Weekly Reminder: HR 45 has not even gained one co-sponsor in committee
and S 2099 died nine years ago. It is not necessary to forward the
hysterical mailings to me.
Friday, January 23, 2009
U.S. Representative Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) recently sponsored H.R. 45,
also known as "Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale
Act." The bill is, at its core and as its name implies, a licensing
and registration scheme. The measure calls for all handgun owners to
submit to the federal government an application that shall include,
among many other things: a photo; an address; a thumbprint; a
completed, written firearm safety test; private mental health
records; and a fee. And those are only some of the requirements to
be licensed!
The bill would further require the attorney general to establish a
database of every handgun sale, transfer, and owner's address in
America. Moreover, the bill would make it illegal to own or possess
a "qualifying firearm" -- defined as "any handgun; or any
semiautomatic firearm that can accept any detachable ammunition
feeding device..." without one of the proposed licenses.
Additionally, the bill would make it illegal to transfer ownership
of a "qualifying firearm" to anyone who is not a licensed gun dealer
or collector (with very few exceptions), and would require
"qualifying firearm" owners to report all transfers to the attorney
general's database. It would also be illegal for a licensed gun
owner to fail to record a gun loss or theft within 72 hours, or fail
to report a change of address within 60 days. Further, if a minor
obtains a firearm and injures someone with it, the owner of the
firearm may face a multiple-year jail sentence.
H.R. 45 is essentially a reintroduction of H.R. 2666, which Rush
introduced in 2007. H.R. 2666 contained much of the same language
as H.R. 45, and was co-sponsored by several well-known anti-gun
legislators--including Barack Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel.
H.R. 45 currently has no co-sponsors.
Rest assured that NRA-ILA will continue to monitor this bill
closely, and will keep you informed of any developments if they
materialize.
http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Federal/Read.aspx?id=4329
Friday, May 29, 2009
In the last few weeks, NRA-ILA has received hundreds of e-mails
warning us about "SB-2099," a bill that would supposedly require you
to report all your guns on your income tax return every April 15.
Like many rumors, there's just a grain of truth to this one.
Someone's recycling an old alert, which wasn't even very accurate
when it was new.
There actually was a U.S. Senate bill with that number that would
have taxed handguns - nine years ago. It was introduced by anti-gun
Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), and it would have included handguns under
the National Firearms Act's tax and registration scheme. This has
nothing to do with anyone's Form 1040, of course.
Fortunately, S. 2099 disappeared without any action by the Senate,
back when Bill Clinton was still in the White House. We reported
about it back then, just as we report about new anti-gun bills every
week. Now, it's time for gun owners to drop this old distraction
and focus on the real threats at hand.
http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Federal/Read.aspx?id=4925
Even the Tory Media Has Taken Note:
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/washington-whispers/2009/12/18/stand-down-anti-gun-rumor-is-wrong.html
---
America's Third Party?: Most Americans think we have two major political
parties: Democrats and Republicans. However, there is a third party
whose influence extends beyond recognized political boundaries, and its
goal is destroying personal liberty for private gain. Previous articles
noted correlations between campaign contributions and pro-gun control
voting for two large industries: lawyers and public sector unions.
But since Democrats are more supportive of gun control, and unions and
lawyers contribute primarily to Democrats, it is reasonable to question
whether the previous articles merely expose a correlation between
contributions and Democrats, rather than pro-gun control voting.
Anecdotal data shows these correlations hold within parties... This
results in two conclusions. First, the idea that NRA money has an
inordinate influence on Congressional voting is overly simplistic: There
are pro-gun control organizations and professions which contribute far
more than the NRA, and this money influences Representatives' voting
records, too. Second, and most important: Lawyers and public sector
unions stand to benefit from your loss of rights. Lawyers gain legal
employment, including prosecuting and defending gun owners who run afoul
of new gun control laws, as well as from the increased criminal activity
resulting from law-abiding citizens being unable to stop crime
themselves. Public sector unions will gain jobs as crime and
incarceration rates increase, since they support the criminal justice
system...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2879-Austin-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m12d18-Americas-threeparty-political-system
---
In Case You Missed It...: In 2005, the National Rifle Association of
America enacted a law that probably saved the American gun-making
industry from bankruptcy. And just this last week, the Supreme Court
rejected a constitutional challenge to this landmark legislation,
ensuring this law stays on the books to preserve America's culture of
lawful firearm ownership. For years, opponents of the Second Amendment
sought to eliminate gun rights by eliminating guns. Anti-gun groups,
working with big-city mayors like Michael Bloomberg of New York City,
devised a scheme to rid America of firearms. They filed product
liability suits, alleging that firearm manufacturers should be held
liable for any injury caused by a firearm. And not just a gun made by
that particular gun-maker; the suits go after every gun-maker for every
gun injury... Merry Christmas, firearm owners. Don't forget to thank the
NRA for this long-awaited Christmas present. (As I recall, it's
Congress, not the NRA, that enacts laws, lobbying by the NRA
notwithstanding.)
http://townhall.com/columnists/KenKlukowski/2009/12/18/high_court_rejects_challenge_to_nra%E2%80%99s_signature_law?page=full
---
More on the Iowa CCW Dispute: ...I pledged the support of Iowa Carry to
the NRA. We had our own bill submitted during last year's session after
we determined the Rep. Baudler's bill did not meet what we were seeking
in Shall Issue legislation. Going into 2010, we were ready to keep
running with our own bill if necessary. When we were approached by the
NRA, we were not sure what we would find when we sat down with them.
What we ended up seeing was legislation that would, if passed, finally
provide all Iowans with a level playing field when it comes to the
requirements and issuance of the Iowa Permit to Carry Weapons. We feel
that it represents the best chance at getting into law something that
will benefit everyone in Iowa. There are more things at play in Iowa
politics than meets the eye of the casual observer. The NRA understands
this, and so do we. It is taking this pragmatic "big picture" approach
that leads us to the decision that we have made. In the course of this
process, some of you may have seen some of the articles and letters
published by IGO, Firearms Coalition, Jeff Knox, and others. These have
taken to task the NRA legislation, saying that it doesn't go far enough
toward protecting your rights and gives too many concessions to the
government. The answer to these concerns is to pass legislation that
would in essence turn Iowa firearms laws into those similar to what is
currently found in Alaska or Vermont...
http://www.examiner.com/x-1417-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m12d18-Iowa-Carry-says-NRA-bill-best-chance-at-getting-concealed-carry-into-law
---
Don't Confuse Me with Facts: In 2008, the most recent year for which
statistics are available, there were 14,180 homicides in the United
States, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Of those, 9,484
were committed with firearms of all kinds. A further breakdown shows
that rifles (no description) were used in 375 of those killings. That
amounts to slightly under 4 percent of all gun-related homicides... In
Seattle, a young man named Aaron Sullivan was shot to death in the
Leschi neighborhood in July by another youth in what appears to have
been an argument. Now three anti-gun state lawmakers have proposed
legislation to ban so-called "assault weapons" and name their bill in
his memory, the "Aaron Sullivan Public Safety and Police Protection
Bill." A Leschi woman was stabbed to death the other night. A man was
stabbed at a homeless shelter. Who is going to sponsor legislation
banning dangerous knives? ...UPDATE! According to the FBI's uniform
crime report for 2008, only two of the homicides committed in the entire
state of Washington that year were committed with rifles...
http://www.examiner.com/x-4525-Seattle-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m12d18-WA-gun-ban-proposal-shows-facts-dont-matter-to-prohibitionists
---
School District to Reconsider Illegal Policy: An opinion from South
Carolina's attorney general is forcing the Georgetown County School
District to rethink an illegal policy that bans concealed weapons on
school property. Henry McMaster told the district that the policy, which
prohibits visitors, parents, teachers and students from carrying weapons
on school property including parking lots - even with a concealed carry
permit - was a violation of state law. That law was approved by the
General Assembly earlier this year and allows anyone with a concealed
carry permit to keep weapons locked in their vehicles on school
property. Rep. Thad Viers (R-Horry) requested the opinion from McMaster
because he was concerned about possible second amendment rights
violations... The school board said it will revisit the policy, which
was passed in October, when it meets on Jan. 5.
http://www.palmettoscoop.com/2009/12/18/ag-opinion-causes-georgetown-to-reconsider-illegal-gun-ban/
---
Second Indiana Newspaper Posts Permit Database: As reported by the
NRA-ILA, this past week the Indianapolis Star revealed its own gun
database in an attempt to capitalize on the same controversial limelight
as the Bloomington Herald-Times. The Star's database is modified from a
street-based catalogue of the number of permit holders in a defined
area, to a demographic listing of Indiana ZIP codes, including the
percentage of the population permit holders make up, as well as the
their gender, race and age. However, such differences do not hide the
paper's intent. This searchable database of law-abiding carry permit
holders is included in the "Public Safety" section of the paper's
website. The paper seems to believe that it's a matter of "public
safety" for people to know how many permit holders live near them.
