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The Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, in flames on April 19, 1993, following a 51-day siege involving the ATF, FBI, and other law enforcement agencies. The fire resulted in the deaths of 76 people, including 20 children.

The following is a list of controversies involving the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Throughout its history, the ATF has been the subject of a number of controversial cases, both at home and abroad. Notable examples include the sieges at Ruby Ridge and Waco, and the gunwalking scandal. These incidents have drawn intense criticism from gun activists and members of the United States Congress, who accuse the agency of excessive force, poor oversight and planning, and constitutional violations. The ATF's role in these events, along with broader concerns over its authority and mission, has led to repeated calls for its reform or abolition, including multiple legislative efforts to do so.

Ruby Ridge standoff

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Main article: Ruby Ridge standoff

The Ruby Ridge standoff was the siege of a cabin occupied by the Weaver family in Boundary County, Idaho, in August 1992. On August 21, deputies of the United States Marshals Service (USMS) came to arrest Randy Weaver under a bench warrant for his failure to appear on federal firearms charges after he was given the wrong court date.[1] The charges stemmed from Weaver's sale of a sawed-off shotgun to Kenneth Fadeley, an ATF informant, who had induced him to modify the firearm below the legal barrel length.[2] This transaction was recorded and presented to the court. Although Weaver's court date was rescheduled to a day later than originally assigned, he was not notified of the change and consequently missed the hearing.[1]

Photo of Vicki Weaver, who was killed by an FBI sniper during the 1992 Ruby Ridge standoff. It began after an ATF firearms investigation led to a subsequent charge against her husband, Randy Weaver.

During a surveillance operation, officer Art Roderick shot Weaver's dog when it ran at them and then pointed his rifle at Weaver's 14-year-old son, Samuel, who was armed.[3] Samuel fired back at the marshals, and was shot in the back and killed by the team. In the ensuing exchange of fire, Weaver's friend Kevin Harris shot and killed Deputy Marshal William Francis Degan Jr. Weaver, Harris, and members of Weaver's immediate family refused to surrender. The Hostage Rescue Team of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI HRT) became involved as the siege was mounted. In the standoff, FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi shot Weaver, then shot Harris, but the second shot also hit and killed Weaver's wife Vicki.[4] The conflict was ultimately resolved by civilian negotiators, including veteran activist Bo Gritz, who eventually convinced them to surrender. Harris surrendered and was arrested on August 30; Weaver and his three daughters surrendered the next day.

In the aftermath of the siege, Weaver was acquitted of all charges.[5] Weaver sued the federal government and was given $3.1 million in a settlement.[6][7] This incident has led many to criticize the ATF and how it chooses to carry out enforcement.[8][9]

Waco siege

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Main article: Waco siege

ATF was involved in the Waco siege, also known as the Waco massacre, against the Branch Davidian religious sect near Waco, Texas, on February 28, 1993.[10][11] ATF agents, accompanied by the press, conducted a raid to execute a federal search warrant on the sect's compound, known as Mt. Carmel. The Branch Davidians were alerted to the upcoming warrant execution, but ATF raid leaders pressed on, despite knowing the advantage of surprise was lost. (ATF Director Steve Higgins had promised Treasury Under Secretary for Enforcement Ron Noble that the Waco raid would be canceled if the ATF undercover agent Robert Rodriguez reported that the element of surprise had been lost.) The resulting exchange of gunfire killed six Davidians and four ATF agents. FBI HRT later took over the scene and a 51-day stand-off ensued, ending on April 19, 1993, after the complex caught fire.

The follow-up investigation revealed the bodies of seventy-six people including twenty children inside the compound. Shortly after the raid, the bureau's director, Stephen E. Higgins, retired early from his position. In December 1994, two ATF supervisory agents, Phillip J. Chojnacki and Charles D. Sarabyn, who were suspended for their roles in leading the Waco raid were reinstated, with full back pay and benefits (with a demotion) despite a Treasury Department report of gross negligence. The incident was removed from their personnel files.

ATF has received significant criticism for their actions at Waco. The Waco siege has become a "symbol of government oppression" by those critical of the government generally.[12] Critics blame the ATF for improper planning, execution, communication and exaggerating the threat that the Branch Davidians posed as being the leading causes for the deaths of the women and children in the compound.[13][14] Overall, the siege is often viewed as one of the worst and most deadly failures in the history of the agency.[15][16]

Operation Fast and Furious

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Main article: ATF gunwalking scandal
42 weapons recovered by Mexican military in Naco, Sonora, Mexico, 20 Nov 2009; weapons were investigated by U.S. ICE. Operation Fast and Furious suspect Uriel Patino bought 19 of the weapons pictured one to two weeks earlier.

