SECOND AMENDMENT NEWS DIGEST
The latest in gun rights news and commentary.
Published weekly
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Note: As of today, our news feed for daily updates is still not working,
but continue to check the web page for updates. If the feed is not
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Vol. 2 No.7
Sunday, July 24,2005
FROM THE EDITOR
(0) The week in review
Note: As of today, our news feed for daily updates is still not working,
but continue to check the web page for updates. If the feed is not
re-established this week, I'll start posting the daily updates at
http://2amnewsdigest.blogspot.com/
Self defense stories this week from all over ... Louisiana, California, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Missouri, and Utah; gun grabbers in Pennsylvania target a pawnshop, gun grabbers in the Netherlands want to tighten gun laws, gun grabbers in Ohio whine about the NRA moving its convention (well, duh, what did they expect?).
Til next week
Mary Lou
ACTIONS
(1) Action Alert: Sen. Vitter Moves to Block Anti-gun UN
NEWS
(2) Louisiana: Jewler gets best of robbers in gun fight
(3) Florida: Fatal double shooting ruled justifiable homicide
(4) Bill rekindles debate over gun lawsuits
(5) Netherlands: Gun laws to be tightened
(6) Pennsylvania: Gun grabbers targeting pawn shop
(7) Brazil: Crime-hit Brazil split over possible gun sales ban
(8) Virginia: No charges for shooter
(9) Texas: Woman, 70, shoots and kills relative
(10) Texas: Officer shoots car-burglary suspect outside his home
(11)Kentucky: Corrections officer fired shotgun at neighbor in self defense
(12) North Carolina:Domestic assault ends in shooting
(13) California: Woman reflects on aquittal
(14) Louisiana: Suspects shot by jewelry store owner, employee during attempted robbery
(15) Califormnia: Sheriff will not seek charges on store clerks who shot robbery suspect
(16) New YorK: Local gunrunner hero?
(17) Williams show features women who defended themselves
(18) Canada: Still no charges laid in seizure of rifles
(19) UK: Toy gun pupil arrested at school
(20) Frustrated Iraqis ready to take law into own hands
(21) Soldier denied gun license
(22) Ohio: Gun laws
(23) Ohio:NRA won't hold convention in Columbus because of city ban on assault weapons
(24) Missouri: Woman shoots intruder
(25) Louisiana: Man kills burglar
(26) Resistance is not futile, it is highly effective
(27) Texas: Man fatally shoots home invasion suspe
(28) Louisiana: Man shot during home invasion
(29) Utah: Man claims he pulled gun in self defense
(30) Florida: Rare rifle back in WWII veteran's hands
(31) RI: Area residents question effectiveness of new gun law
(32) California: Experts called in weapons case
COMMENTARY
(33) The NRA fights back!
(34) Gun control is a pipe dream
(35) The Second Amendment is already dead
(36) Americans losing concept of freedom
(37) DC mayor wants citizens to be "subjects"
(38) Rock n roll ala mode
(39) Gun law doesn't help victims, hurts second amendment
FROM THE EDITOR
(0) The week in review
ACTIONS
(1) Action Alert: Sen. Vitter Moves to Block Anti-gun UN
Gun Owners of America
"Pro-gun Senator David Vitter (R-LA) is getting ready to introduce a bill that would block the United Nations from implementing gun control measures affecting U.S. citizens. Entitled the "UN Second Amendment Protection Act of 2005," the bill does still not have a number, as Sen. Vitter is trying to get original cosponsors to join him. Sen. Vitter's bill will prohibit any U.S. funding to the UN unless the President certifies that the world body "has not taken action to restrict, attempt to restrict or otherwise adversely infringe upon the rights of individuals in the United States to possess a firearm or ammunition." ACTION: Please contact your two senators and urge them to cosponsor the Vitter bill." (07/14/05)
http://www.gunowners.org/a071405.htm
NEWS
(2) Louisiana: Jewler gets best of robbers in gun fight
Nola.com
Two suspects in a botched jewelry store robbery were wounded so badly in a shootout with the store owner and an employee that police have not been able to interview them about a third suspect who was still at large on Wednesday. The shootout occurred at Breaux's Jewelers in Jefferson Parish Tuesday after one of the suspects, dressed as an old woman with a walker and straw purse, was buzzed into the store.Store owner Mike Breaux quickly saw through the disguise and had pulled his own handgun by the time the suspect — identified as Kevin Knight — had pulled a .40 caliber handgun from the purse and started to leap over the counter." (07/20/05)
