CCRKBA Calls For Federal Probe Of Seizures: The CCRKBA, after being rebuffed in its initial inquiries, calls for a federal investigation of the illegal seizure of privately owned firearms in New Orleans. (One can only hope that this is intended to set a precedent that would block the feds from doing the sort of seizures.) http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=53144 --- Zogby - Americans Want Border Control, Not "Gun Control": A Zogby poll, commissioned by the Second Amendment Foundation, showed that a majority of respondents favor tighter control over our borders but only a minority favor increasing restrictions on the RKBA. http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=53147 --- Minnesota Churches Win Round Against CCW: A judge in Hennepin County has ruled that churches are exempt from the signage provision of that state's CCW law. The temporary ruling only affects Hennepin County at this time but the churches' attorney indicated that a push will be made to extend the ruling statewide. http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=106962 --- Katrina - RKBA Lesson To World: World Net Daily reproduces GOA's Erich Pratt's commentary on the lessons learned in New Orleans about the role of privately owned firearms. (National Guardsmen in the 1992 Los Angeles riots were not low on ammunition - they weren't issued any, at least not initially.) http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=46297 --- From Alan Korwin: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Sept.12, 2005 Full contact info at end Click if image is not visible -- http://www.gunlaws.com/images/GFSZ%20Phoenix.jpg Where does Judge Roberts stand on guns? Why did Sen. Feinstein support this law at the Judiciary Committee hearings today? MOST PRIVATE GUN POSSESSION BANNED-- Gun-Free School Zones Impact Greater Than Expected New maps disclose unexpected result of 1,000-foot bans Federal law makes it a crime to possess a firearm off your property and within 1,000 feet of a school, with a few narrow exceptions. When all gun-free zones were recently plotted for schools in two major cities (Phoenix and Cleveland ), using computer mapping, it became apparent that virtually all public travel with firearms is now a violation of law. The study was included as part of a ten-year review of all federal gun law by gunlaws.com, for the Tenth Anniversary edition of Gun Laws of America , the unabridged guide to federal gun law. Published by Phoenix-based Bloomfield Press, it has just been released. Without realizing it, and by an unexpected route, anti-gun-rights advocates have achieved their primary goal -- gun possession is effectively banned by federal law. A five-year federal prison sentence attaches to every crossing into a school zone, and the zones overlap virtually citywide. The public commits countless millions of gun violations by simply moving around. No effect on crime has been reported. Members of Congress and even the NRA are on record calling for strict enforcement of current federal gun laws. How that policy and the school zones measure can co-exist is not clear. Additional maps and the dataset are posted at gunlaws.com "This near-total gun ban is simply unenforceable, and was never intended to criminalize everyone who bears arms," said Alan Korwin , author of Gun Laws of America. "We would have to place half the public in prison to comply with this law. It shows the folly of such legislation, perhaps the most ineffectual feel-good gun law ever enacted, and it needs to be repealed," he said, adding that it must be humiliating to the bill's original sponsors. "Where would Justice Roberts stand on this issue, and what was Sen. Feinstein really asking?" Many politicians are quietly aware of the ban. The simple act of buying a gun and bringing it home, taking one to the range, going hunting, or carrying one for personal safety would subject most people to arrest and a permanent criminal record under this law, originally enacted by President Bush's father, President Bush, in 1990. The Gun-Free School Zones law was struck down in 1995 by the U.S. Supreme Court, in the now-famous Lopez case, referred to today by Sen. Feinstein, a staunch anti-gun-rights advocate. For the first time in decades the Court ruled that Congress had overstepped its powers to regulate states under the Commerce Clause. There were more than 121,000 local schools at the time. Congress responded by swiftly reenacting the entire law, under President Clinton in 1996, with a few small changes it believed bypassed the Court's concerns. No new case has been brought to test the new version, so it stands. ### [Backgrounder: Bloomfield Press is the largest publisher and distributor of gun law books in the country, founded in 1988. Our website, gunlaws.com, features a free national directory to gun laws and relevant contacts in all states and federally, along with our unique line of related books and DVDs. Supreme Court Gun Cases for news media review is available on request, call 1-800-707-4020. Authors are available for interview, call us to schedule. Call for cogent positions on gun issues, informed analysis on proposed laws, talk radio that lights up the switchboard, fact sheets and position papers. As we always say, "It doesn't make sense to own a gun and not know the rules."] Contact: Alan Korwin BLOOMFIELD PRESS "We publish the gun laws." 4718 E. Cactus #440 Phoenix, AZ 85032 602-996-4020 Phone 602-494-0679 FAX 1-800-707-4020 Orders http://www.gunlaws.com alan@gunlaws.com Call, write, fax or click for a free catalog. Encourage politicians to pass more laws... with expiration dates. --- From The NRA-ILA: Disaster Can't Destroy Gun Rights (Fairfax, VA) -- National Rifle Association leader Wayne LaPierre slammed New Orleans authorities Monday for seizing legal firearms from lawful residents. "What we've seen in Louisiana - the breakdown of law and order in the aftermath of disaster - is exactly the kind of situation where the Second Amendment was intended to allow citizens to protect themselves, " LaPierre said. "When law enforcement isn't available, Americans turn to the one right that protects all the others - the right to keep and bear arms," LaPierre said. "This attempt to repeal the Second Amendment should be condemned." The New York Times reported last Thursday that no civilians in New Orleans will be allowed to have guns, quoting the superintendent of police that "only law enforcement are allowed to have weapons." A Louisiana state statute allows the chief law enforcement officer to "regulate possession" of firearms during declared emergencies. "But regulate doesn't mean confiscate," said Chris W. Cox, the NRA's chief lobbyist. "Authorities are using that statute to do what the looters and criminals could not: disarm the law-abiding citizens of New Orleans trying to protect their homes and families," Cox said. "The NRA will not stand idly by while guns are confiscated from law-abiding people who're trying to defend themselves," he said. "We're exploring every legal option available to protect the rights of lawful people in New Orleans," Cox said, "and we're taking steps to overturn such laws in every state where they exist." "Local authorities in New Orleans are turning nature's assault on human life into man's assault on human rights," LaPierre said. "Four million NRA members intend to stop this unconstitutional power grab." --nra-- Established in 1871, the National Rifle Association is America's oldest civil rights and sportsmen`s group. Four million members strong, NRA continues its mission to uphold Second Amendment rights and advocates enforcement of existing laws against violent offenders to reduce crime. The Association remains the nation`s leader in firearm education and training for law-abiding gun owners, law enforcement and the armed services. -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .