Citizens United Decision Loosens Restrictions on RKBA Advocacy:
Yesterday, the Supreme Court struck down some longstanding restrictions
on political advocacy spending... Gun rights advocacy groups have long
chafed under the restrictions, particularly some from the
McCain-Feingold Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002.
Particularly nettlesome were provisions inserted by late Senator Paul
Wellstone (D-MN), that extended restrictions on last-minute ads to even
non-profit groups--Wellstone mentioned the NRA by name as one of the
targets of his amendment. ". . . Wellstone pushed an amendment to extend
McCain-Feingold's ban on last-minute ads to nonprofits like "the NRA,
the Sierra Club, the Christian Coalition, and others." Under the
Wellstone Amendment, these organizations could only advertise using
money raised under strict "hard money" limits - no more than $5,000 per
individual. In the lead-up to passage of McCain-Feingold, the NRA raised
the alarm about the problems with such legislation...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2581-St-Louis-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d22-Supreme-Courts-campaign-finance-ruling-loosens-the-gag-on-gun-rights-groups
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Citizens United, Stare Decisis and Mc Donald: ...In his concurrence in
yesterday's landmark free speech case Citizens United v. F.E.C., Roberts
elaborated on when it is acceptable for the Court to overturn precedent:
"... if adherence to a precedent actually impedes the stable and orderly
adjudication of future cases, its stare decisis effect is also
diminished. This can happen in a number of circumstances, such as when
the precedent's validity is so hotly contested that it cannot reliably
function as a basis for decision in future cases, when its rationale
threatens to upend our settled jurisprudence in related areas of law,
and when the precedent's underlying reasoning has become so discredited
that the Court cannot keep the precedent alive without jury-rigging new
and different justifications to shore up the original mistake." In early
March, the Supreme Court will have the opportunity to consider another
precedent, this time in a case centering on Section One of the 14th
Amendment, which reads in part, "No State shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the
United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty,
or property, without due process of law." Specifically, the gun rights
case McDonald v. Chicago will address "Whether the Second Amendment
right to keep and bear arms is incorporated as against the States by the
Fourteenth Amendment's Privileges or Immunities or Due Process Clauses." ...
http://reason.com/blog/2010/01/22/citizens-united-stare-decisis
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AR - "America's Rifle": ...AR15 rifle variants are everywhere. One theme
this year of our host, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF),
is that "AR" stands for "America's Rifle." It's good to see new
companies coming in and being innovative. American Spirit Arms
introduces an AR15 with a bolt operating lever located on the left side
above the magazine, like an FN FAL. This eliminates the one
non-ergonomic feature of Gene Stoner's Armalite design in this writer's
opinion: the awkward T-handle at the rear of the action. The price is
competitive, the action is smooth, and the handling IS faster. Heckler &
Koch's take on the American AR, shown as a non-functional prototype last
year at SHOT, is shown this time as a functional prototype, and seems to
draw much from the company's 416 rifle... (I recall, many years ago,
Ayoob "explaining" to me that, in the law-enforcement community, "AR"
stands for "assault rifle.")
http://backwoodshome.com/blogs/MassadAyoob/2010/01/22/shot-show-day-four/
Attention, Washingtonians: There are loads of "black guns" - the
so-called "assault weapons" that anti-gunners in the Washington
Legislature want to ban - at the 2010 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor
Trade Show, and as this event wraps up, Evergreen State gun owners are
facing a battle to protect those firearms. Earlier Friday, the
Bellevue-based Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
issued an alert advising its thousands of members in Washington that
Senate Bill 6396, which would ban new sales of semiautomatic
sport-utility rifles, pistols and shotguns is up for a hearing next
Tuesday, Jan. 26 at 10 a.m. Senator Adam Kline, the anti-gun Seattle
Democrat who also chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, where the bill
will be heard... That hearing is scheduled in Hearing Room 1 of the John
A. Cherberg Senate Office building. Those who cannot make that hearing
may also contact members of the committee, including Kline and
co-sponsor Jeanne Kohl-Welles, or other committee members including..
http://www.examiner.com/x-4525-Seattle-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d22-Black-guns-plentiful-at-SHOT-Show-in-sights-of-antigun-lawmakers-in-WA
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More Thoughts on the SHOT Show Arrests: ... We can ask why, according to
the DoJ press release, this industry was targeted for "the largest
single investigation and prosecution against individuals in the history
of DOJ's enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act," and why, at
a time when the nation's limited resources are needed to secure the
Republic from real enemies... We can also ask questions about the sales
policies and practices of the companies involved. The saying "it's not
about guns, it's about freedom" is true. I confess I have a hard time
working up sympathy for those who deal with some of these regimes, which
are the same ones the international gun grabbers believe in empowering.