http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base/news-17/112189200435180.xml&storylist=louisiana
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(3) Florida: Fatal double shooting ruled justifiable homicide
The Ledger
"The fatal shooting of two Jacksonville cousins by a tenant they were trying to evict was ruled self-defense because one of them was brandishing a gun and a chain, State Attorney Harry Shorstein said Wednesday. Shorstein ruled that the July 9 deaths of John McPherson, 21, and Calvin Threadcraft, 26, were justifiable homicides and "lawful self defense." They were shot along with landlord Pamela Batie, McPherson's sister. She survived. Shorstein said the victims were armed with a handgun and chain when they entered the home and the tenant, Melvin Wilcox, was threatened. The eviction was illegal because the victims were not accompanied by a police officer, Shorstein said.
"The law is relatively simple," Shorstein said. "If someone enters your home and you are in fear of imminent death or great bodily harm, you can use deadly force.'" (07/20/05)
http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050720/APN/507200788
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(4) Bill rekindles debate over gun lawsuits
Times Union
"Legislation that would insulate the gun industry from lawsuits based on the misuse of its products is again on the list of bills that have made it out of committee and are eligible for a vote on the floor of Congress.
The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act would pre-empt state laws for most negligence and product liability actions in which the defendant is a gun manufacturer, gun seller or trade association. .... This is getting to be a joke," said Don Neudecker, of Neudecker's Guns and Ammo in North Troy. "The buck has to stop somewhere. People have to be responsible for themselves. It's just like if you sold your car to a neighbor and he drinks and drives and then kills someone, is it then OK to sue Ford?" Guns have warnings stamped right into the steel, Neudecker said: "The only way you'd be safer is if they didn't give you any bullets at all.'" (07/20/05)
http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=380854&category=REGIONOTHER&BCCode=LOCAL&newsdate=7/20/2005
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(5) Netherlands: Gun laws to be tightened
Expatica
" Rules for gun ownership will become stricter in August 2006, the Ministry of Justice announced on Wednesday. Beginning next autumn, anyone who wants a weapons permit will have to be a member of a shooting club affiliated with the Koninklijke Nederlandse Schutters Associatie (KNSA). To prevent criminals from learning to shoot in a club, aspiring members must also be licensed by the KNSA. Weapons permits will also become easier to revoke. From next year, committing a crime will be grounds for losing one’s licence, as will ‘moving in criminal circles’." (07/20/05)
http://www.expatica.com/source/site_article.asp?subchannel_id=19&story_id=22085&name=Gun+laws+to+be+tightened
(6) Pennsylvania: Gun grabbers targeting pawn shop
KYW News
"A national anti-gun lobby group is trying to make an example of a local pawn shop by linking sales of guns there to crimes. The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence has filed a lawsuit against Lou's Jewelry and Pawn in Upper Darby. .... Members from the Center allege that it was a suspicious sale of a handgun at Lou’s that led to the death of 13-year-old Anthony Oliver Jr. of Philadelphia last July. The center claims guns sold at the pawn shop could be linked to over 600 crimes over the past eight years." (07/20/05)
http://kyw.com/Local%20News/local_story_201175351.html
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(7) Brazil: Crime-hit Brazil split over possible gun sales ban
Washington Post
"Rio de Janeiro taxi driver Luiz Marcelo is normally mild mannered, but he loses his temper when Brazil's upcoming referendum on whether gun sales should be banned comes up in a conversation. "All you see around us in the streets is crime, and the best they can think of is to disarm honest citizens like me and you," the 50-year-old almost shouts. "I have a gun at home and another one in this car and I'm not giving them up."