Operation Fast and Furious was a controversial gunwalking operation run by the ATF's Arizona Field Office between 2009 and 2011 under Project Gunrunner.[17][18] Agents allowed licensed gun dealers to sell firearms to known straw purchasers with the goal of tracking the weapons to high-level Mexican cartel members.[19][20] However, the operation suffered from major technical failures, such as short-lived GPS trackers and a lack of coordination. This resulted in most of the 2,000 tracked weapons disappearing.[21] Only about 710 were recovered, and none of the targeted cartel leaders were arrested as of 2011.[22]

The operation faced intense scrutiny after weapons linked to it were found at numerous crime scenes, including the 2010 murder of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.[23] Whistleblowers from within the ATF sparked Congressional investigations, and the scandal eventually led Attorney General Eric Holder being held in contempt of Congress after refusing to release related documents.[24] The fallout damaged U.S.-Mexico relations and exposed deep flaws in ATF oversight and interagency communication.[17]

Reactions

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Oklahoma City Bombing

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Main article: Oklahoma City bombing

Timothy McVeigh, the person who orchestrated the Oklahoma City Bombing, cited Ruby Ridge and the Waco Siege as his primary motivations.[25] He did the bombing of the federal building on April 19, 1995, exactly two years after the end of the Waco Siege.[26]

David Chipman nomination

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In April 2021, David Chipman was nominated by the Biden Administration to be the director of the ATF. A primary contention to his nomination was that he participated in the Waco Siege.[27] While Chipman was not sent to the site until early May, after the siege had transpired, this was still used as justification to oppose his nomination.[28] Biden withdrew his support for Chipman's nomination later that year following strong opposition due to Chipman's work with gun control groups Everytown and Giffords.[29]

Calls to abolish the ATF

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As a result of these controversies, and opposition to the ATF as an institution generally, there have been efforts to eliminate the agency. In 2025, Representative Lauren Boebert and Representative Eric Burlison introduced H.R. 129 titled the Abolish the ATF Act.[30][31] Rep. Burlison cited that a motivation for introducing the legislation was that the agency "believes it can infringe on constitutional liberties without consequence." Representative Matt Gaetz has also called for the ATF to be abolished or defunded.[32]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Weaver's Lawyers Say Warrant Was Invalid -- Court Clerk Testifies That Suspect Was Given Wrong Date | The Seattle Times". archive.seattletimes.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  2. ^ Weiss, Philip (1995-01-08). "Off the Grid". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  3. ^ "Lewiston Morning Tribune - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  4. ^ "The nightmare of Idaho's Ruby Ridge". 2017-02-11. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  5. ^ "Moscow-Pullman Daily News - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  6. ^ Labaton, Stephen (1995-08-16). "SEPARATIST FAMILY GIVEN $3.1 MILLION FROM GOVERNMENT". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  7. ^ Ostrow, Ronald J. (1995-08-16). "U.S. to Pay $3.1 Million for '92 Idaho Shootout : Court: Settlement in Weaver case reflects loss of mother, son in Ruby Ridge incident. But wrongdoing is denied". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  8. ^ Jackson, Robert L.; Ostrow, Ronald J. (1995-09-26). "Pressure, Errors by Both Sides Led to Ruby Ridge Siege". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  9. ^ Press, Associated (1995-11-01). "ATF MAKING REFORMS, OFFICIALS SAY". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  10. ^ "Survivors of 1993 Waco siege describe what happened in fire that ended the 51-day standoff". ABC News. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  11. ^ Burton, Tara Isabella (2018-04-19). "The Waco tragedy, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  12. ^ "Waco: how the siege became a symbol of government oppression". Manchester Metropolitan University. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  13. ^ X (1995-07-21). "Data-Gathering Flaws Cited for Failed Waco Raid". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  14. ^ Monroe, Rachel (2023-04-12). "What Really Happened at Waco". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  15. ^ "Austin American-Statesman Subscription Offers, Specials, and Discounts". subscribe.statesman.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  16. ^ "30 years after the siege, 'Waco' examines what led to the catastrophe". NPR. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  17. ^ a b "How Mexican killers got US guns from 'Fast and Furious' operation". Christian Science Monitor. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  18. ^ Savage, Charlie (2011-07-27). "Agent Who Supervised Gun-Trafficking Operation Testifies on His Failings". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  19. ^ "Congress starting ATF "gunwalker scandal" probe - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2011-06-10. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  20. ^ Attkisson, Sharyl (2011-10-14). "Attorney General Holder subpoenaed for documents in ATF Gunwalker Fast and Furious case - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  21. ^ "A Review of ATF's Operation Fast and Furious and Related Matters" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 April 2015. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  22. ^ enforcement, Richard A. Serrano Richard A. Serrano was a federal law; Washington, terrorism reporter in the Los Angeles Times’; D.C.; in 2015, bureau He left The Times (2011-10-03). "Emails show top Justice Department officials knew of ATF gun program". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-05-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ "Phoenix-area gun store, ATF sting may be linked to shootout". 2011-02-03. Archived from the original on 3 February 2011. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  24. ^ Silverleib, Alan (2012-06-28). "House holds Holder in contempt | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  25. ^ Singer, Mark (2011-07-26). "From Oklahoma City to Oslo". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  26. ^ Stanley, Alessandra (2010-04-21). "Television Review - 'The McVeigh Tapes' - Timothy J. McVeigh in His Own Remorseless Words - NYTimes.com". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 21 April 2010. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  27. ^ "Biden's ATF nominee investigated Waco raid but did not participate". AP News. 2021-08-30. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  28. ^ "Biden ATF nominee Chipman faces Republican Senate scrutiny". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2024-08-12. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  29. ^ Penzenstadler, Joey Garrison and Nick. "Biden withdraws ATF pick David Chipman after resistance over gun control support". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  30. ^ "Group of House Republicans unveil the 'Abolish the ATF Act'". MSNBC.com. 2025-01-09. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  31. ^ Swanson, Christa (2025-01-10). "Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert introduces bill to abolish Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - CBS Colorado". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
  32. ^ "An unburdened Rep. Gaetz calls for abolishing the FBI, CDC, ATF". NBC News. 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2025-05-11.
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