$30,000 of illegal fireworks confiscated

By Mollie Halpern
Investigative Reporter
Published: June 30, 2008

Daryl Hatcher, the Director of Public Safety in Franklin county, reads the inventory off of two seach warrants and comments on what he sees, “All of these in this list are reporting fireworks, they have an explosion, they emit a burning ball.”
“Flashing thunder bottle rockets”.
“Hell fire shells”.
And “unleash the beast artillery shells”.
All names of illegal fireworks listed on the search warrants.
Daryl Hatcher says, “where they actually shot a projectile into the sky several hundred feet and detonate.”
Mollie asks: “So they’re the type of fireworks that professionals would use for a display?”
Hatcher answers, “Some of them, yes.”
Franklin county law enforcement executed the warrants on two retail stores—where they say they seized 30-thousand dollars worth of illegal fireworks.
They’re the same stores where police found illegal fireworks this time last year.
Mollie asks, “Does this frustrate you that year after year the same people violate the law?”
Hatcher answers, “it’s always frustrating when you have repeat offenders.”
WSLS 10 On Your Side’ wanted to know why the businesses continue to break the law.
We pulled into “Boones Mill Pottery and Produce” just hours after it was raided.
It was open to the public—but closed to us.
Employees turned off the open light—and locked us out.
We also tried asking the owner at Hill Top Mulch, Incorporated.
But he demanded we get off his property, so we complied.
At Cannaday’s Save-A-Bit they used to sell illegal fireworks but they got busted and now they’re under new ownership.  The new owners tell me that the legal ones they sell don’t sell as well as the illegal ones did.
Hatcher says, “profit is always a motivational factor and as long as it’s profitable, they’ll continue to do.”
And law enforcement will continue to aggressively go after them.