Many Brazilians share this view, saying the state does not give its people adequate protection from violent crime and they need guns for self defense. But others are afraid of having guns at home and don't like the idea of armed citizens walking the streets." (07/20/05)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/20/AR2005072000506.html
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(8) Virginia: No charges for shooter
Washington Post
"A man who fatally shot a 23-year-old Falls Church man last month during a scuffle did not commit a crime, a Fairfax County grand jury found yesterday in declining to file charges. Friends and relatives of victim Jack "Steve" Cornejo said the former high school soccer star was not a violent man and would never start a fight. But the grand jury decided otherwise .... Steve Cornejo and a young woman had attended an apartment party early June 25 in the 12000 block of Pender Creek Circle, just off West Ox Road in Fair Oaks. About 4:30 a.m., police said, Cornejo and the woman were arguing loudly in a hallway outside the party, awakening neighbors. The two moved down to the apartment building's entryway, where one of the neighbors then intervened "to prevent an assault that was going on on a young woman," Horan said.
The neighbor apparently was armed with a concealed handgun. After the neighbor determined the conflict between Cornejo and the woman was over, Horan said, "every bit of evidence we had was he [the neighbor] was trying to leave, he had broken it off and was going back to his apartment when the victim [Cornejo] attacked him.'" (07/19/05)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/18/AR2005071801384.html
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(9) Texas: Woman, 70, shoots and kills relative
Galveston News
"Police said a 70-year-old woman shot and killed her granddaughter’s husband following a family argument Saturday morning. Police are treating the shooting in the 2500 block of 37th Avenue North as a case of self-defense. Steven Porres, 28, was shot once in the chest after he allegedly broke down the front door of the home he shared with his wife and her grandmother. Police said it appeared Porres and his wife had been involved in a heated argument when he stormed out of the house.
A short time later, Porres smashed in the front door of the home, the wife and grandmother told police. It was then, the grandmother told police, that she shot Porres once in the chest." (07/20/05)
http://galvestondailynews.com/story.lasso?ewcd=096112e8906fdfc8
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(10) Texas: Officer shoots car-burglary suspect outside his home
Houston Chronicle
"A suspected car burglar is in very critical condition this morning after breaking into an SUV near an off-duty Houston police officer's home. .... HPD Sgt. David Crain said Hernandez was awakened about 4:30 a.m. by the barking of a dog that belongs to him and his brother but lives in their father's fenced yard. Crain said Hernandez looked outside to see a van parked in the street in front of his house and three suspects breaking into the Ford Expedition in the driveway of the home next to his father's house. Hernandez donned his raid vest, which is marked "police," retrieved his firearm and went outside to confront the three, who began trying to get into their van, Crain said. As Hernandez ordered the driver of the van to stop and show his hands, the driver pointed a pistol out the window at Hernandez, who opened fire, Crain said. Hernandez's father, also awakened by the commotion, fired on the van with a shotgun, and Crain said the van sped away, leaving one wounded suspect behind on the ground. " (07/19/05)
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3272244
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(11)Kentucky: Corrections officer fired shotgun at neighbor in self defense
WAVE News
" An attorney for a metro corrections officer accused of wounding his neighbors with a shotgun told the court at a probable cause hearing that his client fired in self-defense. Hance wasn't in court Monday, but his attorney, Eric Farris, says Hance was trying to protect himself when he fired the gun. "They were on his property and he was in fear of his life.'" (07/20/05)
http://www.wave3.com/Global/story.asp?S=3612488&nav=0RZFcJ51
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(12) North Carolina:Domestic assault ends in shooting
Greenville Daily Reflector
"A 26-year-old Greenville woman told police she shot her ex-husband early Monday after he forced his way into her apartment. The woman told police she grabbed a handgun and told the man to leave her Cedar Creek residence, located on McGregor Downs Road, after he broke in and assaulted her around 2:30 a.m. When he came toward her, she shot him in the abdomen. The man was transported to Pitt County Memorial Hospital after police found him lying on the living room floor." (07/19/05)
http://www.reflector.com/local/content/news/stories/2005/07/19/20050719GDRshooting.html
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(13) California: Woman reflects on aquittal
Fresno Bee
"Anita Sharen savored the tastes and touches of freedom Tuesday.
It was her first full day back in her mountain home after a Madera County jury found she acted in self-defense in the shooting death of her allegedly abusive husband in January. She had been in Madera County Jail since the shooting. .... During the trial, Kinney said that Anita Sharen fired in self-defense and that she feared for her safety when George Sharen shattered the glass of their living-room window by throwing a rock through it. She was inside; he outside. Madera County District Attorney Ernie LiCalsi said after the trial that three factors helped Anita Sharen: her age (she'll be 65 Saturday), the way she presented herself in court and the lack of violence in her background." (07/20/05)
http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/10924550p-11693882c.html
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(14) Louisiana: Suspects shot by jewelry store owner, employee during attempted robbery
WWLTV News
"A jewelry store owner and a fellow employee shot and wounded two suspects during an apparent attempted armed robbery in Marrero Tuesday morning. According to Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office spokesman Colonel Bob Garner, a man dressed as an elderly woman strolled into Breaux’s Jewelry in the 1900 block of Barataria and announced he was going to rob the place. Garner said the man took out a gun and fired and the store's owner, Michael Breaux, grabbed his own gun and a battle ensued during which the suspect was shot in the face. Garner said a second man then began firing into the store from outside and an employee grabbed the wounded suspect’s gun and also began shooting, hitting the man outside two to three times. Both suspects ended up at the hospita." (07/19/05)
http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/WWL071905storeowner.10374bfc.html
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(15) Califormnia: Sheriff will not seek charges on store clerks who shot robbery suspect
Lodi News-Sentinel
"Although the district attorney's office may rule otherwise, San Joaquin County sheriff's investigators will not seek charges against two grocery clerks who shot a robbery suspect on Friday night, sheriff's spokesman Les Garcia said. Galt resident Daniel Godoy, 37, allegedly attempted to rob A.M. Market at the northwest corner of Acampo Road and the eastern frontage road off Highway 99, at about 9:30 p.m. Friday, Garcia said. A clerk allegedly shot Godoy in the arm and neck during the attempted robbery, Garcia said. A second clerk shot Godoy as well outside the store after Godoy attacked the first clerk." (07/19/05)
http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2005/07/18/update/1_shooting.txt
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(16) New YorK: Local gunrunner hero?
New York Daily News
"When he's not running his roofing company or enjoying family barbecues in his Bay Ridge backyard, he raises millions to buy - without much fuss - powerful weapons to smuggle to fighters in his native Kosovo. "His fascinating story is told in Dutch filmmaker Klaartje Quirijns' documentary, 'The Brooklyn Connection,' premiering on PBS at 10 p.m. tomorrow.Krasniqi's life mission began in 1997 when a cousin was killed by Serbs.The former schoolteacher raised $30 million from Albanian-Americans to outfit the Kosovo Liberation Army during the Kosovo War .Though Krasniqi clearly benefited from lax gun laws, one reason he agreed to the film was to expose them." (07/18/05)
http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/story/329059p-281257c.html
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(17) Williams show features women who defended themselves
Montel Williams Show
"Today's guests found themselves facing the ultimate choice - kill or be killed. They chose to live. Melissa woke up in her new home with a strange man on top of her, shining a flashlight in her face. The man was also holding a gun, and Melissa had to decide to submit or fight. Using a move she learned in a martial arts class, she pushed the man off the bed and managed to take his gun. Without hesitation, she pulled the trigger, shooting and killing her attacker. We'll also talk to a security officer named Charmaine who was threatened by a strange man holding a rifle, not once, but twice in one day. The gunman appeared the first time when she was taking her daily walk through the park. The second time, Charmaine tempted fate by going back through the park that same day. This time when the gunman appeared, Charmaine was ready for him. Today, we'll find out what happened. Plus, we'll meet a grandmother who was forced to defend herself and her family, when her daughter's boyfriend became violent." (07/18/05)
