MI: Boy Suspended in Kindergarten Gun Incident

(Ionia, Michigan) School officials took immediate action after discovering a 6-year-old boy playing around with a gun.

But when Mason Jammer, a kindergarten student at Jefferson Elementary in Ionia, curled his fist into the shape of a gun Wednesday and pointed it at another student, school officials said it was no laughing matter.

They suspended Mason until Friday, saying the behavior made other students uncomfortable, said Erin Jammer, Mason's mother.

School officials allege Mason had displayed this kind of behavior for several months, despite numerous warnings.

"I do think it's too harsh for a six-year-old," said Jammer, who was previously warned that if Mason continued the practice he would be suspended. "He's six and he just likes to play."

Heh. The school officials overreacted in my estimation.

Guns in the saloon

Someone who is drunk shouldn't be handling a gun, but that doesn't justify a ban on concealed carrying in all places that serve alcohol. On Tuesday, the Virginia House of Delegates joined the state Senate and voted 72-to-27 to overturn this ban. Gov. Robert F. McDonnell's signature is all that stands in the way of getting rid of this dangerous restriction.

Over the past two decades, a sweeping wave of freedom has allowed more citizens to carry concealed handguns. States have realized that there is little reason to restrict the carrying of concealed handguns by those who have received permits. Forty states currently allow concealed handguns to be carried in places that serve alcohol. None of the states that have allowed this freedom has cause to reverse the decision.

The facts are clear. Despite misleading claims to the contrary by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Violence Policy Center, permit holders are law-abiding individuals who are extremely careful with their guns. This general rule applies in states that allow concealed handguns in bars. Permit holders simply haven't been getting liquored up and harming others through irresponsible conduct. Virginia hasn't had any problem with open carry in restaurants, so it's hard to understand why anyone thinks there could be a problem with concealed handguns.

Take Florida and Texas, two states that allow concealed handguns in bars. Between Oct. 1, 1987, and Jan. 31, 2010, Florida issued permits to more than 1.7 million people. Only 167 have had their permits revoked for any firearms-related violations. That is a minuscule 0.0098 percent revocation rate. The vast majority of those revocations were not for violence, but merely for accidentally carrying a gun into a gun-free zone. During the past 16 months, there was only one incident involving a firearms-related violation.

The numbers are similar in Texas. Over the five years from 2002 to 2006, the average rate at which permit holders were convicted of a misdemeanor or a felony was 0.04 percent. In 2006, the most frequent reason for revocation involved permit holders carrying a concealed handgun without keeping their licenses on them. The forthcoming third edition of "More Guns, Less Crime" shows that in other right-to-carry states, permit holders are just as law-abiding. That book finds no evidence that revocation rates are any higher in states that allow permitted handguns in taverns.

What gun prohibitions do is create dangerous gun-free zones - places where criminals intent on harming others feel confident they can commit crimes with impunity. A criminal who takes his gun into a gun-free zone knows that the good law-abiding citizens, his victims, are sitting ducks. A government that maintains laws like that is not looking after the interests of its citizens.

It's past time for the commonwealth to take aim at counterproductive laws that endanger Virginians. With a flick of his pen, Mr. McDonnell can correct this problem and modernize Virginia's right-to-carry law.

Source





CA: Judge acknowledges self-defense role in slaying: "In his front yard on a tough street in a tough part of town, James Sanchez Castillo last year shot and killed a man who jumped out of a car and into his face. On Friday, Castillo walked out of the courtroom with a probation term and four months already served in county jail, the result of a plea bargain in a case that, according to the judge, contained a major slice of self-defense. "In America, you still have a right to defend yourself on your own property," Sacramento Superior Court Judge Maryanne G. Gilliard said from the bench. Castillo, 31, gunned down Leopoldo Velasco III, 23, last April 24, in a deadly conclusion to a week's worth of warfare between the women in their lives... At the time, Velasco's blood-alcohol level was 0.06, according to an autopsy report. He ran up to Castillo in his yard and shouted, "I'll kick your ass," and then "I'll kill you," according to a neighbor quoted in defense papers. Castillo said in his probation report that "I was very, very afraid and I was sure that he was going to kill me. I honestly believe that I had no choice but to shoot him." He fired three times and left Velasco lifeless. The victim died a parolee, with a record of felony convictions for car theft and evasion of the police and misdemeanor battery, possession of methamphetamine, resisting arrest, car theft, drunken driving and carrying a concealed weapon."


NC man won't face charges in shooting of girlfriend's father: "A man in Bladen County will not face charges in the shooting death of his girlfriend's father last year. On October 29th, investigators say Caleb Stoker, 22, shot Ricky Carroll up to five times during an argument. Investigators also said at the time that Carroll may have hit Stoker with a lead pipe. The incident happened in Tory Hole Park. After months of investigating, Bladen County District Attorney Rex Gore announced Thursday that authorities with SBI and the Elizabethtown Police Department were not able to rule out self-defense in this matter. Gore stated that the state has the burden of proof on self defense. Gore says there is no evidence to refute the self defense claim, so they can't bring charges. On October 29, 2009, officers from the Elizabethtown Police Department and the SBI responded to an area in Elizabethtown known as the Tory Hole. Law enforcement noted that Mr. Stoker was bleeding from a gash above his left eye and that he was emotionally upset. Mr. Stoker was transported to the Bladen County Hospital. While at the scene, officers observed Ricky Carroll lying on his right side, facing the Cape Fear River. Mr. Carroll was dead from apparent gunshot wounds. On his notes, the SBI crime scene tech reported a silver pipe located approximately five (5) feet from Mr. Carroll's body. The pipe was three feet nine inches long and had on it some visible blood... The SBI noted that the pipe was heavy."


Anti-gun bigotry: "A New Jersey man is upset that a baseball league has rejected his gun store as a Little League team sponsor, MyFoxNY.com reported. Matthew Carmel's son played in the South Orange-Maplewood Baseball League last year and he wanted to sponsor a team in the coming season. A sponsorship costs $300. The league committee rejected his offer, and Carmel thinks that it is because his business happens to be a gun store called Constitution Arms. "It is fairly clear that someone has a problem with firearms," he told MyFoxNY.com. Carmel started the sponsorship process in October. He says after months of correspondence and delays he finally received a rejection from the league secretary via a short e-mail. Carmel says what really bothers him is that, while he was rejected, other approved league sponsors appear questionable, including businesses that sell or serve tobacco and alcohol."

TN: Knife-Wielding Attacker Shot Dead: "Chaos erupted at a Family Dollar store when a man with a knife chased customers and was shot dead. Witnesses at the store near Delano and North Watkins say the attacker picked the wrong victim. Police say a man with a knife raced through the parking lot just after 3:00 p.m.. Witnesses say the man chased a delivery driver and others, but was killed when he tried to lunge his knife at one driver leaving the parking lot. The driver pulled a gun and killed his attacker on the spot. "I just seen him shoot down. I thought he was just shooting in the ground. Obviously, he was shooting the gentleman with the knife," says Byron Cook who watched the ordeal from start to finish, along with his three year-old grandson. Witnesses say two little girls were inside the car when the attacker lunged at the driver. "He had his two step-daughters in the car with him. So, he really was trying to look out for them when he shot him," says Brandon Jones, who says the girls appeared to be younger than ten. "Yeah, they saw everything that happened. One of them was real shaken." Jones heard roughly six shots, then saw the man on the ground with the butcher knife still in hand. Witnesses can't make sense of the attacker's motive, but they're certain the shooting was self-defense. Witnesses say the shooter was stabbed, but appeared to be okay."


CA: Gunman shot during attempted Long Beach bank robbery: "Security guards and a customer restrained a gunman after a shootout at a Long Beach bank this morning. Authorities released few details, but KTLA News quoted sources as saying that three people were shot and that the gunman was in custody. Long Beach Police Department officials confirmed a bank robbery had occurred and that a suspect was wounded, but they declined to give further details. The wounded, including the suspected robber, were taken to a local hospital where they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries, said Lisa Massacani, a spokeswoman for the Long Beach Police Department. Police responded to a report of a robbery at the Farmers & Merchants bank on Bellflower Boulevard near the 405 Freeway about 10:30 a.m., Massacani said. “My daughter said a man entered wearing a motorcycle helmet. But he didn’t take it off. Then she heard the gunshots and like everyone else she fell to the floor. She said a customer ran out and grabbed the shooter from behind, holding tight and yelling, ‘I need help, I need help!’” Obeso's daughter told him that security officers grabbed the man and that everyone was running out of the building. Police arrived with shotguns, and customers shouted at them, “Go inside; they caught him.”


