Firearms Policy Coalition
Two Mississippi men open carry in Walmart, narrowly avoid violent misunderstanding
WLOX News reports:
Gulfport Police Chief Leonard Papania held a press conference Monday afternoon to discuss a situation that had many Walmart shoppers terrified Sunday evening.
“That’s not normal.”
That’s what Papania said about two men who went into Walmart, Winn Dixie and Krispy Kreme armed with a shotgun.
While openly carrying a firearm in Mississippi is legal, Papania said this situation could have turned into “a very violent misunderstanding.”
According to authorities, the two men walked into the Walmart on Highway 49 around 8 p.m. Witnesses said the man holding the shotgun was actively loading and racking the firearm. Walmart does not have a policy about guns inside its stores.
“If I were in a situation where I’m in the store shopping with my family and I see an individual loading a 12 gauge, and racking it, I’m not coming to the conclusion this is good,” said Papania. “While the actions of these two men are sanctioned by state laws, what they did negatively impacted our community.
Read the full story HERE.
Letter: Gun control is “illegal,” “immoral” and “impossible”
Thomas Knapp, the director and senior news analyst at the William Lloyd Garrison Center for Libertarian Advocacy Journalism wrote an opinion piece for MuscatineJournal.com on President Obama and Hillary Clinton’s recent comments on Charleston and their demands for gun control:
...Guns.com: Low SAFE Act numbers hint at non-compliance in NY
Chris Eger from Guns.com reports:
Information ordered by the courts show that just one out of every 800 New Yorkers have registered their firearms under the requirements of the state’s 2013 gun control legislation.
Records released show that 23,847 people have applied to register 44,485 guns classified as an assault weapon under the egis of the Secure Ammunition Firearms Enforcement Act implemented two years ago. At the time of implementation, it was estimated that as many as 1.2 million guns in the Empire State would have been subject to registration.
With a population of almost 20 million, the seemingly low numbers has Second Amendment activists who sought the data pleased.
….Now with the figures released, it seems that drives by anti-SAFE Act gun owners last year to “register nothing” and burn their registration forms may have had some effect….
In past cases of firearms bans with mandated registration, noncompliance to the increased regulation is not uncommon.
Read the full report HERE.
TownHall.com: White House Press Secretary says its “too early” to tell if gun control would have stopped Charleston
Katie Pavlich for TownHall.com reports:
...Democratic 2016 candidate Martin O’Malley campaigns for gun control following Charleston massacre
Hunter Walker for BusinessInsider.com reports:
...GOP and Dems introduce gun bills to address domestic abuse, but from different perspectives
Hank Kalet for NJSpotlight.com reports:
...Guns.com: Judge’s ruling threatens upheaval of Puerto Rico gun laws
Chris Eger for Guns.com reports:
A local court in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico this month issued a stern ruling that could end some of the strongest gun laws in the country.
Taking control of Puerto Rico’s strict firearms statutes is Judge Lugo Anibal Irizarry, sitting in the Court of Salinas, who found the U.S. territory’s Ley de Armas unconstitutionally prohibitive and in violation of the Second Amendment as part of a class action lawsuit brought by 850 plaintiffs.
As Irizarry’s 42-page (Spanish) ruling reads, explained by the Second Amendment Foundation, Puerto Ricans in the Commonwealth may now carry openly or concealed without a permit, and they do not need to obtain a permit before purchasing a firearm.
“Cumbersome firearms regulations have never prevented criminals from getting their hands on guns,” said Alan M. Gottlieb, SAF executive vice president, in a statement emailed to Guns.com. “They have only inconvenienced law-abiding citizens, or deprived them outright from exercising their rights under the Second Amendment.”
Read the full story at Guns.com.
New Jersey resident denied access to gun because of his wife’s criminal record
The Associated Press reports:
A state appellate court has ruled that a southern New Jersey man cannot buy guns because his wife is a convicted felon who’s been accused of domestic violence.
In their ruling issued this week, the two-judge panel found that the guns’ presence in the man’s home would give his wife greater access to firearms, creating an unacceptable threat to public health, safety and welfare. They said the man’s Constitutional right to own weapons was “subject to reasonable limitations.”
The ruling upheld decisions made by a state Superior Court judge and the police chief in the Burlington County town where the man lives. The man’s name was not disclosed in the ruling because the case involved claims of domestic violence and to protect his 13-year-old son’s privacy.
The man had sought a firearm purchaser’s identification card and four permits to buy guns.
Read the full story at BeaumontEnterprise.com.
Colt Baby Dragoon formerly owned by James Brady will be auctioned to benefit SAF
The Shooting Wire reports:
...Reason.com: Obama Wonders If Dylann Roof, Who Passed a Background Check, Could Have Been Stopped by a Background Check
Jacob Sullum for Reason.com reports:
...Carly Fiorina say Obama Post-Charleston Gun Control Demands ‘Inappropriate’ and ‘Ironic’
Fred Lucas for The Blaze reports:
...Clinton calls for Congress to pass ‘common sense’ gun control legislation
Lisa Lerer for the Associated Press reports:
Issuing an emotional plea following the South Carolina church shooting, Hillary Rodham Clinton called for “common-sense” gun reforms and a national reckoning with the persistent problem of “institutional racism.”
Three days after nine black church members were gunned down in Charleston, Clinton said the country must take steps to keep guns from criminals and the mentally ill.
Regulations, she said, can be passed while still respecting the Second Amendment and “respecting responsible gun owners.”
“The politics on this issue have been poisoned, but we can’t give up,” she told the U.S. Conference of Mayors in San Francisco on Saturday. “The stakes are too high. The costs are too dear.”
Read the full story HERE.
Uber changes policy to ban guns
Lynn La for CNet.com reports:
Uber, the ride-hailing company based in San Francisco, has reworked its legal policies to include a ban on firearm possession by its drivers and passengers.
“We seek to ensure that everyone using the Uber digital platform…feels safe and comfortable,” the new policy reads. “Uber and its affiliates therefore prohibit possessing firearms of any kind in a vehicle.” Those found violating the rule may lose access to Uber’s services.
The update was first reported by the New Republic, amid news of Wednesday’s shootings in Charleston, SC, where a 21-year-old white man opened fire at the historically black Emanuel A.M.E. Church, killing nine people.
Uber has noted, however, that its policy change was made June 10 — a week before the shootings occurred. The company said it made the change “after assessing existing policies and carefully reviewing recent feedback from both riders and driver-partners.”
Read the rest of the story HERE.
Rolling Stone writer blames Republicans for “weaponizing” supporters
Leave it to liberal commentators to not only politicize the Charleston shootings, but use it to attack conservatives and gun owners specifically. Jeb Lund, writing for Rolling Stone magazine openly blamed Republicans for having “weaponized” their supporters – leading to incidents like Dylann Roof’s massacre in Charleston. He writes:
...WP: Ted Cruz says democrats using Charleston as ‘excuse’ to take away gun rights
Katie Zezima for the Washington Post reports:
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) said Friday that Democrats are using the shooting deaths of nine people in a Charleston, S.C., African American church as an “excuse” to try to roll back gun rights.
“It’s sad to see the Democrats take a horrific crime and try to use it as an excuse not to go after people with serious mental illness or people who are repeat felons or criminals but rather try to use it as an excuse to take away the Second Amendment rights of law abiding citizens,” Cruz told reporters after a town hall event here.
“Those are altogether different issues and we need to focus on protecting our Bill of Rights and also on keeping everyone safe.”
Cruz said it is evocative of a line used by Chicago Mayor and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.
“I’ll tell you it’s reminiscent of Rahm Emanuel who said you never let a good crisis go to waste,” Cruz said.
Read the full story at the Washington Post.
Sacramento Bee: Obama urges mayors to back gun control
Marissa Lang for the Sacramento Bee reports:
...Coinbase: No Bitcoins for Gun-Related Retailers
Said Tilden Smith of 80% Arms, who helped us rally gun owners to successfully oppose California’s SB 808 “Ghost Gun” ban last year, writes:
...Australian stand-up comic mocks America’s Second Amendment
Ana Swanson for the Washington Post shared a link to a video of an Australian stand-up comedian and his comments regarding the Second Amendment. She writes:
...SC Representative says now is not the time for gun debate
Kimberly Atkins from the Boston Herald reports:
...Idaho open-carry rally scheduled for Sat., June 20th
DeSiree Fawn for KMVT News reports:
An Op-Ed article in the Idaho Mountain Express newspaper has triggered an armed protest.
A group called III% Idaho is organizing a rally to protest an Op-Ed article from June 10th, “Shame Could Control Guns Better than New Laws.”
On their website, III% Idaho says they intend to maintain their God-given rights to liberty and property. Today the City of Ketchum sent out a press release to advise the city of the “open-carry” walk.
The rally will take place on Saturday, June 20th at 11am.
Read the full story at KMVT.com.