SAN FRANCISCO - May 25 - A federal court will hear arguments today in a lawsuit brought by San Leandro, California gun dealer Trader Sports, in a last-ditch attempt to prevent revocation of its federal firearms license. The gun shop is slated to lose its federal license June 1, after committing "thousands of violations" of federal law, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

In advance of the hearing, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence issued a new report, Trading in Death, highlighting decades of legal violations by Trader Sports. The report includes detailed information on Trader Sports' record as the second largest supplier of crime guns of any retailer in the nation. In 2005, 447 crime guns were traced to Trader Sports. Law enforcement recovers crime guns sold by Trader Sports at an average rate of more than one per day.

The report is available online at http://www.bradycenter.org.

The report also highlights an attempt by the gun lobby to protect rogue dealers like Trader Sports with new federal legislation. Congress is currently considering H.R. 5092, a bill that would gut the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' (ATF) power to revoke licenses from corrupt gun dealers. H.R. 5092 would also allow Trader Sports to continue operating despite revocation of its federal firearms license, through years of legal appeals.

"Trader Sports has supplied more criminals with firearms than almost any other gun dealer in the nation," said Dennis A. Henigan, legal director of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. "Congress should strengthen ATF's power to revoke licenses of corrupt dealers rather than enacting new special interest laws to protect them."

The hearing will take place today at 2 p.m. before Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, in Courtroom 6 on the 17th floor of the Federal Building at 450 Golden Gate Ave. in San Francisco. The hearing will likely determine whether Trader Sports must cease operations on June 1.

On March 30, the Brady Center launched a new Campaign Against Illegal Guns. As part of this campaign, the Center inaugurated Gun Industry Watch, a comprehensive research effort to monitor the gun industry and expose industry practices that endanger innocent lives. Trading in Death is the second report issued by Gun Industry Watch.

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