Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Permits to Purchase or Carry Arms are Infringements of Second Amendment Rights


Outdated permit to purchase handgun in Grand Island Nebraska

The right to keep and bear arms necessarily includes the right to obtain arms. Arms can be obtained in several ways. Those include: making your own arms; buying your arms from someone else; having your arms given to you; finding arms which have been lost or discarded; and stealing arms which belong to someone else.

The most common method of obtaining arms is to buy them. The right to buy arms is clearly included in the right to keep and bear arms as an ancillary right necessary to maintain the right to keep and bear them. Ancillary rights necessary to preserve the right to keep and bear arms have been recognized by the Supreme Court and inferior courts as necessary to maintain the right to keep and bear arms.

It follows, therefore, requiring a permit to purchase arms is an infringement of the right to keep and bear arms. 

Under the Supreme Court decision in Bruen, if a statute implicates an action protected under the Second Amendment, the State has the burden of proving, with the historical record, such infringements were common and accepted just before and after the ratification of the Second Amendment; or, to a lesser extent, shortly after the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868. Occasional statutes or local laws or laws of short duration are not sufficient to establish a law as common and accepted. Laws which affected only a small percentage of the population are unlikely to meet the historical test.  Governments in the late colonial  and early republic era had the same concerns with disarming dangerous individuals as do governments today. They could have enacted laws requiring a permit to purchase firearms. The lack of such laws is evidence they were not widely viewed as acceptable infringements on the right to keep and bear arms, protected by the Second Amendment.

There was no lack of laws against stealing. Prohibition of stealing is in the DNA of Western jurisprudence and culture, deriving from the biblical commandment not to steal. Laws against the theft of arms are not infringements on Second Amendment rights.

Some judges have claimed there is historical support which allows the requirement of a permit to purchase arms or the carry arms. Chief Judge Renee Marie Bumb, of the federal District Court, D. of New Jersey, in her opinion issued on May 16, 2023, implies the requirement to obtain a permit to obtain and carry arms is acceptable in American history.

Judge Bumb treats a permit to purchase and a permit to carry as essentially the same. The "why" of the law is to disarm dangerous people; to a lesser extent it is to prevent dangerous people from having arms.

There is much which is positive in Judge Bumb's opinion. Finding there is a historical acceptance of requiring a permit to carry, or even purchase, a firearm is an unfortunate misreading by Judge Bumb. From page 10 of the Opinion:

That said, this Court finds that most of the new legislation’s firearm permitting requirements are consistent with the Second Amendment. This Nation has historically disarmed dangerous individuals or those who could endanger the public’s safety if allowed to have a firearm. The new legislation adheres to that historical tradition because it aims to keep firearms out of the hands of New Jerseyans who could threaten the public’s safety.

Judge Bumb recognizes the inherent infringement of permit laws, but claims permits are an acceptable infringement.  From the opinion:

Page 35:

Chapter 131’s permit process implicates the right to armed self-defense in public because an individual must first obtain a Carry Permit to carry a handgun in public for self-defense, otherwise, the individual exposes him- or herself to criminal liability. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2C:39-5(b).

Page 37:  

Bruen left open the possibility of constitutional challenges to “shall issue” statutory laws because “any permitting scheme can be put toward abusive ends.”

Page 38:  

In any event, based on the State’s historical materials and the Court’s own research, this Court finds this Nation has a historical tradition of disarming dangerous individuals and those who endanger the public safety.

Judge Bumb relies on colonial laws from 1692 and later which allowed public officials to disarm people who were found to be dangerous, such as a New Hampshire colonial law allowing a person to be disarmed if they refused to take an oath of allegiance, or a Massachusetts law which allowed officials to disarm people who rode about to "terrify the public".  There were laws to prevent slaves from carrying or keeping arms without permission of the owner. A 1664 law of colonial New York which required a slave to obtain permission from his master to carry arms outside his master's property.  Similar laws existed in 1704 in Virginia, and for "free negros, mulattos or [I]ndians" to have guns after obtaining a license. North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia had laws prohibiting slaves from carrying guns in public without permission from their owners.   In 1832 Delaware had a law allowing "free negros and mullatos" to carry firearms with a license.

Such laws were relatively rare. They applied to groups of people who were not considered part of the body politic. They required the permit only for particular groups of people, not the whole body of the people.

After the Civil war, a few jurisdictions required a permit to carry a pistol. They include local ordinances in Jersey City, in 1871 and the  City of New York, in 1881.  From these sparse underpinnings, Judge Bumb creates this finding. From page 57:

This Court finds that Chapter 131’s reputable persons endorsement and in-person interview requirements are “narrow, objective, and definite standards guiding licensing officials” to “ensure only those bearing arms in [New Jersey] are, in fact, law-abiding, responsible citizens.” Bruen, 142 S.

Such permits are a prior restraint on the right to keep and bear arms.

There is an enormous difference in the "how" of the law. The early laws required the State to determine a person was dangerous before they were disarmed.  In the early situation, most people are presumed to be allowed to possess and carry arms. Only small numbers of people are considered to be dangerous and disaffected.  In the later situation, which New Jersey is promoting, everyone is presumed to be dangerous and are not allowed to be armed until the state says they may.  This is a retreat to monarchical law. Significantly,  Colonial or early Republic States could have required everyone to apply for a permit before purchasing arms. No state passed such a general requirement. It is telling they did not do so.

The New Jersey law requires a person to prove they are not dangerous before they are allowed to be armed. The change in the burden of proof is huge. The New Jersey law equates the entire body of the people as dangerous and disaffected, until shown to be otherwise. Disarming  people who are already armed is significantly different from preventing people, who are not armed, from becoming armed.  Only people who were not considered part of the body politic (slaves and free Negros or mullatos, or Indians) in slave states, were presumed to need permission to be armed. The vast majority of the polity were not required to ask for or obtain permits. Only those who were not considered to be reliable were required to obtain permits.

The requirement to obtain a permit to own or carry arms puts ordinary, law abiding people in the same category as slaves or those who are presumed to have no allegiance to Constitutional government.

Significantly later, some jurisdictions required people to obtain a permit to purchase a pistol, such as Michigan in 1911 and North Carolina in 1919. Those statutes are too late to be relevant in Second Amendment jurisprudence.

In the philosophy of the founding, the majority of the people were to be trusted with political power, such as the vote and the right to keep and bear arms.  Only suspect minorities were required to apply for permits to own or carry arms. In the Progressive era, majorities of voters were to have their opinions and choices shaped by experts. They were not to be consulted in most decisions.

Judge Bumb explains the Supreme Court has not delivered an opinion on whether "shall issue" carry laws are constitutional under the Second Amendment.  She allows the issue is one which is yet to be adjudicated. Judge Bumb compares a permit to purchase or carry a firearm with a permit to have an event protected by the First Amendment. It is  a precarious comparison. One is for a group of people where significant costs may accrue to the the local government. Another is for an individual where the local government has no need to even know they are armed. The administrative costs are all created by the law requiring a permit, not costs created by the permit holder.

Over the last 100 years, infringements on the exercise of Second Amendment rights have created bureaucracies and a mythology of the usefulness or necessity of a government power to dole out those rights to a favored few. That era is over for most of the United States.  Recently, the requirement of permits to purchase handguns were repealed in Nebraska and North Carolina.

If the Republic can be maintained for a few more years, the words "shall not be infringed" have a good chance of being honored as they were meant when written.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

 

 

 

 


IL: Chicago. Two People Charged in Case where Armed Victim Shot Carjack Suspect

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Two people have been charged after an attempted carjacking near Ford City Mall in which the victim shot and wounded one of the suspects, Chicago police said.

The incident occurred Sunday in the 7600-block of South Cicero Avenue.

Police said the 24-year-old victim was approach by the two suspects, one of whom produced a handgun and fired. The victim returned fire and shot one of the suspects in the thigh, police said.

Police said the victim is a valid FOID/CCL holder.

More Here

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

MA: Road Rage Shooting Under Investigation

Stoughton police said the man stated that Kieu pointed a gun at him while in the 7-Eleven, which prompted him to run to his friend's car, a black Nissan Altima, and told the other three occupants of the vehicle what had happened.

The driver of the Nissan then left the parking lot and Kieu, who was driving a white Cadillac, followed that car, according to police. The driver of the Nissan told police that out of fear he and his friends were being chased by Kieu, he drove at a high rate of speed.

Police said the Nissan eventually made it to the intersection of Pearl and Central streets in Stoughton, which is where witnesses said Kieu's vehicle crossed the double-yellow line into the opposite lane of traffic and pulled up to the Altima. Witnesses told police that Kieu pointed a revolver at the four occupants of the Nissan.

The driver of the Nissan, whom police said has a valid license to carry and a properly-registered firearm, yelled for his friends to get down. Police said that the man driving the Nissan fired seven rounds into the Cadillac because he was "fearing for his life," and that one of the bullets struck Kieu.

More Here

Monday, May 29, 2023

Black Man Open Carry Protests of Maryland anti Second Amendment Bill; Vilified by Local School and Governor


 

 

 Link to Youtube video from WBALTV 


 

During spring of 2023, J'den McAdory, in Maryland, has been openly carrying a long gun in protest over Governor (D) Moore's push for infringements on Second Amendment rights. For weeks, maybe months, people ignored J'den's protests. WBALTV interviewed McAdory, the governor responded, and called McAdory's brave protests an "act of cowardice". Whatever else is true, for a young man to stand against the entire state apparattis in Maryland and assert his First and Second Amendment rights, is not the act of a coward. From wbaltv video :

The man, J'den McAdory, told the I-Team on Thursday he's protesting the governor's new gun control law. He said he began walking the sidewalks in Severn a few months ago, first with his shotgun strapped to his back, and now, with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle in his hands.

"I grew up in this community," McAdory said. "I'm 20 years old. I've lived here pretty much my whole life. I really want people to understand: I mean no harm to no one."

McAdory told the I-Team he has gone out twice a week to remind people of their Second Amendment rights and to protest the governor's new gun control measures, which take effect on Oct. 1.

WBALTV interviews parents who say they are scared and their children are scared. When they  attempt to justify there call for McAdory to stop protesting, in the face of the obvious legality of McAdory's actions, their only response is: You should not do something which makes people uncomfortable.

After the bill passed, numerous lawsuits were filed against it in federal court. The bill obviously violates the Second Amendment.

Analysis:

The question is: If McAdory had been wearing  a uniform, would the parents have been uncomfortable?

When the Black Panthers engaged in far more provocative actions in the 1960's, Leftist have claimed it was racism which provoked an anti-open carry bill which was eventually signed by Governor Reagan.  When a Democrat governor in a deep Left state signs an anti-Second Amendment bill, protested by a young, armed, black man, it is not racism, but "courage".

Some Second Amendment activists will say Mr. McAdory should not engage in his open carry protest. It might make people mad. Those people who claim McAdory offends them are of the same political party which pushes "Gay Pride" parades and "Flag Burning".  The offense is all in their own head. No one can control what another person is offended by. No one has the right "not to be offended" in the United States of America. Being offended and free speech are inseparable. Anyone, in any society, can speak when the speech does not offend anyone. Only speech which offends someone requires protection via the First Amendment.  J'den McAdory's open carry protest is a classic example of how open carry is strong, symbolic, protected, political speech.

Opinion:

Maryland will not become more anti-Second Amendment because of J'den. Some people will be educated. More people are likely to join in future protests, because J'den McAdory showed he was fully within his rights to do so. Some black Americans will see they have the same Second Amendment rights as the rest of the population, rights which must be protected and fought for.  This correspondent's advise to Mr. McAdory would be to add a sling to the AR and a sign explaining the protest. Both would do wonders to remove doubt and make the protest more effective.

J'den McAdory should be saluted for his educational actions. They are much like the celebrated refusal to ride in the back of a bus, only more spontaneous, and not backed by the Communist Party.  J'den obviously believes in his First and Second Amendment rights. Surprisingly, he has not been arrested in deep leftist Maryland.  Rights which are not exercised, are lost. J'den paves the way for other Second Amendment supporters to follow.


©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch






CO: Daughter of Homeowner Shoots Home Invasion Suspect

The homeowner, Bob Grafft, said his daughter let their dog out late Thursday night, while he was sleeping. According to CSPD, three masked suspects entered a home through the open backdoor while the daughter was with the dog.

Grafft said two suspects went downstairs to the basement while the other, with a sawed-off shotgun, went to the bedroom. When his daughter, Lisa, realized people were in the home, she grabbed a gun.

Grafft said he was awakened by his daughter telling the suspect with the shotgun to get out or she will shoot him. When the suspect ran, Lisa shot him in the shoulder, according to Grafft.

More Here

Sunday, May 28, 2023

NC: Gastonia Armed Man attempts Break in, Is Shot, Killed

A 911 call came in to Gaston County Communications around 10:45 p.m. Thursday. The caller said a man was trying to break into the home and that another person inside the home fired shots. 

Responding officers found Jones outside the home near the front door suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Jones was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

A Gastonia Police spokesman said that the preliminary investigation indicates Jones arrived at the home armed with a handgun, confronted a man at the front door and was then shot by him.


More Here

Saturday, May 27, 2023

MI: Homeowner Drives off Intruder with Gunfire


ANN ARBOR, Mich. (WXYZ) — A 77-year-old Ann Arbor man is counting his blessings after he scared off a home intruder.

(skip)

On Wednesday however, he rose to the occasion when he heard what sounded like someone trying to open his screen door.

"Came out to investigate the noise on the patio door. A guy had come through the kitchen window, over the sink and was turned toward me about 15 feet," Craig said.

Craig said he yelled at the guy and then pulled out his gun.

"I got off one shot at him. I hope I scared him, but I missed him," Craig said.

Craig may have missed him, but he has a sneaking suspicion the suspect might be a little sore.

"This window frame is broken where he pried under here and forced it up — that's where he came in,” Craig said.

He said the suspect escaped the same way he came in.

"He went out headfirst," Craig said with a chuckle.

 

More Here

Friday, May 26, 2023

NICS: April 2023 Third highest Gun Sales, and Background Checks for the Month

 

 

The National Instant background Check System (NICS), run by the FBI, shows April of 2023 was the third highest number of gun sales for April on record, a slight increase from April of 2022. The estimate for April 2023 is 1.34 million gun sales. The estimate for April 2022 was 1.32 million gun sales. The number of background checks done in April of 2023 is also in third place, at about 2.86 million background checks done on the NICS system in April of 2023, compared to about 2.73 million done in April of 2022. Gun sales have consistently been over a million a month since August of 2019

In the last 45 months, ending on April 30, 2023, there have been about 67.5 million firearms sold through the National Instant background Check System (NICS). Gun sales have been consistently over a million firearms a month for the entire period. Approximately one eighth of gun sales recorded by NICS appears to be a re-sale of a firearm already in the private stock of firearms in the United States of America. After adjusting for this, the number of private firearms in the USA is very close to 495 million at the end of April, 2023. 

This correspondent predicts the private stock of firearms in the USA will be over 500 million before the end of 2023. After 2016, the USA appears to have reset gun sales to a new normal. According to estimates from the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the State of California, new gun owners more than make up for loss of members of the gun culture due to death. From William English's 2021 survey of gun ownership in the USA, there are approximately 81.4 million adults who are willing to admit to gun ownership in an online survey. When the number of gun owners who will not participate in online surveys or who will not admit to gun ownership is included, the number of adult gun owners is likely over 100 million. Almost all legal gun owners are legal voters (there are a few permanent resident aliens who can legally own guns but who may not legally vote). 

