Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin has serious questions for ATF officials about their botched March 19 SWAT team raid, which killed Little Rock Airport executive director, Bryan Malinowski, in his home. And if ATF has bodycam footage of the fatal raid, Griffin wants to see that, too.

“As someone who couldn’t be a bigger law enforcement supporter, when our government acts in a particular way that raises questions, we have an obligation to say something. My understanding, having looked at the ATF rules is that they generally require a bodycam when there’s a preplanned raid, right? Why? Well, because information from a camera helps fill the vacuum of conspiracy and all this other stuff. So, record it with a bodycam that’s required and then there’s policy that it shall be released as soon as possible,” Griffin said during an interview with local media Sunday.

The Attorney General acknowledged that journalists, attorneys and citizens have raised significant questions about the raid and ATF’s choice of tactics – questions the ATF has yet to answer.

“Look, this is bizarre that there’s just been silence. I understand there’s a state investigation going on with it, but there’s nothing about this footage that should stop it from being released,” he said.

ATF has yet to comment officially on the March 19 killing, other than to claim Malinowski fired first. But Malinowski’s family recently said in a statement that the 53-year-old airport executive likely did not know he was trading gunfire with federal agents. It is far more likely he believed he was defending himself and his wife from armed home invaders.

A yet-unidentified ATF agent shot Malinowski in the head with a carbine at least once. Malinowski lingered for two days before dying of his wounds.

A story published last week chronicled a host of less-lethal tactics ATF could have used during the raid – any one of which would have spared Malinowski’s life.

The Arkansas State Police Criminal Investigation Division is investigating Malinowski’s killing. Once their investigation is complete, state prosecutors, not federal, will determine whether any ATF agent should face criminal charges.

This is not the first time ATF’s use of excessive force has drawn the ire of state law enforcement officials. Last year, after an ATF SWAT team raided one of his constituents, Oklahoma State Representative Justin “JJ” Humphrey demanded a grand jury and presented a probable cause affidavit to the Oklahoma Attorney General, which outlined the crimes and civil rights violations Humphrey believed ATF agents committed when they sent a 12-man SWAT team to the Tuskahoma, Oklahoma home of Russell Fincher, a federal firearm licensee who also teaches high school and serves as a Baptist pastor.

A Pro-Gun AG

Griffin was sworn in as Arkansas Attorney General on January 10, 2023, after serving as lieutenant governor and in Congress. He is a colonel in the Army Reserve, where he serves in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps.

While in Congress, Griffin sponsored pro-gun legislation and was endorsed by pro-gun groups. During Sunday’s interview with local media, he announced he has joined a lawsuit led by other Republican attorneys general who are suing the Biden-Harris administration over their new rule to expand background check requirements for private gun sales.

“I think it’s a bad idea in this particular case, the way they’re doing it,” Griffin said. “This is not within the Biden Administration’s unilateral power to act. We’ve seen it with student loans, we’ve seen it with the gun laws. We’ve seen it with all these different environmental wrecks when they don’t get what they want through Congress, which I understand it’s not a friendly Congress to a lot of their views.”

Neither Griffin nor Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders responded to calls or emails seeking their comments for this story.

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32 COMMENTS

  1. Despite all the shrieking and crying about the threat conspiracies are to “muh democracy” government loves that vacuum of conspiracy. It helps malign anyone who may question the things they do or do not do and serves to further divide the population between those who take whatever it says/does at face value and those who do not.

    Things really took a weird turn after 9/11. Lefties came rushing out of the woodwork to say it was an inside job and evil Bush Jr. did it all on purpose to get us into war to make his buddies rich. Fast forward twenty years and all those lefties are the first out of the gate whenever anything at all happens to berate anyone with a question and insist government is always honest, always right and always righteous and if you disagree you are a threat to “muh democracy.”

    It’s been a really stupid couple of decades. Like 80% of the world went full retard after 9/11.

  2. Botched raid?
    Why the ATF considered that a success.
    Ark AG can investigate all he wants what he will get is Ruby Ridge excuses and a
    Remember The Waco
    ( ATF theBiden’s hit squad)

    • Malinowski, in dry bureaucratic language, was an “example”.

      There will be more examples made at semi-regular intervals.

      • Indeed.
        And us Freedom Loving Patriots will rattle(bitch)our Freedom swords vigorously, and if that doesn’t produce the desired outcome then we will rattle(bitch) some more.
        But that’s all us great American Patriots will do.

  3. This attorney general will get a middle finger. Nothing else. THIS murder will never be forgotten🙄

    • and Murder it was.
      Someone needs to rein in this BATFE hit squad.
      The agency is treating the citizens of America like the enemy.
      Scary stuff.

      • The Progressives think white Americans are the enemy. Undocumented immigrants are more compliant and controllable with the threat of an o-dark-thirty raid and deportation. And they are from a culture of subservience to their superiors.

    • No, he’ll get what he wants, he’ll just have to wait for AI to “sharpen and enhance” the image quality to make it more easily viewed.

    • Everyone here should research
      ATF 0 3020.3A , 3020.4 . IF body worn cameras are worn by other “team” members ( deputies, police swat, etc.), ALL “evidence” collected by assisting agencies is to be handed over to the ATF to be used and/or redistributed as they see fit, if at all, by ATF Special Agent – whom also decides IF the cameras are active or deactivated.

      • In other words:

        “… IF body worn cameras are worn by other “team” members ( deputies, police swat, etc.), ALL “evidence” collected by assisting agencies is to be handed over to the ATF to be carefully edited or deleted just like we did with the Jan. 6th videos as we can’t be seen violating established policies, Constitutional rights, and framing people for crimes they didn’t commit or else we would be sued for “Wrongful Death”, “Deprivation of Rights” and who knows what else, hell we might even be forced to retire early with a full pension …”.

    • Whether they have the assets or not, they should start a give-go=send campaign. The family should in no way be punished or risk their fortunes for a lawsuit. I would happily donate.

    • Watch for wholesale supplies of lumber and barbed wire. A shortage means FEMA is preparing.

  8. By all accounts the home owner did exactly what any home owner has a right and duty to do and they defend their home so damned right Malinowski fired first because the atf gave him no other choice whatsoever. It is the incompetence of the entire atf mob who stooped to cover a security camera like home invading street thugs and barged in as if there were abducted children hidden in a basement in cages.
    With all that has happened with the atf and now this Murder if members of the atf had any integrity they would turn in their badges and find honor flipping burgers.
    Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin looks like he could be a distant blood relative of Malinowski whereas the atf looks like relatives of the third reich.

  9. You guys need to all calm down. The body cam video will be released as soon as it is ready. These AI altered videos still take time to provide “factual” information from the scene.

    /sarcasm?

    • Tragically his brakes failed on his way home.
      It’s the BATFE
      That’s like trying to kill Hitler.
      Dettlebach has the appearance of a psychotic dictator if you ask me.

      • Dettlebach is an arch-bureaucrat. A good lackey to do his master’s bidding. A modern day Quisling, and hopefully with the same fate.

  12. Beyond the videos, he needs to rein in the ATF. Why did the team decide to raid the house instead of pulling him over on his way to work? Then, have agents arrive in daylight at the home to seize any evidence?

    • Because the BATFE has the green light to set examples and taking victims to court doesn’t carry the weight of execution.

  14. I’m afraid someone kicking in my door will be answered with swift firepower. A twelve guage semi with number two’s folloewd by my M4

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