CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - Two brothers from Athens, Tenn., are on trial in federal court in Chattanooga, charged with selling firearms without a license.
Two other men charged in the case previously pleaded guilty, including one who sold a weapon later used in the killing of a police officer.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported one of the men on trial, Richard Monroe, testified Thursday that he and his brother, Carl Monroe, bought and sold guns as a hobby, not a business.
Monroe testified he had no idea he might be breaking the law. Under cross-examination, Monroe estimated he bought an average of four to five guns twice each month at gun shows.
Prosecutor Terra Bay estimates Carl Monroe sold perhaps 300 firearms during the three years covered by the indictment.
While it is legal to buy, sell and trade firearms from personal collections without a federal license, one is required when a seller's sales reach a certain level.
The other men charged are Kevin Dawson, of Ooltewah, and his father-in-law, Jack Wardlaw, of Columbia. They are awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to weapons charges.
Dawson was charged with selling Jesse Mathews an assault rifle during a gun show.
In November, Mathews avoided a possible death penalty by entering a guilty plea in the April 2011 killing of Chattanooga police Sgt. Tim Chapin during the attempted robbery of a money store.
As part of Dawson's plea deal, he forfeited 323 firearms.
