Armed patron at Missouri Walmart was ‘testing’ Second Amendment

When the founding father imbued upon us our inalienable rights. they also assumed that we would have the responsibility to keep them viable.  In some cases, even a little common sense would be appreciated.

After a series of mass shootings rocked the nation last weekend, a Missouri man made headlines by walking into a Walmart fully armed, and in tactical gear.  He was quickly detained by an off-duty firefighter and then arrested.

The AR-15 toting arrestee was just testing the Second Amendment, according to him.

A 20-year-old man who sent shoppers fleeing after he entered a Walmart store in Missouri while wearing body armor and carrying a rifle and handgun on Thursday, said he wanted to see whether the store would respect his Second Amendment rights, according to a probable cause statement released Friday.

Dmitriy Andreychenko is facing a terrorist threat charge for the incident, which comes five days after a gunman walked into a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, and opened fire, killing 22 people. The next day, another shooter killed nine people in Dayton, Ohio, in an unrelated episode that has heightened discussions about gun control legislation and firearms safety.

The incident sent shoppers fleeing after a store manager pulled the fire alarm.

The probable cause document quoted Andreychenko as saying he “wanted to know if Walmart honored the Second Amendment.” He said he had bought the rifle and body armor because of three recent shootings and a stabbing, and wanted to protect himself.

“Missouri protects the right of people to open-carry a firearm, but that does not allow an individual to act in a reckless and criminal manner endangering other citizens,” Greene County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Patterson said in a statement announcing charges. Patterson compared the actions of the accused to “falsely shouting fire in a theater, causing a panic.”

Andreychenko faces up to four years in prison, as well as the possibility of a $10,000 fine.