Illinois defensive handgun carry bill clears first hurdle: "Taking a look across the river, Illinois is ranked lower than California on the Brady Campaign's anti-gun tyranny scale (9th place, compared to California's 1st). If the Brady Campaign based their grading system solely on self-defense, though, Illinois might be "first," being one of two states with no provision for concealed carry by private citizens (Wisconsin, the other, does not prohibit open carry, as Illinois does). The St. Louis Post Dispatch reports that a legislative effort to legalize defensive handgun carry for Illinois citizens made some progress Tuesday. Gun rights proponents in the Illinois Legislature began pushing several measures Tuesday to allow residents to carry concealed weapons, timing the moves with a U.S. Supreme Court challenge of Chicago's long-standing gun ban. "It is a very important day for gun owners today," state Rep. John Bradley, D-Marion, told the House Agriculture & Conservation Committee. The committee later voted to advance one of the bills. The only committee member to vote against advancing the bill, Illinois State Representative Julie Hamos, articulated some . . . novel "logic" in justification of her "No" vote."


Gun rights give citizens benefit of safety: "I think there is a big misconception by Walter Hylton regarding the bill to allow concealed weapons in establishments that serve alcohol. It not only is there for the purpose of self-defense in those places, it also is a bill to keep law abiding citizens with concealed-carry permits from becoming criminals. Take for instance a veterinarian who travels with a truck full of prescription drugs. He or she has a very real need for a carry permit. Let's say that vet stops for lunch in a restaurant that serves beer. If they go in to grab a sandwich while carrying a concealed handgun, although licensed to do so, they have become a criminal, because it is illegal to enter an establishment that serves alcohol while carrying. This bill, if passed, will keep the good law-abiding citizens just that — law abiding."

Pistol Laser System



STINGRAY Laser System
Demonstrating the welcome trend toward sleeker and more compact laser sights, this latest add-on will fit medium- and full-sized pistols. Announced as the world's slimmest laser system, the Arma Laser Stingray SR1 sports "a crisp, short-throw, tactile switch allowing for use with gloved hands."

The 8mm thick unit retails for $139.

Note: Make sure weapons are handled properly.

Chicago's Pointless Handgun Ban

When Chicago passed a ban on handgun ownership in 1982, it was part of a trend. Washington, D.C. had done it in 1976, and a few Chicago suburbs took up the cause in the following years. They all expected to reduce the number of guns and thus curtail bloodshed. District of Columbia Attorney General Linda Singer told The Washington Post in 2007, "It's a pretty common-sense idea that the more guns there are around, the more gun violence you'll have." Nadine Winters, a member of the Washington city council in 1976, said she assumed at the time that the policy "would spread to other places."

But the fad never really caught fire -- even before last summer, when the Supreme Court struck down the D.C. law and cast doubt on the others, including the Chicago ordinance before the court Tuesday. The Second Amendment may kill such restrictions, but in most places, it wasn't needed to keep them from hatching in the first place. Maybe that's because there were so many flaws in the basic idea. Or maybe it was because strict gun control makes even less sense at the municipal level than it does on a broader scale. At any rate, the policy turned out to be a comprehensive dud.

In the years following its ban, Washington did not generate a decline in gun murders. In fact, the number of killings rose by 156 percent -- at a time when murders nationally increased by just 32 percent. For a while, the city vied regularly for the title of murder capital of America. Chicago followed a similar course. In the decade after it outlawed handguns, murders jumped by 41 percent, compared to an 18 percent rise in the entire United States.

One problem is that the bans didn't actually have any discernible effect on the availability of guns to people with felonious intent. As with drugs and hookers, when there is a demand for guns, there will always be a supply. Who places the highest value on owning a firearm? Criminals. Who is least likely to fear being prosecuted for violating the law? Criminals. Who is most likely to have access to illicit dealers? You guessed it.

If we were starting out in a country with zero guns, it might be possible to keep such weapons away from bad guys. But that's not this country, which has more than 200 million firearms in private hands and a large perpetual supply of legal handguns. Only a tiny percentage of those weapons has to be diverted to the underground trade for crooks to acquire all the firepower they need. While gun bans greatly impede the law-abiding, they pose only a trivial inconvenience to the lawless.

This is especially true at the local level. Banning guns from one city makes about as much sense as banning them on one block. It's hard enough to halt the flow of guns over international borders, where governments police traffic. It's impossible to stop them from crossing municipal boundaries -- which are unmonitored, undefended and practically invisible. Tens of thousands of cars enter Washington and Chicago each day from places where guns are easily and legally obtainable. Any of those vehicles could be transporting a carton of pistols to sell to willing thugs. If you're on an island, you're going to get splashed by the waves.

The proponents obviously knew all along this city-by-city approach had serious shortcomings. But they figured it was bound to curtail gun availability somewhat. They also hoped that by prohibiting handguns in one place, they were beginning a bigger process. First, they expected that other cities and states would follow suit. Second, they wagered that strict controls at the local level would acclimate Americans to new regulations at the national level.

But things didn't work out that way. The persistence of crime in supposedly gun-free zones didn't build support for broader gun control by showing the limits of piecemeal legislation. It weakened the case, by proving that such regulations have little impact on the people who present the biggest danger. Instead of a broad upward avenue, it was a dead end.

Gun control supporters fear that if the Supreme Court invalidates local handgun bans, the consequences will be nothing but bad. That would be easier to believe if the laws had ever done any good.

Source






California: Man holds suspected burglar at gunpoint until police arrive: "He’s 70 years old, and his health isn’t what it used to be, but Raymond Michel is not someone who should be taken lightly. Michel and his wife, Dawn, had returned home on Ivan Avenue about 1 p.m. after taking their grandson to a doctor’s appointment. The 9-year-old grandson noticed a light on in a downstairs bedroom and asked his grandmother if she had left it on. Dawn Michel said she looked in the room and noticed some items weren’t where they were supposed to be. Then she and her grandson went outside and saw a garbage bag on the ground, along with a window screen that had been knocked out of a second-floor window. Jewelry and money were in the bag. Dawn Michel told her husband someone had been in the house. Raymond Michel said he armed himself with a handgun and walked upstairs. Items from the bedroom closet were strewn about the floor, and Raymond Michel noticed that the bathroom door was almost completely closed. He and his wife always keep that door open. He kicked the door, and it stopped partway as it struck the intruder, Raymond Michel said. The suspect stepped from behind the door and leveled a rifle at the homeowner, he said. Raymond Michel, who said he was holding his handgun at waist level, pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the door, shattered the upper left corner of the mirror and entered the wall. The suspect dropped to the floor, and Raymond Michel at first thought he had hit him. Raymond Michel said he told him to stay down and kept the gun pointed at him. His wife called 911."


Mich.: Teen robber shot by off-duty cop: "It was a big surprise for a teenager looking for an easy target Tuesday night in Kalamazoo. Police say a 19-year-old man wearing a mask and flashing a gun tried to rob an off-duty officer at Drakes Pond Apartment Complex on Drake Road. The suspect approached 24-year-old Derrick Turner from behind, but the three year member of the force fired off a single shot, hitting the 19-year-old in the calf. “You're certainly going to be more aware of your surroundings than a normal citizen, and I think that probably helped Officer Turner in this situation,' said Chief Jeff Hadley of the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. After being shot, the suspect fled the scene, hopping into a nearby car, where he was driven to a hospital in Battle Creek. Investigators eventually caught up with the suspects there, and police were back on the scene of the shooting Wednesday morning, looking for more evidence. Officer Turner was off-duty at the time of the shooting, he had just finished his shift and was unloading his car at the apartment complex when the incident occurred. “Not sure how the lighting was in that area at the time,” said Chief Hadley, “but he could have easily been mistaken as a normal citizen with dark clothing.” Newschannel 3 has been told that at the time of the shooting, Officer Turner was wearing a bullet-proof vest, and a police t-shirt with a jacket over the top, which made it more difficult to tell he was an officer.


Guns for all, privileges or immunities for none: "Scalia asked Gura early in his 20 minutes of argument time on Tuesday: ‘Mr. Gura, do you think it is at all easier to bring the Second Amendment under the Privileges and Immunities Clause than it is to bring it under our established law of substantive due … process? … Why are you asking us to overrule 150, 140 years of prior law, when — when you can reach your result under substantive due — I mean, you know, unless you are bucking for a — a place on some law school faculty …?’ Scalia, reputedly a constitutional originalist, flashed some ugly colors with that laugh-provoking comment: He’d rather go with the easy precedential flow — even given a substantive due process argument that he openly admits he thinks is wrong but which he’s ‘acquiesced’ to — than vindicate the actual intentions of the framers of a very important constitutional amendment.”

Some self-defense realities

I wish the Supreme Court would do more than rule the Second Amendment applies to the states. It’s long past time the last, ridiculous cobwebs of ambiguity were cleared away from the right to keep and bear arms. Gun control has been simmering on low heat for a while, after boiling over in the Nineties. We should clear it off the Constitutional stove altogether. We have better things to do than slip into another bitter, tedious argument about whether the government can interfere with our right, and duty, to defend ourselves.

