Tenth Circuit Reinstates Oklahoma Parking-Lot-Storage Law: An appeals
court said Wednesday that Oklahoma's law allowing employees to have guns
at work in their locked vehicles is valid. The Denver-based court's
decision overturns a ruling by U.S. District Judge Terence Kern in
Tulsa, who barred enforcement of the law. Gov. Brad Henry and Attorney
General Drew Edmondson appealed Kern's 2007 ruling. "It was our opinion
that the law is constitutional and the court agreed with us today,"
Edmondson spokesman Charlie Price said. "We are thankful for the
assistance of the National Rifle Association and its counsel - they
provided great help." Starting with a 2004 lawsuit, several companies
challenged the law, including Weyerhauser Corp.; Whirlpool Corp., which
later dropped out; and more recently, ConocoPhillips...
http://www.newsok.com/court-allows-oklahoma-workers-to-have-guns-in-vehicles/article/3346987
http://www.nraila.org/News/Read/NewsReleases.aspx?ID=12135
http://www.opposingviews.com/articles/news-nra-wins-fight-to-let-workers-keep-guns-in-cars
---
Utah Senate Committee Approve Parking-Lot-Storage Bill: A bill that
would allow gun owners to keep a firearm in their vehicles even while
parked in a private lot passed a Senate committee Tuesday. SB78,
sponsored by Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Eagle Mountain, has cleared House and
Senate panels in the past, but never has made it through the
Legislature. The measure would allow employees to keep a firearm in
their vehicles, but a business could prevent that if it has a secured
parking area, which needs a fence and a security guard. In that case, it
must provide a locker to allow gun owners to stow their weapons before
entering the secured lot...
http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_11723049
---
The Beat Goes On: The election of Barack Obama has been a boon for gun
dealers, and with more than 200 gun shows a year, few markets are hotter
than Florida. Floridians in record numbers want to carry concealed
weapons, a trend linked to a surge in crime, economic anxiety and fears
of stricter gun laws. And now the state is buried under a backlog of
95,000 applications for concealed weapons permits, and it needs to hire
a lot more people to handle the paperwork. A legislative panel Wednesday
gave Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson the okay to spend $3.9
million more so he can hire 61 temporary workers... The state reported a
surge in applications in November after the election of President Obama,
who has advocated stricter gun control laws but also campaigned as a
defender of Second Amendment rights. Florida received 75,679 first-time
concealed weapons permit applications in 2007 and 86,269 in 2008, in
addition to tens of thousands of renewal forms. About 541,000 Floridians
are permitted to carry concealed weapons...
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/feb/19/backlog-95000-wanting-concealed-weapon-permits-fla/
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/story/910739.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29278736/
http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/state/article976999.ece
---
More Coverage for SCCC: In the wake of the first anniversary of the
massacre at Northern Illinois University, which occurred last February,
gun advocacy groups are trying to persuade schools to allow students to
carry guns on campus. Organizations like Students for Concealed Carry on
Campus argue that allowing legal firearms at universities could prevent
tragedies like the one at NIU. They have recently made inroads at
several upstate New York schools, but have met opposition at Syracuse
University. Members of SCCC, such as Midwest regional director David
Burnett, said that the function of the group is to dispel common myths
about concealed carry and to push state legislators and administrators
to grant handgun license holders the same rights on college campuses
that they enjoy in most other locations...
http://media.www.dailyorange.com/media/storage/paper522/news/2009/02/19/News/National.Lobbyist.Group.Pushes.For.Weapons.Rights.On.Campus-3638220.shtml
---
Palin Supports National-Park Carry: Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wrote the
Interior Department on Wednesday to express her support for a
last-minute Bush administration regulation that allows the carrying of
concealed weapons in national parks. Palin said the new measure provides
Alaskans with a means of self-defense in a state with vast swaths of
federally-protected wilderness. "As you know, my state contains vast,
pristine areas where the ability to carry firearms can address a
potentially life-threatening situation, enabling citizens to respond to
bear and other wildlife conflicts," Palin wrote in a letter to Interior
Secretary Ken Salazar...
