PA Volunteer Fire Department Raffling Off AR-15 Rifles

Pittsburgh PA

22 December, 2020

1:06 PM

Description

LOWER BURRELL, PA — If you want to take a shot at winning an assault weapon while supporting a good cause, now's your chance. With donations declining during the coronavirus outbreak, the Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Department near Pittsburgh has been raffling off AR-15 semi-automatic rifles with six-inch barrels. You can purchase your chance to win a weapon, which has been used in a number of mass shootings in America over the years, for $20. To enter one of the raffles, you must be 18 years or older and meet all federal gun ownership requirements. Shane Morris, Lower Burrell assistant fire chief, said the unique raffle is occurring because the pandemic has stymied traditional fundraising efforts. "We're not allowed to do fish fries," he told WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh. "It's hard for us to do bingos. With the restrictions, we can only fit half the capacity of what we're allowed, so it's kind of pointless to even try to do one of those." The VFD currently is holding the fifth AR-15 raffle in the past two months, TribLive reported. AR-15-style weapons have been used in some of the nation's deadliest mass shootings, including: The 2018 shooting along the strip in Las Vegas, NV, that killed 61 people.The 2018 shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL, in which 17 people died. The 2017 First Baptist Church shooting in Sutherland Springs, TX, the left 26 people dead.The 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, that killed 26 people - including 20 children aged 6 and 7.