The notion that citizens have no good reason to be armed, because the State can protect them from violent crime, is one of the most dangerous lies Big Government has fed its subjects. The government reduces crime through the police and court systems, but no matter how tirelessly the police work, there is very little chance they can actively defend you from assault. There aren’t enough of them, and there never could be. The very areas of privacy that allow us to relax with our friends and families will always be soft targets for criminals… unless we fortify them ourselves.

Citizen access to firearms has reduced crime rates time and again, but this is more than a matter of practicality. It’s a question of principle. The people of an orderly nation surrender the business of vengeance to the government, replacing it with the rule of law. They cannot be expected to surrender the right of defense. The right to protect yourself, and your family, from injury and death is an essential part of your dignity as a free man or woman. Without the First Amendment, you are a slave. Without the Second, you are a child.

The Western nations which have abandoned this essential understanding of an individual’s right to self-defense have become rotting orphanages filled with dependent children. They’re not dealing very well with the invasion of a determined ideology that has complete confidence in its own righteousness, and few reservations about using violence to assert itself. Losing the dignity of self-defense is part of the degeneration from master of the State to its client. As this dignity fades, the people and their government speak less of responsibilities, and more of entitlements.

The Second Amendment is a concrete expression of the American birthright of independence. With the right of self-defense bargained away, our rights to speak and vote give us modest influence in a collective. The Founders wanted more, and better, for us.

Sometimes liberals sneer at the idea we might keep arms against government tyranny, because a bunch of pistol-packing Tea Party types have no chance of repeating the success of the Revolution against a modern military force. This completely misses the point. A disarmed populace has little choice but to obey orders. If the population is armed, a tyrant’s forces have to do more than just brandish their weapons… they’d have to start pulling triggers. Victory for a righteous populace would come in the military’s refusal to pull those triggers. Tyranny should never be easy. Of course, it should never come to that again, in the United States. As long as the population is armed, this is an understanding, and a duty… not an assumption.

The right to keep and bear arms is a crucial intersection of liberty and obligation. A gun owner is entrusted with the solemn duty to tend his weapons carefully and securely. In accepting this duty, we remove the destiny of our loved ones from the hands of madmen, and it is no longer measured by the distance of a friendly police car from our homes. It would be a mark of our maturity as a nation if we stopped telling ourselves that freedom can exist in the absence of responsibility… or danger. The shards of those illusions carry sharp edges, when they shatter.

The New York Times article about the case before the Supreme Court ends this way: "The Supreme Court’s conservative majority has made clear that it is very concerned about the right to bear arms. There is another right, however, that should not get lost: the right of people, through their elected representatives, to adopt carefully drawn laws that protect them against other people’s guns."

Carefully drawn laws will not protect you from other people’s guns. Believe me. None of the people carefully drawing those laws will rely upon them for their protection.

More here





CO: Family member shoots intruder: "A Pueblo West intruder was shot in the leg early Wednesday and has been transported to a Denver hospital for treatment, according to sheriff’s investigators. … ‘A male party was in the home, (he was) not known by the residents there. He was on the couch. We don’t know what happened in the house, but they confronted the man and a family member of the homeowner shot the man in the left leg with a 40-caliber handgun,’ Deputy Laurie Kilpatrick of the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office said this morning.”




Oklahoma City police describe relative’s shooting as self defense: "A man who police said tried to attack an older relative with a computer monitor was shot by the older man Tuesday in northeast Oklahoma City. Oscar Jerome Blakely [above], 30, of 828 NE 69, was taken to OU Medical Center in critical condition after the 5 a.m. shooting, police Master Sgt. Gary Knight said. The name of the man who fired the shot was not released by police. James E. Blakely is the co-owner of the house where the shooting happened, according to the Oklahoma County Assessor’s Web site. A man standing outside the house Tuesday afternoon said Oscar Blakely is a grandson of the man who fired the gun. The shooting appears to have been in self-defense, Knight said. When Blakely is released from the hospital he is expected to be jailed on complaints of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and domestic abuse, Knight said. Blakely was in critical condition late Tuesday, an OU Medical Center spokeswoman said."


Starbucks sticks to gun policy despite outcry: "Coffee chain Starbucks Corp. is sticking to its policy of letting customers carry guns where it’s legal and said it does not want to be put in the middle of a larger gun-control debate. The company’s statement, issued Wednesday, stems from recent campaign by some gun owners, who have walked into Starbucks and other businesses to test state laws that allow gun owners to carry weapons openly in public places. Gun control advocates have protested.”

AZ: Pitchfork Incident Leads to Gun Law

(Kingman, Arizona) Mohave County's new gun check law became pesky at yesterday's Board of Supervisors' meeting.

Resident Randy Cone said he relinquished one weapon to security officers, was wanded with a metal detector and then remembered that he had a second weapon on his hip. He notified the security officer and placed the second weapon on the table to be checked into the county's new gun lockers.

According to Cone, the officer then told him he had broken the law.

The officer then located a Mohave County Sheriff's deputy and allegedly told the deputy that Cone was trying to sneak a gun past security.

Cone said he wasn't trying to sneak anything past security, that he hadn't moved from the spot where the security officer had wanded him with the metal detector behind the security table. Cone, who wasn't arrested, said he filed charges of false reporting against the security guard.

The county created the new gun policy after resident Mervin Fried was arrested on Feb. 16 for attempting to carry a pitchfork into the county building.

Simple logic would seemingly dictate that an incident of someone trying to carry a gun into the county building would lead to a pitchfork check policy.

Heh. You can't make this stuff up.

OH: Suspect shot twice in home invasion: "Police are investigating after a home invasion and robbery resulted in a person being shot twice in the back Sunday afternoon. Police say a man tried to break into a home in the 4000 block of Haverstraw Drive around 4 p.m. this afternoon. When the residents wouldn't let him in, police say he went to the back of the home and broke a window. A fight ensued with the residents, who then shot the suspect twice. He was transported to Bethesda North where he is listed in stable condition. Police are calling the home invasion and burglary a domestic dispute."


Ohio: Man Fires Shot At Intruder: "A homeowner points and fires a gun at a man who was trying to break inside his home overnight in Delhi Township. The homeowner says he wasn’t taking any chances. Police say he fired his gun as the suspect tried to break-in to his home in the 4400 block of Hillside Avenue around 1 a.m. Monday. It appears the suspect targeted the home, which is located on top of a hill on a secluded lot near the intersection of Riverside and Anderson Ferry Roads. Police did search the area with the help of K-9’s, but could not find the suspect. It does not appear the suspect was shot."


Justices lean to extending gun owner’s rights: "During spirited arguments Tuesday, the Supreme Court appeared ready to rule that the Second Amendment right to bear arms covers gun regulations in states and cities. Several key justices, including Anthony Kennedy, signaled they believe the right to firearms is sufficiently ‘fundamental’ that it should cover people challenging state and local gun laws, as well as federal laws.”


Will SCOTUS recognize truth about Chicago handgun ban? : "In the 2008 Heller decision, the Supreme Court struck down Washington, D.C.’s handgun ban and gunlock requirements. Unsurprisingly, gun control advocates predicted disaster. They were wrong. What actually happened in our nation’s capital after the Heller decision ought to be remembered tomorrow as the Supreme Court hears a similar constitutional challenge to the Chicago handgun ban. … Armageddon never arrived. Quite the contrary, murders in Washington plummeted by an astounding 25 percent in 2009, dropping from 186 murders in 2008 to 140. That translates to a murder rate that is now down to 23.5 per 100,000 people, Washinton’s lowest since 1967.”

Pa.: Teen tried to fire gun during robbery: "City police said a teenager charged with the attempted armed robbery of a convenience store Wednesday night tried to fire his gun at the store clerk, but it failed to discharge. As the would-be robber fled the store, police said, the clerk fired his own weapon several times, striking the suspect in the hand. Police officers, with the help of dogs, scoured the area in search of the suspect and contacted local hospitals. About 30 minutes after the attempted robbery at Mangat Mini Market, North Duke and East Liberty streets, police were called to Lancaster Regional Medical Center, which had a patient with a gunshot wound. On Thursday, police charged the patient, 17-year-old Julian Skye Malave, with robbery, aggravated assault and a firearms violation. Malave, of Lancaster city, remained hospitalized Thursday night with a wound to his right hand. He will be arraigned upon his release from the hospital, police said. Police said Malave is being charged as an adult because of the nature of his alleged crimes. The .22-caliber handgun allegedly used by Malave during the robbery was recovered outside the main door of the convenience store, where police said he likely dropped it after being shot."


WA: Man Shot In Attempted Robbery Of Armored Car: "The man shot by an armored car guard while authorities said he was trying to steal a bag of money pleaded not guilty Tuesday. Blake Kirvin, 40, is suspected of waiting for a Garda security truck to arrive for a cash pickup or delivery at a McDonald’s in the Rainier Valley on Feb. 7 with the intention of robbing it, police said. Prosecutors said Kirvin tried to wrestle a bag containing nearly $5,000 cash away from the guard, but the guard pulled a gun and shot Kirvin in the arm and chest. Kirvin pleaded not guilty to attempted robbery and his defense attorney asked the judge to lower his $1 million bail. Kirvin is still recovering from his gunshot wounds. Prosecutors said since 1989 Kirvin has been booked into jail 63 times and 121 warrants have been issued for his arrest. He also has convictions for robbery, possession of stolen property, attempted theft, and more than 60 misdemeanors."


