Gun Used In Assassination Attempt On George Wallace Being Auctioned By Illinois Company

The gun that almost killed former Alabama Gov. George Wallace in an assassination attempt in 1972, is being sold by an Illinois auction house. The gun’s serial number was checked with the police records by Rock Island Auction Co., and it was confirmed to be the same weapon used in the attempted killing of Wallace, who was running for president at the time.

Rock Island Auction specializes in rare firearms and listed the gun in a Friday auction, according to The Associated Press. The company had estimated a presale value of up to $30,000, but it was not clear if the weapon was sold at the auction. The company also did not clarify who was selling the gun and how they came into possession hold of the weapon, but part of the paperwork that comes with the auction includes a redacted letter, referring to a fight between federal and local officials over evidence.

Judy Voss, the company's vice president, said that “there is no doubt,” about it being the same gun that was used by Arthur Bremer in the shooting, according to the Associated Press.

Bremer shot Wallace during a campaign stop for the Democratic nomination for president in Maryland, which Wallace lost to George McGovern. The shooting paralyzed Wallace from the waist down and led to the jailing of Bremer, who was released from the Maryland Correctional Institution in 2007, after serving 35 years of a 53-year sentence, AP reported.

Bremer is reportedly living in rural western Maryland and works on home restoration there, Gerard Shields, a spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, said, according to AP, adding that he has complied with the conditions of his release.

John Erzen, a spokesperson for Prince George’s County in Maryland, said that he did not know what happened to the weapon that was used in the assassination attempt, and Voss said that many of their clients choose to remain anonymous.