Analysis

New gun ownership is driven primarily as a means of defense of self and community. As international and domestic tensions have risen and continue to be manifested in both the legacy media, the tech oligarch media and alternative media which delivers more conservative news, the number of people who see utility in the ownership of firearms grows. 

Gun ownership for defensive purposes is not a casual decision.  As the number of gun owners grows, so grows the political awareness of Second Amendment rights. More proponents of Second Amendment rights means more legislation in state capitols lending teeth to the exercise of those rights. 27 states now have a form of permitless carry, where no permit is required to legally bear arms in most public places. Gun ownership is a positive feedback loop.

People who own guns tend to find that guns are much like other tools. One hammer may be useful in many places, but specialized hammers do better for specialized tasks. People who purchase one gun often decide they need more than one gun. A tack hammer is better at driving tacks. A sledge hammer is better at driving posts. A rock hammer is better at breaking rocks. A gun optimized for defense of the home may not be optimum for all day carry. A gun best for militia use may not be best for control of garden pests. The USA may have reached a typing point where politically active gun owners are strong enough to restore rights protected by the Second Amendment, which have been significantly infringed for decades.

 

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

 

 

 


PA: Woman Shoots Man who Used Crowbar to break Her Vehicle Window

 

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A 22-year-old man was shot by a woman after he broke the window of her vehicle in University City with a crowbar, Philadelphia police said Wednesday.

The shooting happened at the intersection of 30th and Chestnut Streets. Police called it a "road rage" incident. 

Police said the 27-year-old woman was in her vehicle in University City when the 22-year-old man approached her car with a crowbar. After he broke the woman's passenger-side rear window, the 27-year-old woman shot the man in the groin, authorities said.


More Here

Thursday, May 25, 2023

MN: 19-Year-Old Released Pending Investigation of Shooting of Antuan D. Jones

A man arrested in a St. Paul homicide Saturday was released later the same day, pending further investigation, officials said Monday.

Antuan D. Jones, 41, was killed in an alley in the Payne-Phalen area. Officers found him when they responded to a 911 call reporting gunshots fired near Payne and Arlington avenues just after midnight Saturday.

Police also received a 911 call from the family of a 19-year-old who reported he was involved in the shooting, said Sgt. Mike Ernster, a police spokesman. He gave a statement to investigators and turned over the gun he used, according to Ernster.

Officers found a second gun at the scene of the shooting in an alley in the 600 block of East Arlington Avenue, police said. Jones, of St. Paul, had been shot and was pronounced dead by paramedics.

 

More Here

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Federal Judge: Ban of Purchase of Handguns by 18-20-Year-Old Citizens is Unconstitutional




On May 10th, 2023, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division, Judge Robert S. Payne published an opinion the federal statutes and regulations which ban 18-20-Year-old citizens from purchasing handguns from federally licensed dealers is facially unconstitutional.The decision was rendered in the case Fraser v ATF. The case is a lawsuit brought by four young citizens between the ages of 18 and 20.  The case was originally filed on June 22, 2022, just as the famous Supreme Court opinion in Bruen was published.  Motions to dismiss the case and for summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs were filed on November 30 and December 15, respectively.

Judge Payne denied the ATF motion to dismiss the case and granted summary judgement to the plaintiffs.

On May 10th, 2023, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division, Judge Robert S. Payne published an opinion the federal statutes and regulations which ban 18-20-Year-old citizens from purchasing handguns from federally licensed dealers is facially unconstitutional.The decision was rendered in the case Fraser v ATF. The case is a lawsuit brought by four young citizens between the ages of 18 and 20.  The case was originally filed on June 22, 2022, just as the famous Supreme Court opinion in Bruen was published.  Motions to dismiss the case and for summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs were filed on November 30 and December 15, respectively.

Judge Payne denied the ATF motion to dismiss the case and granted summary judgement to the plaintiffs.

Judge Payne found several fact in his route to the opinion, which was heavily based on the direction given by Justice Thomas in the Bruen decision.

First, the ban on purchasing handguns from federally licensed dealers directly infringes on the rights protected by the Second Amendment.  It is a "blanket age based restriction". The government did not contest this fact.

Judge Payne found the plaintiffs have standing, in part, because the Second Amendment, unlike other Amendments in the Bill of Rights contains the phrase "shall not be infringed". The Second Amendment clearly protects conduct which is necessary to exercise fundamental Second Amendment rights. Such conduct includes the right to obtain arms, including purchasing them. He held, while the Heller decision allowed for regulation of the commercial sale of arms, it did not say the purchase of arms fell outside the protections of the Second Amendment. Because the statutes in question denied the plaintiffs the right to purchase the arms, they were in fact harmed by the statutes.

Judge Payne found 18 to 20 year old citizens were clearly part of the "people" considered in the "right of the people" to keep and bear arms. This was decided partly on the universal inclusion of 18-20 year old men in the militia system, as well as the historical reality there were no restrictions on the purchase of arms by 18-20 year olds during the time of the ratification of the Second Amendment.  A few restrictions on purchase happened in a couple of states later, but they were not general, and were further removed from ratification. Those restrictions were placed by state governments. They do not apply to this case because the restriction are federal restrictions. 18-20 year olds are part of the political community, in part, because they have the right to vote. While the right to vote is not absolutely tied to the right to arms, it is a strong indicator those who possess it are part of "the people" considered in the Bill of Rights.

Judge Payne notes the denial of a Constitutional right is an immediate harm in itself. The 71 pages of the opinion are densely worded and carefully argued. This correspondent highly recommends they be read by anyone interested in how the restoration of Second Amendment rights are proceeding.

18-20 year old citizens never lost the right to own handguns. Permutations of federal law were used to infringe on their right to obtain handguns, putting them in the position of second class citizens. Judge Payne followed Justice Thomas instructions on treating the Second Amendment with the same respect given to other Amendments in the Bill of Rights.

 

 

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

 



GA: Gunfight, Clerk Wounded, Attacker Killed

ATLANTA — A person is dead after an early morning shootout with a grocery store clerk, police say.

Officers were called around 2:45 a.m. after the exchange of gunfire Saturday morning. Police said the store clerk of Star Groceries, located at 1955 Campbellton Road, was shot. The clerk fired back, killing the person.

More Here

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

LA: Man Shot as he Attempted to open Car Door in Parking Garage

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A man was shot and killed in a busy Midtown parking garage on Saturday afternoon in what police believe may have been an act of self-defense.

Officers were called to the 3200 block of Louisiana Street near Elgin around 3 p.m. When they arrived, a man, said to be in his 30s, was found dead, according to HPD Det. Sarin Chettry.

Chettry said surveillance footage shows the man in his thirties attempting to open the suspected shooter's driver side door while he was sitting in the seat, causing him to open fire.


More Here

Cases of Busch Light being Unloaded from a Bud Light Truck in Cross Plains WI May 17, 2023



These cases of Busch Light were being unloaded from a Bud Light truck in Cross Plains Wisconsin, on May 17, 2023. Make of it what you will.

It is an interesting photograph for the culture wars. 


Dean Weingarten



Monday, May 22, 2023

65% of USA Enjoys Right to Carry without a Government Permission Slip


In 1791, when the Bill of Rights was ratified, no permit was required for a member of the People of the United States to carry arms, included loaded handguns, in nearly all public spaces. By 1986, only Vermont still had the right to carry loaded, concealed, handguns without a permit. A significant number of states continued to maintain a right to carry loaded handguns openly, but the right was severely constrained in practice. In 1986 there were eight states which had "shall issue" laws for concealed carry permits. Those states were Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Washington State. The total land area of the United States of America is 3,805,927 square miles. The land area of Vermont is 9,616 square miles, or .25% of the land area of the USA.