Senator Aanestad names as “Legislator of the Year” by California Rifle and Pistol Association: "Senator Sam Aanestad (R-Grass Valley) has been named “California Legislator of the Year” by the prestigious California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) for his unwavering support of constitutional rights guaranteed under the 2nd Amendment while serving in the State Legislature. Aanestad will receive the honor this weekend at the CRPA’s 135th Anniversary Gala at the Hilton Hotel in Irvine (Orange County). “I cannot think of anyone who is more deserving of this award and recognition than Senator Aanestad,” said John Fields, who serves as Executive Director of the CRPA. “He’s a Senator who has consistently rolled up his sleeves and slugged it out in the trenches on behalf of all rifle and pistol enthusiasts in California.” Senator Aanestad is receiving this measure – in part – for successfully authoring legislation last year that corrected a number of problems identified by the California Department of Justice and others with the state’s centralized list of exempt federal firearms licensees. SB 175 clarified the permissible activities of gunsmiths so they could engage in their work while still being part of the centralized license program. The measure also removed some exemptions from the centralized list program and required that the shipment of assault weapons, machine guns, and firearms — which are destructive devices — were subject to the state’s verification process.


Supreme Court scrutinizes state, local gun control: "Gun control advocates think, if not pray, they can win by losing when the Supreme Court decides whether the constitutional right to possess guns serves as a check on state and local regulation of firearms. The justices will be deciding whether the Second Amendment - like much of the rest of the Bill of Rights - applies to states as well as the federal government. It's widely believed they will say it does. But even if the court strikes down handgun bans in Chicago and its suburb of Oak Park, Ill., that are at issue in the argument to be heard Tuesday, it could signal that less severe rules or limits on guns are permissible."

South African armed robber shot by business owner: "I primarily write about self defense cases in the United States. This is because I'm an American, who focuses first and foremost on American gun and self defense rights. However, as the case below from South Africa shows, armed self defense saves crime victims all around the world: Police say that a pair of armed robbers broke in to a home printing business in Pretoria. There were three or four people in the house at the time, and the robbers were armed with real and/or realistic looking guns as they set about stealing computer equipment, according to police. One of the crime victims was reportedly able to grab his self defense gun and shoot one of the robbers, at which point all of the robbers fled. The injured robber's accomplices are said to have realized that the shot robber was seriously injured, at which point they stopped the car, pushed him out, and drove off. The occupants of the business were unharmed, and the shot robber died from his wounds.


FL: PBSO chaplains training in firearms, self-defense: "A rabbi, an Episcopalian priest and a Baptist minister walk into a gym. No, it's not the beginning of a bad joke. It's a new plan by the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office to train its volunteer chaplains in self-defense and firearms in case the darker elements of their ministries are upon them. "Self defense is important," said sheriff's lead chaplain Jim Shackelford, who started the initiative last year. "It's better to know what to do." Shackelford, a former Ohio state trooper, said it's during the 15 chaplains' required monthly ride-alongs with deputies that things can get sticky. Chaplains have seen deputies get into scuffles with suspects, Shackelford said, and the question came up: "If I was needed to help a deputy what would I do?" So Shackelford worked with the Sheriff's Office to make the optional training available. There will be a four-hour training block every quarter, he said."


Anti-gun Senator gets slap on wrist: "Sen. R.C. Soles pleaded guilty Thursday to shooting someone, paid a $1,000 fine, went back to being a senator and left another smudge on the voters' already soiled picture of North Carolina's political leaders. Soles, 75, a top-ranking Democrat in the N.C. Senate and the state's long est-serving legislator, copped to a misdemeanor charge of assault and joined other public figures in a parade of recent career-ending scandals. His plea spared him a felony conviction for the August shooting of a would-be intruder, a young man who was a former law client, at Soles' home in Tabor City. The senator long claimed that he shot in self-defense. Soles' plea will provide Republicans ammunition for campaign attacks. "The rules for regular folks and for powerful Democrats are apparently different in Columbus County and maybe in the state," said Senate Republican leader Phil Berger of Eden. "I don't know too many folks who could plead guilty to shooting someone and the penalty is a $1,000 fine." In August, Soles shot Thomas Kyle Blackburn, 22, after Blackburn and another man tried to kick in Soles' door. Blackburn was not seriously injured and later asked that charges not be filed. The incident put a spotlight on Soles' years of involvement in the lives of young men who were former clients. Records show police were called to Soles' house and law office at least 40 times in the past four years, ranging from routine burglar alarm activations to reported assaults and complaints that young people on mopeds were circling Soles' house. Soles maintained he gave generously to the young men to help them shift to a productive life. [A queer story!]


WA Supreme Court Authors Significant Gun Rights Ruling: "The Washington State Supreme Court has issued a precedent-setting opinion in the case of State v. Christopher William Sieyes which holds that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights “applies to the states via the Fourteenth Amendment” This outstanding opinion was authored by Justice Richard B. Sanders, a Supreme Court veteran who clearly understands the history of both the state and federal constitutional right to keep and bear arms. Perhaps what makes the Sanders opinion so remarkable is that it places the Washington Supreme Court ahead of the United States Supreme Court in recognition that the U.S. Constitution’s recognition of the right to keep and bear arms applies to all citizens, and should also place limits on state and local governments, as it does on Congress."

Self defense no excuse in Massachusetts?: "The alleged shooter, Christopher Davis, 26, claims he opened fire in self- defense after a trio of men attempted to enter his Fenn Street apartment around 2 a.m. As a result, the three men - Douglas Starbird, Anthony Astore and Tyler Hewitt - may soon face charges of home invasion, according to Detective Capt. Patrick F. Barry, commander of the Pittsfield Police Department Special Operations Division. None of the men were hit by gunfire. Although the charges against Davis will remain the same - assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm without a license, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, and possession of ammunition without a Firearms Identification Card - the police investigation has revealed that the trio may have been the aggressors. "We recovered a roofing rake we believe was used in the home invasion," Barry said, adding that the tool was likely used to smash out the windows of Davis' truck. Davis was held on cash bail of $100,000, or $1 million bond, after denying all charges at his arraignment Monday in Central Berkshire District Court. Davis was captured in Colonie, N.Y., the day after the shooting, but police have yet to recover a weapon, which is believed to be a .22-caliber handgun."


OK: Robbers' baby shot: "Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart said two men robbed Devin Jeremiah in his home, Saturday afternoon, north of Roland. Lockhart said the victim fought back firing a gun at the suspects as they fled. Lockhart said one bullet hit a one-year-old child who was in the suspects' get-away vehicle, driven by the child’s mother. "The victim of the robbery was battered and as the suspects were fleeing the house the victim of the robbery shot several times into the car," Lockhart said. Lockhart said Jeremiah didn't realize there was a kid in the vehicle. Bobbie Keefner, Jeremiah's aunt, spoke exclusively to 40/29 News. She said her nephew acted in self defense. "They basically came in, robbed him and just beat him nearly to death," she said. "He didn't know that there was baby in the vehicle at all or he wouldn't have shot.” Jeremiah was taken to Sparks Hospital where Keefner said he was treated for severe head and mouth wounds. Lockhart said as the mother of the child drove to Sparks Hospital with the suspects, she spotted a Roland police officer who followed her to the hospital where they learned of the robbery. The child was flown by helicopter to Children's Hospital in Little Rock, where they were listed in critical condition Saturday night."




Can you believe this bulldust from Canada?: "Guns in bars. No background checks at gun shows. No permits to carry required. No restrictions on how many guns a person may buy (in some cases now it’s one per month). What Americans don’t seem to understand is how crazy they look to most of the rest of the world. The reason they don’t understand is because of their one-thought tyranny. Americans are tyrannized by 1776, The Second Amendment, The Bill of Rights, The Constitution and other colonial-era artifacts. They have been brainwashed into believing that those are the only thoughts there are. This is not freedom. Freedom means having a choice. If they could accept that there are other ways of thinking then they would have a choice! That’s what freedom is about and what many, if not most, Americans don’t understand." [He's obviously never heard of the Brady campaign or the American Left generally. Americans are positively SWAMPED with "other ways of thinking". Most just don't agree with it, that's all. He thinks the picture above shows craziness. I think it shows an all-American gal]


Idaho Firearms Freedom Act Has Been Introduced: "The Idaho Firearms Freedom Act has been introduced as H0589 by Rep. Dick Harwood. If passed, this bill would create a confrontation at the federal level by making it legal to possess a firearm in Idaho regardless of federal regulations PROVIDED the firearm’s use AND manufacture meet certain requirements, including being manufactured in Idaho, with products produced in Idaho and stamped “Made in Idaho.” This makes 25 states with FFA bills introduced or enacted. We’re now at 50% of states that are involved with the FFA movement to roll back Washington’s power over states."

