Illinois Reform of Switchblade Ban Signed into Law

On 14 August, 2017, Governor Bruce Rauner signed SB 607, the reform of the Illinois ban on switchblade knives, into law. From ilga.gov:

(2) The provision of paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of this Section prohibiting the sale, manufacture, purchase, possession, or carrying of any knife, commonly referred to as a switchblade knife, which has a blade that opens automatically by hand pressure applied to a button, spring or other device in the handle of the knife, does not apply to a person who possesses a currently valid Firearm Owner's Identification Card previously issued in his or her name by the Department of State Police or to a person or an entity engaged in the business of selling or manufacturing switchblade knives.

There are about 2.1 million FOID card holders in Illinois. This is a significant reform, because it eliminates the statewide ban on these knives for 2.1 million people.  Any resident of Illinois with a clean record can obtain an FOID card for $10 and the trouble of filling out an application.

Illinois residents can thank the busy and productive people at Knife Rights for this much needed reform of Illinois law. Knife Rights Director of Legislative Affairs, Todd Rathner, was able to negotiate this reform through the labyrinthine Illinois political system. At one point, a compromise was set to allow people with concealed carry permits to carry switchblades. Todd Rathner was able to enlarge that group to all people who have FOID cards, a 10 fold increase.

It is not a complete solution, but it is an incremental step in the right direction. Unfortunately, only Illinois residents may apply for and receive an FOID. There is precedent in Illinois weapons law to treat people who can legally carry a firearm in their home state as if they had an FOID.  At present, it only applies to firearms.

There is a state preemption law for firearms. There is no knife preemption law in Illinois at present. Local laws, particularly a Chicago ordinance, can be used to prosecute people for the carry of many knives. The Chicago ordinance bans the carry of *any* knife with a blade over 2.5 inches in length. From Chicago ordinance 8-24-020:

No person shall carry concealed on or about his person a pistol, revolver, derringer or other firearm or dagger, dirk, stiletto, bowie knife, commando knife, any blade of which is released by a spring mechanism, including known knives as "switch-blades" or any other type or kind of knife, any blade of which is more than two and one-half inches in length, ordinary razor or other dangerous weapon except that no person 18 years of age or under shall carry concealed on or about his person, any knife, the blade of which is two inches in length or longer.

The firearms sections are partly overridden by Illinois State preemption law, but not the knife sections. Knives are arms protected by the Second Amendment, and should be at least as protected as handguns.

From their history, Knife Rights will likely be back in Illinois to lobby for a statewide knife preemption law. 

I am not a lawyer, nor do I play one on the Internets.   The links above take you to the law, so you can decide for yourself what it says.   It is likely that case law and the courts will provide further clarification.


©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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WV: Investigation Continues into Suspected Home Invasion Shooting

Heckler confirmed Jones, 77, is the owner of the home where the shooting occurred. In a previous release, Heckler stated the homeowner shot Headley.
“Pending consultation and review of the incident with the Ohio County Prosecutor’s Office, further information will be released,” Heckler said.

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SC: Homeowner Shoots, Kills Home Invader

According to reports, the incident was a home invasion. The homeowner shot and killed the suspect. The homeowner was also injured during the incident.

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TN: Two Males Shot while Committing a Crime

The preliminary investigation found that the two injured males had been committing a crime at a residence at 2911 Hillside Avenue when the shooting happened. The shooting incident was not a random act, and multiple people are at the Safety Building being interviewed by investigators.

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OH: Man Uses Rifle to Drive Off Home Invaders, Woman Bruised by Ricochet

The 27-year-old man's 23-year-old brother woke up and helped keep the door closed, police reports say.

The 22-year-old woman walked into the room after hearing yelling. The gunman fired one shot while his arm was stuck in the door, police said. The bullet hit the woman in the back, likely on a ricochet, police said. The bullet did not break her skin, police reports say.

The 27-year-old man grabbed his rifle and shot through the door, missing the robbers, police reports say.
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Trump Justice Deparment Stops Obama Era "Operation Choke Point" Abuse

Image from Zero Hedge

Operation Choke Point was an extra-legal attempt by the Obama administration to economically attack businesses that it disliked. It circumvented the rule of law by giving banks incentive to discriminate against a list of businesses. The list of busineseses were those it disagreed with on philosophical and political grounds. Those businesses included firearms and ammunition dealers. 

A small business could find its credit suddenly and inexplicit gone. It could find it no longer had the ability to process credit card payments. For many small businessess, this could be a death sentence. From foxnews.com:

The Trump Justice Department is ending an Obama-era program that had attempted to cut off credit to shady businesses but came under fire from Republicans for unfairly targeting gun dealers and other legitimate operations. Just days after top House Republicans had pressed Attorney General Jeff Sessions to shutter Operation Choke Point, the department confirmed in a response letter that the program is dead.

 From reason.com:

The repudiation of Operation Choke Point is a welcome development, says Walter Olson, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute.

"It should serve as a warning that the government doesn't get to flag for banks—or businesses generally—which legal-but-suspect domestic customers it would like them to ostracize," Olson told Reason on Friday. "Those in power must refrain from signaling that they'd be pleased if certain categories of otherwise legal customer get cut off from their access to economic life." Operation Choke Point began as an extension of the Obama administration's Financial Fraud Task Force, but the dragnet investigation was never given proper statutory authority by either the administration or Congress. In fact, details about Operation Choke Point were deliberately withheld from Congress at first, a fact The Wall Street Journal uncovered in 2013.h

The process circumvented the entire check and balance system on government power designed into the Constitution.  It should have been grounds for serious action by the Republican Congress. It is gone now.


©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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Oklahoma Sheriff Auctions 300 Guns

Updated on 22 August

On Saturday, 19 August, 2017, the Wagoner County Sheriff auctioned off 300 firearms, a number of vehicles, and other items that have been taking up space in their property room.  You can view images of the vehicles and the gun on line at the rokinmauction.com website.

A list of the available firearms is available here, but the information is not completely accurate.  For example, the make of an RG10 pistol is listed as "Bohm", a simple misreading of Rohm.

There a numerous plain Jane hunting rifles and shotguns, some more desirable than others. The list shows 15 Marlin .22 rifles and two Marlin lever action 30-30 rifles. There are many shotguns, a couple of .30 caliber WWII carbines, and eight SKS rifles. A compliment of Remington rifles and shotguns are listed. There are about 120 handguns on the list, varying from nice Smith & Wesson revolvers to the ubiquitous Glocks, to inexpensive Davis, Rohm, and Raven pocket pistols.
A Winchester model 24 shotgun stands out on the list. I did not see a picture of it. The Winchester, the WWII carbine, and some of the others are highly sought after collectibles.  From tulsaworld.com:

On Saturday, a sheriff’s auction is planned at the Wagoner Civic Center to dispose of things that have been stored for upward of three decades.

The auction will be conducted by Rockin M Auction Service and feature the sale of rifles, shotguns, pistols, vehicles, an enclosed trailer, tools and more. Approximately 300 weapons will be available.

Organizers say anyone who purchases a gun at the sale must pass a background check for a $20 charge. Buyers will be able to run one check for multiple guns.

Friday was listed as a day to preview the auction items. Sheriff's auctions for firearms are unpredictable. Sometimes bargains can be found.  Firearms usually average $100 to $200 at these auctions. The auction was announced late in July, so buyers have had a couple of weeks to get ready.

It will be interesting to see what the average price will be for these 300 firearms. The Sheriff's office hopes to raise $60,000 from the auction. I would not be surprised if they raise close to that from firearms sales alone. The Sheriff department plans to buy new equipment with the money.

Several states have passed laws requiring that valuable assets such as firearms be auctioned off, so that the proceeds are available for public use. The Arizona Supreme Court recently upheld the constitutionality of such laws, saying that they clearly fall under the police power of the State.