In 1987, Florida passed a landmark shall issue concealed carry bill.  In a political tradeoff, spearheaded by disgraced former Attorney General Janet Reno, then the Florida state Attorney General for Miami-Dade, open carry was severely curtailed. Reno later became famous for being in charge of the Department of Justice during the Waco massacre overseen by the FBI.

The Florida shall-issue law has been widely viewed as starting the revolution to restore Second Amendment rights in the USA. Many states started to follow the example set by Florida. By 2002, there were 31 shall issue states,  11 may issue states, 7 no issue states and Vermont, where no permit was required.

While the shall issue revolution was ongoing, Second Amendment activists and Constitutionalists were calling for the removal of permit requirements all together. They demanded their Second Amendment rights be given the full force of other Constitutional rights. They correctly stated the Second Amendment demands that the rights protected by the Second Amendment shall not be infringed. They saw the requirement for a government permission slip as a clear infringement on Second Amendment rights.

Alaska was the first state to restore permitless carry, in 2003. Second Amendment activists had been pushing for it for years. This correspondent recalls the chant "We Want Vermont!" at numerous rallies. Alaska is the largest state for land area. It has 17.5% of the land area of the USA. Overnight, permitless carry jumped from .25% to 17.75% of the USA. From Shotgunworld:

Rep. Eric Croft, D-Anchorage, said he sponsored the bill out of frustration with continually fine-tuning the state’s gun laws.

“I object to the government putting a precondition on that
constitutional right (to carry a weapon). I’m presumed to be a responsible citizen until proven otherwise,” Croft said.

House Bill 102 does not eliminate the state’s concealed handgun permit
program. The governor’s office said Alaskans could still apply for a
permit in order to carry a concealed weapon in other states or to be
exempt from background checks when purchasing firearms.

By 2023, 27 states had restored the right to carry a loaded handgun concealed in most public places without a permit. In 26 of those states, the right to carry includes the right to carry arms openly. The dismal legacy of disgraced AG Janet Reno lives on in Florida.

Permitless carry will be the law of the land in over 65% of the land area of the United States as of July 1, 2023, when the Florida law takes effect.

This remarkable accomplishment took place as the Supreme Court examined a clear challenge to the numerous infringements on rights protected by the Second Amendment for the first time, in 2003, (Heller). The Supreme Court affirmed restrictions on government power, required by the Second Amendment, applied to the States in 2010 (McDonald). The Supreme Court noted, in a unanimous decision, the rights applied to "to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding,” in Caetano in 2016.  The Supreme Court noted rights protected by the  Second Amendment apply outside the home in Bruen, in 2022. While opponents of an armed population have repeatedly made claims of "blood in the streets" following the restoration of carry rights, it has not happened. Numerous studies on the effect of restoring the right to carry have shown little effect on murders, suicides or accidents. This correspondent is a trained scientist. This correspondent has read most of the studies.  The studies show only small effects. It seems likely there are relatively small decreases in murders and violent crimes. The effects are small enough that sophisticated computer programs are needed to detect them. Sophisticated computer programs are difficult to make proof against selection bias and confirmation bias. Any program that uses a "computer model" to obtain results is suspect.

Opinion:

The Supreme Court is following the people, Second Amendment activists, and state legislatures in restoring rights protected by the Second Amendment. Without the revolution in the restoration of carry rights, the Supreme Court decisions would not have occurred, as the justices who are willing to follow the text and original meaning of the Constitution would not have been appointed. If restoring rights protected by the Second Amendment resulted in "blood in the streets" it would be readily apparent. The conflicting results seen in the literature indicate the effects on crime, suicide and accidents are so small as to be very difficult to measure.

The effects on restraining government power are large. If the government must respect the rights protected by the Second Amendment, the rest of the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution as a whole, is better protected.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch






TX: Suspect Shot by Homeowner; Police explain the Homeowner was the Victim

"We have such friendly nice people in this area, and so, this must have been an intrusion as they say," Doug Taylor, the neighbor said. "Because we are just so settled and quiet here."

 When police arrived, they found the Cruz on the bathroom floor in a large pool of blood. Responding officers were able to save his life by using a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.

Cruz was taken to a Beaumont hospital by ambulance and is expected to survive their wounds.

Police said the homeowner acted under Texas law and will not face any charges.

"Even though they are the ones who shot the suspect, they are still the victim," Beaumont Police Spokesperson Haley Morrow said. "The suspect is the one who broke the law and committed a crime and as a result, he was shot."

 

More Here

Sunday, May 21, 2023

LA: Suspect Pulls Gun on Clerk, Clerk Shoots Suspect

Roderick Bennett got more than he bargained for when he pulled a gun on a clerk at a Central City retail store, judging from documents that New Orleans police filed in court.

Not only did the clerk also produce a firearm and shoot him, Bennett, in trying to drive to a hospital for treatment, crashed his car. And on Thursday, police arrested him on a charge of threatening the clerk in the first place.

They booked Bennett, 49, with aggravated assault with a gun and possession of a gun by a convicted felon.

More Here

Saturday, May 20, 2023

PA: Homeowner Shoots, Kills 1 of 2 Home Invasion Suspects

An 18-year-old was shot and killed following a home invasion in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, according to news reports.

The incident occurred along the 7500 block of Bennett Street at around 10:09 a.m., according to reports from WPXI and WTAE.

Police said a homeowner fired a gun at two intruders in his house. One of them was shot while the other person fled.

More Here

MI: Home Invasion, Activist Shot to Death

Acworth police said a 19-year-old man was shot to death inside an apartment in an apparent home invasion Wednesday morning.

Officers arrived at an apartment in building #5 on the 3000 block of Cobb Parkway in reference to a shooting call, when they found someone dead from gunshot wounds.

Channel 2′s Michele Newell was at the Walden Ridge Apartment Homes Tuesday, where the victim has been identified as Aiden Kane Shaw.


More Here

Thursday, May 18, 2023

Polar Bear Stopped with a .44 Magnum on Arey Island, Alaska, August 16, 2014

 


 image of Arey island by Eric Mckittrick 23 August, 2003 link to license cc 2.5

Arey Island is a seven mile long barrier island in the Southern Beaufort Sea off the coast of the North Slope of Alaska. It is a flat, barren island, which is mostly privately owned.

During August of 2014 two United States Fish and Wildlife personnel were on duty on the west end of Arey Island recorded as off the mouth of the Hula Hula and Okpilak Rivers, 8.5 miles WSW of Kaktovik. 70 deg 05'23.67" N, 144 deg. 00'43.12"W. One of them defended themselves against a polar bear on August 16, at about 9 a.m. The incident was recorded as number 549 in the freedom of information act (FOIA) response AmmoLand received. 

What happened is reconstructed from the sparse reporting in the FOIA response. 

The Fish and Wildlive personnel did not have any dogs with them. The food was in a bear resistant container, outside of the tent. The Fish and Wildlife pair did not have bear spray with them, nor was bear spray used. In Kaktovik, the temperature was recorded as 39 degrees F, with a 20 mph wind from the East. Earlier, at 5 am, the wind had been 30 mph. For those of you who have not slept in a tent, 20 to 30 mph winds are significant. A tent has to be strong and well anchored to remain in place with a 30 mph wind. If the wind was averaging 20 mph, there were almost certainly gusts to 30 mph. When the wind was averaging 30 mph, there were almost certainly gusts to 45 mph.

One of the Fish and Wildlife personnel was sleeping in a tent. They had a .44 magnum. A fat and healthy boar polar bear arrived on the scene and attempted to enter the tent. The sleeper woke up, detected the polar bear, shot and killed the polar bear with the .44 magnum. The shooter was not injured, except perhaps, for some lost hearing ability. 