Chicago gun case could restore other civil rights

Gun owners aren't the only ones who should pay close attention to the "McDonald" Chicago gun-ban case, which will be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court March 2. If properly decided, the case could restore an important legal tool to protect the rights of small business owners and homeowners who face oppressive state and local government regulations.

Because the Supreme Court in McDonald may consider reinvigorating what is known as the "Privileges or Immunities clause" of the 14th Amendment, those engaged in civil rights battles nationwide may soon have a new arrow in their quiver to better defend the rights of homeowners and entrepreneurs. The clause states "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States."

The phrase "privileges or immunities" may be unfamiliar today, but 19th-century Americans used it interchangeably with a term modern Americans know very well: rights.

After the Civil War, officials throughout the South systematically violated the rights of newly freed blacks and white abolitionists in their states and sought to keep them in abject poverty and terror. The whole point in amending the Constitution to add the 14th Amendment -- with its Privileges or Immunities clause -- was to end the pervasive culture of oppression and tyranny by state and local governments, thereby protecting through federal law those rights that are necessary to be a full and self-sustaining member of society.

Two rights the 14th Amendment was clearly intended to protect were armed self-defense and economic liberty. A federal constitutional amendment was passed to ensure that all Americans, regardless of which state they lived in, enjoyed these rights.

But in an infamous 1873 decision called the Slaughter-House Cases, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Americans' protection under the Privileges or Immunities clause protected only their rights as U.S. citizens, but not as citizens of a particular state. This signaled that states were free to run roughshod over the rights of citizens in their states without interference from federal courts.

The results were predictably disastrous: Those who were politically disenfranchised soon also became economically marginalized as well. Since then, the U.S. Supreme Court has given certain constitutional rights, such as free speech, greater protection.

More here




TX: Navy veteran acquitted in shooting death: "A 27-year-old Navy veteran and corrections officer was acquitted Thursday of a murder charge in the 2008 shooting death of a man who was having an affair with his wife. A Tarrant County jury deliberated about two hours before finding Jerrill Christopher Dorton not guilty in the fatal shooting of Bruce McKinney, 24. McKinney died April 15, 2008, a month after he was shot at Dorton's north Fort Worth apartment. Investigators said McKinney and Dorton's wife had an affair, which Dorton believed had ended. When Dorton overheard McKinney calling his wife one day, he called him into his apartment and shot him, police said.. At his trial, Dorton testified that he shot McKinney in self-defense when he glimpsed the butt of a gun as the other man reached into a pocket of his hooded jacket. Defense attorney Dewayne Huston said Dorton's fear was justified because McKinney had repeatedly threatened him and others by flashing guns at them. Detectives said they thought that Dorton staged the scene to make it appear that he fired in self-defense. Witnesses, including Dorton's wife, told investigators that five to 10 seconds elapsed between the two gunshots they heard. Dorton said he recalled firing only one shot, striking McKinney in the face. Huston contended that the other shot was fired by McKinney. He said a .380-caliber bullet taken from the apartment wall was the same caliber as the gun found next to McKinney. Dorton had a .40-caliber handgun, he said."


PA: Witness says shooting was self-defense: "A Blair County man charged with attempted murder was acting in self-defense, said a witness to Wednesday night's shooting outside an East End bar. Police contend Alvin C. Zimmerman, 38, of 614 Third Ave., Duncansville, committed a crime when he shot one of two men who had followed him outside the Kettle Inn on South Kettle Street shortly after 10 p.m. Zimmerman and another man were leaving the bar after a pool match when two men began shouting homosexual slurs at them, court documents state. Minutes later, Zimmerman was in handcuffs and another man was headed to the Altoona Regional Trauma Center, where he remained in serious condition Thursday after emergency surgery to remove a bullet from his abdomen. Tony DeAntonio, who was there for his pool league, said he was leaving the bar at the same time and said the two men shouted obscenities as they followed Zimmerman and the other man outside. DeAntonio, 21, said the man who was eventually shot stood in front of his vehicle as he tried to pull out, yelled for him to "get out of your truck" and was even throwing chunks of ice at Zimmerman. "It was self-defense," DeAntonio said. "Al's just trying to get out of there. Nobody wanted to fight." Zimmerman and the other man tried to leave, but Zimmerman pulled out his .32-caliber Kel-Tec handgun from his front pocket after one of the two men punched his friend, who then also pulled out a gun, court documents state. "Go ahead and shoot me," is what one of the men allegedly shouted over and over as he walked toward Zimmerman, court documents state. Zimmerman was backing away and fired a warning shot at the ground, police said, but the man kept coming. So Zimmerman shot him."


U. of Tenn. Policy Strips Students’ 2nd Amendment Right: "The University of Tennessee’s newly announced policy banning all gun ownership by student-athletes is an extreme overreaction to the criminal acts of a few. UT’s athletic director, Mike Hamilton, said that under the new policy, the university will automatically dismiss any student-athlete found in possession of a gun — even those with permits and even those living off-campus. This over-reaching policy prevents law-abiding UT student-athletes from hunting and engaging in recreational and competitive shooting. More importantly, it also prohibits them from owning a firearm for self-defense, a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution".

FL: Homeowner shoots would-be burglar: "When Michael Allsop heard his bedroom window shatter, police said, he ran into his bathroom and called 911. But when he saw two hands reach into his house, he put down the phone and picked up his 9mm pistol. The 59-year-old homeowner opened fire Wednesday morning, wounding a would-be burglar. The burglar ran away. Minutes later, a man showed up at Bayfront Medical Center with two gunshot wounds. St. Petersburg police said that's where they arrested Michael Patterson, 30, on a charge of burglary of an occupied structure. "I'm glad he's alive," Allsop said. "Maybe he'll tell his friends not to come back. Allsop has had plenty of experience with burglars. Wednesday's break-in was the sixth burglary reported at his home at 1926 Seminole Blvd. S in the five years he's lived there, police records show. Allsop said he heard a knock at the door about 9:40 a.m. but didn't answer it because he wasn't expecting anyone. Then he heard the bedroom window shatter. He fired three or four times when he saw the burglar trying to enter, police said. Under Florida law, people can defend themselves with deadly force if they have a "reasonable fear of imminent peril" from someone "unlawfully and forcefully" entering their residence. Patterson of 2464 14th Ave. S was treated at the hospital for gunshot wounds to his hand and upper body, then was booked into the Pinellas County Jail. In 2007, he pleaded no contest to charges of grand theft and larceny, court records say."


Georgia: Decatur Man Shoots Burglary Suspect: "A Decatur homeowner will not be charged for shooting an intruder Wednesday morning. DeKalb County police said 40-year-old Dexter Tucker was justified in shooting a 17-year-old who broke into his home. Tucker said he was asleep when he heard knocking at the front door. The Decatur man said he peered through the shades but didn’t answer the door. Tucker said he saw a young man run to the back door and that’s when he grabbed his gun. “I couldn’t believe he was kicking in my door and it took him like four kicks to get in so by the time he got in I was ready for him,” Tucker said. Tucker said he shot the intruder three times, striking him once in the thigh. The homeowner said he then saw another young man running away. Neighbor Vermail Harris said she saw someone running away and getting into a car down the road. “He ended up hopping in a car so I gave [the police] a description of the vehicle he got in and they found him later. Tucker said the teens left their car when they fled. Police later arrested a 17-year-old male and a 16-year-old girl in a stolen car not far away."


Texas: Suspect killed in home invasion gunbattle: "A north Harris County man shot a pair of suspected home invaders on Friday, killing one and wounding the other, during a gunbattle outside his house, officials said. The homeowner was also wounded, authorities said. “He was shot by one of the suspects,” said Sgt. Craig Clopton with the Harris County Sheriff’s Department. His condition was not available. Gunfire erupted at 11:30 a.m. at a home in the 1300 block of Spring City after two people forced open the front door, officials said. The homeowner and the suspects both were armed and exchanged gunfire, authorities said. One attacker, an adult, fell to the ground in the yard. He was later pronounced dead at the scene. The wounded juvenile ran to a nearby home in the 14000 block of Coveney and pounded on the front door. “He told me that he had gotten shot and to call his mother. I thought he was just crazy,” said Pamela Grant, who cares for an elderly woman who lives there. By that time, deputies had arrived. The youth was taken by ambulance to a hospital. His condition was not available."


A brief history of British gun control (or, how to disarm the law abiding populace by stealth): "In 1900 the British government trusted the people with firearms and to be their own guardians. Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, the Marquess of Salisbury said he would ‘laud the day when there was a rifle in every cottage in England.’ However in 1903 Britain passed its first ever ‘gun control’ law, a minor one requiring a permit to carry a handgun and restricting the age of purchasers. It was the first toe over a slippery slope towards complete firearms prohibition. In 1919 the British government, in fear of communist insurgents and domestic and foreign anarchists, passed its first sweeping anti-gun laws (under the smokescreen of crime control) even though gun related crime was almost non existent in the England of the day. British subjects could now only buy a firearm if they could show ‘a good reason’ for having one and the firearm certificate system that we have today (implemented and abused by police) was introduced.”

