By Lee Williams
SAF Investigative Journalism Project
When I first started writing about Patrick “Tate” Adamiak’s plight about 21 months ago, I never thought he would be an honored guest at the Second Amendment Foundation’s Gun Rights Policy Conference, or that I would be able to interview him about his undeserved four years behind bars, but that, friends, is exactly what is going to happen.
As almost all of you know, Tate recently received a “full and unconditional” pardon from President Donald Trump after he was sentenced to more than 20 years in federal prison following his arrest for illegally possessing a toy machine gun and other legal gun parts by Biden-era ATF agents. At the time of his arrest, Adamiak was an active-duty Navy E-6 who had been accepted to BUD/S (SEAL training).
As it stands now, I will interview Tate two times, at GRPC and at AMM-Con, the Alternative Mass Media Conference—a one-day workshop for anyone reporting on the Second Amendment: Journalists, bloggers, podcasters, YouTubers, radio hosts, and first-time advocates.
I’ve been in the industry long enough to know that most journalists almost always need help, so I am asking for yours.
Please email me your questions for Tate—whatever you’ve always wanted to know. You can either leave them in the comments below or send me an email. I will ask them. I promise!
“Saint Benitez”
Both GRPC and AAM-Con are already poised to be incredible events. You can peruse the long list of GRPC presenters here.
GRPC’s keynote speaker is the Honorable Roger T. Benitez (Ret.)—who was affectionally nicknamed “Saint Benitez”—who served as a United States District Judge for the Southern District of California from 2004 until his retirement in April 2026.
Judge Benitez, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, eviscerated California’s unconstitutional gun laws, which violated both Heller and Bruen. Gov. Gavin Newsom once called him an “Extremist, Right-Wing Zealot with no regard for human life,” which is why I can’t wait to hear what His Honor has to say.
AAM-con, too, has an incredible list of presenters.
Both promise to be fantastic events.
“For attendees, AMM-Con is like drinking from a firehose. A master class in guerrilla journalism, all in one day.”
I said that a few years ago. It’s still very true.
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