The AR-15 .23-caliber gun is a deadly weapon that doesn't need to be on the streets. One Web site said it would sell for $2,000 during "the heyday" of the gun ban. It was for sale this week for $825.

Decatur police confiscated an AR-15 on the city streets early Saturday from a 16-year-old who officers stopped for a traffic violation.

After a lengthy chase, police stopped the car in an alley behind Eighth Street Southeast. The youngster and an accomplice who escaped also had 20 pounds of marijuana in the vehicle.

The 16-year-old went to jail.

Just more problems from a bad side of town?

Hardly. The location where police stopped the vehicle is near Somerville Road Southeast and the entrance to Decatur General Hospital.

Even if the accomplice is old enough to own a gun, clearly this AR-15 was in the wrong hands and for criminal activity.

It is equally worrisome that the gun would have gone undetected if police hadn't stopped the driver for a traffic violation.

Do you ever think about how many hoodlums are riding around with AR-15s or other deadly weapons in vehicles and ready to use them? The incident also begs the question: How could a 16-year-old afford the weapon and 20 pounds of marijuana?

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