Law Article Argues RKBA Only Applies at Home: ... None of this analysis applies to guns. Possessing guns is traditionally legal. Guns do serve the self-defense value that the Court has found to be embodied in the Second Amendment. And, Heller held, ordinary guns are at the core of "arms," not on the margin. Even carrying guns in public places is traditionally legal (though often with license requirements), and serves the constitutional value of armed self-defense. But I need not rely on that: The premise of the Court's obscenity decisions is that obscenity lacks constitutional value without regard to the place in which it may be present, though it may not be suppressed via intrusions into the home. That premise does not extend to private gun ownership under Heller. And naturally Guns as Smut's unsound premise leads to unsound results. If guns were really like obscenity, the government would be free to ban the buying of guns and not just their public possession. Guns as Smut's conclusion indeed suggests that it "remain[s] unresolved" whether the government could "so restrict[] the commercial availability of guns that only guns in situ in the home, or those made by enterprising amateur gunsmiths, would be beyond regulation"; the Article's interpretation of Heller "will not, and cannot, provide [an] answer[]" to that question... (Dick Heller's acquiescence to DC's licensing scheme may have been disconcerting but at least Heller seems to be moving us away from the militia argument to whether the RKBA extends to carry outside the home.) http://volokh.com/2009/10/28/guns-as-smut-defending-the-home-bound-second-amendment/ http://sentencing.typepad.com/sentencing_law_and_policy/2009/10/interesting-debate-over-guns-as-smut-thanks-to-columbia-law-review.html --- National Park Ban Ends in February: In late February, the new law goes into effect which lifts the gun ban in our National Parks. An article in the Yellowstone Insider complains that it won't be just concealed carry permit holders who will have the right to armed self-defense restored. "Whether by design or accident, it removes concealed-carry provisions from the mix and basically allows state gun laws to take precedence in any National Park." This is billed as an "unintended effect" by the Insider because as their source material from the Jackson Hole News & Guide points out, "when U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., attached a rider to a credit card reform bill earlier this year, almost all reports indicated it applied to concealed weapons only." Both sources then go on to purport that the whole change was little more than bait & switch and insinuate that there was dishonesty on the part of gun rights groups. Closer to the truth is that once again the media got the facts wrong and since they all source each other the misconception spread... (The ban ends on February 22, 2010.) http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-2206-Cleveland-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m10d28-Tears-flow-from-gun-control-advocates-as-the-end-of-the-National-Parks-gun-ban-draws-closer --- Federal Court Rejects Felon's Appeal: A federal court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by a Hurricane [UT] man who said he should have been allowed to argue to a jury that his illegal possession of a gun was justified. Danny Dutton, 24, contended that he began receiving threats the day after he shot and killed a violent intruder at his apartment. Because of a 2004 felony conviction for cultivating marijuana, Dutton is prohibited from possessing firearms. He argued, though, that his only realistic option was to carry a gun to protect himself. But the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the threats weren't severe enough to instruct a jury on justification. That ruling upholds Dutton's conviction and the 37-month sentence he is serving... http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_13652706 http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705339965/Court-upholds-gunmans-conviction.html ... Being beaten with a metal pipe in your own apartment can change your outlook on likely threat levels. But the police, a U.S. District Court and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, all of which operate under protection of state-deployed arms, disagreed, and in their guarded wisdom concluded Mr. Dutton did not possess a life worthy of also possessing the means of self-defense... http://www.examiner.com/x-1417-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m10d28-Court-says-threats-dont-justify-felon-having-gun --- New Jersey Court - No Right to Buy Handgun: ...In a case decided last week, the superior court upheld a state law saying that nobody may possess "any handgun" without obtaining law enforcement approval and permission in advance... But New Jersey Appellate Division Judge Stephen Skillman wrote on behalf of a unanimous three-judge panel that Heller "has no impact upon the constitutionality of" the state law. That's because, Skillman said, the Supreme Court did not strike down the District of Columbia's de facto handgun ban but instead simply ordered the city to issue a permit. In other words, while Americans may have the right in general to possess arms, the exact contours of that right have not been mapped, especially as the Second Amendment applies to state laws. (The court's majority opinion last year said: "We therefore assume that petitioners' issuance of a license will satisfy respondent's prayer for relief and do not address the licensing requirement.") ... http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/10/28/taking_liberties/entry5440647.shtml --- Alaska Lacks RKBA Restoration for Non-Violent Felons: ... But the felony conviction also does something else. It takes away Masek's gun rights, likely forever. This is a woman convicted of a non-violent offense. A woman who grew up in the Interior village of Anvik and who finished the Iditarod four times. Now she's a member of the tiny club of Alaska politicians who got caught in the FBI dragnet. She's also in a much larger club: the growing number of people whose Second Amendment rights have been extinguished by a government that has no intention of giving them back. "The tragic thing is, under state law you can possess a firearm as long as it can't be concealed, so you can have a long rifle or shotgun," says federal public defender Richard Curtner, the attorney who represented Masek and had to explain this part of the law to her. "Having a firearm in rural Alaska is a necessity, not just for food, but for protection when you are traveling in the field." ... (Arizona affords restoration of rights to non-violent felons but NICS still treats them as prohibited possessors.) http://www.anchoragepress.com/articles/2009/10/28/news/doc4ae8ef2eda2fe382581644.txt --- Tennessee AG Rules against Renters: A landlord can legally prohibit tenants who hold handgun carry permits from bringing their weapons into a rented apartment, according to an opinion from Attorney General Bob Cooper that was released today. The opinion came in response to a request from state Rep. Tony Shipley, R-Kingsport, who said he had thought the answer would have been to the contrary. Shipley said the question was raised by an adult University of Tennessee student who had been prohibited from having a firearm in his rented Knoxville apartment... Shipley said the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution would apply to someone living in an apartment to prevent law enforcement officers from entering without a search warrant. "If the Fourth Amendment applies, why doesn't the Second Amendment apply?" he said. "Can a landlord say you give up free speech, under the First Amendment, in the apartment? I think not." ... http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/oct/28/tennessee-ag-says-landlords-can-ban-tenants-guns/ --- Gun-Show Slur in Virginia Election: With just days to go before the election, Virginia Democrats are getting desperate. In the race to become the commonwealth's next attorney general, state Delegate Stephen Shannon is trying to tar his opponent, state Sen. Ken Cuccinelli, for purportedly giving guns to convicted felons. Mr. Shannon is sending around literature with a scary picture of a violent criminal claiming: "FACT: Ken Cuccinelli, candidate for attorney general, voted to allow violent felons to purchase guns in Virginia." We hate to break it to Mr. Shannon but this isn't going to be his Willie Horton ad. Mr. Shannon's convoluted logic goes this way: Since Mr. Cuccinelli voted against regulating the private sale of guns at gun shows, that means he supports felons having guns. Never mind that it is still illegal for felons to have guns and the senator supports that ban... http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/29/guns-and-the-virginia-election/ --- From GOA-PVF: You may have heard about a special Congressional election taking place next week in upstate New York. The race features a Nancy Pelosi Democrat and a Republican with long-standing ties to ACORN against a genuine pro-gun leader named Doug Hoffman. Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund is proud to endorse Doug Hoffman in this race. Doug Hoffman is a 100% gun rights supporter who will be a leader in the battle to defend the Second Amendment... One of Doug Hoffman's opponents, Bill Owens, will be just another YES vote for radical anti-gun House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He refuses to let voters know where he stands on specific gun control issues, which enables him to play it both ways on the Second Amendment... Mr. Hoffman's other opponent, Dede Scozzafava, voted in 1999 for the kind of "study" of gun "safety" that is so often used by the gun prohibitionists as a backdoor to greater and more intrusive regulation. Attacking gun owners' rights under the cover of "safety" is a favorite tactic of the anti-Second Amendment crowd and she voted for it. She also voted in 1999 to stick gun owners with a burdensome reporting requirement when a gun is stolen. Under that law, the victim of a gun theft can be criminally prosecuted if the theft is not reported quickly enough to suit the authorities. This type of law turns the victim into a criminal... http://www.goapvf.org/hoffman.htm http://www.doughoffmanforcongress.com/ Related Commentary: http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/10/the_battlefield_paradox_scozza.html http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703574604574501570805744470.html --- The RKBA in Nevada, Part 2: Given the politics of the issue, few Nevada lawmakers want to be on record as opposing individual gun ownership. Yet a close look at the actual record suggests the Silver State has a working majority in its legislature covertly scornful of your right to keep and bear arms. A previous NPRI commentary pointed out that the original intent of the Second Amendment is not about protecting hunters' guns and not about mere individual self-defense against criminals. No, the second article of the Bill of Rights is about your right to defend yourself against an unjust government. Nevertheless, here in Nevada, state, county and city laws restrict the liberty guaranteed by the Second Amendment. Indeed, current handgun registration