TX: Gunfight with Guards of Armored Truck, Suspect Shot, Killed

Witnesses later told police that person was one of the suspects in an attempted robbery of a Brink's armored truck. The guard of the truck was believed to be working on a Chase Bank ATM when the attackers approached and the guard then engaged in a shootout with them, police say. One suspect was struck in the gunfire though the guard was not hurt, Nowak said.
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IN: Home Invasion Suspect and Homeowner's Son Both Shot and Killed

Both men had criminal histories. The father found the door open, and called the police, who investigated.

“Went inside and discovered two bodies deceased, apparently suffering from gunshot wounds.” said IMPD Captain Dulin Nelson.

One of the men was his son who was in his early 30s. IMPD says both men had at least one gunshot wound, and medics pronounced them dead at the scene.

On Tuesday afternoon, the coroner identified them as Dante Townsend, 22, and Robert Banks III, 31.

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FL: Armed Man Shoots, Wounds Suspect at Wawa in Alleged Self Defense

alleged

They say it turned into a fight after the guard escorted the men outside.

A third man in the Wawa with a concealed gun came out and confronted the two suspects. Police said that one of them “aggressively moved toward” the man and he fired.
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TX: Robbery Suspect and Uber Eats Driver Pull Guns - No Shots

Palomino then pointed a black, semi-automatic Glock handgun at the man, the court documents say.

The delivery man pulled out a Sig Sauer P238 handgun and pointed it at Palomino.

"For a brief second both Palomino and (the man) just stood there, not moving, when Palomino moved off toward the end of the parking lot," the affidavit says.
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TX: Domestic Defense? 45-Year-Old Woman Shoots, Kills 25-Year-Old Partner

A woman is claiming self-defense after she shot and killed her boyfriend inside their home in northwest Harris County, police say.

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Tacoma Gun Tax Pass City Council Unanimously on 12 November

Photograph from USGS, scaled by Dean Weingarten

On 12 November, 2019, the Tacoma City Council unanimously passed its controversial tax on guns and ammunition. The tax is based on a similar tax in Seattle.  The vote was unanimous, 8-0. 112 people were reported to have spoken on the issue.

To an ordinary reader, the tax would seem to violate the Washington State preemption law. The Washington Supreme Court held differently in 2017. It voted that a tax was not a regulation. One judge dissented, writing it was obvious the tax was aimed specifically at firearms. From the opinion:

That different inquiry centers on the language of the preemption statute itself. Here, RCW 9.41.290 uses deliberately broad language that clearly encompasses both regulations and "laws and ordinances" if they have any relationship to "the registration, licensing, possession, purchase, sale, acquisition, transfer, discharge, and transportation of firearms, or any other element relating to firearms or parts thereof." RCW 9.41.290. Seattle Ordinance 124833 has a very close relationship with the "purchase, sale, acquisition, [and] transfer" of firearms--it targets them! Thus, while a uniform local tax that incidentally hits on sales of this product (while taxing various and sundry products) might not have a sufficient relationship with firearms to suffer preemption, this ordinance-which targets only firearms-certainly does. I therefore respectfully dissent.

The Tacoma tax is scheduled to go into effect on 1 July, 2019. It will be $25 per firearm sold, 2 cents per cartridge of .22 caliber or less, and 5 cents for each larger cartridges.

Seattle's tax has had expected results.  Dedicated gun shops have been driven from the city.  According to preciseshooter.com:

Prioir (sic) to this "tax" being implemented, Seattle had only two stores that specialized in selling guns - and just three sizeable gun operations including Outdoors Emporium, which was a general purpose sporting goods store with a large gun counter. Since the "tax" was implemented, both gun stores - including Precise Shooter - moved out of town, because it was financially impossible to compete with suburban gun stores who do not have to collect this "tax".

Seattle claimed the tax would generate $300,000 to $500,000. The City refused to publish the amount of tax generated until forced to do so by lawsuit. The tax generated just under 104,000 in 2016, and just over $93,000 in 2017.  Almost certainly, the City lost more than that amount in lost sales tax revenue, as gun owners purchased guns and ammunition outside of city limits. Ammunition is available through mail order sales.

The tax is obviously not about revenue. It is about making a moral statement.  In the mind of the proponents, guns cause violence. Guns are bad. Gun shops are bad. We don't want your kind around here.

It is not a logical argument. Only a tiny percentage of guns are used in crime every year, about .075%. Even draconian restrictions on gun ownership do not make a difference in homicide levels.