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/02/19/palin-defends-rule-allowing-loaded-weapons-in-national-parks/
---
Wyoming Drops Reciprocity with 15 States: ...The Wyoming Attorney
General holds that if a misdemeanor drug conviction disqualifies a
Wyoming resident, it also needs to disqualify an out-of-state permit
holder. Due to the difference in how each state handles controlled
substance convictions, Wyoming is also limited in our ability to
maintain reciprocity with states we may have previously. Wyoming
recognizes concealed firearm permits from the following states.
Accordingly, as of March 1, 2009, Wyoming can only honor concealed
firearm permits issued by the following states:
Connecticut
Georgia
Maryland
Massachusetts
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Utah
(This is a good reason to obtain and maintain more than the permit from
your home state, particularly if you don't live in Utah.)
http://www.ohioccw.org/content/view/4268/53/
---
Illinois CCW Endorsed by House Panel: A state House panel is
recommending that the General Assembly give Illinois residents the right
to carry concealed weapons. The proposals are expected to garner
opposition from Chicago-area lawmakers, who have expressed concern about
increased gun violence. Supporters of a concealed weapon law say the
U.S. Supreme Court's ruling last summer overturning a handgun ban in
Washington D.C., and an endorsement of concealed carry by the Illinois
Sheriffs' Association gives a boost to their efforts. House Bill 245,
sponsored by Marion Democratic Rep. John Bradley, would allow the
Illinois State Police to issue the permits. It was endorsed Wednesday on
an 11-1 vote, with Democratic state Rep. Julie Hamos of Evanston the
lone opponent. House Bill 462, sponsored by state Harrisburg Rep.
Brandon Phelps, would allow county sheriffs to issue permits.
(Considering the current state plice backlog in the issuance and renewal
of Illinois's onerous Firearm Owner Identification cards, issuance by
county sheriffs might be a better choice.)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-il-concealedweapons,0,5389135.story
---
Tennessee Fast-Tracks RKBA Bills: The legislature began fast-tracking
bills Thursday to let people with carry permits take guns into state and
local parks and establishments serving alcohol - all places where they
are currently banned. The House handgun study committee also recommended
making secret the list of Tennessee's 219,236 gun-carry permit holders
and to penalize any publication of their identities. Shelby County has
32,934 permit licensees. The panel recommended four bills on which
Chairman Joe McCord, R-Maryville, said there is broad consensus to
approve. All four are set for the criminal justice subcommittee next
week and could reach floor votes in March... The new Republican majority
has made the bills' passage a virtual certainty after years of defeat.
McCord said The Commercial Appeal's posting of a searchable database of
permit holders on its Web site also prompted swift action...
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/feb/19/tennessee-house-advances-bills-dealing-guns/
---
Mexico's Drug Wars Not the Result of US Gun Laws: A gambit that has
become popular of late with the forcible citizen disarmament lobby is
blaming the violence in Mexico (which sometimes spills across our
Southwestern border) on "lax U.S. gun laws." Mexico, of course, has
extremely restrictive gun laws and extreme levels of violence. One might
think that this would be a pretty strong rebuttal to the idea of trying
to control violence by passing more and more gun laws (as if using laws
to try to rein in the behavior of the lawless makes any sense). Such an
expectation underestimates the stubborn determination of gun law
advocates, who somehow find the energy to perform the rhetorical
gymnastics required to argue instead that violence in Mexico should be
blamed on "weak gun laws" here, where violence is much less pervasive...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2581-St-Louis-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m2d19-Mexicos-bloody-drug-war-is-not-the-fault-of-lax-US-gun-laws
---
Oops, Wrong House, Ohio Version: An elderly Jackson County woman who was
about to become the apparent victim of a home-invasion burglary last
Saturday afternoon was more than ready to stand up for herself and
protect her property. According to the Jackson County Sheriff's Office,
Ruth Dassel, 82, of 853 Camba Road, Jackson, in Franklin Township, used
a pistol to fire a single shot at an unidentified man who had apparently
just broken into her home at 12:34 p.m. The intruder was not struck by
the bullet, but investigators are attempting to identify him in what is
being categorized as an aggravated burglary... Dassel immediately picked
up a pistol that she had in the pouch of her walker and pointed it at
the intruder. He said, "don't shoot," and he turned to run from the
house. She fired one shot in his direction, but did not hit him...