AL: Shooting outside bar probable self-defense: "A man was shot and stabbed early Sunday morning outside a bar on Coliseum Boulevard, but police believe it was a case of self-defense. The 26-year-old was involved in a dispute at Wesley’s Sports Bar at about 12:09 a.m., said Maj. Huey Thornton, a police spokesman. When the person he was arguing with left the bar and attempted to drive out of the parking lot, the 26-year-old stepped in front of the vehicle, Thornton said. The driver stepped out of the car and the man punched him, Thornton said. The driver backed away, but the man continued to come toward him, until the driver shot and cut the man, Thornton said. The case will be presented to a grand jury, Thornton said".


MO: Man shot in response to punch: "A judge is expected to rule soon whether a Noel man should stand trial on a charge of voluntary manslaughter in a shooting death last year.... Recounting an interview with James Patterson a couple of days later, Miller testified that Patterson told him that he and Reece had spent part of Sept. 7 together playing golf and pool. Reece apparently had been drinking, Miller said. The pair parted ways at some point that day. Miller said Patterson later that night received a phone call at his home from Jindy Patterson, who said, “If you can hear me, I need you to come right now” in response to a quarrel with Reece. Patterson’s wife told him that he should take a gun with them as the couple headed toward Reece’s home several miles away. Authorities have previously said that Reece and Jindy Patterson were getting a divorce at the time of the shooting. When the Pattersons arrived, according to Miller’s interview of James Patterson, James Patterson headed toward a vehicle that had been carrying Jindy Patterson and Reece. James Patterson reportedly told Miller that he approached Reece first, and that Reece “sucker-punched” him. Miller testified that he saw blood on Patterson’s face at the scene.


Maine seeks to stymie federal law on guns in parks: "Lawmakers in Maine, home to one of the nation's most-visited national parks, are considering whether to override a new federal law that allows guns in the sanctuaries. A law that took effect Monday lets licensed gun owners take firearms into national parks and wildlife refuges - provided state law doesn't say otherwise. No states have laws that supersede the new policy, officials say. The Maine bill would outlaw guns in Acadia National Park and the St. Croix Island International Historic Site. "There are places where we don't carry guns. There's families in this state that really appreciate that," said Sen. Stanley Gerzofsky, a Brunswick Democrat who is co-chairman of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee - and a hunter and gun owner. "Now, there's also families in the state that also want to be able to pack bazookas, but that's a little different story." But Wayne Bosowicz, a seasoned hunter and licensed guide from Sebec, said Wednesday that he wished he'd been allowed to carry a gun when a bear confronted him in Yellowstone National Park two years ago."


AL: Guns in cars bill opposed by many employers: "A House committee is considering a bill that would prohibit most private employers from telling employees they can’t keep a legal firearm in their own locked vehicles parked at work. Major business groups opposed the bill by Rep. Craig Ford, D-Gadsden, that was the subject of a Wednesday public hearing in the House Commerce Committee. “You must provide a safe workplace for employees,” said Business Council of Alabama lobbyist Anita Archie. “This limits our ability to provide a safe workplace.” Michael Sullivan, a lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, said the government cannot violate the U.S. Constitution that he said guarantees the right to possess firearms. The bill would allow any citizen who has a pistol permit from the local sheriff to keep a firearm in his or her vehicle while parked at work. “The civil rights of private citizens cannot be obstructed or violated by the government in disregard of their safety of going to and from work,” Sullivan said."

Brady bulldust

The Brady Campaign for Gun Control provides a scorecard on how states are doing in regard to gun control legislation. If you don’t have enough gun control laws you get a low score from the Brady bunch. For example, West Virginia receives a score of 4 out of a possible 100. Utah actually scores zero.

Right now, there is a post by a blogger named Don Surber circulating widely around the internet. Don has cleverly compared the homicide rates in some of the states getting low Brady scores with states getting high Brady scores. Consider the following comparison: *Utah, the state with a zero rating, has only 1.5 homicides per 100,000 citizens. Less than half of those homicides are firearm related.

*California scores the highest according to the Brady report with a whopping 79. But they have 5.83 murders per 100,000, which is a rate nearly four times higher than Utah. Over 2/3 of the homicides in California are firearms related.

I can just hear liberals saying “People in Utah don’t need guns. There’s hardly any murder in their state.” Few probably make the connection between lawful gun ownership and low crime rates. Remember, these are the people who, in the 1990s, said that “despite the low crime rate, prison populations are higher than ever.” Back then they just could not connect the dots and figure out that crime was down because the criminals were locked up.

It all goes back to ideology. Liberals refuse to believe in deterrence theory because to do so admits to the fallen nature of man. To them, man is inherently good, not evil. Moreover, he is perfectible. The liberal is willing to die to preserve his vision of himself and others. And he wants you to die for his vision, too.

Don Surber’s comparison is clever but not dispositive. The data he examines is cross-sectional so its use is limited. What we really want to see is what happens after the laws the Brady Campaign opposes are actually put in effect. Fortunately, we know the answer when it comes to concealed carry laws. Sixteen peer-reviewed studies show that allowing citizens to lawfully carry reduces violent crime rates. Ten peer-reviewed studies are inconclusive. But there are, to date, no peer-reviewed studies reaching the opposite conclusion; namely that allowing citizens to lawfully carry increases violent crime rates.

Nonetheless, the Brady bunch continues to fight for laws that will cause themselves and others to remain helpless in the face of criminal assault. They would sooner lay your child to rest than succumb to the belief that the use of a gun for self-defense is somehow not in itself a gun crime.

The anti-gun lobby must realize that law abiding citizens need guns in a society that cannot ensure that criminals will not have them. But even if guns could be kept from criminals they would find other means to kill. After all, passengers without guns have flown airplanes into buildings.

The gun control extremist has at least two things in common with the Islamic extremist. He has a willingness to die for his fundamental beliefs. And he has the sanctimony to demand that others go with him.

Source




Wichita Man Opens Fire On Burglarizing Brothers: "It all started around 11:30 Tuesday morning. Mills says he was napping when he heard a knock at his door. He got up to look through the peephole. "I was familiar with one of them," Mills said, "but not enough for him to show up at my home unannounced and with a guy I didn't know." Mills decided not to answer the door. Then something caught his attention. "I turned around to go back to sleep, and I hear one of them say, 'Hey, you want to get him?' They were talking about robbing me," Mills said. Mills says the two men likely didn't realize he was home. As they began walking around the apartment to the rear entrance, Mills called 911 and got his gun. Seconds later, the suspects kicked in the back door, knocking over shelves and spilling groceries all over the floor. Mills met them face-to-face with his weapon. "They stopped," Mills said. "You should have seen the look on their faces." Mills says he fired four warning shots, shattering a window only feet from the suspects. Police found one of the bullets in the exterior wall of a nearby vacant house. "He was in fear for his life," said Wichita police Lt. Guy Schroeder, adding it appeared Mills was acting in self-defense. "He was protecting his life and his property." Police arrested the two men a short time later. Detectives say they are brothers, ages 18 and 20."


Indiana: Neighbor shot intruder during home invasion: "Police say an attacker who had tied up two women inside a rural western Indiana home was stopped when a neighbor shot him in the leg. The Sullivan County Sheriff’s Department says a man broke into the home near the town of Shelburn Sunday morning, tying up a woman and her mother and sexually assaulting the younger woman. Sgt. William Snead says the older woman was able to send a text message to a neighbor asking for help. The neighbor’s boyfriend, Sonny Osborn, heard the confrontation and went inside with a gun. Police say Osborn told the attacker to leave before shooting him in the leg three times. The man was treated at a hospital and was being held in the Sullivan County Jail."


Guns banned on Colorado campuses: "Stun guns, Tasers and pepper spray would still be allowed in purses and backpacks at Colorado State University-Pueblo under a new weapons ban passed by the Board of Governors on Tuesday. However, students at CSU's Fort Collins campus won't have that option under a stricter version of a policy that officials stretched to meet the needs of individual campuses. "The goal of the board is to have avoided having a policy where one size fits all," said CSU spokesman Brad Bohlander. Still, the policy that drew support of the board and faculty at both the Fort Collins and Pueblo campuses is almost sure to attract the ire of gun-rights groups. "I think the race will be on to the courthouse," said Bradley Deats, a CSU parent and a certified National Rifle Association instructor. Rocky Mountain Gun Owners has threatened to lead the legal charge against the gun policy, which bans people from carrying licensed concealed weapons on both campuses. State Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Wray, has also said he will craft legislation to nullify the CSU policy, which he claims violates the state's concealed-weapons law."

