Mississippi Gun News
McDaniel Monday: Cochran Voted for Gun Ban, McDaniel has My Vote
BY: Daniel Boney
Owner: Dirt Road Firearms, B&N Holsters
Are we t0 believe that Senator Thad Cochran has reformed himself into a protector of the Second Amendment? Apparently he hopes so as he has recently signed on to federal legislation that would allow reciprocity across the country for concealed carry permits.
I have serious problems with the federal government creating any laws with respect to the Second Amendment. Often times the loopholes aren’t fully understood until we see backdoor attempts years later to further restrict our rights.
It is especially troubling to me that Senator Cochran has signed on. After all, it is Senator Cochran who voted for a gun ban in 1991 promoted by his good friend Joe Biden. And it was
Mississippi’s ‘Year of the Gun Bill’ Continues as Pro-Gun Measures are on the Move
BY NRA-ILA – February 2, 2014
In spite of the winter storm that blasted much of the Deep South this week, state lawmakers remained busy at work in Jackson and advanced a number of bills aimed at further protecting your rights in the Magnolia State.
This week, the House Judiciary A Committee reported three NRA-supported bills, advancing them to the full House for consideration. These bills include:
- House Bill 485, sponsored by state Representative Gary Chism (R-37), would prohibit the destruction of firearms acquired by local governments as a result of gun “buyback” programs.
- House Bill 764, sponsored by state Representative Joey Hood (R-35), would exempt disabled veterans from fees on original and renewal concealed carry permits.
2014, Mississippi’s Year of the Gun
BY DANA CRISWELL – February 1, 2014
Last week Memphis News Channel Fox 13 called Mississippi’s 2014 Legislative session the Year of the Gun Bills. Tom Dees reported that 19 gun bills had been submitted for consideration between the Senate and House. As of today there are 30 gun related bills being considered by the Mississippi Legislature.
Below is the report from Fox 13 Memphis.
My Fox Memphis Mississippi’s Year of the Gun Bill
Here is the list of all the gun related bills.
House Bills
House Bill Bill StatusAre those who suffer from Mental Illness a Violent Threat to Society?
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 31, 2014
I spent an evening this week listening to “experts” who opposed citizen’s rights to openly carry firearms. As usual their arguments exposed a complete lack of understanding of current laws but more importantly exposed their desire to limit freedoms.
While they all proclaim their support of the Second Amendment, the general theme of attack comes as they wring-their-hands and scratch-their-heads and lament the lack of regulations preventing the mentally ill from obtaining weapons. While some honestly are concerned about the dangers the mentally ill pose to society, I am convinced it is simply a tactic to limit freedoms by a majority of their leaders.
Recently the Obama administration, through the Department of Justice, proposed a regulation, ”to clarify who is prohibited from possessing a firearm for mental health reasons.” The hope is to keep guns out of the hands of mentally ill who are considered potentially violent. When asked about these proposed changes Attorney General Eric Holder said,
“We are taking an important,
HB 314 One Step Closer – Passes Committee
This just in from Mississippi for Liberty
One step closer. Rep. Gipson’s HB 314 to stop illegal city/county gun ordinances passed committee today with a few “no” votes.
Sign the below petition – keep the pressure on!
Protecting the Right to Self-Defense at Work in Mississippi
BY DAVID BUTTS – January 30, 2014
On July 8, 2003, Doug Williams, an employee at the Lockheed Martin plant in Meridian, Mississippi, shot 14 of his co-workers, killing 6 of them before committing suicide.
Three years later, the Mississippi Legislature passed Section 45-9-55 of the Mississippi Code, which allowed employees to keep weapons in their locked vehicles in the employer’s parking lots, if those lots were not otherwise denied access to the general public by fences, a gate, security station or other means.
The law prohibited employers from establishing, maintaining, or enforcing any rule or policy which prohibited employees from keeping weapons in their locked vehicles under such circumstances. Nevertheless, employers either seem not to be aware of this law, or ignore it, publishing in their employee handbooks that firearms are prohibited anywhere on company property, which would include open parking areas.