All the state laws mandating the sale of forfeited and found firearms require they be placed into the normal channels of commerce. This puts valuable resources into the public coffers, and likely lowers the demand for new firearms.

More used firearms available mean that fewer new firearms need to be produced to meet the rising demand for guns. The number of firearms in private hands is at an all time high in the United States, conservatively estimated at over 400 million.  Considerable resources go into the manufacture of a firearm.

©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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Arizona Supreme Court Upholds Statute Forbidding Destruction of Valuable Guns

Colt Python Turned in to be Destroyed by the City of Tucson, valued at about $3,000

On August 17, 2017, the Arizona Supreme Court decided that the City of Tucson violated State law regarding the disposal of firearms.

In 2005, the Tucson City Council had passed an ordinance requiring that unclaimed or forfeited firearms, that were not used by the Tucson Police Department, or transferred to other police agencies, be destroyed.  Such firearms are routinely sold by other police agencies throughout the United States, bringing valuable assets to government coffers.

Destruction of firearms is an act of political theater designed to delegitimize firearms and treat them as contraband. This political propaganda strikes at the heart of the Second Amendment.

In 2013, the State of Arizona passed banned the practice of destroying valuable property, particularly firearms. The firearms were to be returned to ordinary channels of legal commerce. The proceeds from the sale benefits the political entity selling the firearms. Academics have routinely found that the "buy   back" events do not produce useful results, and are a waste of police resources.  From the "Freakonomics" web site:

When it comes to gun buybacks, both the theory and the data could not be clearer in showing that they don’t work. The only guns that get turned in are ones that people put little value on anyway. There is no impact on crime. On the positive side, the “cash for clunkers” program is more attractive than the gun buyback program because, as long as they are being driven, old cars pollute, whereas old guns just sit there.

The Tucson City Council ignored the State of Arizona statute and destroyed about 4,800 legal firearms between 2013 and October, 2016.  Firearms sold at auction by police routinely bring between $100 and $200. The value of the firearms destroyed was likely between $500,000 and $1,000,000.  The process cost of destruction is approximately the same as the cost of legal sale.

The State of Arizona Legislature was not pleased with the scofflaw actions of the Tucson City Council. In 2016, the legislature passed amendments to put teeth into the 2013 statute. It provided a procedure to gain compliance. Penalties are available if a political subunit of the State continued to defy the legislature by destroying valuable property.

The Tucson City Council continued to defy the law. The procedure for compliance was initiated.  The City of Tucson agreed to stop destroying firearms until the City's claims of being exempt from State law were settled by the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court unanimously demolished the City of Tucson's claims. Ironically, the City had argued that there was no evidence that the destruction of firearms created a gun shortage in Tucson.  This illustrated the destruction of firearms was for symbolic purpose, not as a way to reduce crime. From azcourts.gov(pdf):

¶1
The primary issue we address here is whether the state may constitutionally prohibit a city’s practice, prescribed by local ordinance, of destroying firearms that the city obtains through forfeiture or as unclaimed property. We conclude that a generally applicable state statute on this subject controls over a conflicting municipal ordinance, that the legislature may require the Attorney General to investigate and file a special action in this Court regarding alleged violations of the state law, and that this Court has mandatory jurisdiction to resolve whether the allegedly conflicting ordinance violates state law. Applying those principles here, we accept jurisdiction of the State’s special action and hold, in accordance with article 13, section 2 of the Arizona Constitution, that A.R.S. §§ 12-945(B) and 13-3108(F) supersede Tucson Code §2142

The Arizona State Supreme Court required the City of Tucson to pay the reasonable legal fees of the State of Arizona in this case.

Several states have enacted similar statutes to prevent the wastage of valuable assets by political entities. Cities are allowed to hold or fund gun turn-in events if they wish; but the guns collected are required to be returned to legal channels of commerce for the benefit of the public.