The idea that guns cause violence is simple, seductive, and false.

Tacoma has much more to lose than Seattle. Seattle's two dedicated gun shops moved to the suburbs. Seattle lost some tax revenue. Seattle gun owners were inconvenienced.

Tacoma has a couple of guns shops. They will likely move. It is also home to Aero Precision, a successful and growing firearms manufacturer. Aero Precision is home to about 400 jobs, according to Lawrence Keane of the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Aero Precision was awarded the large manufacturing firm Gold Award for Washington State in 2017.

Aero Precision's Chief Executive Officer, Scott Dover, says the tax will make it difficult for them to be competitive, according to Fox News. It is unknown if Aero Precision will stay in Tacoma or move.  Moving is expensive. One option might be for Aero Precision to move its assembly plant, or shipping operations, outside the City, thus making its sales outside the city.

It seems unlikely the City could tax sales made outside the City limits. In a state where a tax on guns and ammunition is not considered to be a law or ordinance affecting gun sales, a court might rule otherwise.

©2019 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

FL: Armed Vicim Stops Robbery Attempt in Hollywood, FL

A potential victim cut an armed robbery short when he shot at and scared away the robbers, Hollywood police said.

The pair fled from the scene in the 300 block of Minnesota Street in a silver Toyota Corolla. It was about 2:35 a.m. Wednesday, Officer Christian Lata said. No one was injured.

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IL: Domestic Defense? Mother Shoots, Kills, 43-Year-Old Son

LITTLE YORK — A 71-year-old woman apparently shot to death her son Saturday night in Warren County, according to authorities.

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OH: Would be Home Invader, Shot, Killed in Highland County

HIGHLAND COUNTY, Ohio (FOX19) - An attempted home invasion in Highland County Monday morning reportedly left the would-be invader shot dead, according to the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.

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NC: Gun Beats Axe in Burlington

According to investigators, the suspect used an axe he found in the yard to try to break in the back door of the home, which was occupied. The homeowner confronted the suspect with a shotgun and pointed it at him, according to police.

The suspect, identified as William Lawrence Cowan, 29, of W. Front Street, fled the scene on foot.
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MS: Armed Homeowner Shoots Intruder who Attacked Them

GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) - Gulfport Police are investigating a shooting after a man was shot at a home on West Virginia Avenue Saturday morning.

Authorities say the man who was shot reportedly broke into the home. After being spotted by the tenant who lives there, police said a struggle ensued and a gun was fired.
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Seattle Judge Rules Against State Department, Free Speech, Defense Distributed on 3D Computer Code

On 12 November, 2019, another semi-retired District Judge in the Western District of Washington (Seattle) continued the judicial resistance against the Trump administration and the rule of law.  Senior Judge Lasnik was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1998.

The Judge, Robert S. Lasnik, ruled the Department of State violated administrative procedure by deciding the ability of individuals to make simple small arms, already widely available, was not a "critical defense item" in the expansive International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) regulations.

The Department of State had reached this decision as part of a long running lawsuit brought by Defense Distributed on First and Second Amendment grounds.  The temporary order allowing Defense Distributed to publish and distribute its computer code was part of a settlement of the lawsuit, awaiting permanent regulations.

Several Democrat state attorney generals then filed the current lawsuit in the Western District of Washington (Seattle) on ideological grounds, claiming speculative and future damages, to prevent the court approved settlement with Defense Distributed and the Second Amendment Foundation, from going into effect.

Judge Lasnik ignored reality to make this ideological policy decision against the State Department.

The code in question is, and has been, already widely distributed on the Internet. The small arms in question have long been widely available and easily made by individuals. The Obama administration added the code to ITAR for ideological purposes.

The State Department made the argument that individual states did not have standing on international weapons law; the judge said they did, because it affected them!  Of course, international law affects everyone, in some way. Not a single actual case of harm was alluded to.

All the files disputed in the case are freely and legally available in the United States already.

The State Department made the argument they were advised they would lose the court case on First Amendment grounds. They decided to settle.

The judge claimed they did not follow proper administrative procedure. The State Department says they did.

The judge sidesteps all First Amendment claims by stating he is ruling solely on administrative procedure.

Judge Lasnik risks nothing through his reckless actions. He will be lauded and applauded by the left; he only risks being overturned. To be overturned, the case will go through months, possibly years more litigation.  As I wrote in a previous article:

It is unlikely the plaintiffs will prevail. The legal and technical arguments are bizarre. The State Department reached the settlement on the basis that they would lose the case in court, and because the technical arguments are not reasonable or rational. Judge Lasnik ignores that the State Department has responsibilities in international trade, not in domestic affairs. The judge openly states his opinion that this information will harm communities. He ignores the harm done to communities by ignoring First and Second Amendment rights.

The decision is a classic case of judge shopping and judicial activism. Judge Lasnik does not like what the executive branch is doing. He issues an injunction. He suffers no harm when he is ultimately overturned. He is a Senior Judge already retired, taking cases voluntarily. In the meantime, he causes considerable harm to the defendants. As the defendants in this case are in the Trump administration, that may be his desire.

In the meantime, Defense Distributed and the Second Amendment Foundation, and all American's rights are ground into the dust of delay. The initial court case was started in 2013. 

This is another judge usurping power in the judicial "resistance" against the Trump administration and the rule of law.

We have a serious problem in the United States with rouge judges making policy decisions for the entire United States. President Trump was elected in a nationwide election. Judge Lasnik was not.

Justice Thomas has referred to it. Before President Trump, District Judges seldom claimed any power to negate law for the entire country. From Trump v. Hawaii:

In sum, universal injunctions are legally and historically dubious. If federal courts continue to issue them, this Court is duty bound to adjudicate their authority to do so.

Conservatives cannot simply ignore the court, because to do so brings about the chaos conservatives struggle mightily to prevent.

Leftists, on the other hand, welcome chaos as a means of overthrowing the system and bringing about a powerful, unlimited government.

The long term fight has been to replace judges who wield their power to create the "Progressive" government they want with originalists who see their duty, at least in part, to be faithful the the Constitution's limits on governmental power.

The Left's judicial resistance has slowed down President Trump's reforms. At the same time, President Trump has been appointing replacement judges at a record pace. 

President Trump has appointed a higher percentage of judges than anyone since Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR). FDR appointed 193 Article III federal judges. President Trump has now appointed 159 federal judges, and expects to have 182 in two months. Wikipedia reports there are 870 federal district, circuit and Supreme Court Judges. He expects to have appointed 219 judges when pending nominations are confirmed.  He could easily appoint more than another hundred Article III judges in a second term.

Judges such as Robert Lasnik can not be certain their decisions will be upheld in the Ninth Circuit.  They have great worries, if their decision goes to the Supreme Court.

They have significant cause to believe the court may trim back their current extravagant power.

In one way, the delaying tactics of the Left have worked against them. With more and more Trump appointees, the chances of their decisions being overturned increase every week.

©2019 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

MO: Armed Car Owner Holds Suspected Car Thief for Police

Tunstall called St. Louis police, filed a report, and then the officers left the scene. He waited with his car because it had a flat tire and needed a tow. He believes that’s when a man who was the thief returned. Tunstall said the man went to a dumpster as if he knew something was there. He said the man pulled the car’s key fob out of the dumpster and then tried to take the car.

Tunstall said he pulled out his own gun and ordered the man to the ground until the police returned.
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NC: Gunfight at Gaming Business, 1 of 3 Suspects Shot, Wounded

EDEN, N.C. — Three suspects were arrested and officials are looking for one more after a suspect was shot in Eden Saturday during an armed robbery, according to an Eden Police Department news release.

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CA: Armed Homeowner holds Drugged Assailant for Police

Prather said the homeowner confronted the intruder with his firearm.

“The homeowner was protecting himself and the occupants of the home,” he said. “He didn’t know what was going on. This guy followed her back to the residence where she was staying. He drove his car through their yard and basically hit their stairs going up to their residence. He actually hit the residence.”

Prather said the suspect is a man in his late forties or early fifties and was clearly under the influence of a narcotic.

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GA: Armed Robbery Suspect Shot in Chest by Armed Restaurant Employee

The suspect, who demanded cash, was shot in the chest by a restaurant employee, according to Callaway. The injured man fled the scene and was later found in a wood line off Shallowford Road.


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More Resistance to Tyranny from New Zealand

Image from wikimedia commons

People from New Zealand are affectionately know as Kiwis. There is a strong gun culture in New Zealand. It has been there from the beginning. The Maori tribesman, warriors (and cannibals), took to guns more quickly than nearly any other technology the British brought to the islands. The British were not wimps when it came to warfare.