As I asked recently (with tongue in cheek) on WarOnGuns, who better to
trust with a monopoly on arms than African governments? We can ask all
of these things, but just don't expect to see the questions answered.
For now, barring new disclosures, all we can do is speculate. And we can
reflect on the truth of words attributed to Lenin, of all people, that
capitalists will sell the rope by which they will be hanged. Perhaps, as
we learn more, the appropriate industry response to the feds will be for
suppliers to commit to the same type of response Mr. Barrett gave the
state of California.
http://www.examiner.com/x-1417-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d22-SHOT-Show-bust-leaves-more-questions-than-answers
---
Austin Gun Show - the Plot Sickens?: In the previous article on the
Austin gun show, the promoter mentioned his need to find a new venue. As
often happens, there is an untold story that helps explain what happened
and why. And there were reasonable questions asked by readers, which are
answered below... It appears that the Texas Gun Show event in north
Austin was cancelled because:
* The promoter didn't follow the rules he originally agreed to.
* After TGS agreed last week to uphold the sublease agreement, sales
by unlicensed dealers continued inside the venue.
* Another illegal alien was arrested for buying a firearm.
* Because of prior public notification, a private gun seller is now
at risk of federal prosecution.
* HEB, being ultimately responsible to abate the nuisance created by
the previous year's illegal activity, acted to protect their
interests, as any responsible company would.
(I'm confused now. I thought one gun show was held, with tables limited
to FFL's. Was there a second show scheduled and canceled within a week?)
http://www.examiner.com/x-2879-Austin-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d22-Why-was-Austin-gun-show-cancelled
---
NRA, TSRA Endorse Perry for Re-Election: Governor Rick Perry Friday
accepted the endorsement of the National Rifle Association and the Texas
State Rifle Association. "Texas gun owners, hunters and concealed
handgun licensees are all in Gov. Perry's debt for his steadfast support
and commitment to our invaluable Second Amendment rights," said Alice
Tripp, TSRA PAC legislative director. The organization noted that Perry
has signed several pieces of legislation that strengthen 2nd Amendment
rights, including the castle Doctrine, which allows a homeowner to
defend themselves with deadly force.
http://www.kvue.com/news/politics/Gun-rights-groups-endorse-Perry-for-governor-82437022.html
---
One More Georgia RKBA Bill: ... SB 291 was introduced in 2009 by Sen.
David Shafer (R-48). It has already gathered a large number of
cosponsors and is being pushed by the NRA and other groups supporting
the right to bear arms. Its most relevant provision includes
overhauling the concealed carry statute so that it would no longer be
illegal for a person with a Georgia firearms license to carry another
concealed weapon, such as a knife or expandable baton. At the same
time, it would repeal Georgia's law requiring a firearms license to
carry a handgun openly, making Georgia's license a true "concealed carry
weapons license" rather than merely a firearms license. Many members of
the Georgia public are unaware that Georgia is one of only 13 states
that requires a license to carry a handgun openly, in addition to
requiring a license to carry concealed. Among those other twelve states
are New Jersey, Massachussetts, Maryland, and Hawaii. If SB 291 were to
pass, Georgia would join the majority of 27 states that also require no
license to carry a handgun openly...
http://www.examiner.com/x-5619-Atlanta-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d22-GA-Bills-SB-291-a-bill-to-revise-the-law-about-carrying-concealed-weapons
---
Indiana Confidentiality Bill Advances: Public access to the state
database of people with permits to carry guns would be closed under a
bill on its way to the floor of the Indiana House. The bill was filed
following complaints over newspaper stories that used information from
the database to scrutinize how gun permits are issued, including one
that found a permit wound up in the hands of a man who had pressed the
barrel of a loaded handgun into the chest of a woman holding a baby. The
House Natural Resources Committee unanimously approved the bill
Thursday... The bill's author, Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, said she
been contacted by constituents who were alarmed that their privacy might
be violated by such stories. "It wasn't just people who owned guns," she
said. "It was people who didn't own guns and said, 'I don't like the
idea that somebody can know I don't have a permit, which may make them
think that I don't have a gun and come and rob me,"' Welch said. Welch
said she still wants the media and academics to get generic information
such as the number of permits issued per county, but not gun owners'
names and addresses...
http://www.bcdemocrat.com/index.php?id=1104
---
Colorado Background Fee May Have Been Scuttled: Gov. Bill Ritter's
proposal to make gun buyers pay for their criminal background checks hit
a snag Thursday when Republicans on the Joint Budget Committee refused
to support it. And the proposal may not go far after that, the JBC's
chairman said. Ritter, a Democrat, in August proposed a number of
measures to help balance the budget in the current fiscal year that ends
in June. Included in those items was a proposal that would have imposed
a $10.50 fee on gun purchases to pay the cost of criminal background
checks, which the state currently covers. The fee would have generated
an estimated $557,000 over four months in the current budget year and
about $1.6 million when imposed over the full 12 months of the following
year...
http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2010/01/21/gun-check-fee-proposal-running-into-trouble/
---
Florida Bill Would Ban Gun Questions: Adoption agencies would be barred
from making prospective parents reveal whether they have guns or
ammunition at home under a measure that sailed through a House panel
Thursday with the backing of the National Rifle Association. Rep. Mike
Horner, R-Kissimmee, said he and his wife are dealing with a "mountain"
of paperwork as they attempt to adopt a child through the Children's
Home Society of Florida, which assists with adoptions in the Orlando
area. But the couple were offended when asked about their weapons
cache... Horner's legislation (CS/HB 315) would bar forms demanding
weapons information, but would require those seeking to adopt to
acknowledge they have received a copy of the state law requiring that
anyone owing a loaded firearm keep it safely stored away from minors.
The measure cleared the Health and Family Services Policy Council on a
15-0 vote. The only significant challenge came from Rep. Kelly Skidmore,
D-Boca Raton, who said she didn't agree with Horner's view about the
motives behind the agency's questions...
http://www.newsserviceflorida.com/cgi/as_web.exe?rev2010+D+495940
---
California School Board Reverses Expulsion: In the end, the case of a
Willows teenager expelled for having hunting guns in his pickup truck
parked next to campus didn't focus on gun rights. It became a question
of whether the authority of school officials to enforce the state's
Education Code extended to the school fence - or a sidewalk's width
beyond it. On Friday, members of the Glenn County Board of Education
drew the line at the gates of Willows High School. They ruled that
officials in the Willows Unified School District had exceeded their
authority when they expelled Gary Tudesko - a 17-year-old with a history
of disciplinary problems - for leaving two shotguns and ammunition in
his truck parked a few feet from the school's tennis courts on a public
street... In overturning the teen's expulsion, county Board of Education
members cited a state statute that requires a principal to recommend
expulsion if a student possesses firearms "at school." The board found
Tudesko had not possessed the shotguns "on school grounds." They also
said Tudesko did not receive a fair expulsion hearing in November
because he wasn't given adequate notice that two dozen prior
disciplinary incidents would be presented as evidence against him, and
he didn't have a chance to respond...
http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/2483630.html
---
More Open-Carry Events in California: David LaTour rolled out of bed on
a recent Saturday morning and prepared for a leisurely lunch: Wallet,
check. Car keys, check. Springfield XD 9 mm pistol and ammunition,
check. Springfield XD 9 mm pistol and ammunition? The Hayward resident
is a member of an organization slowly gaining membership in the Bay
Area. Open Carry aims to make it possible for Americans in every state
to legally carry loaded guns in public. The loosely organized Bay Area
chapter is igniting powerful feelings among law enforcement agencies,
gun control advocates and ordinary residents. "I do it to defend myself
and my rights. Carrying guns can prevent burglaries and assaults,"
LaTour said. The San Jose State engineering student meets in public
places with fellow members of the group, who all display holstered
unloaded pistols. Open Carry advocates rely on a section in the
California Penal Code that prohibits concealed weapons. It states that
"guns carried openly in belt holsters are not concealed." It is legal to
do so as long as the group or individual is 1,000 feet away from a K-12
school... (While some California counties do issue CWP's to ordinary
citizens, most of the state is like Wisconsin, where open carry is the
only legal option as well as a way to protest the lack of lawful
concealed carry. However, open carry in California is riskier because
the firearm must be kept unloaded, making the carrier a more likely
target of a mugger, who'd love to have the gun to carry illegally.)