Some people might believe the boar polar bear was just looking for a little interspecies companionship in the bleak landscape. Polar bears are, most of the time, at the top of the food chain. They are opportunistic hunters. They live by killing and eating other living things. It seems unlikely the bear was there to cuddle.

Even at the relatively warm temperature of 39 degrees, shelter is essential to survival in a place such as Arey Island. With Kaktovik only 8.5 miles away, a healthy person could probably find shelter there. There is not much to make shelter from on a windswept barrier island such as Arey Island. If a polar bear forces its way into your tent, there may not be much tent left over.

In the reporting recovered in the FOIA, a person reviewing the incident made this comment:

Fat, curious  bear. If had had bear spray, this would have been a good time to use it. The individual did not carry ANY deterrents. Only a .44.

This reporter suspects the after the fact commentator did not bother to consider what the weather was when the incident happened. Weather was not mentioned in the abbreviated facts given in the information from the FOIA request. As a meteorologist in a previous career, this correspondent only took a few keystrokes to determine what the weather was on that day and time, from a reporting station in Kaktovik, only a few miles away. 

Bear spray with a 20 mph wind is useless. Even a slight breeze has major effects on bear spray. Bear spray inside a tent is more likely to debilitate a person in the tent than a bear outside of it. Waiting for a bear to enter the tent with you, in order to spray it, is not a wise option. How much damage the tent sustained in the fight for survival with a healthy polar bear, was not mentioned. The bear was killed.

The incident was recorded as a Defense of Life and Property report (DLP) in Alaska. 


©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

TX: Disarm, Homeowner Takes Gun from Suspect, Suspect Killed

HARRISON COUNTY, Texas (KLTV) - A shooting near Hallsville on Friday that left one person dead may be a case of home protection, according to law enforcement.

Harrison County Sheriff B.J. Fletcher said the incident went from “borrowing some money to aggravated robbery gone wrong.” When deputies responded to the shooting call around 12:30 a.m. on Friday, the homeowner was standing out front of the house and cooperated fully, according to the sheriff.

The deceased, William Joseph Feazell, 40, was found in the kitchen, where the preliminary investigation revealed that he had been the instigator. Fletcher said that only one gun was involved, which belonged to Feazell. The homeowner was able to take control of the gun during the attempted robbery, which resulted in Feazell’s death.

More Here

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

NC: Repeal of Handgun Purchase Permit Demonstrates Chilling Effect on Exercise of Rights Protected by Second Amendment

North Carolina Capitol
 

On March 29, 2023, the North Carolina legislature overrode Governor (D) Roy Cooper's veto, eliminating the unconstitutional state requirement to obtain a permit to purchase a pistol. The permit system was put into operation in 1919, with a resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan and racism, during the Woodrow Wilson presidency. It was in place for 103 years. It is a classic example of a statute which effectively chills the exercise of a Constitutionally protected right. To see how effective the statute was in chilling rights protected by the Second Amendment, consider handgun sales, as measured by the NICS system, in April of 2022, and April of 2023. The Bill, SB41, became law when the veto was overridden on 29 March, 2023. The law's potential chilling effect was removed for the entire month of April, 2023.  If there was a significant chilling effect on the exercise of rights protected by the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights, there should be an increase of handgun sales in April of 2023.

The handgun and long gun sales, as measured by the NICS system, in April of 2022, were:

handguns   1,655

long guns  12,435

The handgun and long gun sales, as measured by the NICS system, in April of 2023, were:

Handguns  46,040

Long guns 11,984

This is significant proof of an enormous chilling effect on the exercise of rights protected by the Second Amendment.  Handgun sales increased more than 27 fold after the law producing the chilling effect was repealed.  The total handgun sales in North Carolina were only 22,109 in 2022. After the law was repealed, in one month, handgun sales more than doubled over the entire previous year.

In the Bruen decision, the Supreme Court declared the Second Amendment is not a second class right. The Supreme Court has held laws which chill the exercise of a right enumerated in the Constitution are unconstitutional. From the mtsu.edu:

In Lamont v. Postmaster General (1965), the Court struck down a postal regulation requiring individuals who
wished to receive communist literature to sign up at the post office. Although the program included no sanctions against recipients, the Court said it would chill individuals who wanted the material but were afraid to make their wishes known to the government.

The purpose of those who seek our disarmament is to reduce the number of guns and the number of gun owners. Their unproven claim is: fewer firearms will reduce illegitimate violence. However, most illegitimate violence happens in countries with few legitimate firearms. Rebecca Peters headed up the successful George Soros funded drive in Australia, to emplace draconian gun control laws. She is now the director of  International Action Network on Small Arms (www.iansa.org). She published an article at the UN Chronicle, explaining the strategy. This is an excerpt.  From un.org:

Reducing the domestic supply of new weapons. While most countries permit civilian ownership of small arms, they are at the same time seeking to contain it to moderate levels. What is considered a moderate or acceptable level of gun ownership in society is coming increasingly under scrutiny as governments recognize the need to strengthen their gun laws. Driven by regional and international agreements, popular pressure and expert advice, gun laws around the world are growing tighter and more uniform. The emerging norms include integrated renewable licensing and registration of firearms and owners, based on proof of a legitimate reason for possession, limits on the types and number of weapons a civilian can possess, minimum age limits, checks of criminal record and other personal information, safe storage requirements etc. As the new laws reduce the proportion of the population legally entitled to buy or possess arms, as well as the number each licensee can own, the flow of new weapons into the country will slow.

In 2022, the last year we have full statistics, there were National Instant background Check Systems (NICS) checks for about 8.78 million handguns and 5.63 million long guns in the United States of America. Other sales and multiple sales are relatively minor and not included in those numbers. Using the same measure, in North Carolina in 2022, there were 22,109 NICS checks for handguns and 172,574 NICS checks for long guns. While the national total shows a preference for handguns over long guns of 1.56 handguns per long gun, the North Carolina total shows an enormously chilled preference of .128 handguns per each long gun, or  1/12 of the national average. This confirms the chilling effect of the now repealed North Carolina law. Laws in other states, which place burdens on the exercise of Second Amendment rights, are equally suspect. Some of those laws are already being challenged in the courts, such as California's handgun roster law.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch


 



 

MD: Charges dropped for Cody Allen Hammond - Video shows no Firearm Possession

Cecil County Circuit Court Judge Brenda A. Sexton acquitted the defendant — Cody Allen Hammond, 21, of Elkton — of all charges at mid-trial on Friday in response to a defense motion made by Elkton-based lawyer C. Thomas Brown. The defense attorney made his motion for directed verdict after the state had rested its case. Prosecutors had presented witness testimony for about a day and a half, after both sides had spent one day on jury selection, before resting their case on Friday.

During his mid-trial motion, Brown argued that the state had failed to meet its burden of proof to convict his client. Specifically, he maintained that Hammond is unarmed every time he appears on security-camera video of the incident, which prosecutors had presented as part of their case against him.


More Here

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

SC: Cheap Gun Opportunity in Spartanburg on May 13, 2023, 8 am to 1 pm.

Update: the event occurred on Saturday. It appears mostly long guns were collected.

There will be a gun "turn in event" on Saturday, May 13, 2023 in Spartanburg, South Carolina. These events are commonly labelled with the Orwellian term "buyback".  The guns were never owned by people attempting to obtain them, so they cannot be bought back. This is a propaganda event to make it appear as if guns are illicit items.

Guns have enormous utility and are sought after possessions. The people who turn in guns at these events  either do not know the value of their guns, want to make a political statement, or turn in guns which have a value less than the money offered by the gun turn in organizers. From WYFF:

The city of Spartanburg in South Carolina is offering gift cards in exchange for working guns.

The gun buyback will take place from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday, May 13 at City Hall on West Broad Street.

Participants will receive $100 in gift cards for handguns, and $150 in gift cards for high-powered weapons.

The address for the Spartanburg City Hall parking lot is 145 W Broad Street. When Second Amendment supporters attend these events to purchase undervalued firearms from those who do not know their value, the propaganda effect of the event is diminished or destroyed. Instead of the message "Guns are bad, turn them in to the police", the message becomes "Guns are valuable, we pay cash."

This correspondent has been at a number of similar events. One in Phoenix, Arizona turned into a rolling gun show.

Gift cards tend to run out quickly. It is best to show up early. People who bring guns to the event
after the gift cards run out are usually willing to deal.  This correspondent obtained some nice, if inexpensive guns, at the Phoenix event.

Some Police are hostile to private buyers, others are indifferent or positive. It is a good idea to do some research before setting up a table and holding up a sign saying with "Cash for Guns" sign.

Private sales are legal in South Carolina.

Second Amendment supporters can help make the turn-in in your area more effective by standing on the curb with your "Cash for Guns" sign, or at a folding table, willing to offer more than the gift card for firearms that are more valuable. If several private parties are available, they can support each other and help to prevent false accusations.

This action serves many useful purposes. It stretches the turn-in budget so that more guns can be taken off the street. It helps prevent fearful widows from being defrauded of most of the market value of the gun they are turning in. It prevents valuable assets from being destroyed by bureaucratic inflexibility. It is a win-win-win situation.

Proponents of gun turn-in events know they are not really useful for preventing crime. Academics agree the events do not accomplish much, except as propaganda. The best academic study indicates they are likely counterproductive.  Very few gun turn-in events occur where private sales are legal. Most events now happen where private sales are banned, such as in California, New York, Massachusetts or New Jersey.

Those who plot for a disarmed public have learned to limit advertisement of their events to reduce participation by Second Amendment supporters. They give only a few days notice. Second Amendment supporters who attend should take pictures and be ready to video or audio record events. Some very interesting information has been obtained in this way.

It is particularly useful to see what guns are being turned in to be destroyed. Many valuable guns have been turned in at these events, some worth thousands of dollars.

The event at Spartanburg is to take place at City Hall. Event organizers will likely attempt to prevent photographs of what is going on. Police are likely to attempt to prevent Second Amendment supporter from offering cash for valuable guns.  On public right of way, this is almost certainly a violation of First Amendment rights.

If a reader decides to be a citizen reporter and attend this event, please contact Dean Weingarten via AmmoLand after you have attended, with an after action report. Pictures are always useful. Several events have been noted where private purchasers were present, but were ignored by the biased media.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.


Gun Watch



 

NV: Armed Victim Shoots, Kills Carjacking Suspect

When he entered traffic on Paradise Road, he immediately began pointing a gun at passing cars, stopping a silver vehicle. He pointed his gun at the person who was driving the vehicle, a man in his 50s. That driver was armed and shot the suspect.  

The driver appears to be the victim of a possible carjacking, and at this time is not facing any charges, Johansson said.

More Here

Monday, May 15, 2023

KY: Louiseville Mass Murderer: Killing was to Promote Gun Control Agenda


 While mass murderers are as likely to be mentally deranged environmentalists as they are to be Muslims (most do not show political affiliation), some have made clear they favored keeping guns from the general public. It is the ultimate in logic-defying irrationality of those who promote disarmament.

From the Daily Mail:

[the mass murderer] made three key points in the manifesto, which is in the hands of the police: he wanted to kill himself, he wanted to prove how easy it was to buy a gun in Kentucky and he wanted to highlight a mental health crisis in America.

The mass-murderer legally purchased an AR-15 assault rifle on April 4, six days before he entered the bank at 8:33am where he was met by a friendly woman colleague at the entrance. He told her 'you need to get out of here' before he tried to shoot her.

But the weapon was unloaded and the safety catch was on. He then loaded the rifle, flicked off the safety and blasted the fleeing woman in the back.

Two things stand out from the paragraph above.

First, The murderer could see the way to media fame was to promote gun control by murdering many people with an AR15 type rifle..

Second, if they bank employee had been armed, she could have stopped the mass murder before it happened, because of the incompetence of the murderer.

From the Crime Prevention Research Center, about Columbine:

 The Majority leader of the state House at the time, Doug Dean, told John Lott that Klebold had written his state legislators opposing the legislation.  The bill would have allowed people to carry permitted concealed handguns on school property.  The killers timed their attack for the very day that final passage of the law was planned for in the legislature.

It is not surprising that mass murderers favor keeping potential victims unarmed. Many of them made clear in their writings they go to considerable lengths to conduct the attacks where the potential victims are required by law to be disarmed. This brings the second point above into question. If the bank in Louisville had allowed people to have the means to defend themselves, he would likely have chosen a different target.  From the CPRC:

Updated March 28, 2023: At some point, you would think that the empirical evidence would be overwhelming. When the Aurora, Colorado Batman movie theater shooter attacked, there were seven movie theaters showing “The Dark Knight Rises” on July 20th within 20 minutes of the killer’s apartment at 1690 Paris St, Aurora, Colorado, but the killer picked the only theater that had signs posted that it was a gun-free zone. His first target had been an airport but he worried about their “substantial security.” Similar stories have occurred at malls such as in Omaha and Salt Lake City or the Lafayette, Louisiana movie theater. Despite teachers carrying guns in schools in 20 states, all the shooting attacks at schools have occurred in schools that ban teachers from having guns.

Many mass murderers have mental problems. They also take considerable time and effort to plan their attacks and to chose targets. They are subject to deterrence. The Old National Bank specifically banned employees from being armed. From the Team Member Handbook:

•Possession of dangerous or unauthorized materials, such as explosives, firearms, or any type of weapons inside the workplace or on company premises. In some states, there are additional laws about this subject; when applicable, state law takes precedence over these guidelines.

Opinion:

Mass public murder can be reduced in at least two ways which would cost very little. Both are opposed by America's de-facto ruling class in the Media, bureaucracies, intelligence services, academia. They are:

Reduce the incentive for mass public murder by reducing the payoff of media fame. The mass media did this with celebrity suicides. They have chosen not to do it with mass public murder.

Increase the deterrence to mass public murder by allowing the public to defend itself with armed force.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

 

TX: Jarrell Homeowner Shot, Killed Suspected Home Invader

JARRELL, Texas (KXAN) — A homeowner shot a suspected burglar Thursday morning in Jarrell after he forced his way into the home, according to a Williamson County Sheriff’s Office release.

The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Juan Sanchez Palafox, was found dead by WCSO deputies after they were called to the home on County Road 239, the release said.

 

More Here

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Two Progressive Activists in Gunfight. Legal gun Owner Shoots Illegal Gun possessor, Kills Same


From inquirer.com

Jane Roh, a spokesperson for District Attorney Larry Krasner, said Friday that both their office and the Police Department were in agreement about what happened between two paid canvassers for the progressive group One PA.

“This is nonetheless a tragic loss of life,” Roh said. “We extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones of the decedent.”

Meanwhile, family members of the victim, Eddie Brokenbough, were distraught to learn the father of 10 had been shot, and doubted police accounts of the shooting.

Reports spread that Brokenbough, who was shot once in the armpit and rushed from the 2000 block of Church Lane to a nearby hospital, had pulled a gun on the 22-year-old canvasser, causing the younger man to shoot in what he told police was self-defense.

One PA has said guns are not permitted in its offices or during canvassing, and it has temporarily suspended its canvassing efforts.

The group is an independent expenditure committee that can raise and spend money to boost candidates but is prohibited from directly coordinating with them. This year, the group knocked on doors to promote mayoral candidate Helen Gym and a slate of left-leaning City Council candidates.

Both men knew each other, police said, and the shooting stemmed from an “argument,” possibly over an existing dispute.

 

 

 

New York Government Attempts to Moot Second Amendment Case. Again.