Apparently the Star thinks that law-abiding concealed carry permit
holders are to be regarded with caution. Reminds me of the security
stickers often seen displayed- "These premises are protected by Smith &
Wesson." ... (It's not clear to me if Mr. Snyder actually intends to
caution gun owners about the folly of posting such stickers.)
http://www.examiner.com/x-13479-Indianapolis-Hunting-Examiner~y2009m12d18-Concealed-Carry-Permit-Database--Indianapolis-Star-mirrors-Bloomington-HeraldTimes
---
Utah Initiative Could Require Legislators to Disclose Gun Ownership: A
gun rights group says a citizens initiative to reform legislative ethics
would require lawmakers to disclose whether they own guns. But a lawyer
for the initiative calls that kind of talk about the measure's wording
on conflicts of interest "just crazy." This week GOUtah!, a gun rights
group, sent out a detailed e-mail objecting to the Utahns For Ethical
Government's initiative. In part, GOUtah! officials worry that conflict
of interest requirements would make lawmakers reveal in a public
document whether they own a gun or have a concealed weapons permit.
Beyond that, GOUtah! also says that legislators and their spouses would
have to list publicly the guns they keep in their house, car or vacation
home, which could lead to a criminal burglarizing their property to get
a weapon. In any case, such a listing is a de facto gun registration
law, which Utah does not have...
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705352298/Gun-buffs-target-ethics-reform.html
---
An "Only Ones" Tale from New Jersey: Former Hunterdon County Sheriff
William Doyle has been indicted on a charge of illegally giving a former
undersheriff a handgun that accidentally fired in a Raritan Township
health club more than three years ago. Former Sheriff William Doyle, Sr.
has been accused of fourth-degree unlawful transfer of a Davis
Industries .38-caliber two-shot Derringer Model D-38 gun, in January or
February of 2006 in Lebanon Township, Hunterdon County, according to an
indictment handed up Tuesday by a grand jury in Morristown... The charge
stems from a shooting incident on Oct. 16, 2006 involving former
Hunterdon County Administrative Undersheriff Peter Harcar, who had
borrowed the small, antique-style gun from Doyle and was carrying it in
a gym bag at a HealthQuest club when the weapon accidentally fired
inside his locker, authorities had said. No one was hurt when gun went
off, and Harcar - who yelled out "My cell phone exploded" - ran away
before police arrived and later lied to them and prosecutors,
authorities had said... (The term "only ones" derives from a much
circulated video of a then-DEA agent shooting himself in the leg moments
after telling the audience for his firearm-safety presentation that he
was the only one in the room competent to handle the .40-caliber Glock
he was showing them. New Jersey has some of the most restrictive handgun
laws in the nation.)
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2009/12/former_hunterdon_sheriff_indic.html
---
Meanwhile, in West Virginia...: Former Mercer County Sheriff Danny Wills
was sentenced Thursday afternoon to six months in prison, followed by
one year supervised released, for fraudulently obtaining and possessing
hydrocodone. Wills, who is also a medical doctor, admitted that during
his tenure as sheriff he ordered and obtained 4,500 hydrocodone pills
from General Injectables and Vaccines (GIV) in Bastian, Va., and paid
for them with proceeds from the Mercer County Concealed Weapons Permit
[emphasis added], according to court documents. Wills also admitted that
he had written prescriptions for Xanax, a scheduled II controlled
substance, in the names of his wife and son, but he obtained and used
the Xanax himself... (Xanax is actually a schedule IV controlled
substance. There have been earlier allegations that West Virginia's fee
system for concealed-carry licensing has created unregulated slush funds
for the state's sheriffs.)
http://www.bdtonline.com/homepage/local_story_351152837.html
---
Armed Citizen Intervenes Successfully: A man is in police custody after
opening fire at a northwest Oklahoma City apartment complex near Hefner
and Council roads. Police said the man started firing multiple shots in
the parking lot of the Tammaron Village apartments around 4 p.m.
Thursday. Witnesses said the man initially went into the apartment
complex's main office. When employees locked him out, he opened fire in
the parking lot. As the man was firing shots, another citizen armed with
a gun came around the corner and ordered the gunman to put his weapon
down. The gunman dropped his weapon and ran into his father's apartment
and barricaded himself inside. Oklahoma City police, the tactical team
and the bomb squad were called out to negotiate with the man. The man
finally surrendered just before 7:30 Thursday evening. Police said the
man opened fire because he was upset with his military status. Several
people at the apartments told NEWS 9 the gunman was a Marine who was on
leave and came home for the holidays...
http://www.news9.com/Global/story.asp?S=11696830&Call=Email&Format=Text
---
Arizona Jury Rejects Self-Defense Claim: A Pima County jury rejected a
woman's claims that she killed a woman in self-defense, convicting her
Friday of second-degree murder. Tamara Maxwell, 25, is facing between 10
and 22 years in prison, said Deputy Pima County Attorney Mark Diebolt.