http://www.montelshow.com/show/upcoming_detail.htm?index=0
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(18) Canada: Still no charges laid in seizure of rifles
Vancouver CBC News [Canada]
"A First Nations activist arrested in a dramatic police take-down on the Burrard Bridge last month says he still hasn't been charged with anything. David Dennis, a member of the West Coast Warriors – and two other men – were stopped in their van and arrested at gunpoint on June 27 by the RCMP's Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET). The police seized 14 hunting rifles and 10,000 rounds of ammunition The three men were released a short time later. Dennis says his lawyer has told him a charge of possession of a dangerous weapon with the intent to commit a crime is being considered. But Dennis doubts it would ever stand up in court. "I can't see where they would try to find a charge that would precede a crime. Because no way have we committed any crime in the past, and no way will be committing a crime in the future." Dennis also argues that his rifles were fully registered, and he wants them back. .... RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Tom Seaman will only say the investigation is ongoing, and the guns are not being returned for now." (07/18/05)
http://vancouver.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=bc_dennis-rcmp20050718
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(19) UK: Toy gun pupil arrested at school
BBC News
"An 11-year-old boy spent three hours in a police cell after he brandished a plastic toy gun at a schoolmate and told him to "hand over the money".
Earl Crump, from Sheerness, Kent was arrested and taken to Sittingbourne police station after the incident at Cheyne Middle School.
His mother, Tracey Crump, said she thought the punishment was too harsh. Kent Police said it acted in the public interest and any reports of firearms were taken extremely seriously. Officers were at the school dealing with another matter when Earl was caught with his toy gun.
"Two officers arrested a boy at school on suspicion of possessing an imitation firearm in a public place," said a police statement. "The boy's mother was present when he was taken into custody." At the police station Earl was searched and had a DNA sample and fingerprints taken.
After three hours in the cell he was released without charge. .... "It was too severe a punishment for an 11-year-old boy just playing in the playground," said Ms Crump." (07/18/05)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/kent/4695049.stm
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(20) Frustrated Iraqis ready to take law into own hands
Reuters
"Iraqis have begun barricading themselves in their homes and forming neighborhood militias in an effort to fend off relentless suicide attacks, residents in the capital said on Monday. The measures come amid waning confidence in the Iraqi police and other security forces as they struggle to get on top of the two-year-old insurgency. In the latest attack, 98 people were killed by a suicide truck bomb south of Baghdad on Saturday. A senior member of Iraq's parliament on Sunday called for popular militias to be created as an extra line of defense against the militants, and criticized the government for failing to stop the bombs." (07/18/05)
http://tinyurl.com/ax9jm
(21) Soldier denied gun license
Boston Herald
"Uncle Sam trusts David Bardfield to carry a firearm, but the town of Brookline doesn't seem to have the same faith in the Army specialist.
According to Bardfield, 28, Brookline police last month denied him a gun license because his name appeared in a police incident report when he was a teenager - even though he was not arrested at the time.
'It's very frustrating,'' said Bardfield, adding that he needed to take target practice as part of his Army Reserve duties. '`I just want my license.'"
