Florida Parking-Lot-Storage Bill Clears Senate Committee: A
controversial bill that would make it illegal for businesses to keep
employees from bringing guns to work and storing them in their vehicles
passed another committee in the Senate on Tuesday. The swiftness
contrasts sharply with a protracted debate last year that split
Republican lawmakers between two favorite interests - business and guns
- and competing visions of constitutional rights.

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/04/11/State/Senate_panel_passes_N.shtml
---

Self-Defense Bill Clears North Dakota House: Legislation to clarify when
North Dakotans may shoot intruders without fear of prosecution or
lawsuits was quietly approved in the state House, two months after it
prompted an uproar about self-defense rights. The measure says North
Dakotans are obliged to try to avoid an armed confrontation if they can
do so safely. However, it says the "duty to retreat" does not apply if a
person is responding to an intruder in his or her home, workplace or
travel trailer.

http://www.bismarcktribune.com/articles/2007/04/11/news/state/131742.txt
---

Montana Self-Defense Bill Stuck In Committee: Members of the Montana
Shooting Sports Association are disappointed that House Bill 340,
described as the "self defense" bill, will probably not be passed this
legislative session. The bill is currently tabled in the Senate
Judiciary Committee. Sen. Jesse Laslovich, D-Anaconda, who chairs the
committee, has guaranteed the bill will stay where it is.

http://www.sidneyherald.com/articles/2007/04/11/news/news02.txt
---

Michigan Bill Would Eliminate Pistol-Safety Inspections: Aiming to make
handgun registration more efficient, some lawmakers hope to eliminate
pistol safety inspections. The Michigan safety inspection law requires
the buyer of a handgun to take it to a local law enforcement agency
within 10 days of purchase for registration and inspection. (Why not
simply eliminate the registration?)

http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070411/News01/704110423
---

Pennsylvania Gun Owners Outraged Over Registration Bill: House Bill 760
has outraged gun owners across the state because it would require annual
registration of every weapon they possess other than antiques - guns
manufactured before 1898 - certain collector's items, and
law-enforcement duty weapons.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_502099.html
---

Meanwhile, In Massachusetts...: Legislation filed by state Senator
Jarrett Barrios seeks to make it more difficult for gun traffickers to
avoid detection by creating a central database tracking guns bought and
sold on the secondary market. It will also make it illegal to not report
a lost or stolen gun, allow judges to consider illegal gun possession
when setting bail, and ban the bulk purchase of firearms. (Needles to
say, the Bay State's criminals have all promised to comply with the new
law.)

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/04/12/officials_others_hail_new_gun_bill/
---

Rental Guns And Suicides: Fox News article about the ease of renting
firearms at shooting ranges and a small number of suicides that have
been committed with rental guns stops short of estimating the percentage
of renters who choose that means of killing themselves. (I know of two
suicides at an indoor range I used to patronize in California and feel
that NSSF could provide members information on how to recognize some of
the potential suicide renters.)

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Apr11/0,4670,FiringRangeGuns,00.html
---

Oops, Wrong Apartment: An Arizona man was shot by his ex-girlfriend's
current boyfriend after he kicked in the door to their apartment. The
intruder then drove himself to the hospital, after having been shot in
the head. (I have long sought to point out that there is a difference
between hitting the head on a paper target and actually striking a
crucial part of the central nervous system on a real, moving person.)

http://www.fox11az.com/news/topstories/stories/kmsb-20070411-famjc-manshothead.10a57ebe.html
---

California Man Will Not Face Charges: The Sacramento District Attorney's
office will not prosecute the man who police said shot a 17-year-old boy
breaking into his car last week, officials announced Wednesday morning.
Sou Saechin, 42, was acting in self defense because the boy reached into
his sweatshirt and appeared to step toward Saechin, who feared "he was
about to be attacked," according to a news release issued by the
district attorney's office.

http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/21140
---

Decision Time For Canadian Firearm Registry?: It wasn't exactly among
the Liberals' finest hours. When they launched the national firearms
registry in 1995, it was estimated the project would cost as little as
$2 million. Today, $1 billion later, it's a painful example of how
things can go terribly wrong, especially when it comes to government
spending our money...

http://torontosun.com/Comment/Commentary/2007/04/12/3991313.html
---

NRA, Largest Civil-Rights Group: In her debut as a columnist for World
Net Daily, NRA president Sandra Froman states, "The NRA is committed to
constitutional rights. While most people think of us as focused on
firearms, we are rather more focused on freedom. Yes, we concentrate on
the Second Amendment, but the Second Amendment is about liberty. It's an
insurance policy for all of your constitutional rights. The purpose of
the Second Amendment is to make sure that you have the ability to
protect your life, liberty and property, and those of your loved ones,
against any who would try to take them from you. That includes your
freedom to speak, worship, protest and vote. It includes the things you
hold most dear."

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55148
---

From AzCDL:

SB 1301, which rewrites ARS 13-3102.F to clarify that if any portion of
a weapon or holster is visible, the weapon is openly carried, passed in
the full House by a vote of 40-16-4 on April 9th.  The bill passed the
full Senate on February 21st by a vote of 23-7.  From here it goes back
to the Senate before being sent to the Governor.

SB 1301 addresses several problems in the current law.  Foremost, open
carry is limited in statute to a belt holster, and the holster, NOT the
weapon, must be "wholly or partially visible."  SB 1301 specifies that
either the weapon or the holster can be visible, and removes the "belt
holster" restriction.  Another problem is the interpretation of the
"wholly or partially visible" language in ARS 13-3102.F due to a 1994
Appellate court decision, which held that it has to be obvious to
"ordinary observation" that you're carrying a weapon.  The bill replaces
the "wholly or partially visible" language, and refers to "any portion"
of a weapon or holster being visible.

An amendment was added to SB 1301 during the House Committee of the
Whole (COW) debate clarifying that a concealed weapons permit is not
required to carry in your home, business, or real property owned, leased
or rented by you, including the "common areas," nor in vehicles on your
property.  People have been arrested for carrying a firearm in the
common areas of apartment complexes where they live.  The amended
language gives law enforcement clearer guidelines in such cases.

Please take the time to send a polite note to the Senate letting them
know that you want them to vote for SB 1301 on Final Read.

Senate in comma format:
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], to'[email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected]

Information on this and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website:
http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html

As legislation progresses, we will keep you up to date via these Alerts
and at our website.

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League
(AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots
organization.  Join today!

AzCDL - Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

Copyright � 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.


Your calls and letters paid off!  Governor Napolitano recently signed
two AzCDL supported bills.

On April 10, 2007, she signed SB 1250 which removes the fingerprint
requirement for concealed weapons permit renewals.  Starting December
31, 2007, when you renew your concealed weapons permit you will no
longer be required to submit a set of fingerprints.  For procedures on
renewing without submitting fingerprints, check with the DPS CCW Unit:
http://www.dps.state.az.us/ccw/

On April 11, 2007, she signed HB 2469 which reduces the penalty for a
concealed weapons permit holder failing to have their permit in their
possession, while carrying concealed, from a misdemeanor to a petty offense.

Information on this and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website:
http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League
(AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots
organization.  Join today!

AzCDL - Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

Copyright � 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights
reserved.

--
Stephen P. Wenger

Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.

http://www.spw-duf.info