In May, 2013, an employee of an aerospace company in Mississippi fired an employee for having a weapon in his locked vehicle, which was parked i
California Gun Rights Group Dares Politicians to Pass Bills
California Association of Federal Firearms Licensees (CAL-FFL) Will Give Away Guns For Gun Control Bills Passed in 2014
ROSEVILLE, CA (January 27, 2014) — In response to several new attacks by politicians in Sacramento on the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, the gun rights group California Association of Federal Firearms Licensees (CAL-FFL) has announced a new program that it says will make politicians think twice about their efforts to undermine the Constitution.
According to CAL-FFL, their intention is to give away at least one gun for every gun control bill passed by the California Legislature in 2014.
“We’re making this promise to those elected officials who attack our fundamental rights,” said Brandon Combs, the group’s president. “Your actions will have consequences.”
The California Legislature took up an unprecedented number of gun bills in 2013, with over 50 measures going across the desk. CAL-FFL said that while there might be a smaller number of gun control bills introduced in 2014, the scope of the anti-gun bills will continue to be expansive. Senate Bill 808, authored
Is a Parking Lot “No Weapons” Sign Adequate Security?
Security Procedures:
1. Print this sign
2. Place on Door
3. Watch Bad Guys Run Away
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 29, 2014
Last year we watched Tennessean’s struggle, against the lobbying efforts of large employers, for the right to carry a firearm on their commute to and from work. Often referred to as “guns-in-trunks” laws these laws protect employees from penalty if they store a firearm in their locked car while at work.
Mississippi has a similar law (45-9-55) that protects employees who choose to carry a firearm for protection during their commute to and from work. The Mississippi law says that an employer is
…not permitted to prevent or prohibit transportation or storage of firearms on employer property, unless the employee vehicle is in a parking lot, parking garage, or other parking area the employer provides for employees to which access is restricted or limited through the use of a gate, se
18 Facts about Guns Your Local Politician Needs to Know
Photo by June Adcox of June Adcox Photography
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 27, 2014
In Mississippi we have seen a constant attack from local politicians on our right to carry a firearm for protection. Our local politicians always fall back on the mantra of “We have to do something to protect our citizens”. But the facts do not support their position of disarming the general public as an adequate means of protecting them. If our local politicians actually cared to “protect their citizens” they would remove the “no guns” signs and encourage law-abiding citizens to prepare to protect themselves from crime.
If local sheriffs and chief law enforcement officers would listen to facts and not the anti-gun rhetoric of those seeking to limit our rights they would understand that disarming their citizens puts them in jeopardy and makes them targets for crimina
McDaniel Monday – Past Pro-Gun Legislation Supported by Chris McDaniel
By DANA CRISWELL – January 27, 2014
This week on McDaniel Monday we are looking at some of the pro-Second Amendment Legislation Chris has supported in the past. He has a history of supporting legislation that upholds citizen’s right to keep and bear arms. His support of these bills is one reason we support him as our next U.S. Senator.
Below is from the website www.McDaniel2014.com
Traditions of gun ownership in Mississippi run deep. Many of us have fond memories of our fathers and grandfathers taking us on our first hunting excursion, or our first chance to sight in our own rifles in preparation for a hunt.
Shooting sports are a family event for people in our state, whether it be a hunt or just a trip to the shooting range.
Gun ownership and the right to carry is time honored. But, it is also a fundamental part of our freedom. The Second Amendment guarantees that we have the ability to protect our families and our property, whether it be from evil men or from the dictates of government.
As a state senator, Chris Mc
Another “Gun Free Zone” Becomes a Killing Ground
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 26, 2014
Once again we watch the news and see a gunman walk into a crowded “Gun Free Zone” and kill innocent people. Yesterday in Maryland at The Mall in Columbia a gunman walked into the mall and began a shooting spree. This time he killed two mall employees and then turned the gun on himself.