CA: Homeowner shoots intruder: "A homeowner hearing someone trying to break into his house early Saturday morning yelled at the intruder he had a gun, according to sheriff’s deputies responding to the call of a burglary in progress in the 10300 block of Maple Avenue. The would-be burglar, later identified as Jennifer London, 23, broke out the front window and stuck her head through. San Bernardino County Sheriff ’s deputies said the resident feared for his family’s safety and fired at the suspect causing her to flee. She was located a short time later with a bullet wound to her chest and was taken to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center. Amazingly, the bullet passed through her body without hitting any vital organs or arteries, according to investigators. She was treated and turned over to waiting deputies and taken to West Valley Detention Center. The homeowner has not been identified but authorities said he won’t be charged with anything and acted in self-defense."


New Zealand: "Boy racer shooting" accused not guilty : "A Taranaki man accused of shooting at a boy racer doing donuts in the street outside his house has been found not guilty. Police claimed Stanley Milne fired two bullets from a 22 calibre rifle at the boy racer's car, hitting the boot and brake light. But the defence said Milne does not have that sort of gun and only fired a slug gun to scare the boys away. The crown and defence made their closing arguments on Tuesday morning before the jury went out to consider its verdict." [More background here]


Colorado students fight for gun rights: "What seemed like common sense to some is nothing less than an assault on the US Constitution to others, which is why a governors meeting at Colorado State University today to approve a ban on students bearing concealed weapons on its main campus in Fort Collins is likely to be rowdy. Preventing bloodshed is the first thing on the board's mind. It is three years since the shooting rampage at Virginia Tech that took the lives of 32 students and staff and just under two weeks since Amy Bishop, a professor at the University of Alabama, allegedly shot six of her colleagues, killing three of them. Yet there has been such a push-back against the plan that the board may defer a decision today to await further public comment. The proposed change in the rules has reignited emotions about the place of guns in American culture. It is a debate that gets snarled in the conflicting logic of gun ownership rights and the simple notion that bullets and blackboards don't mix. State law allows citizens to carry concealed weapons as long as they have a permit. And many of the 22,000 students at the Fort Collins campus say they should not be treated differently from ordinary Coloradans. In December, the students' governing body voted overwhelmingly to resist the gun ban."


MO: Serial Rapist Scare Sending Many Women to Gun Stores: "A serial rapist on the loose means that many metro women are on edge, and some of them are walking into a place where they might not have ever gone before - a gun store. Gun stores and shooting ranges across the area are reporting an increase in Waldo women looking to learn how to shoot a firearm. Firearm instructor Don Pind says that he taught six Waldo women how to shoot just last week. "What we're after is being able to educate them enough that they can handle one responsibly," said Pind, who says that for some women, a stun gun or pepper spray may be a better fit than a firearm. If they come in right now, (and) have to have something right now and they have never fired a hand gun, this is what they need," said Pind, who says that regardless of what option for protection you choose, training is the key... "If I'm a first responder, and someone is unconscious, I do CPR," said Eric Conyers, who was practicing his shooting at a metro firing range on Monday. "If I'm a first responder in my home, and they cops aren't there, I've got this as a last resort. God forbid I have to use it."

OH: House break-in leads to shooting, one dead: "When the homeowner came home and saw what was happening, he started firing shots. One person is dead after a shooting in the 800 block of Galena St. near Michigan and Ontario. Police say it started with a home break-in around 8:30 Saturday night. Police say multiple suspects broke into the home while the owner was away. When the owner came back and saw what was happening, he started firing shots. Christopher Childress, 21, was shot and taken to Mercy Saint V's where he died. Police say they're not certain if another suspect was also shot and injured. They're talking to area hospitals to try and figure out if anyone is being treated for a gun shot wound. At this time, there is no information on other suspects. The incident remains under investigation.


WV: Grand jury clears man who shot home invader: "After three days of deliberations, a special session of the Wood County grand jury Friday afternoon determined there will be no charges from the shooting death of Chris Dickel on Sept. 20 at Mineral Manor Apartments in Mineral Wells. Wood County Prosecutor Jason Wharton said the grand jury concluded Bryce Eugene Barnes, 19, was justified in his actions. "The grand jury found the death was a justified shooting under the law," Wharton said. "There will be no charges against Barnes, other than those brought against him by the January grand jury on unrelated charges." In its report the panel stated Barnes "was exercising his right to use reasonable and proportionate force, including deadly force, against intruders or attackers to prevent a forcible entry into his home or to terminate the intruder's entry into his home." When Barnes was charged it was announced five bills of information had been filed against the people whom prosecutors allege entered Barnes' apartment. According to court records, a charge of conspiracy to commit burglary was filed against Shianne Danielle Winters, 20, Scott Michael Gough, 19, Shane Dye, 21, Toney Lee Dickel, 19, and Daniel David Dickel, 20. Dickel and others allegedly harassed Barnes and others in the apartment by yelling, pounding and kicking the door of the apartment. Police reported the group kicked in the door and entered the apartment. According to police, while inside the apartment Dickel was shot by Barnes. Dickel later died from his wounds."


Ill.: Student in "gun free zone" slapped Away Gun Before Shooting: "The Northern Illinois Student who was shot outside a residence hall early Friday morning says he was trying to stop someone who didn't live there from entering the building. Speaking from his room at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, 24-year-old Brian Mulder described to the DeKalb Daily Chronicle what happened: "He (the accused shooter) lived off campus and next thing you know, I asked him kindly to leave the dorm, he pointed the gun at my face, I slapped it down and he shot me in the leg," Mulder said. Minutes after the shooting, campus police had 22-year-old Buffalo Grove resident Zachary R. Isaacman in custody. Police said Isaacman likely had been drinking prior to the incident. A 9-mm Glock containing a single magazine with one round in the chamber, one round missing and eight rounds remaining was recovered, according to a police report. The report also said police recovered a second magazine that contained 10 rounds and had apparently been thrown away. He has been charged with aggravated battery with a firearm, aggravated battery and unlawful use of a weapon, and on Saturday was held on a $500,000 bond following a brief court appearance."


Utah Legislature: 'Flashing' of guns has broad support: "As gun rights bills flow through the Legislature, a new poll shows Utahns support gun owners displaying their weapons if they feel threatened. Sixty-five percent of respondents favor HB78, according to a Deseret News/KSL-TV poll conducted by Dan Jones & Associates, while 30 percent oppose the idea. The poll has a margin of error of 5 percent. The survey of 410 Utahns also revealed that more educated and wealthier respondents were less likely to support the proposal. Mirroring legislative debates, 70 percent of Republicans favored the bill while 56 percent of Democrats indicated support. HB78, which is waiting for Senate approval, would allow concealed weapon permit holders to "flash" their gun or tell someone that they are carrying a weapon. Last week the bill's sponsor, Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, said he is pleased with the gun rights legislation this session. "I always try to work to protect Second Amendment rights, and this year things have gone well," he said."

Pa.: Armed Robbery and Shooting: "Lancaster City Police are looking for answers after an armed robbery and shooting. It happened last night at the Man-Gat Mini-Mart in the first block of East Liberty Street, near Duke Street. Officers say the suspect went inside, pointed a gun at the employees and demanded money. But then a clerk took out a gun and fired at the suspect who ran out. About 30 minutes later police found out there was a 17-year-old male at the hospital with a non-life threatening gunshot wound. As of right now, officers aren't confirming whether the teen is the robbery suspect."


FL: 17 year-old Shot During Home Invasion: "This evening at approximately 10:15 p.m. Leon County Sheriff’s Deputies were called to 4400 Buster Road in reference to the report of a 17 year-old who had been shot during a reported attempted home invasion robbery. The preliminary investigation indicates that at least three black males, wearing all black clothing, armed with at least one handgun forced entry into the residence, through a back door, and began to fire multiple gunshots. A 17 year-old who was inside the residence armed him and returned fire. Two other subjects who were in the residence were not injured during the exchange of gunfire. The 17 year-old suffered what appears to be a non-life treating gun-shot wound to the pelvis and has been transported to the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital Emergency Room for treatment. The suspects fled the residence and were last seen running toward the direction of Tall Top Drive. It is unknown if any of the suspects were struck when the 17 year-old returned fire".


FL: Shooter In Road Rage Claims Self Defense: "Doral Police continue to investigate a road rage incident that led to one man being shot Friday night. Police say Jorge Luis Perez, 49, the man who allegedly shot 46-year-old Javier Suarez walked into police headquarters Saturday morning with his attorney to say that he shot Suarez in self-defense. Suarez who was shot in the abdomen was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Perez told police he didn't realize he had fired his 9mm Ruger gun until he saw the news and that's what prompted him to walk into to police headquarters and give a voluntary statement. Perez said he did not have a permit for the gun. Perez was allowed to leave with his attorney Saturday afternoon. But Suarez has told police he felt in fear for his life and armed himself with a tire iron. He said the whole thing erupted after a minor traffic accident. Police say Suarez has an extensive felony history with the most recent one being a drug charge, which was filed in December. Perez was charged with battery a year ago, but that charge was later dismissed."


