staples definition, instructing the jury in the language of the statute that: “a machine gun is any weapon that shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be
readily restored to shoot, automatically more than one
shot, without manual reloading, by a single pull of the
trigger.”
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
who was tried, convicted, and sentenced to 30 months in federal prison by the U.S. Government on the charge of "transferring an unregistered machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
" after he lent his 20-year old semi automatic Olympic Arms
Olympic Arms
Olympic Arms, Inc. manufactures and markets AR-15 and M16 pattern rifles, carbines and pistols. Olympic also manufactures Colt 1911 series 70 style pistols. All products currently manufactured by Olympic are sold under the Olympic Arms brand name....
AR-15
AR-15
The AR-15 is a lightweight, 5.56 mm, air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed semi-automatic rifle, with a rotating-lock bolt, actuated by direct impingement gas operation. It is manufactured with the extensive use of aluminum alloys and synthetic materials....
style rifle to a friend, Robert Kiernicki. At the time of manufacture, this model of rifle was legally manufactured with a few M16
M16 rifle
The M16 is the United States military designation for the AR-15 rifle adapted for both semi-automatic and full-automatic fire. Colt purchased the rights to the AR-15 from ArmaLite, and currently uses that designation only for semi-automatic versions of the rifle. The M16 fires the 5.56×45mm NATO...
fire control parts because these parts by themselves will not cause automatic fire. Olofson's rifle malfunctioned
Firearm malfunction
A firearm malfunction is the partial or complete failure of a firearm to operate as intended. Malfunctions range from temporary and relatively safe situations, such as a casing that didn't eject, to potentially dangerous occurrences that may permanently damage the gun and cause injury or death...
at a shooting range
Shooting range
A shooting range or firing range is a specialized facility designed for firearms practice. Each facility is typically overseen by one or more supervisory personnel, called variously a range master or "RSO – Range Safety Officer" in the United States or a range conducting officer or "RCO" in the UK...
called "The Conservation Club" as a result of the hammer not properly resetting and instead following the bolt forward, emitting multiple rounds and immediately jamming three times in a row. "Hammer follow" is a dangerous and unpredictable malfunction that can happen to semi automatic firearms when a part is worn (or excessively lubricated.) The quick multiple rounds aroused suspicion in someone at the range that the rifle was possibly an automatic weapon, which are not allowed at many public ranges. Police were called and later that day the rifle was confiscated from Robert Kiernicki at his home. Six days after the range incident and confiscation of the malfunctioning firearm, a Green Lake county sheriff's "SWAT" team, in concert with the Berlin police department, and agents from the BATFE (20 officers in all) were sent to David Olofson's home to conduct a "dynamic entry" and arrest him, despite the lack of any violent or evasive behavior on Mr. Olofson's part.
Kiernicki testified that Olofson had told Kiernicki that the third position of the rifle's firing selector was for automatic firing, but it jammed, court records indicate. He also testified Olofson told him he had fired the weapon on the automatic setting at that same range without a problem. According to Len Savage, a weaponry expert who runs Historic Arms LLC, BATFE paid Kiernicki an undisclosed amount of money for his testimony.
David Olofson began serving the 30-month sentence at the federal penitentiary at Sandstone Minnesota in July 2008. All federal courts up to the U.S. supreme court have since denied David Olofson's appeals.
Definition of "machine gun"
The prosecution advanced an argument, one that it consistently madethroughout the trial, that: “a machine gun is any
weapon that shoots more than one shot without
manual reloading by a single function of the trigger.” whether Olofson’s AR-15
shot more than one shot at the single pull of the
trigger as a result of a “hammer follow” malfunction
“makes no difference under the statute: If you pull
the trigger of a firearm once and it fires more than
one round, no matter what the cause, it’s a machine
gun.”
Olofson requested the court include the definition of “automatically”
set forth in Staples v. United States: “that once the
trigger is depressed the weapon will automatically
continue to fire until its trigger is released or the
ammunition is exhausted.” Refusing Olofson’s request, the trial court omitted the Staples definition, instructing the jury in the language of the statute that: “a machine gun is any weapon that shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be
readily restored to shoot, automatically more than one
shot, without manual reloading, by a single pull of the
trigger.”