Walmart Pulls Guns, Ammo Displays in U.S. Stores, Citing Civil Unrest
October 29 2020 - 4:38PM
Dow Jones News
By Sarah Nassauer
Walmart Inc. has removed all guns and ammunition from the sales
floors of its U.S. stores this week, aiming to head off any
potential theft of firearms if stores are broken into amid social
unrest.
The retail giant, which sells firearms in about half of its
4,700 U.S. stores, said customers can still purchase guns and
ammunition upon request even though they are no longer on
display.
"We have seen some isolated civil unrest and as we have done on
several occasions over the last few years, we have moved our
firearms and ammunition off the sales floor as a precaution for the
safety of our associates and customers," a Walmart spokesman said.
The company hasn't decided how long the items will stay out of
view, he said.
There have been days of violent protests and looting this week
in Philadelphia after police fatally shot a Black man holding a
knife in the city Monday.
In a letter to store managers Tuesday, Walmart asked staff to
pull guns from shelves "due to the current unrest in isolated areas
of the country and out of an abundance of caution."
Walmart also removed firearms and ammunition from stores this
summer in the wake of George Floyd's killing by police when several
of Walmart's stores were damaged.
The country's largest retailer is still a big seller of guns and
ammunition even though it has pared its offerings. Last year, it
stopped selling ammunition that can be used in semiautomatic rifles
and handguns after a shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas,
left 23 people dead.
In 2018, the company raised the minimum age to purchase guns or
ammunition to 21 after a deadly shooting at a high school in
Parkland, Fla.
In 2015, it stopped selling assault-style rifles and it stopped
selling handguns, except in Alaska, over two decades ago. It
stopped selling handguns in Alaska last year.
Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon said last year that stores
would continue to sell firearms and ammunition that appeal to
hunters.
Demand for firearms has skyrocketed this year as measured by
Federal Bureau of Investigation background checks, a proxy for
sales. The National Shooting Sports Foundation, a firearms industry
trade group, estimated a record 12.1 million gun checks for January
through July, up 72% from the same period a year ago.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 29, 2020 16:23 ET (20:23 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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