When the Arizona statute was passed in 2013, Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton was committed to destroying nearly 2,000 firearms that had been turned in to police. The program had been deceptively labeled a "buy back". Governments cannot "buy back" items that they never owned. Mayor Stanton committed 10 thousand dollars of police overtime money to insure the firearms were destroyed.

It is unclear how the destruction of guns turned in to police benefits anyone other than gun manufacturers. Except for sentimental value, historical and collectible appeal, the guns are easily replaced by newly manufactured guns. The demand for guns is not lowered by destroying turned in guns. They are merely replaced by newly guns, with the profits benefiting gun manufacturers.

The Arizona Supreme Court decision was as expected. Cities may not set themselves up as independent city-states, able and willing to defy state law.

©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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WI: Neighbors Support Man who Fired Shots at Suspected Car Thieves

The car owner, a 24-year-old man, fired shots at the suspects. They then drove away in the same car they came in. Their white car was found abandoned nearby at 86th Street and Lisbon Avenue.

The suspects are a 16-year-old boy, 17-year-old boy and 22-year-old man. They were all taken into custody.

It doesn't appear that anyone was hit by gunfire.
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MN: Gunfight, Clerk in Verizon Store Wounds 1 of 2 Robbers

A Verizon Wireless store clerk in Inver Grove Heights exchanged gunfire and wounded one of two robbers in a daylight holdup, authorities said.

One of the men suspected in the late-morning stickup ran from the store off Hwy. 52 in the 9000 block of Cahill Avenue and got away in a minivan, according to police dispatch audio.
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IL:Armed Homeowner Holds Suspect at Gunpoint for Police

The Ogle County Sheriff's Office says a homeowner held a suspect at gunpoint until police arrived during a burglary Tuesday afternoon.

 Elijah Greer, 25, of Rockford, has been charged with residential burglary

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Followup TX: Accomplice in Home Invasion Charged with Felony Murder

FORT WORTH

A 21-year-old man fatally shot Wednesday afternoon at a Fairmount home had been trying to rob the home’s occupants when he was shot and killed, police officials said Thursday.

Now, his alleged accomplice faces a felony murder charge, police say, even though he didn’t fire a shot.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/fort-worth/article167723397.html#storylink=cpy

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CO: Witness Fired Shot at Suspected Burglar

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — No one was injured when a witness fired a shot during a suspected burglary in western Colorado Springs Wednesday night, according to police.

Police said it happened around 11 p.m. at a property on Arch Street, which is just south of Broadway Street in western Colorado Springs. Police said a witness saw a suspect on the property, felt threatened, and fired a shot at the suspect.
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GA: Man Breaks into Home, is Shot at, then Beat

After 57-year-old Gerard Walter Montour of Covington allegedly kicked in the door, the homeowner, whose name has not been released, grabbed a handgun and fired off a few rounds, Morrison said.

It was not clear if Montour was hit by the bullets, but there was an intense fistfight, Channel 2 Action News reported.

“When deputies came out there was so much blood they were unable to ascertain whether he was shot or not,” Morrison told Channel 2.

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AZ: Security Guard Shoots Man Armed with Rock

A security guard fatally shot a man Tuesday night after an altercation during which the guard said the man "picked up a large rock," police said.

The man killed was identified as Thomas Allen Dickinson, 35, said Sgt. Pete Dugan, a Tucson Police Department spokesman, on Aug. 16.
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TX: Retired Officer Shoots at Suspects, Wounds One

CONROE, Texas (KTRK) -- A retired Harris County Sheriff's Office deputy fired shots at two fleeing suspects, hitting the driver Tuesday morning in Conroe.

According to Conroe police, officers were responding to a possible stolen vehicle in the Lowe's parking lot on 1920 Westview Boulevard. As the two suspects attempted to get away, they intentionally rammed four parked vehicles. Investigators said a Conroe police officer fired his gun to protect himself.
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FL: More on Burglary Suspect Shot with AK type Rifle

WCSO reported a homeowner in the 1800 block of Pettis Road was awakened by his wife about 2:45 a.m. Sunday after she heard a loud noise outside their home. The man reported finding three males burglarizing a vehicle in his front yard that contained a firearm.