The State of New York Office of the Attorney General has issued a letter to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in an attempt to moot some of the challenges to the infringements on Second Amendment rights. Those challenges are now before the Second Circuit.

When the Supreme Court published the seminal Second Amendment case in Bruen, re-enforcing the Heller opinion from 2008, in 2022, some states rebelled and defied the Supreme Court. One of these was New York. In New York, Governor Hochel, convened a special emergency session to create new law to infringe on the rights protected by the Second Amendment. The new law made it nearly impossible for an ordinary person to carry a firearm for self defense in public.

The law was immediately challenged in several court cases. Judges issued injunctions against the enforcement of the new law, on the grounds that it causes immediate harm and was likely to be overturned by the courts. Those cases were consolidated before the Second Circuit, and the Second Circuit put a stay on the injunctions.  The stay allowed the law to be enforced while the case was being adjudicated.

On May 5, 2023, the State of New York Office of the Attorney General, lead by the infamous Letitia James, sent a letter to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, claiming some of the claims before the court were now moot, because of last minute changes to the concealed carry law passed in emergency session in 2022. The changes were inserted into the state budget bill, which became law on May 3, and went into effect immediately. The case is known as Hardaway v. Nigrelli. From the Letter:

But, under the amended statute, Hardaway and Boyd—who, as their churches ’ leaders, both retain the authority to grant “permission to [themselves] to carry for purposes of keeping the peace in [their] church[es]” (J.A. 71-72)—are permitted to carry firearms at their church. Plaintiffs do not purport to raise Second Amendment claims on behalf of their congregants, and there is no authority for third-party standing in such circumstances. Thus, plaintiffs’ action challenging the place-of-worship provision is now moot.

Included in the changes were changes which allowed a person to carry on private property inside a public park, which applies  to another challenge of the law. The public park change was made in an amendment to the budget bill sometime after the S4005B version was proposed on March 14 of 2023. The budget bill was passed on May 1 2023, and signed into law on May 3, 2023. The prompt action by the State of New York Office of the Attorney General indicates this change was a priority.

In 2020, the State of New York applied nearly the same tactic to moot the New York Rifle & Pistol Association case then pending before the Supreme Court.  The Supreme Court accepted the tactic and mooted the case, only to deliver a delayed and improved decision in the Bruen case two years later.

The Supreme Court may not be as willing to accept this tactic as they were in 2020. The case is not before the Supreme Court. Hardaway v. Nigrelli is before the United State Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The Second Circuit has been notoriously lax in enforcing rights protected by the Second Amendment.

Analysis:

This is more lawfare practiced by the State of New York to delay and obstruct the ability to exercise rights protected by the Second Amendment as long as possible. The letter gives cover to the Judges on the Second Circuit to moot challenges to the unconstitutional law passed in emergency session. By placing the amendments in the budget bill, the Governor, Attorney General, and their allies in the legislature ensured there would be little or no debate on the measures.

If the Second Circuit moots the challenges to the New York Law, the decision will almost certainly be appealed to the Supreme Court, thus taking more time and delaying the exercise of Second Amendment rights even more.  Two justices of the Supreme Court recognize this delaying tactic and exhorted the Second Circuit to act in a reasonable amount of time.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch




 


TX: Armed Victim Shoots Carjacking Suspects, 1 Killed, 1 Wounded

DALLAS — A man is dead after an attempted carjacking ended with a shooting Wednesday at an Oak Cliff gas station

The incident happened outside the Quick Trip on S. R. L. Thornton Freeway at Glen Oaks Crossing in Oak Cliff. Police say three suspects attempted to rob a man at gunpoint, who then shot two of them in self-defense. 

More Here

Saturday, May 13, 2023

MD: Domestic Defense, Armed Samaritan Shoots, Kills man who Allegedly Assaulted Girlfriend, threatened Him

A 30-year-old off-duty firefighter who was allegedly assaulting his girlfriend was shot and killed by an armed pedestrian walking his dog after the girlfriend was able to flee from their Maryland townhouse and ask the man for his help.

(skip)

 “According to witnesses, Braxton approached and threatened to harm the man,” the sheriff’s office wrote in the press release. “Braxton continued walking aggressively toward the man, at which time the man, who has a permit to carry a firearm, produced a gun and shot Braxton.”

 

More Here

Friday, May 12, 2023

Rossi New: RB 22 Compact with Threaded Muzzle at NRA Annual Meeting


The Rossi booth at the NRA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, 2023, had a new product this correspondent had been hoping to see. It is the RB 22 Compact, a bolt action .22LR with a 10 shot magazine, 16 1/2  inch barrel, with muzzle threaded to 1/2x28, and a composite stock. It is sized to be child friendly, has the very good fiber optic Rossi open sights, and is grooved for mounting optics.

It weighs (unloaded) 3 lbs, 4 ounces. It comes, as seen, in a variety of colors, with one magazine. The overall length is 31 1/2 inches.  Take down to minimum length for transport is easily done with the removal of the two action machine screws. This brings the minimum length to less than 25 inches, which will fit in most full sized luggage, without the tell-tale "gun case" look.

The trigger on the floor model felt very usable to this correspondent. Add a suppressor to this rifle, and it makes a nearly ideal rifle to start young shooters with. It would be a wonderful camp rifle for summer camp rifle introductory courses.



In the picture above, notice the stock has been changed to allow easier access to the crossbolt safety.  The manufacturer's (MSRP) suggested retail price is $185.99. The MSRP for the RS 22, the popular Rossi semi-auto, is $159.99. This correspondent has purchased RS 22 rifles on sale for as low as $97. If the new RB 22 compact eventually follows the trend, expect street prices to be in the neighborhood of $150, or less on sale.

The RB 22 practically begs for a lightweight red dot sight and a silencer/suppressor. It will be a wonderful lightweight hunting platform, and a great camp/woods-running gun. With the smooth bolt action, there is nearly no action noise to accompany a shot with sub-sonic ammunition. It would make a wonderful "truck" gun as well. It is small, easy to use, tough and inexpensive.

The RB 22 action has it's own magazines, which are not made to activate the hold-open feature of the RS 22. However, the RB 22 will work fine with the RS 22 magazines. The only difference is: the bolt will not close with an empty RS 22 magazine fully inserted into the magazine well. Some would say this is a feature, not a bug, which signals the operator - the rifle is empty!

This correspondent likes the option to go either way, and has several spare magazines for the RS 22.

The RB 22 Compact is a bolt action, light weight, compact, threaded muzzle rifle at a very reasonable price. It was difficult to find anything to complain about with the new RB 22 compact.

This correspondent's experience with the RS 22, is the trigger pull can be improved with a little gun plumbing. There are several videos online to show the tinkerer how to do so. The directions are not difficult to follow, and good results may be had with a little effort. As noted, the floor display model examined had a good trigger already.  Your mileage may vary.

Perhaps the most important feature to this correspondent is the inclusion of the threaded, accessory ready muzzle, with included thread protector.  Add a suppressor, flash hider, forward sound director, or reverse paradox tube. With a 20 inch reverse paradox tube, an easy to handle garden gun with .22 shot shells. The bolt action handles them with ease, the rifle is still easy to handle, and you have increased the effective range to at least 10 yards, over the usual range out of a rifle of 10 feet. 

This correspondent would like to see a manufacturer offer aluminum reverse paradox tubes for the price of an spare magazine. 

It is difficult to surpass the versatility, economy, and durability of a .22 LR bolt action. With minimal care, it is expected the RB 22 should give decades, perhaps centuries of service. This correspondent predicts several hundred thousand rounds would go downrange before mechanical wear becomes a problem. 

 

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch


NC: Gunfight, Pharmacist drives off Robbery Suspects, is Grazed by Bullet

LEXINGTON, N.C. (WGHP) — Police say suspects fired shots inside a Lexington pharmacy during an attempted robbery on Tuesday afternoon, and two people have been arrested.

FOX8 is told that around 2 p.m., a pharmacist was grazed by a bullet and then fired back with his own gun. 

Steve Koontz is the pharmacy manager at the Lexington Family Pharmacy. He said two masked men came to rob the pharmacy and shot at him. Koontz legally carries at the pharmacy and fired back.

More Here

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Book Review: On the Hunt: The History of Deer Hunting in Wisconsin

On the Hunt: The History of Deer Hunting in Wisconsin. 224 pages, 100 illustrations, by Robert C. Willging, Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2008.

On the Hunt is a well written and comprehensive history of deer hunting in Wisconsin. It is that rare treat, a factual, scholarly history combined with numerous anecdotal accounts and local histories integrated to make an easily readable, smooth flowing and factually loaded book. It has about a hundred illustrations.  The illustrations and stories will appeal to a broad range of ages and interests. The book opens with a recounting of Robert C. Willging's, transformation from a Chicago city kid to a full fledged Wisconsin deer hunter.

This writer purchased On the Hunt  for his brother as an adjunct to the long term family tradition of deer hunting in northern Wisconsin.  The book is available from the Wisconsin Historical Society in oversized softcover for $25. Hardcover copies show up online from time to time.

On the Hunt portrays pre-historical hunters as they populate the Great Lakes area with its retreating glaciers, thousands of years ago. The Paleo-Indians were armed with the atlatl, or spear thrower, a device which significantly increased the range of a hunter's reach. The atlatl stayed in use up to the discovery of the new world by early renaissance Europeans. It's use by Aztec warriors was noted in the first hand account of Bernal Diaz in his seminal work, the Discovery and Conquest of Mexico.

The atlatl is limited in effective range to about 30-40 yards. It requires a fairly open space to work. The next advance in hunting hardware was the bow and arrow, which became common in the Americas a few hundred years before the Europeans arrived in significant numbers. As an aside, the bow and arrow were not used, at least to any appreciable extent, in Australia, where the atlatl is known as the womera.  The bow became the principle device for hunting deer in the Americas until the introduction of firearms.

This correspondent grew up in the Wisconsin northwoods, and experienced a significant number of the events Willging writes about.  The book appears accurate in every significant detail. By necessity, the work concentrates on history from about 1850 onward, although the pre-history from the discovery of the area by humans until the 1600's is as well done as can be expected.

Th history from 1850 onward is the history of the enormous success of the European immigrants in taming the land, and increasing agricultural productivity.  As the European immigrants did this, they realized whitetail deer were a resource which was being lost, and required management. Starting in the late 1800's, management of the whitetail deer gradually changed from prohibitions on hunting during spring and early summer, to the sophisticated system of licenses, permits, quotas, and limited hunting methods modern hunters are familiar with.

The number of whitetail deer in Wisconsin is much greater than it ever was before the entrance of Europeans on the scene.  Today the whitetail herd in Wisconsin is over one and a half million animals. Hundreds of thousands must be harvested every year to stave off overuse of the range, and the inevitable winter starvation which follows. The management of the deer herd has been an incredible success of the wildlife conservation movement. The book is highly recommended for anyone who desires to understand the complex interaction of modern man and game animals.

Opinion: The reason Wisconsin can support such an enormous increase in whitetail deer is the Europeans immigrants and their technology made the land far, far more productive than it was previously. Virgin forest is not very productive. It produces a heavy biomass of wood, which few animals can use for food. Whitetail deer profited enormously from the cutting of the virgin forest in the north-woods of Wisconsin.

The largest population and concentration of whitetail deer today is in the southern part of the state. In the petroleum age, fertilizers have made the land many times as productive as it used to be. The whitetail deer living in woodlots and feeding on the edges of cornfields benefit tremendously from the existence of this largess.

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch



 



 





TN: Homeowner Shoots 2 Home Invasions Suspects, 1 Killed, 1 Wounded

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- A suspect in a Murfreesboro home invasion is shot and killed by the homeowner.

The homeowner shot and killed one man in the home invasion on January Street Friday night, and shot a second suspect multiple times, according to Murfreesboro police. Kevin Ford, 52, is identified as the person who died at the scene.

Police found the second intruder, 42-year-old Clifford Wright, at the Salvation Army. He went to the hospital for treatment of his gunshot wounds, before heading to jail.

According to police, the homeowner was able to get his gun after the two masked men broke into his home, used a Taser on a his dog and held his teenage son at gunpoint.

More Here

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

CA: Waiting Period Law Challenged Under Supreme Court Bruen Decision

 

On May 1, in the Federal District Court for the District of Southern California, a number of plaintiffs, including: San Diego County Gun Owners PAC; California Gun Rights Foundation; Firearms Policy Coalition, Inc.; and Second Amendment Foundation, filed a lawsuit challenging the California statute requiring a ten day waiting period before a person may purchase a firearm in California. The case is Richards v Bonta.  A previous lawsuit, Silvester v Harris had failed. The Supreme Court refused to grant a writ of certiorari in 2018, with Justice Thomas dissenting. From the dissent:

Because the right to keep and bear arms is enumerated in the Constitution, courts cannot subject laws that burden it to mere rational-basis review. District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U. S. 570, 628, n. 27 (2008). But the decision below did just that. Purporting to apply intermediate scrutiny, the Court of Appeals upheld California’s 10-day waiting period for firearms based solely on its own “common sense.”

A complicated two step system, with its "ways/means" rational basis test, disguised as intermediate scrutiny, was instituted and and used by the Ninth Circuit and others to disfavor rights protected by the Second Amendment. This was done in Silvester v Harris and other cases. Justice Thomas repudiated that process in the Bruen decision on June 22, 2022. The Bruen decision makes another challenge to the California waiting period law ripe for review. In Richards v Bonta, the plaintiffs explain how this is so. From the plaintiffs' brief:

6. As explained in Bruen, the government bears the burden of “affirmatively prov[ing] that its firearm regulation is part of the historical tradition that delimits the outer bounds of the right to keep and bear arms.” 142 S.Ct. at 2127. Here, Defendants cannot possibly carry that burden. No waiting period or any analogous laws existed in the constitutionally relevant period of history. Rather, no form of a waiting period law was enacted for any jurisdiction until 1923, well beyond the relevant time period the Supreme Court permits to be considered—after all, the law held unconstitutional in Bruen was enacted in 1911.

7. Adding insult to injury, Defendants broadly discriminate against the
average person by allowing nearly two dozen categories of favored individuals to take possession of firearms and ammunition without being subject to those same delays and burdens. This case is thus also brought on the premise that Defendants’ enforcement of California law violates the Equal Protection Clause by discriminating among its citizens in their exercise of the fundamental right to keep and bear arms.

The case has been assigned to Judge Larry Allen Burns.

Analysis: The case is another of the dozens which are ongoing as the result of the clarification of the process, required by the Supreme Court, on how to handle cases which involve infringements on the rights protected by the Second Amendment. Justice Clarence Thomas, perceiving the way the lower courts were ignoring the plain words of the Second Amendment, made clear in the opinion published in Bruen, the Second Amendment is to be treated with the same respect as other enumerated rights in the Bill of Rights. With Bruen, the complicated scheme to disfavor Second Amendment rights, concocted in the Ninth Circuit and others, was discredited and dismantled.

Preventing people from obtaining the means to exercise their rights as protected by the Second Amendment is a clear infringement.  If the exercise of the rights can be delayed for 10 days, why not 20? Why not 100? Why not 1,000 days.  There is a legal maxim: Justice delayed is justice denied. The idea of waiting periods to obtain arms protected by the Second Amendment was created in California in 1923, explicitly for racist purposes. There does not appear to be any historical precedent for waiting periods to obtain  firearms, before 1923.   Clayton Cramer published a paper on the racist origins of the California gun law in 2015.

 

©2023 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch