‘Kill a cop’: Leftists see gun charges dropped due to conservative Second Amendment push

President Donald Trump’s policy to stop enforcing a gun law has been a gift to conservative Second Amendment advocates — and, now, to three alleged leftist militants searched by Alabama police.Grand jurors indicted roommates Levi Belcher, Anthony Slota, and Tadashi Erekson on Oct. 5 after officials linked Belcher to online threats against immigration agents and allegedly found weapons in their home. The Justice Department motioned on Oct. 29 to dismiss all three of the men’s charges of possessing a short-barreled rifle, and a judge has already approved the dismissals for Slota and Erekson. Belcher still faces a threatening communications charge, while the other two have no more federal counts.Prosecutors said their motions are a response to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ announcement on Oct. 9 that it would no longer enforce a short-barreled rifle ban under the National Firearms Act. Right-leaning gun rights groups set the chain of events in motion by suing against the National Firearms Act, which led to a federal court in Texas striking down certain provisions and the Trump administration stopping all enforcement nationwide. Federal officials named the “three individuals indicted on firearm charges” in October. Their arrests happened on Sept. 10, one year since the killing of Charlie Kirk propelled a federal crackdown on leftist political violence. That goal ended up colliding with the age-old conservative agenda of freedom for gun owners.Alabama police allegedly found a rifle marked “ANTI FASCIST” in the home of a suspect accused of threatening ICE. (FBI) The DOJ motions came one day before the court unsealed a search warrant application describing how the trio was allegedly preparing, in Slota’s words, in case “a riot happens.” The three are still behind bars and may not be out of the woods yet, records show.Huntsville police charged Erekson and Slota at the local level with possessing a short-barreled rifle and also accused Erekson of obstructing governmental operations. Additionally, Belcher’s federal complaint says he was charged locally with gun and drug charges, including unlawfully possessing a firearm before age 19.A federal judge ordered Belcher into pretrial detention Oct. 30, citing a history of “alcohol or substance abuse” and “violence or use of weapons.” Slota and Erekson were booked into Madison County jail for a second time on Nov. 4.Belcher’s federal attorney did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment. The office for Republican-appointed Madison County District Attorney Robert Broussard did not respond to an inquiry about Slota and Erekson’s local cases. Information on Belcher’s local cases is sealed because Alabama considered him a minor at the time of his alleged offenses, the Huntsville Police Department told the Washington Examiner.‘Trying to make fun new things’ The federal investigation started after Belcher, who identifies as transgender, allegedly ran from his Tennessee home in his family’s stolen car around April 2025, according to the federal complaint.Belcher posted threats on social media to “gun down” Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents “on sight” the following December, according to the complaint. That made local and federal officers track Belcher further and eventually search Belcher’s shared Alabama apartment, allegedly owned by Erekson.The home contained multiple rifles, what appeared to be 3D-printed bomb and gun parts, and writings with violent phrases such as “kill a cop, save a life,” the FBI’s search warrant application said. “The crimes and injustice of this admin on its people can only be purged with blood,” another object allegedly said.A photo released by federal agents shows numerous gun parts found in a Sept. 10, 2026, home search targeting alleged leftist extremists. (FBI) Belcher had multiple interactions with law enforcement before his Sept. 10 arrest and “was committed for a psychological evaluation” at age 16, according to the warrant application. A family member reported him to authorities that same year over concerning internet searches, leading officers to find “documents related to building an explosive device” in Belcher’s room in Tennessee, the filing alleges.“Due to Belcher’s juvenile status, only limited action could be taken,” the FBI wrote.Erekson echoed his roommates’ “extreme contempt towards law enforcement” and was arrested after he allegedly reached for a concealed pistol on his ankle during the Sept. 10 home search, federal filings say. The search came just after Belcher and Slota were arrested during a traffic stop with guns and body armor.Anthony Slota, left, and Tadashi Erekson get their mugshots taken during a second booking into a Madison County jail on Nov. 4, 2026. (Graphic created by the Washington Examiner) ‘TRANS GIRLS NEED GUNS’: TERRORISM INQUIRY PUTS SUPPORTER OF LEFTIST GUN COMMUNITY BEHIND BARSSlota showed fondness on social media for the Second Amendment and firearms training to protect self-described “trans girls” such as himself, the Washington Examiner previously reported. Upon questioning, he told law enforcement that he and his roommates were “friends who think that we should take precautions in case of like a riot happens,” the FBI said.“Belcher said that when they believed the [National Firearms Act] was overturned, they started ‘trying to make fun new things we haven’t been able to make before,’ but that they had not finished any items,” the bureau wrote.