and waiting periods in Clark County demonstrate a complete lack of understanding and adherence to the U.S. Constitution. Even the language of the Nevada Constitution - essentially dictated to the fledgling state by the Lincoln administration during the Civil War - tends to undermine Second Amendment rights... (I hope that this series goes beyond two parts. This one, while valid, seems to focus on Clark County, admittedly the home to most of Nevada's residents. As a non-resident, I'd like to see Nevada move to universal recognition of concealed-carry permits, a concept that works fine in three of the five states that border it. Such a move would certainly not hurt the state's faltering tourism industry.) http://www.npri.org/publications/the-right-to-keep-and-bear-arms-in-nevada-part-ii --- Lawsuit Filed against Seattle Gun Ban: The Second Amendment Foundation, National Rifle Association and five local residents today filed a lawsuit challenging a new Seattle parks regulation that bans firearms, arguing that the ban violates Washington State's long-standing preemption statute. They are joined by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and the Washington Arms Collectors... "This ban violates Washington's 26-year-old model preemption statute," noted SAF Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. "The ban makes it impossible, under threat of criminal trespass penalty, to lawfully carry firearms for the protection of spouses, partners and children on public property where these citizens have a right to be. We are once again delighted to be joined by the NRA in this action. Our successful collaborations in the past stopped illegal gun confiscations in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, and nullified an illegal gun ban in the City of San Francisco." ... http://www.saf.org/viewpr-new.asp?id=306 --- Carry Bans Ignored by Ohio Criminals: ... Despite these prominently posted "no-guns" signs, which are required by law to be posted in every Class D liquor permit location in the state of Ohio, it's getting increasingly hard to keep track of all the shootings occurring across the Buckeye state in places that serve alcohol. On October 8, a shootout in a Toledo bar gained nationwide attention, despite there being no injuries, thanks to the graphic action recorded on security cameras. Another Toledo bar shooting, which occurred just a few nights later, gained almost no attention despite a bar employee having been injured by a ricochet. On Tuesday, October 20 and again two nights later, a trio of armed men robbed patrons at two central Ohio bars. After the first robbery, the victimized bar owner posted yet another warning sign at his establishment, giving the distinct impression that he had somehow missed all the video of that Toledo shootout... Representative Danny Bubp (R-88) of West Union and Rep. Jarrod Martin (R-70) of Beavercreek have introduced House Bill 203, which seeks to "allow a concealed carry licensee who is not consuming liquor and is not under the influence to carry a concealed handgun in a retail food establishment or food service operation with any class liquor permit issued for the location." ... http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/6959 --- Registration Not Much Help to Police: Earlier this month, we told you about a group of students who found a loaded handgun in an alley near Lincoln Elementary School in Wausau [WI]. The students told their school principal, then police started an investigation. Investigators found that the gun is registered to a Waukesha man, but he says he sold it a few years back and doesn't know who the current owner is... By law, guns only need to be registered when they're purchased through a licensed dealer. If you give them away or sell them privately or at a gun show registration isn't required... Even if laws were different, police don't think it would make it much easier for them to solve crimes because, "Crimes are committed with guns that are obtained illegally and so of course there wouldn't be any ownership registration there no matter what kind of restrictions the laws put in place," Hilts says. (Mr. Stollenwerk's comment about confusing the BATF 4473 with outright registration appears to be correct: http://www.lcav.org/states/wisconsin.asp#RegistrationofGuns.) http://www.waow.com/Global/story.asp?S=11402816 --- Firearm Manufacturers Prosper in Montana: ... The Flathead Valley, and Montana for that matter, has a rich history of barrel and gun manufacturing, boasting names like the Bauska family, the Sipe family and, more recently, the Sonju family. The Sonjus have formed a sister company to their Sonju Industrial, which manufactures aerospace parts... In a region hard-hit by job losses in the construction and timber industries, firearm manufacturing has stayed the course. Sipe had 80 employees over the summer and his son Jeff, owner of the Montana Rifle Co., had 20. Underground Skunkworks, a tactical rifle maker, moved its operations to Columbia Falls in September. Josh Sonju of SI Defense said his business has been robust. Economic development groups are hoping to capitalize on this momentum. Kellie Danielson, president and CEO of Montana West Economic Development, said her organization has targeted firearms manufacturing as a viable source of job growth in the valley. The region already has a base, a reputation and a gun-friendly atmosphere. While such machine-based businesses don't necessarily provide large numbers of jobs, they can create at least a few dozen at a time, Danielson said... http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/surrounded_by_job_losses_montanas_firearms_industry_thrives/13816/ --- Shotgun Range Survives in NYC: ... That's when the area surrounding 170 Bloomfield Ave., home of the Staten Island Sportsmen's Club, echoes with the snap of projectile "pigeons," the crack of shotgun blasts, and the mid-air explosion of clay disks. It's at the Club where you'll find people like Ed Lecarreaux of Annadale, an expert marksman who's been shooting for more than 50 years; Joe Meschino of Concord, a hunter who is a certified instructor, and Dan Grossane, of Huguenot, a retired NYPD lieutenant who joined the program about six years ago. You'll also find Frank Fiammetta, 17, of Eltingville, Andrew Kimmins, 17, of West Brighton, and Robert Riccio, 16, of Oakwood. Armed with single-gauge [sic] shotguns, and wearing protective goggles, vests with pockets full of ammunition, and sound-proof ear muffs, the teens are part of the Boy Scouts of America Venturing Crew 2701. They practice the sport of trap shooting every Wednesday... http://www.silive.com/eastshore/weekly/index.ssf?/base/news/1256220916199120.xml&coll=1 --- Oops, Wrong House: A 62-year-old Toledo homeowner shot and killed an unidentified male burglar in the 100 Block of Mulford Road in Toledo at approximately 10:40 p.m. Tuesday, according to a news release from the Lewis County [WA] Sheriff's Office. Sheriff's detectives were called to the scene and learned the homeowner woke up after hearing a noise which led him to believe someone was trying to break into his home. He heard someone coming up the stairs inside of his residence. The homeowner told deputies he told the burglar to "freeze," but the burglar continued to advance toward the him, at which time the homeowner told the burglar to "freeze" once again. The burglar continued moving, therefore the homeowner shot the burglar, stopping him from advancing any further, the news release said. The burglar was pronounced deceased at the scene. http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/10/28/breaking_news/doc4ae8682c84f4f155550856.txt --- Too-Fat-to-Aim Defense Explained: New Jersey prosecutors are trying to portray a Florida man who claims he was too fat to have killed his former son-in-law as a skilled marksman. Edward Ates (aytz) claims he didn't have the energy to accurately shoot Paul Duncsak (DUNS'-kak) and make a quick getaway. Under cross-examination Thursday, Ates admitted he once used his revolver to shoot a snake during a road trip. The 62-year-old was 285 pounds when Duncsak was killed in 2006. Duncsak and Ates' daughter were involved in a bitter custody dispute after their divorce. A defense lawyer says the prosecution theory would mean that the killer would have had to run up a set stairs. He says Ates couldn't have done that and fired a gun accurately. He says exertion would cause his hands to shake. (Yesterday I questioned why obesity would have prevented the defendant from aiming the gun. Today's article introduces the staircase on the way to the scene of the shooting. I suspect that the former son-in-law may have been a bit wider target than a snake.) http://townhall.com/news/us/2009/10/29/man_using_fat_defense_in_nj_depicted_as_marksman?page=full --- The Zero-Tolerance Folly: An 11-year-old Des Moines girl was at home on suspension Tuesday for bringing a handful of empty shotgun shells to school last week. Jazmine Martin, a sixth-grader at Brody Middle School, picked up the shells as souvenirs during a family trip to a ranch in South Dakota, where the rounds were fired as part of a show. They were blanks. "I didn't think they were going to hurt anyone," Jazmine said. "I wanted to show them to my science teacher because he's into stuff like this." She said she didn't have time to show her teacher, but she did show a couple of friends. This week, she was called into the office and suspended. Principal Randy Gordon said the shells were considered ammunition even though they were empty, and were therefore against school policy. A copy of the school policy shows that it specifically bans "live ammunition or bullets" but makes no reference to empty shells or casings. However, the policy says it is not limited to the items specifically listed as being banned... http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20091028/NEWS/910280363/1001/NEWS --- When Guns Are Outlawed: Gun crime has almost doubled since Labour came to power as a culture of extreme gang violence has taken hold. The latest Government figures show that the total number of firearm offences in England and Wales has increased from 5,209 in 1998/99 to 9,865 last year - a rise of 89 per cent. In some parts of the country, the number of offences has increased more than five-fold. In eighteen police areas, gun crime at least doubled... http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1223193/Culture-violence-Gun-crime-goes-89-decade.html?ITO=1490 --- Armed American Civilian Aids UN Personnel in Afghanistan: Armed with an AK-47, an American contract worker said Wednesday that he held off militants attacking the Bakhtar residential hotel in Kabul, allowing about two dozen U.N. election workers to escape. John Christopher "Chris" Turner, a trucker from Kansas City, Mo., described opening fire at the assailants as the guests he was protecting huddled in a laundry room at the back of the building. "I am armed. I carry an AK-47 and I kept firing it to keep the attackers away from the group I was guarding," he said, describing how he shot from the entrance of the laundry room. The group later jumped over a back wall to take refuge in a house behind the hotel, he said... http://www.azstarnet.com/news/315300 -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .