California gun club stands up to be counted: A shooting range here has announced a ban on use of its shooting facilities by employees of the California Department of Justice because the Department is supporting two bills in the State legislature that the club opposes. The bills represent groundbreaking new ballistic identification systems which would give police new crime solving tools. Each would set up systems for markings on gun ammunition in California that would help law enforcement investigators track down the perpetrators of shootings that might otherwise remain unsolved. One bill (AB 352) would require handguns to include a device that stamps a specific number on bullets that are fired by that handgun, while the other (SB 357) would require that ammunition manufacturers mark ammunition with a serial number for potential tracking. The bills have the support of the California DOJ.


Indianopolis: Oldster shoots robber: Aged in his 70's, Alfonzo Gonzales shot a man multiple times after he came into the store and demanded money. Alfonzo Gonzales and his wife were running their Discount Cleaners store when police say 23 year old Lavern Thompson walked inside and demanded money. Thanks to quick action, they'll both keep their business, and if Thompson recovers, he'll face jail time for attempted armed robbery. "Thompson walked inside, pointed his gun and demanded money, that's when Gonzales, a retired police officer came from the back of the store, yelled for his wife to get down, and shot the suspect more than once," says Sgt. Judy Phillips of IPD. "The suspect ran out, but collapsed outside in the back parking lot, he was taken to Wishard and is in critical condition." .... Lavern Thompson remains in critical condition at Wishard Hosptial. Police say he has no criminal history. The investigation is not complete, but so far, investigators say the shooting was justified.


More Papers Barring Some Gun Sales From Classifieds : "Since November 2001, a group called Iowans for the Prevention of Gun Violence has been trying to persuade newspapers to not accept classified ads for guns from people who are not licensed dealers. Wednesday, its "Campaign to Close the Newspaper Loophole" announced the policy had been adopted by four more Ohio papers, including the Cincinnati Enquirer and its joint operating agency partner the Cincinnati Post, as well as three Iowa dailies and a Nebraska daily. The group said since its campaign began, a total of 26 papers with a combined circulation of 5.8 million have changed their policy after being contacted by the group. In April, the group sent a letter to the publishers of all daily newspapers in Iowa, Ohio, and Nebraska. The Hawk Eye, a 19,000-circulation daily in Burlington, Iowa, was one of those persuaded. "Our publisher agreed there was a loophole, and that when we accepted ads on these transient customer to advertise gun shows, we had in the past not checked to see if they were licensed," the Hawk Eye's advertising director, Janet Stottmeister, told E&P in a telephone interview. The paper changed its policy April 26, but so far has not had to turn anyone away. The classified ad business for guns is "very small" at the paper, she said".