How much more evidence do we need to prove “Gun Free Zones” don’t work.
Maryland has some of the most restrictive gun-control laws in the nation. Since Oct. 1, Maryland has banned the sale of nearly all semi-automatic rifles, plus magazines that hold more than 10 bullets.
These gun-control measures were implemented to make it more difficult for those who are mentally ill to obtain firearms. And Maryland now requires new gun buyers to undergo training and submit digital fingerprints to state police.
So how could something like this happen?
To further “keep the citizens safe” the mall had a strict “No Firearms” policy. Here is the official “Code of Conduct” from the mall website.
Urgent Action Required: Local Elected Officials Trying to Torpedo HB 314!
After House Bill 2, legislation clarifying the definition of “concealed” and re-affirming the right to possess a firearm openly, finally became law before Labor Day last year, cities and counties across the state over-reacted by passing far-reaching restrictions on where law-abiding citizens – including enhanced and regular carry permit holders – could possess firearms. The media was full of reports last fall of local elected officials taking drastic steps to ban firearms from nearly all city or county-owned property. Not only were some of these ordinances and actions clearly outside the scope of their authority under state law – but they also ended up mostly impacting regular permit holders who had been carrying lawfully and responsibly in these locations since 1991!
In December 2013, Attorney General Jim Hood issued an opinion affirming that the state’s firearms preemption statute limits cities’ and counties’ authority to enact and enforce ordinances restricting both open and concealed carry, except under limited circumstances. General Hood opined that a local government can
Mississippi Proposes Tax Free Gun Weekend
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 25, 2014
Senator Philip Moran (R-District 46) and 33 other senators proposed Senate Bill 2425 this week. This bill would exempt from sales taxation retail sales of firearms, ammunition, hunting supplies and fishing supplies if sold during the annual Mississippi Sportsman Weekend which shall begin each year at 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in September and end at 12:00 midnight the following Sunday.
Firearm excluded from tax during the tax-free weekend would be, handguns, rifles and shotguns. Hunting supplies would include tangible personal property used for hunting, including, but not limited to, accessories, bows, crossbows, arrows, hunting apparel, hunting footwear, bags, float tubes, binoculars, tools, firearm and archery cases, firearm and archery accessories, range finders, knives, decoys, tree stands, blinds, chairs, optics, hearing protection and enhancements, holsters, belts and slings. Hunting supplies does not include a
Pro-Gun Bills Introduced in Tennessee General Assembly
By Dana Criswell – January 25, 2014
Last week, the 2014 session of the Tennessee General Assembly convened. A number of pro-gun and pro-hunting bills have been introduced.
Those bills of interest to law-abiding gun owners and hunters in the Volunteer State are below:
House Bill 1407/Senate Bill 1496 – sponsored by state Representative Tilman Goins (R-10) and state Senator Stacey Campfield (R-7), these companion bills would allow for a handgun carry permit holder to carry lawfully a firearm in all state, county and municipal parks.
House Bill 1399/Senate Bill 1612 – sponsored by state Representative Judd Matheny (R-47) and state Senator Mark Green (R-22), these companion bills would strengthen t
Federal Mandated Concealed Carry Reciprocity or State’s Rights; Where do you stand?
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 24, 2014
It seems conservatives are split down the middle on the states rights vs. gun rights issue. In a recent poll on Mississippi Gun News those answering if they would support the federal Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2014 were divided almost evenly between support and opposition. The bill introduce by U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and co-sponsored by both Mississippi Senators Cochran and Wicker seeks to extend a conceal carry permit issued in one state to all other states.
On the surface this seems to be a good idea and those who support this bill say it does not infringe on states rights, but like a drivers license simply allows those with a concealed carry permit in one state to exercise that right in another.
In support of the bill Senator Cochran said, “Second amendment rights shouldn’t stop at the state line, It makes sense to allow law-abiding gun owners to take their concealed permit privileges with them to states that also allow conceal carry permits.”
But those who oppose the federal mandate are concerned about the federal government’s con
Proactive v Reactive: A Comparison of MS and OK Open Carry Planning
BY RICK WARD – January 23, 2014
The State of Oklahoma passed its Open Carry Law in early 2012, one year prior to the Mississippi law. By all appearances it would seem that Oklahoma did an outstanding job in looking ahead with a proactive plan to limit challenges for the future. Sadly, Mississippi’s approach has been more reactive than proactive.
Shortly after the Oklahoma legislative session ended, law enforcement authorities began to develop plans to deal with their new open carry law. Stories began to surface as early as a month or so following the end of the session and up to the effective date of the law (November 1, 2012).
May 16, 2012, News 9 in Norman, Oklahoma
Police have already developed a training plan for officers and dispatchers on how to respond to complaints related to the new law that will be effective November 1, 2012.
MS Senator Proposal Declares Local Anti-Gun Laws “Null and Void”
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 22, 2014
Today Mississippi Senator Melanie Sojourner (R-District 37) proposed Senate Bill 2798. This bill commonly known a preemption/enforcability law would preempt all local gun ordinances. The State Legislature declares in this bill they “occupying the whole field of regulation of firearms and ammunition, including the purchase, sale, transfer, taxation, manufacture, ownership, possession, storage, and transportation thereof.”
This law would declare all local ordinances on firearms “null and void.”
This is the law that gun owners and those of us who choose to carry a firearm for protection have been wanting. After the passage of House Bill 2 last year local politicians have declared war on citizen’s right to keep and bear arms. There has become a patch-work of ever-changing local laws that constantly put law-abiding citizens in danger for simply exercising a constitutionally protected right.
We need this law to rein in the local politicians who have given in
Study Shows Teachers with Guns Keep Students Safe
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 22, 2014
After the school shooting in Newtown, CT much of our national discussion centered around keeping kids safe at school. President Obama and his followers used the tragedy as a way to push their political agenda of gun-control while the rest of the nation went about seeking a real solution.
One solution highlighted by the NRA was the idea of teachers with guns. Much like the pilots-with-guns program for airlines many favored the arming of teachers approach as a last resort layer of defense for our children at school.
With the introduction of House Bill 64 in the Mississippi Legislature Rep. Formby has Mississippian’s engaged in the teachers with guns discussion again.
In a Fox13 news story reporter Tom Dees asked citizens for their reaction to the Teacher
Firearm Freedom comes to Mississippi
A Mississippi citizen at a Firearm Freedom Rally
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 21, 2014
If House Bill 467 becomes law, Mississippi would join the nine other states who have declared freedom for firearm owners within their state. Known as a Firearms Freedom Act it would prohibit enforcement of federal law regarding firearms, accessories or ammunition manufactured and remaining in the State of Mississippi.
Firearms Freedom Acts have been passed by 9 other states beginning in 2009 when Montana passed the Montana Firearms Freedom Act. Montana was the first state to challenge the federal government’s claim that it has the power and authority to control commerce within the borders of a State. By passing Firearms Freedom Acts the States are attempting to take back from the federal government control and authority given to the States by the U.S. Constitution.
This bil
Support Trained School Employees with Guns/ Read 3 New Proposed Gun Bills
BY DANA CRISWELL – January 20, 2014
House Bill 64 is receiving some attention from the media today. It’s time to let your representatives know you want our kids safe at school. HB 64 gives school superintendents the ability to allow willing employees who have completed the required training to carry concealed handguns on school campus. This bill gives our kids another layer of protection. We owe them a safe place to learn.
Click Here: this link will take you to our action center, complete the email form and show your support.
New Bills Introduced TodayToday there were three new bills introduced that are important for gun owners.
House Bill 467 - Prohibits enforcement of federal law regarding firearms, accessories or ammunition manufa