After the Brady bill was signed into law (1994), Greg had problems with the government. Someone would come to his store to buy a gun. They would fill out the paperwork (ATF form 4473), and Greg would run the background check. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) would sometimes call to tell him the buyer was not qualified. Then, two or three days later, they'd call again and say "Oops. We goofed. That guy can buy a gun after all." But by then Greg had already lost the sale.

This was wrong. The law says the government has 24 hours to determine if a prospective firearms purchaser is disqualified. If they can't make that determination in 24 hours, they must allow the sale to proceed. So Greg complained to his state senator, Mike Coffman, who in turn put pressure on the CBI to follow the 24-hour rule.

Greg had other problems with the government. The CBI asked for Social Security numbers from firearms purchasers. Greg refused to supply them because the CBI had no legal authority to ask for them. Same routine – same result. Greg forced the CBI to follow the rules.

In reviewing his file of forms 4473, Greg Golyansky noticed that 89% of the people who were refused permission to buy a gun were African Americans. He reported this fact to the CBI. An argument ensued. Susan Kitchen, an agent at the CBI, asked Greg, "Are you implying that I'm a racist?" Greg's reply was less than diplomatic. "I'm not implying anything. I'm accusing you to your face. You are a racist."

All of this happened in 1996, through early 1998. During that same period CBI agent Kitchen complained about Golyansky's political activism, and the way he had put pressure on her, to agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF). The BATF commenced an undercover operation involving "straw purchases" at ABC Loan Company, apparently in retaliation for Golyansky's exercise of his right to speak to his elected representatives, and to petition the government.

Now federal law provides that the person who makes a false statement on form 4473 commits a felony. If the firearms dealer knows the prospective purchaser is lying, and helps him make the false statement, then the dealer is also culpable.

In the course of its investigation the BATF discovered many actual straw purchasers who were doing business with Greg. Rather than bust those people, who were clearly breaking the law, the BATF allowed them to remain at large in hopes they might eventually incriminate Greg. In fact, one of those "straw purchasers", Randy Canister, is now suspected of committing three murders. The BATF placed Mr. Canister under arrest nine months before those murders occurred. But they let him go — because Golyansky might get wise to their undercover operation if the government put Randy Canister on trial.

The BATF wrapped up their investigation in 1998. They presented their "evidence" of wrongdoing at ABC Loan Company to the U.S. Attorney's office. The U.S. Attorney declined to prosecute, probably because he didn't believe Greg had actually broken the law. People had lied on the forms 4473 they submitted through Greg, but there was no clear indication Greg knew they were lying. He always insisted on photo ID cards, and he always ran the required background checks. He dotted his i's and he crossed his t's. In fact, in one particular instance in which a female undercover agent entered Greg's store in the presence of a man who had recently failed the background check, Greg refused to do business with her. "Why are you here with that guy?" he asked. "He can't buy a gun. Are you trying to buy one for him?"

Then came Columbine – April 20, 1999. Coincidentally, Thomas Strickland was sworn in as the new U.S. Attorney for Colorado the very next day. Shortly thereafter, Strickland announced the formation of his "Project Exile" task force. That task force included CBI agent Susan Kitchen – the very same agent whom Greg had accused of racism; and who had tried, and failed, to make a "straw purchase" from Greg when he recognized her companion.

In December of 1999 the Denver Post published a series of articles about ABC Loan Company. These articles included many facts from the BATF's investigation, which was still supposed to be a secret. It's not entirely clear who leaked these facts to the Post. It is clear that the first story in this series was written by David Olinger. Coincidentally, Mr. Olinger worked for Thomas Strickland during Mr. Strickland's abortive bid for a U.S. Senate seat in 1996.

This is where it gets really interesting. In the spring of 2000 Bob Troyer, an assistant U.S. Attorney in Denver, expressed his official opinion: the "straw purchase" provisions of the Brady law are unconstitutionally vague. The BATF had expanded the written provisions of the law by administrative fiat, and they had not conveyed their interpretation of the law to federally licensed firearms dealers in any coherent fashion. Mr. Troyer recommended that the government provide Greg Golyansky a better explanation of the administrative interpretation the BATF wished to place upon the written provisions of the Brady bill. In Troyer's opinion, there was no basis for a criminal prosecution of ABC Loan Company.