The nation of farmers, hunters, fishers and warriors kept their guns and had little regulation for a hundred and fifty years.   With the British push for gun control after WWI, handguns came to be registered and regulated.  With that regulation, the courts simply refused to honor the centuries long tradition of an "Englishman's right to arms", which is the precursor of the Second Amendment in the United States.

After WWII, urbanization, and the elites growing disdain for Christianity, the Media in the English speaking countries became the primary power broker.

The Media has pushed for population disarmament all over Western Civilization. In New Zealand, there is now formal censorship of ideas. 

There is resistance to the building tyranny in New Zealand. What follows is a post from the Kiwi Gun Blog.  It has not been censored yet.

The Kiwi Gun Blog has over 10,000 active members. That is the equivalent of 2/3 of a million members in the United States.  The submission is long, and people can go to the original and read it. Here are a few relevant excerpts. The original submission is at least five times as long as these excerpts. It is worth reading.  From the Kiwi Gun Blog:

Submission from the Kiwi Gun Blog

The Kiwi Gun Blog

I write this submission in opposition to the Bill and on behalf of the Kiwi Gun Blog and its more than ten thousand active supporters.

These men, women and young adults are among the most responsible, reasonable and lawful citizens in New Zealand. Please consider our concerns.

It should be noted that several Members of Parliament are on record as saying that if the first amendments to our gun laws had not been rushed through in a matter of panicked days – then they never would have been.

This was a disgraceful end run around democracy.
Good law does not need emotion, a lack of opposition and mass propaganda to pass. As I said in my submission at the time – only a conman needs to create a false sense of urgency.

“Most shooters are not the problem…”

This is a gross insult. Literally 99% of gun crime is perpetrated by people without a gun license. With a quarter of a million licensed firearm owners and at least that number again shooting under supervision with them – it is an insult to suggest that even a percentage of us are an issue. We are not.

The final insult…

Even as this government has stripped the lawful of their rights and threatened licensed gun owners with several increased penalties for non-compliance – they have also forgiven our worst gun criminals.
The career criminal who stole twenty six guns from our incompetent police was just asked to apologize and will be unlucky to serve even a year.

Bias of the committee

It is inappropriate for MP Deborah Russell to be the Chairperson of this Committee. Or even associated with it. She has displayed extreme bias in this area and even boasted of strong ties to an anti-shooting extremist group. Headed by a family member.
This MP even gushed in the house about her ‘Aunty Marie’ providing her (False) information on which to base her strongly voiced anti shooting opinions.

Shooters are not divided on opposing these laws…

Our Police have behaved in a truly disturbing way while implementing the new gun laws. They have abandoned the role of enforcer to become PR spokespeople. Snake oil salesmen.

They have deleted any criticism on their social media pages. They even admitted ordering officers to hand private arms in early to give the appearance that the buyback was a success. To suggest shooters were ‘Generally supportive”. We are not.

Here is what the people of New Zealand NEED from new gun laws:

What follows is a list of 22 verified problems with police lobbying for these laws and of problems with police incompetence with firearms law. The Kiwi Gun Blog calls for specific reforms, but particularly to remove gun regulation from the hands of the police.

They include the inability of police to track a firearm to its lawful owner, even though he informed them they had the firearm.

They include information the 10% of the guns being confiscated in Australia are homemade.

They include examples of handguns smuggled into New Zealand. 

 The submission from the Kiwi Gun Blog is an excellent example of logic and reason in the fight for their rights.

I hope the National party, at least, reads it and considers it.

I very much doubt the Labor Party will.

The upcoming vote and elections will be critical for Kiwis attempting to defend their rights.

Critical elections are happening all over the Western world.

What is under attack, generally, is the idea of limited government responsible to the people. Freedom of speech is particular under attack, because the Media organs do not wish their dominance to be challenged.


©2019 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

TN: Gunfight, Intruder and Resident both Killed

The home invasion happened at about 11:45 p.m. An altercation occured and shots were fired, killing one resident and one intruder, who was wearing a mask, police said. They were both pronounced dead at the scene.

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FL: Homeowner Shoots Woman who Attacked Her

UPDATE (11:30 AM) -- Deputies say an accused burglar was arrested Thursday night after she was shot by a homeowner.
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SC: Woman Fires HiPoint 9mm, Drives off Suspect

She walked out of her front door and shot her Hi-Point 9mm handgun toward the man’s direction.

The man fled.

When a deputy arrived, he discovered a yellow saw blade wedged in the exhaust of the van “as if the subject was trying to remove the catalytic converters,” the incident report states.
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