California leads the way in idiotic anti-gun laws: "This past year, California further strengthened its laws by passing legislation to regulate the sale of handgun ammunition in the state. Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 962, sponsored by Assembly Member Kevin DeLeon (D-Los Angeles) last fall. It was the top priority of the California Brady Campaign Chapters and Women Against Gun Violence. "This important new law will help keep handgun ammunition out of the hands of dangerous people and give law enforcement an important new tool to track down armed criminals in possession of illegal guns and bullets," said Ellen Boneparth, spokesperson for the California Brady Campaign Chapters. California has in place key laws to prevent gun trafficking such as mandatory background checks on all firearm purchases, a "one-handgun-a-month" law to stop large volume purchases that feed the illegal market, and other important laws to regulate gun dealers. In 2007, California advocates helped pass legislation to help law enforcement identify crime guns using new "Microstamping" technology. This new law, which will soon take effect, will give law enforcement a powerful investigative tool to solve more gun crimes and apprehend more armed criminals and gang members by identifying the crime gun – without the gun."

Texas: Man Fatally Shoots Intruder: "Houston police said a 23-year-old man tried to break through a window to get into a home on Blueberry Lane near Bluegrass Street at about 9:30 a.m. Investigators said the homeowner woke up, grabbed his shotgun and fired shots as the man was going through the window. “The homeowner was awakened by breaking glass and the movement of a dresser in the front window,” said M.F. Waters of HPD Homicide. The intruder fell out of the window into the yard and died, officials said. His family identified him as Roosevelt Jackson Jr. Jackson’s pastor said he joined a local church three weeks ago and a Bible study group prayed for positive changes in his life. Family and friends described the homeowner as distraught after the shooting. “It’s going to change his life. I don’t think he’s ever going to be the same,” neighbor Elizabeth Moody “He’s a good person. The case will be referred to a Harris County grand jury without charges."


CA: Man released after assault convictions reversed: "A judge ordered a Fullerton man released from jail Friday, a month after a Santa Ana appellate court found there was insufficient evidence showing he did not act in self-defense when he fired shots at a Fullerton tactical weapons team more than five years ago. Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals declared Ernest Gerald Benefiel II, 45, not guilty of assault charges, based on the reversal of a jury's verdicts last month by the 4th District Court of Appeal. Benefiel, 45, was serving 17 years, four months in prison after he was convicted of four counts of assault for firing a handgun twice at officers from Fullerton's tactical weapons team after they surrounded his apartment on Dec. 30, 2004. The team was summoned to the two-bedroom apartment Benefiel shared after his father reported that he thought his son was suicidal, had a gun and had nailed himself inside his bedroom. But defense attorney Doug Lobato contended during two trials that Benefiel had been taking prescription pain killers to treat neck and back injuries and was in a deep sleep when Fullerton officers arrived. Police officers tried to get Benefiel's attention by using a loudspeaker on multiple occasions to request that he come out with his hands up, and then by using a flash-bang grenade under his window and firing bean bag blasts from a shotgun through the bedroom window. Benefiel, who was bruised and cut because of the bean bag shots, fired his handgun twice at the officers before he stumbled out of the window and was arrested, according to news accounts. Lobato argued that Benefiel did not know the men outside his window were police and that he shot back in self-defense because he thought he was under attack."


Guns to be allowed in CA parks: "Beginning Monday it will be legal to bring loaded, concealed weapons into Muir Woods National Monument, Point Reyes National Seashore and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The Bush administration overturned a 25-year-old Reagan administration federal rule that restricted loaded guns in national parks after the Supreme Court struck down a handgun ban in Washington, D.C., and declared that individuals have a constitutional right to possess firearms for self-defense and other purposes. Now under the new rule visitors can legally carry a loaded gun into a park or wildlife refuge - but only if the person has a permit for a concealed weapon and if the state where the park or refuge is located also allows concealed firearms. California allows concealed weapons. "We have been working closely with local, state and federal officials to ensure that we clearly understand the provisions of the laws that will now apply to our visitors when they are in the park," said Don Neubacher, Point Reyes National Seashore superintendent. "We encourage every visitor who may wish to bring firearms to the park to do their research ahead of time and ensure that they are aware of and abide by the laws that apply. Our goal is to provide safe, enjoyable park visits for everyone."


Montana man acquitted over fatal struggle with aggressive drunk: "The garage door began to open in Kevin Smoot’s Lancaster driveway, where Jimmy Wilson’s shadow stood tall. Piece by piece, Smoot’s body began to appear from behind the garage door, a curtain being lifted for a prizefighter. First his legs, then his torso, then his face. “How could you do this to my family?” Wilson repeatedly screamed and screamed, coming within two feet of Smoot. Smoot had been hiding something behind his right leg. He pulled an AK-47 from the leg, slung it through the air, and pointed it at Wilson’s chest. Wilson stood motionless for three seconds. His aunt emerged from the side of the house, wearing nothing but shorts and a cut-off tank top, crying out three words to Smoot: “Don’t hurt him!” Smoot looked away at her. Wilson saw his opening. He grabbed the barrel of the gun with his sweaty palms. Smoot grabbed the stock, and soon four hands were on the assault rifle. It was a three-second war. Two men grunting, battling for control of a deadly machine. Their silhouettes danced across the driveway. Wilson’s sweaty palms lost grip. He got one last tug at the rifle, which swung upward and fired a round into the humid California sky. Wilson heard the thunder of that one shot, and ran. He thought Smoot controlled the weapon, and that he would lay down rounds through the neighborhood. He thought his life was over. So he ran harder than he ever had, back to his black Lincoln Navigator. He made it. There was no crimson piercing through his T-shirt. But there was a river of it running down the driveway, and Wilson followed the stream back to Smoot’s head, where the bullet had taken an abrupt path through his cheek and cranium."

La.: Homeowner not indicted for shooting burglar: "A Calcasieu Parish grand jury decided not to indict a homeowner who shot and killed 18-year-old Divonte LeDay. It was December, 2009, when LeDay was found dead from an apparent gunshot wound in a yard off Oleo Street. Lake Charles Police believe the victim sustained those wounds nearly 12 hours earlier while he and two others tried to steal a four wheeler a block away on Mill Street. "LeDay was involved in a burglary, an attempted theft. The homeowner took action shot two rounds and they fled," said Sgt. Mark Kraus. Both the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office and Lake Charles Police got calls about gunshots in the area. The homeowner on Mill Street filed a report about the attempted burglary with the Sheriff's Office, telling them he fired two shots in the air. The initial report from the Calcasieu Coroner's Office confirms LeDay died from injuries consistent from a shotgun. "We now know LeDay was struck by the shotgun blast and died a short time later about 200 feet from where that attempted burglary took place," explained Kraus. Kraus says LeDay was no stranger to local law enforcement: His first run was at 16 years old - police say he was the teen who brought the gun and fired shots at the "Just For Jesus" rally at the Lake Charles Civic Center back in May 2007."


CA: Bashed man shoots attackers: "Joseph Victor Davis, 26, told investigators that he was attacked Saturday morning by a man wielding a metal flashlight. That man has been identified by detectives as Marcelo Patrick Banuelos, 28, of Redding, who was arrested today on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, mayhem, battery with great bodily injury and violating parole, police said... Officers said they learned that a man identified as Brady Kristopher Gentry, 23, of Weed was being treated that morning for two gunshot wounds at Mercy Medical Center. The subsequent police investigation shows that Banuelos was in the company of Gentry in the restaurant’s parking lot, and that Banuelos attacked Davis with the flashlight, police said. Davis, who left the scene after the shooting, told investigators that a man struck him multiple times about his face and head during and that he admitted to shooting his “attackers” in self-defense, police said. Davis was driven to Red Bluff by an unidentified woman and was treated at St. Elizabeth’s Community Hospital for multiple lacerations to his head, police said ... It’s not known if Gentry might be arrested and charged in the case, said Redding police investigator Shawn McGinnis"


Report: DHS officers lose 243 weapons: "Nearly 180 Department of Homeland Security weapons were lost — some falling into the hands of criminals — after officers left them in restrooms, vehicles and other public places, according to an inspector general report. The officers, with Customs and Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ‘did not always sufficiently safeguard their firearms and, as a result, lost a significant number of firearms’ between fiscal year 2006 and fiscal year 2008, the report said. In all, 243 firearms were lost in both agencies during that period, according to the January report from Inspector General Richard Skinner…. 74 percent, or 179 guns, were lost ‘because officers did not properly secure them,’ the report said.”


Bill To Stop Ban On Guns in Delaware: "The right to bear arms is against the rules in Delaware public housing, but that could all be changing under a new bill. Currently, residents at a number of public housing authorities in the state are banned from owning firearms for self-defense. So on Thursday, a bi-partisan group of lawmakers proposed a bill that would stop the policy and prevent other federal agencies from prohibiting guns in the future. The NRA has already announced that it will sue the housing authorities if the bans are not lifted."