The man confronted the suspects with an AK-47, at which point they began to flee, WCSO reported. However, one suspect, later identified as Tristen Wilson, 19, of Panama City Beach, turned back toward the homeowner in a manner that made him fear he was about to be shot, so the homeowner opened fire.
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FL: Homeowner uses AK Type Rifle against Car Burglary Suspects

The homeowner advised they heard a loud noise and as he investigated where it originated from he observed 3 white males in their vehicles, and one of those vehicles contained a firearm. The suspects were confronted by the homeowner, who was armed with an AK-47, and began to flee to their vehicle. During this time, a suspect, later identified as Tristen Wilson, 19, of Panama City Beach, turned toward the homeowner in a manner that made him fear he was about to be shot and the homeowner began to fire his rifle.
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FL: Wounded Robbery Victim Returns Fire

During the course of the attempted robbery the suspect shot the victim once in the leg. Police say the victim was also carrying a gun and returned fire at the suspect. But it’s not clear whether the suspect was hit.
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San Antonio Drops ShotSpotter, System not Cost Effective

Shot Spotter Sensor in Omaha, Nebraska

One of the technological fixes that has been attempted is the use of sensors to pinpoint gunshots inside of cities. The theory of the technology is fairly simple. Spread audio sensors throughout the city. Feed the input into a computer system, looking for gunshots. With sophisticated programs, isolate the gunshots from the other noise, and pinpoint their location and time. Ideally, this happens in near real time, to allow police response to gunshots. From ksat.com:

San Antonio - A program intended to help police officers identify where a shooting happens, get there quicker and ultimately cut down on crime has been stripped from the proposed city budget because city leaders said it's not effective.

It cost the city $270,000 to put ShotSpotters on the city's crime-ridden east and west sides, but police Chief William McManus said the program's results don't match up with its hefty price tag.

The experience in San Antonio shows the limitations of such a system.  The system has been in place for more than a year. That is the time the system should be most effective. The sensors are fresh and new and have not had time to corroded or broken.

In the period the the system was in place, the police obtained four arrests because of information received from the system. That does not necessarily translate to four convictions.  Another article says that the total cost of the system was $378,000 plus $168,000 for officer overtime associated with the program. So the city spent about $136,000 per each arrest.

From expressnews.com:

The four suspects were arrested on charges of discharging a firearm, a Class A misdemeanor, the SAPD’s Sgt. Jesse Salame said. One of the suspects also was charged with possession of narcotics.

There was no known shooting victim in any of those four cases, Salame said.

It is easy to see why the Police Chief McManus had questions about the usefulness of the system. While some costs would be spread out over years, the overtime and maintenance costs could conservatively be $75,000 a year per arrest. That would be most of the cost of a full time police officer, to make one misdemeanor arrest where no shooting victim was involved.

The technological costs of systems such as ShotSpotters are likely to go down; but the personnel costs are likely to increase. While the system sounds plausible in theory, in San  Antonio it has not been cost effective in practice.

In Connecticut, another Shot Spotter system was reported to have limited effectiveness. From fox61.com in 2013:

Violent criminals are small in number in all communities. Spend the resources on monitoring and apprehending those known individuals, and violent crime will decrease.

Can systems such as ShotSpotters be effective? Technological solutions to crime can be helpful, but there are always countermeasures. Criminals wear gloves to stop leaving fingerprints, or masks to foil cameras. Shots fired inside buildings are difficult to detect; sensors can be destroyed. Wind muffles and distorts sound based systems.

A major problem is the systems are reactive. They only show where an outside gun shot may have occurred.  If they report many false positives, the cost of investigating the false positives adds up quickly. They may be helpful in locating crime hot spots; it is likely that those locations are already well known.


©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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