You ever hear a story so ridiculous it sounds like it came out of some government parody skit? Unfortunately, this one’s all too real—and it involves the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) taking a sledgehammer to the Constitution, an innocent Navy veteran’s life, and common sense itself.
Patrick “Tate” Adamiak wasn’t just some guy with a gun collection. He was a 31-year-old Navy E-6, just accepted into Naval Special Warfare, living the kind of life many young men dream of—until the ATF came knocking. Or more accurately, kicked down the door with a SWAT-style raid and enough firepower to storm a cartel compound. What was the big criminal offense? Gun parts. Legal gun parts. That’s it.
For nearly 30 months now, Adamiak has rotted in a federal prison in New Jersey. His court appeal? Slowed down by government red tape that makes molasses in January look fast. In the meantime, federal prosecutors—armed with fiction straight out of a bad TV drama—are working overtime to block his appeal using lies cooked up by ATF “experts.”
Let’s unpack this government clown show.
Back in February, Adamiak’s appellate attorney, Matthew Larosiere, tried the logical approach—reminding the court that his client never possessed a single illegal firearm. He even cited United States v. Justin Bryce Brown, a case that involved actual functioning machine guns, unlike the non-functional parts in Adamiak’s possession.
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Bechara couldn’t be bothered with facts. In her eyes, Adamiak’s collection of chopped-up, inert Cold War relics magically turned into battlefield-ready weapons just by existing in the same room.
She wrote, in her legal response, that Adamiak’s PPSh-41—a vintage Soviet subgun known more for being a collector’s piece than anything else—qualified as a “machinegun.” Never mind the small detail that every single one of those PPSh-41s had been cut in half. That’s right. Cut. In. Half. You know, like how you “cut” a sandwich. Except a sandwich doesn’t stop functioning when you cut it, and these firearms absolutely did.
Then there were the RPGs. The ATF claimed they were “destructive devices.” Reality check: the launchers were gutted, drilled through, and as capable of firing a round as a toaster. But that didn’t stop ATF Firearms Enforcement Officer Jeffrey Bodell from working some Frankenstein magic. He added parts from ATF’s own functioning RPGs until—presto!—he got them to fire a single low-caliber round. Then, in a move so brazen it should’ve come with circus music, he called them illegal destructive devices.
You think that’s the end of the nonsense? Oh no.
Bodell also jammed real STEN gun parts into one of Adamiak’s TOY STEN replicas—yes, toy—until he got one pop off. That’s like shoving a Corvette engine into a Little Tikes Cozy Coupe and calling it street legal. But in the world of the ATF, that somehow turned the toy into a machine gun.
He didn’t stop there. Adamiak legally owned open-bolt semi-autos—expensive collector’s pieces, mind you—that were incapable of full-auto fire. Bodell test-fired them. Only semi-auto operation. But that didn’t stop him from classifying every single one as a machine gun anyway. Why? Because apparently reality doesn’t matter when the ATF’s reputation is on the line.
Let’s be clear: none of these items were illegal. Not the RPGs, not the toy STENs, not the cut receivers, and definitely not the open-bolt semi-autos. You can still buy this stuff online today. Legally. Without special paperwork.
So why is Adamiak behind bars?
Because the ATF and federal prosecutors would rather crucify an innocent man than admit they made a mistake. Adamiak didn’t commit a crime. What he did do was humiliate a government agency with a track record of getting things wrong more often than right.
Let’s not sugarcoat it: the man’s elite military career is gone. His future was bulldozed. And for what? Because a couple of bureaucrats decided to rewrite the laws of physics and reality in a courtroom.
Even worse, his appeal is stuck in limbo. Which means the only fast-track ticket out of this nightmare is a presidential pardon.
Enter Donald J. Trump.
If there’s one thing President Trump has consistently stood for, it’s calling out corrupt federal agencies and standing up for America’s warriors. Adamiak fits that bill perfectly. He’s not some conman looking for a loophole—he’s a sailor who got railroaded by a government that should’ve had his back, not a knife at it.
All Adamiak wants is to go back to what he signed up for: defending this country. In his own words, “I just want my life back… I want to return to my career in the Navy despite all that has happened to me. I am still a patriot and love this country.”
That should tell you everything you need to know.
So here’s the bottom line: if President Trump wants to strike a blow for justice and the Second Amendment, he couldn’t ask for a better candidate for a pardon than Patrick Adamiak. Let’s right this wrong before another day of this man’s life is stolen.
