Gun Shop Cancels Sale of Smart Gun After Owner Receives Death Threats
The owner of a gun shop in Rockville, MD will no longer authorize sale of a new technology of "smart guns" after receiving too many death threats. Andy Raymond was to be the first U.S. seller of the new technology at his store Engage Armament.
The gun that Raymond was planning on selling, the Armatix iP1 .22-caliber, utilizes a watch to enable fire.
The gun is implanted with an electronic chip that allows it to be fired only if the shooter is wearing a watch that communicates with it through a radio signal. If the gun is moved more than 10 inches from the watch, it will not fire.
The store received pushback from gun enthusiasts, who claimed that the smart gun violates their second amendment rights. These protests eventually turned into frightening threats for the shop owner.
"You're going to get what's coming to you," was among the messages he received, Raymond said.
"They told my business partner they would burn down the shop. I try to be reasonable with people, but I guess I made a mistake."
Another shop outside of Los Angeles faced similar threats earlier this year and removed the smart guns from their shelves.
