News

Actions

Academy Sports pulling guns off store shelves

Posted at 5:10 PM, Jun 16, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-17 09:42:04-04

A major gun retailer is now pulling guns off of their shelves following the mass shooting in Orlando at a prominent LGBT nightclub that left 50 dead. 

Texas-based Academy Sports and Outdoors, with over 200 stores, has taken certain rifles off its shelves across the country.

One of the locations says it was in response to the nightclub shooting in Orlando last weekend. 2 Works for You went into the Academy Sports off 41st and Sheridan to check the shelves, but were asked to leave.

Some say it's a response to an intensifying cry for action.

"Those who defend the easy accessibility of assault weapons should meet these families and explain why this makes sense," President Obama said.

President Barack Obama visited with victim families and survivors in Orlando, while Democrats in Washington D.C. took the mantle and ran with it.

"What you're seeing is that the weapon of choice for terrorists in the United States is no longer an IED, it's an assault weapon and we have to that seriously," Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy said.

"One of the fastest ways to sell any firearms product is talk seriously about limiting the availability and the opportunity to own that particular type of firearm," 2-A Shooting Center General Manager Eric Fuson said.

Eric Fuson says 2-A Shooting Center sees sales go up when there's a threat of guns being restricted in any way.

Congress is considering several bills mostly aimed at strengthening background checks.

"It just seems that every time a tragedy like that involves a firearm, the firearm becomes the root of focus instead of the actual root of the problem which is the individual committing the crime," Fuson said.

Fuson says the AR is America's best-selling rifle because of its light weight and ease of use. He says it is getting the blame for a tragedy that left a nation stunned.

"No one blamed the airplane on 9/11; no one blamed the fertilizer at the Oklahoma City bombing, even here locally where the two kids murdered their family, no one blamed the knives," he said. "But the first time somebody gets shot or multiple people get shot, it's instantly the firearm's problem."

Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.

Download our free app for Apple and Android and Kindle devices.

Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines and Daily Forecasts.

Follow us on Twitter

Like us on Facebook