Don Davis (gun retailer)

Don Davis (April 10, 1933 – February 4, 2016) was an American gun retailer, the owner of Don's Guns and Galleries, a firearms retailer in Indianapolis, Indiana. He claimed to be the largest independent gun dealer in the United States,[1] and his store has been called the largest public display of firearms in America.[2] For a while, he operated multiple 24-hour stores in the Indianapolis area.

Don Davis
Born(1933-04-10)April 10, 1933
DiedFebruary 4, 2016(2016-02-04) (aged 82)
Indianapolis, Indiana
OccupationGun store owner

On October 8, 1997, Davis' Greenwood, Indiana, store was robbed, and an employee shot and killed.[3] Soon after the incident, he closed all his stores except for the Lafayette Road flagship store, which reduced its business hours. On September 17, 2012, a customer visiting the store to utilize its indoor shooting range intentionally shot a store employee twice. The employee immediately returned fire, killing his attacker.[4]

Davis was named among the top five dealers who sell guns to criminals by the U.S. Department of Justice, ranked at #4.[5] He said that the problem was not with his selling the guns, which requires FBI screening, but with those who purchase them and privately resell them, which he describes as a major loophole in the gun control laws. Some area residents feel that Davis catered to a less-than-upstanding clientele, largely profiting from inflated prices for people that have been described as dubious.[6]

Davis was a vocal proponent of the Brady Bill. He later called the bill largely ineffective because of its wording, which does not ban guns by type or firing capacity, but rather by specific technical attributes.[7]

Davis was locally known for his late night television commercials. Indianapolis Magazine voted them as the worst Indianapolis-based commercials in 1984 and 1985. He traditionally ended them with his slogan, "I don't want to make any money. I just love to sell guns, heh-heh-heh."[8]

Davis was interviewed by NPR's Michele Norris on All Things Considered to discuss the sunset of the Brady Bill.[9] He had previously been interviewed by Paula Zahn on CNN's Paula Zahn Now.[10] He died at an Indianapolis hospital on February 4, 2016, aged 82.[11]

References
  1. "As Expiration Looms, Gun Ban's Effect Is Debated", The New York Times, September 10, 2004.
  2. "To protest killings, owner of gun shop burns assault rifles", Post Tribune (IN), October 31, 1993.
  3. "Murder Suspect Eludes Cops". Chicago Tribune. 8 October 1997. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  4. Steve Jefferson. "Two shot at Don's Guns; one dead - 13 WTHR Indianapolis". Wthr.com. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  5. "Don's Guns named among top five dealers selling guns to criminals - 13 WTHR Indianapolis". Wthr.com. 24 May 2006. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  6. "Indy Gun Shop Series: Don's Guns – Gun Nuts Media". Gunnuts.net. 28 January 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  7. "High Demand for Assault Weapons", Indianapolis Star, 19 August 2004.
  8. "Don's Guns Garage band commercial". YouTube. 24 May 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  9. "Gun Dealer Sees Changes in Weapons Law". All things considered. 8 September 2008. 3:57 minutes in. National Public Radio. NPR's Michele Norris talks with Don Davis, owner of Don's Guns in Indianapolis, Ind., about the upcoming expiration of the 10-year-old federal ban on assault weapons. Davis talks about how his business was affected by the ban, and how he adapted to sell legal weapons.
  10. "Assault Weapon Ban to Expire". Paula Zahn Now. 9 September 2004. CNN. ZAHN: I am joined now by a gun store owner. His name is Don Davis. He owns Don's Guns in Indianapolis.
  11. "Gun shop owner, pitchman for Don's Guns dies at 82". Dailyjournal.net. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2016.

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