Jurors were told the victim, Karina Gonzales, was romantically involved
with two people in July 2008 - former girlfriend Robbyn Kollasch and new
boyfriend Julian Garcia. On July 2, 2008, Gonzales and Kollasch had been
arguing about the future of the threesome's relationship. Kollasch and
Maxwell, who was an acquaintance, went out on July 2, 2008, and when
they returned to the east-side home early the next morning, an even more
heated fight broke out... Assistant Pima County Public Defender Brian
Metcalf told jurors Gonzales grabbed a vase and Maxwell shot as the
other woman advanced toward her. Gonzales kept coming after Maxwell even
after the first shot, so Maxwell kept shooting, Metcalf said. Diebolt
argued Gonzales was not a threat and Maxwell was guilty of first-degree,
or premeditated and intentional murder. Maxwell didn't call 911; she
forced police to find her, Diebolt said. Maxwell also hid the gun after
the shooting, and forced Kollasch to make up a story about a home
invasion to cover up her actions, Diebolt said. When Maxwell was
arrested, she didn't tell police she acted in self-defense until hours
into the interview, Diebolt said...
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/322008
---
Gun Dealer Sentenced for Illegal Exports: A suburban Chicago gun store
owner who smuggled more than weapons into Canada and kept them in a
storage locker before distributing them throughout Ontario has been
sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison. Authorities say some of the 220
weapons that 39-year-old Ugur "Mike" Yildiz, exported to Canada have
been used in violent crimes, primarily in the Toronto area. Police said
they've been able to recover about a quarter of them. The Park Ridge man
owned the Chicagoland Bells gun store in Franklin Park until federal
authorities revoked his license for violating the gun-control act in
2003. Yildiz pleaded guilty in March to violating the Arms Export
Control Act for smuggling the firearms...
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/park-ridge-chicagoland-bells-weapons-toronto-ontario-canada-79698782.html
http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=2353680
---
Private-Party Sale Cautions: Anyone who does not hold an FFL and sells a
firearm to someone he doesn't know well is incurring a certain amount of
liability. And, a bit of bad judgment could cause trouble not just for
the seller, but for the rest of the gun owning community as well. There
is no question that individuals have the right to buy, sell, and trade
firearms between themselves without government infringement. But there
are laws on the books and failing to know and follow them is just asking
for trouble. A prudent trader will take into account not only the legal
technicalities, but the political environment also... Any sale in
violation of the 1968 Gun Control Act and its subsequent amendments
exposes traders to serious criminal liability - as much as five years
and $5,000 for every violation. And when those sales happen at a gun
show it does grave harm to the gun show industry and the entire Second
Amendment movement... (It's worth reading this article in its entirety.
On the rare occasions that I sell a firearm I no longer need to a
friend, I make a duplicate bill of sale. This enables me to show where
the gun went, if I am ever questioned about it, and provides the buyer
with documentation of the purchase, including description, serial number
and price, in the event the gun is ever lost or stolen. In the one case,
many years ago, that I sold a firearm to a friend of a friend, I
recorded his driver license number. Several years later, my copy of that
bill of sale enabled the LAPD to return that revolver to him when they
recovered it a few years after he had lost it in a burglary of his home.
Apparently, he had discarded his copy, along with his promise to
re-register the gun in his own name.)
http://www.ammoland.com/2009/12/18/private-gun-sales-no-questions-asked-no-sale/
---
Interview with Stephen Halbrook: A fifty-three minute podcast interview
with Stephen Halbrook. Over the last three decades, Halbrook has been
the greatest legal champion of Second Amendment rights. As a scholar, as
an attorney (with a 3-0 record in the Supreme Court), and as a public
advocate, Halbrook has done tremendous work in saving the Second
Amendment from nullification, and in putting the courts and the legal
academy back on the track of recognizing the right to arms in the Second
and Fourteenth Amendments. We talk about the broad scope of Halbrook's
career, and about McDonald v. Chicago, in which Halbrook is representing
the National Rifle Association as a party "respondent in support of
petitioner." (Among Halbrook's work is his recent book The Founder's
Second Amendment.)
