Arizona Homeowner Kills Intruder: "A deadly shootout between burglars and a homeowner took place Thursday night just after nine on Tucson's east side, near I-10 and Wilmot Road. Police say three men busted into a home in a quiet new neighborhood. They then shot the homeowner in the arm; the homeowner returned fire and hit one of the burglars, who later died at a hospital. According to Tucson police, when they arrived the 29 year-old home owner and his two year old daughter had taken refuge in a bathroom. The home owner suffered minor injuries, and the little girl was not hurt. Police are looking for two suspects, but have not released a description. Investigators said they do not know what the relationship is between the home owner and the suspects."


Guns-on-campus bill advances in AZ Senate: "Legislation that would allow people to carry guns on Arizona community-college or public-university campuses advanced Monday, 11 days after a gunman killed five people and himself in an Illinois university lecture hall. Members of the Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee passed the legislation along a party-line 4-3 vote. Democratic senators Ken Cheuvront, Albert Hale and Richard Miranda voted no. Senate Bill 1214, which would allow concealed-weapons permit holders to carry a gun at community colleges and Arizona's three public universities, next heads to the Senate Rules Committee. Gun owners must be 21 or older to obtain a permit. Sen. Karen Johnson, the bill's lead sponsor, originally introduced legislation that would allow guns at all schools, including elementary, middle and high schools. But facing pressure from some Republican colleagues, the senator was forced to narrow the bill's scope to apply only to higher-education institutions"


Gun buyback misfires: "On Feb. 9, Oakland police, led by state Sen. Don Perata, D-Oakland, offered to buy handguns and assault weapons for $250 each, 'no questions asked, no ID required.' The 'One Less Gun' buyback program attracted so many eager sellers that the money quickly ran out. But instead of closing up shop, the police handed out IOUs good for a future buyback. The Oakland police are now stuck with a bill for $170,000.The buyback has been criticized as a poorly organized fiasco, but even the critics say it was 'the right idea' and 'a step in the right direction.' On the contrary, the buyback was a bad idea from the beginning. Gun buybacks have been tried before, in cities from Seattle to Washington, D.C., and they simply don't work."