The federal ban on automatic weapons, specifically machine guns, was enacted through the firearm Owners’ Protection Act on May 19, 1986. This act prohibited the transfer and possession of machine guns, with exceptions for government agencies and those lawfully possessed before that date.
Back in the day a lot of my friends and I had automictic weapons. Mack 10s, 11s and Uzis.
We were all in the movie business where guns are used as props where many people had licenses to sell guns and keep fully autos after 1986. War and drug movies always had every kind of weapon you could think of.
I used to have a street sweeper which I found out later was totally illegal after a year after I bought it back in the early 80s while the other guns were still legal. It was only a semi auto. J B Jones who was in Vietnam had all the weapons used on Miami Vice and other films shot down in Miami back in the day. He was also a explosives guy as well and had a lot of assistants working for him. He always over did it.
The US government has always been involved in illegal drugs or alcohol trade with their alphabet agencies. Barry Seal flying into Mena Arkansas was all CIA and where Bill Clinton kept a cover up for a payoffs. Iran Contra was all George Bush and his buddies.
Miami was well known back in the 20s for their rumrunning a probably had as much alcohol coming in as any other place back in the US during that time. They had their special fast boats that were always faster than what the feds had back from the 1920s to the 80s. The old bar Tobacco Road had a long history back in its day.
The Kennedys made their money bringing alcohol in during prohibition but just paid of the right people. Capone paid off politicians but had a hi profile of violence and went to prison for it. Miami has always had a history of bringing rum and drugs in.