http://volokh.com/2009/12/17/stephen-halbrook-christmas-special/
http://audio.ivoices.org/mp3/iipodcast362.mp3
---
Recent Article by David Kopel Abstracted: ... Living constitutionalism"
should be distinguished from "dead constitutionalism." Under the former,
courts looks to objective referents of shared public understanding of
constitutional values. Examples of objective referents include state
constitutions, as well as federal or state laws to protect
constitutional rights. Under a "dead constitution," judges simply impose
their personal values, and nullify parts of the Constitution which they
do not like. When living constitutionalism is taken seriously, the case
for the Second Amendment individual right to own and carry firearms for
self-defense is very strong. In the 19th century, almost all legal
commentators and courts, as well as the political branches and the
public, recognized the Second Amendment as guaranteeing such a right. In
the 20th century, some elements of the legal elite asserted that the
Second Amendment guaranteed no meaningful right. But this view was never
accepted by the public or by the political branches. Congress repeatedly
enacted laws to protect Second Amendment rights. In the states, right to
arms constitutional provisions were added or strengthened, and many
statutes were enacted to defend and broaden the right, especially in the
last several decades. Opinion polls showed that the public always
believed in the Second Amendment right. (Kopel's latest book is Aiming
for Liberty. I have purchased it but not yet read it; it looks like an
essential reference for defenders of the RKBA.)`
http://reason.com/blog/2009/12/18/dave-kopel-on-the-second-amend
---
Remington Seeks Army Contract: Remington Arms is hoping to land a
government contract that would upgrade more than 3,000 sniper rifles
used by the U.S. Army in Iraq and Afghanistan. On Thursday, U.S. Rep.
Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, and U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY, announced
they secured $2.4 million to upgrade the M-24 sniper rifles. Remington
already has the existing contract to make the firearms, making the
company the logical choice for the upgrades, Remington Arms Ilion plant
Manager James Rabbia said. "We obviously feel we're the best qualified,"
Rabbia said. "We feel we make the best sniper rifle in the world." ...If
Remington is chosen, though, it would come as welcome news to a company
that during the past couple of years has gone through some changes. It
was acquired by Cerberus Capital Management in 2007. And over the past
couple years, there have been layoffs off and on, Rabbia said. Now,
after hiring 200 people this year, the facility is up to 905 employees,
Rabbia said. "Remington is doing tremendous," he said. In April 2008,
the O-D reported that 160 workers were eliminated from the facility in a
14-month span. Plant and union officials had attributed the job losses
to improvements in the gun-making manufacturing process, retirements and
unfilled positions. At that time it was also reported the company was
poised to gain 100 jobs from transfers from Harrington and Richardson
Firearms plant in Massachusetts. (I assume that the upgrade will
consists of rechambering the .308-caliber M24 to the newly selected .300
Winchester Magnum, for the longer ranges at which snipers have to work
in Iraq and Afghanistan. Cost was one of the reasons cited for the US
choosing the .300 Win Mag over the .338 Lapua Magnum favored for such
work by several of our allies.)
http://www.uticaod.com/news/x1431156401/Remington-wants-Army-rifle-contract
---
First Criminal Use of S&W .500 Magnum?: ...With his pockets stuffed with
50-caliber handgun ammo and carrying a bag filled with dozens of 9 mm
rounds, the gunman walked into the U.S. Bank on Main Street in Burney at
12:14 p.m. Tuesday. He pointed a semi-automatic pistol at a customer's
head and pulled the trigger... Shooting Kersten was just the start. Next
the gunman walked up to a teller and told her to give him some money.
She did. Then he asked the terrified teller whether she had activated
the bank's holdup alarm. She said no. He told her to push it... The
first officer to arrive in response to the bank alarm was Shasta County
[CA] sheriff's Sgt. Marc St. Clair. He got there within minutes. Shots
from the gunman's silver .50-caliber Smith & Wesson revolver boomed,
breaking out the bank's glass storefront and hitting St. Clair's
truck... Meanwhile, as backup and SWAT team members from Redding
continued to arrive, the gunman fired at least two more volleys through
the front window. The bullets from the cannonlike .50-caliber ripped
2-inch entrance holes in the sheet-metal bodies of patrol cars. In
total, at least 21 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition were fired. He shot
the 9 mm at least 11 times... Two sheriff's SWAT deputies saw the
suspect through a window. He was moving aggressively toward the women.
They fired at him at least three times. One shot hit him in the chest...
http://www.policeone.com/active-shooter/articles/1979966-Calif-officers-single-shot-killed-bank-robber-who-held-hostages/
---
Tangentially Related: If you've got a few extra minutes to kill this
weekend, the linked essay provides some clues in recognizing hoax
e-mails before you forward them to everyone in your address book.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704238104574602042125998498.html?mod=djemLifeStyleh
--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
The tactics and skills to use a firearm
in self-defense don't come naturally
with the right to keep and bear arms.
http://www.spw-duf.info