This was entirely unacceptable to the Justice Department. Janet Reno sent Sean Conolley, a lawyer from Washington, DC, to Denver. He outranked Troyer, and he quickly squelched Troyer's expressions of official opinion. Soon thereafter, U.S. Attorney Thomas Strickland took the ABC Loan Company case to a grand jury. On May 10, 2000, the grand jury returned a 37-count indictment against Greg, his brother, and his cousin. So Strickland, in his zeal to promote Project Exile, and with inside knowledge of Greg's political activities, brought criminal charges against an innocent man – charges his predecessor in office was not willing to bring – based on an investigation that had been closed for almost two years.

Now the agent who led that investigation, Adam Ging, is currently on administrative leave for alleged misconduct in a mysterious "Kentucky incident." Curiously, the file in that case has been sealed by a judicial gag order. The U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California has publicly stated that he will never prosecute another case involving Mr. Ging as a witness, clearly implying that Ging has lied on the stand in previous cases.

U.S. Attorney Thomas Strickland knew all about this. He knew, as a matter of law, that Mr. Ging would not be allowed to testify in the Golyansky case. He also knew the court had already issued a gag order suppressing evidence of Agent Ging's alleged misconduct in Kentucky. So what did he do?

First, his office caused Mr. Ging's impeachable statement to be placed in the public record. Someone in the government faxed the statement to Steve Curtis, a talk show host on KNUS radio. Someone provided a copy to the Denver Post, which published another inflammatory article about ABC Loan Company soon thereafter. Can you guess who wrote that article? You're right. It was David Olinger, Strickland's stooge at the Post.

It looks like Strickland knew that Ging's statements about Golyansky were probably false, and could never be used in court, so he did the next best thing. He intentionally poisoned the potential jury pool.

Greg Golyansky's case is still dragging on. One of the BATF agents whom the government had pulled from their witness list has recently been fired for testifying in another case without permission from his superiors. That agent has also been testifying on Greg's behalf. Not every agent in the BATF is corrupt.

On June 22, 2001 Greg's attorneys entered a motion to dismiss the entire indictment, with prejudice. On August 17, 2001, U.S. district judge Daniel Sparr denied that motion. Greg's trial is scheduled for Monday, October 29th.

As the Golyansky trial date approaches, several additional intriguing dramas are unfolding.

Richard Eugene Stanley, a Libertarian, has announced his intention to run for the office of U.S. Senator from Colorado. On Saturday, August 4, 2001, Stanley publicized the Golyansky story during the course of a radio interview with Bob Glass. Stanley continues to stand squarely behind the right of citizens to keep and bear arms, and their corresponding right to obtain firearms without submitting to the odious – and unconstitutional – provisions of the Brady bill.

Thomas Strickland has announced his intention to run for U.S. Senate again. He intends to make Project Exile, and the Golyansky prosecution, the centerpiece of his campaign. If he wins, the Democratic majority in the U.S. Senate will be strengthened.

Thomas Strickland is no longer the U.S. Attorney for Colorado. He left that office shortly after George W. Bush was sworn in as president of the United States. Richard Spriggs, a former federal judge, served seven months as U.S. Attorney under an interim appointment made by the Justice Department, which is still largely dominated by Clinton's appointees. George W. Bush has named John Suthers – once the DA in Colorado Springs, and a staunch Republican – as the new U.S. Attorney for Colorado. On August 31, 2001, Mr. Suthers received an interim appointment to that office, replacing Mr. Spriggs. But Mr. Suthers' permanent appointment is still stalled in the U.S. Senate. He is probably unwilling to jeopardize his own permanent appointment by making any controversial moves while serving in an interim capacity.

Will the Senate act on the Suthers appointment before October 29th? Will a new series of inflammatory articles appear soon in the Post, further contaminating the potential pool of Golyansky jurors? Will Suthers, if confirmed, move to quash the Golyansky indictment? Will Stanley's efforts to expose Strickland's corrupt political motives succeed?

The Golyansky prosecution gets smellier the longer it drags on. Political ambitions, and the struggle for control of the U.S. Senate, are coloring every move. Meanwhile Gregory Golyansky, his brother Leonid, and his cousin Dimitry – who fled Soviet tyranny and the KGB only to suffer gross indignities at the hands of the American tyrants who run the Justice Department and the BATF – continue to labor under the burden of a politically motivated indictment.

Justice in Colorado is no longer merely blind. It is dead. And Thomas Strickland killed it.