(While the shot at the fleeing intruder may not have been justified, the
woman showed good sense in keeping her pistol accessible, in the pouch
of her walker.)
http://www.thetelegramnews.com/main.asp?SectionID=6&SubSectionID=83&ArticleID=5311
---
Oops, Wrong House, Australia Version: An elderly man shot one of two
intruders at his Perth winery after they broke down his bedroom door and
backed him into a corner, police say. Sergeant Greg Lambert said the
77-year-old owner of a small winery, in Herne Hill, in Perth's east,
heard someone forcibly enter his home about 9.40pm (WDT) yesterday. "He
is at home with his totally incapacitated wife, he has heard noises in
the house and has heard two men use extreme force to break into his home
through the rear security door and sliding door," Sgt Lambert told ABC
Radio. "He was in his bedroom, he has armed himself with his licensed
shotgun and he's locked himself in his bedroom with his wife." The man
warned the two men not to enter his room. "They have broken down his
bedroom door and confronted the man," Sgt Lambert said. "A struggle has
happened during which one round was discharged from the shotgun, it's
struck one of the intruders on the left abdomen. The elderly gentlemen
lost the firearm during the struggle, one of the offenders has struck
him to the head and forearm..." (This account demonstrates why a
handgun, which offers less leverage for a disarm, is usually a better
choice than a shotgun for home-defense.)
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25076770-29277,00.html
---
Arizona to Host Cowboy Shooting Fest: The Old West will come alive once
again when more than 600 men, women and juniors gather for the 18th
annual Winter Range hosted at the Arizona Game and Fish Department's Ben
Avery Shooting Facility from Feb. 25 through March 1. Winter Range is an
exciting "Old West" style, five-day event that provides the backdrop for
the Single Action Shooting Society's National Championship of Cowboy
Action Shooting. This annual event traditionally draws thousands of
spectators and Old West enthusiasts. Cowboy Action Shooting^(TM) is the
fastest growing shooting sport in America, and requires contestants to
compete with firearms typical of those used in the taming of the Old
West: single-action revolvers, lever-action rifles and old-time
shotguns. Participants must also adopt a "shooting alias" appropriate to
a character or profession of the late 19th century - a Hollywood Western
star, or an appropriate fictional character - and then costume
themselves accordingly...
http://www.paysonroundup.com/news/2009/feb/18/cowboys_show_their_sixshooters/
---
Bill Would Scrap Canada's Long-Gun Registry: The Bill C-301, a Private
Greg Rickford MPKernoraMembers' Bill proposes to discontinue the
wasteful long gun registry that has not saved the life of a single
Canadian. "The registry has been a boondoggle since its inception. I
believe members of Parliament from all political parties will see ample
cause to shut it down," said Breitkreuz, "I doubt there has ever been
another government program that has gone 500 times over budget and been
such a miserable failure. I hope everyone here will agree that our tax
dollars should be invested in practical public safety measures that
really do save lives." On February 12th Rickford seconded Bill C-301, a
Private Members' Bill to scrap the decade-old Canadian long-gun
registry. "Gary has been working on this issue for a long time and I'm
very pleased to stand behind in support. We hope to get the long-gun
registry dismantled once and for all," said a delighted Rickford...
http://lakesuperiornews.info/News/News2009/RickfordSecondsBillScrapLongGunRegistry/tabid/1026/Default.aspx
--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