http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_14241180?nclick_check=1
---
Oops, Wrong House, Florida Version: A man who showed up at the door of a
Port St. Lucie home about 3 p.m. Friday forced his way into the
residence and was shot dead by the homeowner, Port St. Lucie Police
Department Information Officer Tom Nichols said. Identification of the
people living in the house in the 2100 block of Southwest Pruitt Street
will not be available until early next week. Nichols said the home's
resident retreated to a bedroom and retrieved a shotgun after the
intruder forced his way in and argued with him. The two struggled with
the gun and it discharged, striking the intruder in the upper torso,
Nichols said... (All's well that ends well but it's a lot easier for an
assailant to disarm a defender of a long gun than a handgun and it
appears that this is what was attempted here.)
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/22/home-invader-gunned-down/
---
Oops, Wrong House, New Mexico Version: A man who deputies say was trying
to break into a North Valley home was shot and killed early Thursday.
Bernalillo County deputies report that they found 43-year-old Dimas
Apodaca, dead in a front yard at Pueblo Luna near Second Street and
Osuna. Neighbor Orlando Lucero said that he heard "three loud thumps,
sounds like they kicked the door in. Come to find out it was a
sledgehammer followed by four or five shots and a car speeding off."
Sergeant Mark Kmatz of the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office says
people at the scene have been detained. "We've made contact with
everybody here that we have detained, but just for interview purposes,"
he said. "It doesn't mean they were involved." Nobody else was hurt in
the incident that happened at about 3:00 in the morning. Investigators
say they've obtained a search warrant for the home and they detained six
people for questioning. (The video clip presents the residents of the
home in a more favorable light.)
http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S1377145.shtml?cat=500
---
Oops, Wrong Trailer: A 17-year-old youth was fatally shot during an
apparent burglary of a Houston Valley Road mobile home shortly before 11
p.m. Thursday. Sheriff Steve Burns identified the youth as Michael E.A.
Banner, 17, of Wykle Road. Greene County [TN[ sheriff's deputies were
notified of the incident at 10:55 p.m. and subsequently were told by
Alan Burch, 53, who resides in a mobile home at 2235 Houston Valley
Road, that he had been awakened by the sound of someone kicking open the
door of his residence, Sheriff Burns said. Burch told officers that he
fired shots toward the entrance to the mobile home and subsequently
found that at least one of the shots had struck a youth later identified
as Banner. Sheriff Burns said three other suspects were believed to have
fled the shooting scene and were still being sought this morning...
http://www.greenevillesun.com/story/307737
---
Oops, Wrong Liquor Store: A 27-year-old man was fatally shot by a clerk
while trying to rob a southwest suburban liquor store Thursday night,
the Herald-News is reporting. About 10 p.m., the suspect, who's identity
has not been released, came into S and A Liquor at 1480 Cedarwood Dr. in
Crest Hill [IL] and demanded money, police said. "There was a struggle
and the clerk fired a shot which appears to have hit the robber before
he ran out," Crest Hill police Chief Dwayne Wilkerson said. Provena
Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet later contacted police after a man
arrived with a gunshot wound and investigators were able to identify him
as the robber. "He later succumbed to his injuries," Wilkerson said. The
incident was still being investigated Friday morning.
http://www.suntimes.com/news/24-7/2005860,crest-hill-liquor-store-shooting-012210.article
---
Oops, Wrong Pharmacy: A man who put a container on a pharmacy counter,
claimed it was a bomb and demanded prescription drugs left after the
pharmacist wielded a shotgun. The pharmacist at the Kansas City, Kan.,
pharmacy at 4501 Rainbow Blvd. fired at the would-be robber as he drove
off in a car, police said. It is not know if the robber or his car was
hit in the incident about 11:30 a.m., they said. The bomb squad soon
determined that the package was not a bomb. The crime is similar to
another incident Jan. 4 in Overland Park where a robber put a clock
taped to a box on a pharmacy counter, said it was a bomb and left with a
small amount of drugs. Police said they do not know whether the two
incidents are related...
http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/1696802.html
---
Once the Threat Has Ended...: [NY] State police say two attempted
burglary suspects are in jail, and the homeowner targeted in the
break-in Thursday morning is charged with reckless endangerment after
firing shots at their car. There were no injuries in the incident on
Akron Road. State police arrested Jenna M. Zsebhazy, 18, of Washburn
Street, Lockport, and Anibal R. Cordero, 24, of Dysinger Road, Town of
Lockport, on felony second-degree attempted burglary charges. The
homeowner, Dennis F. Cherry, 63, 7643 Akron Road, was also arrested
during the same incident. He was charged with first-degree reckless
endangerment, a felony; second-degree criminal mischief, a felony; and
second-degree menacing, a misdemeanor... State police investigators
piecing together events said the suspects drove to the residence
together, and Zsebhazy tried to enter the house through an open garage
door. Both suspects were confronted by Cherry, who had a Colt AR-15
rifle, investigators said. Cherry reportedly detained Zsebhazy, while
Cordero tried to escape in the vehicle. The homeowner then proceeded to
fire approximately 15 rounds from his rifle at the vehicle, according to
the report... (New York ain't Texas. Or Kansas, for that matter.)
http://www.lockportjournal.com/local/local_story_022003301.html
---
A Political Taint to Philadelphia Shooting Arrest?: The victim of a
shooting outside of Fox 29's studios in Old City early Sunday is the
nephew of city Republican leader Michael Meehan and part of the family
that's run Philadelphia's Republican party for three generations. Edward
"Eddie" DiDonato Jr., 23, remains in critical condition at Thomas
Jefferson University Hospital after being shot six times by Temple Law
student Gerald Ung, 28, following a confrontation on Market Street near
4th about 2:30 a.m., police said... Supervisors at the Police
Department's Central Detectives and Public Affairs divisions said that
the incident remains under investigation and that a motive has not been
determined beyond an argument that preceded the shooting... Fox 29,
whose surveillance videos caught the shooting on tape, reported that Ung
was rushed by a group of people and that "when the video is slowed down,
the shooting victim can be seen delivering punches even as the gun is
discharging." Lt. Frank Vanore, police spokesman, said that Ung waited
at the scene and approached the first officer who arrived... Fox
reported that Ung had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, issued to
him in his home state of Virginia yet one of the charges against Ung,
along with attempted murder, is firearms not to be carried without a
license, according to court records...
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20100120_Shooting_victim_is_kin_to_GOP_leader_Meehan.html?cmpid=41144277
---
An Armed Society Is a Polite Society: ... Both of these events were in
Illinois. Bear in mind that Illinois is one of two states that does not
have a "conceal-carry" law related to firearms. My contention is that
this is relative to the behavior in both instances. The third event was
much, much more crowded than the first two with the potential for many
more problems. It was large gun show in Indianapolis. The scene takes
place indoors at the fairgrounds. The parking is hectic with thousands
flocking in to go to this event as well as several others on the same
grounds. The parking lot is dotted with collectors, vendors, and
sportsmen carrying from one to armloads of rifles, shotguns and handguns
into and out of the building. Everything is calm and mannerly in the
parking lots and surrounding areas. Within the buildings, the safety and
security of the armament is foremost to insure the proper type of
environment for all involved, but most noticeable is the different
demeanor of all involved. The masses moving up and down the aisles were
congested but orderly and mannerly. This is a state with a conceal-carry
law and an entirely different outlook on their Second Amendment rights
than does Illinois. The physical location of this event is not the
factor than controls attitude and behavior as much as is the realization
and "mind-set" of the participants. It is the knowledge that the vast
majority of these people sharing this congested space had the ability,
the means, and the right to protect themselves from adversity. It's no
different than the bully on the playground; He doesn't pick on the kid
with a ball-bat. He picks on a "target" that looks vulnerable...
http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2010/01/21/features/outdoors/doc4b59155bf1007877476896.txt
---
An "Accident" Waiting to Happen: Among the booths of firearms and
shotguns at SHOT Show 2010, one company's less lethal option stood out.
Piexon's powerful less lethal tool, the JPX^(TM) Jet Protector�, is in
use across Europe and has become a bestseller since launching in 1999.
The hand-held OC delivery system is functional, with a conventional
pistol-like design [emphasis added] to ensure solid training and
accuracy. The propulsion system launches high-grade OC solution at 430
km/h; effective range is up to 16.5 feet away. Each magazine contains
two charges, and snaps on the frame for quick and easy use... (There has
been more than one unintentional shooting in the US law-enforcement
community when the officer only intended to use a Taser. Packaging
less-lethal weapons and restraint devices in pistol-like units increases
the chance of confusing defensive tools under stress.)
http://www.policeone.com/police-products/less-lethal/articles/1992780-SHOT-Show-2010-Piexon-provides-alternatives-to-OC-spray-canisters/
--
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