(07/16/05)
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=94072
Hat Tip: War on Guns blog
http://waronguns.blogspot.com/
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(22) Ohio: Gun laws
WYTV News
"A bill to be introduced soon in the Ohio Legislature would prohibit cities from enacting their own gun laws like the one passed by the Columbus City Council banning assault weapon sales. The measure by the lead sponsor of the concealed-carry law, Representative James Aslanides, also would restrict media access to gun permit records. The Coshocton Republican says the provisions are among a number of loopholes in the state's gun laws that still need to be addressed. Aslanides' bill also would clarify that cities can't ban gun from parks or other places not designated as gun-free zones under state law. In Columbus, guns defined as assault weapons can no longer be sold after August eleventh and residents who already own one must register it with the city." (07/18/05)
http://www.wytv.com/news/regional/1705467.html
(23) Ohio:NRA won't hold convention in Columbus because of city ban on assault weapons
KAI 8 TV News
"The National Rifle Association has decided not to hold its 2007 national convention in Columbus, Ohio -- because the city has voted to ban assault weapons. The three-day event was expected to draw as many as 60-thousand people to the convention center in Columbus.But, N-R-A Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre has told city officials "the party is canceled." LaPierre says it's because the city council voted to -- as he put it -- "revoke the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens" this month." (07/18/05)
http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?S=3608731
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(24) Missouri: Woman shoots intruder
Kansas City Channel
" Police said a woman shot an intruder after he broke into her home near 34th Street and Norton early Monday morning. .... The homeowner told a friend that she felt she had no choice but to shoot after the man started to break in the door of her infant daughter's bedroom. "I don't know what happened after that, but she said she had to protect herself and the baby. I understand that," said a friend of the homeowner. "I think I would have done the same thing if someone broke in on me and my kids. To protect us, I would do the same thing," neighbor Sharon Bedford said.
Neither the woman nor her children were hurt." (07/18/05)
http://www.thekansascitychannel.com/news/4735072/detail.html
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(25) Louisiana: Man kills burglar
New Orleans Times Picayune
"A 20-year-old Destrehan man, who authorities say was attempting to burglarize a home, was killed Friday when the resident shot him in the side. Authorities said Nikita Dabney, of 315 River Oaks Drive, fell down the 20-foot ladder he had climbed to gain entry into the two-story duplex.
He collapsed in the back yard and was pronounced dead when authorities arrived at the home .... Dabney had climbed an extension ladder outside the home and broke into the second floor through a window. Two other men, Samuel Vinett Jr., 19, of Destrehan and an unidentified 16-year-old juvenile also from St. Charles Parish, are accused of trying to burglarize the home with Dabney." (07/16/05)
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-3/112149183777760.xml
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(26) Resistance is not futile, it is highly effective
PR Web
" Recently the Florida State University department of Criminology released a study indicating that people who employed self protection strategies reduced their likelihood of injury when compared to nonresistance. Old research seemed to indicate that resistance to confrontational crime contributed to victim injury. New information reveals the old assumptions were found to be largely attributable to confusion concerning the sequence of self protective actions and injury. In crimes where both occurred, injury followed self protection in only 10 percent of the incidents. Combined with the fact that injuries following resistance are almost always relatively minor, victim resistance appears to be generally a wise course of action." (07/16/05)
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/7/prweb261890.htm
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(27) Texas: Man fatally shoots home invasion suspect
Click2Houston
" A homeowner fatally shot a man trying to break into his southwest Houston home Friday, Local 2 reported. Officers with the Houston Police Department said a man in his 30s was fatally shot five times by the owner of a home in the 7800 block of Bellewood near Wirt. The homeowner told police the man tried breaking into his home at about 3:45 a.m., and that when he approached the suspect, that man walked back to his car to retrieve a gun. Police said when the suspect approached the home a second time, the homeowner opened fire on the man at the front door, hitting him at least five times.Paramedics tried to revive the man at the scene but their efforts were not successful. He was pronounced dead at the scene." (07/15/05)
http://www.click2houston.com/news/4726947/detail.html?subid=10100242
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(28) Louisiana: Man shot during home invasion
New Orleans Channel
"One man is dead after police said he broke into an apartment with two other suspects and was shot by the resident. Nikita Dabney, 20, of Destrehan, was pronounced dead at about 12:30 p.m. at the scene at 355 Meadows St. According to investigators, Dabney, Samuel Binett Jr., 19, and a 16-year-old who is not being named because of his age used an extension ladder to break into the second floor window of an apartment building.Police said Dabney entered the apartment and was shot by person who lived there. He climbed down ladder and collapsed in the yard.No charges have been filed against the shooter." (07/15/05)
http://www.theneworleanschannel.com/news/4729495/detail.html
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(29) Utah: Man claims he pulled gun in self defense
Channel 4 News
"The flamboyant owner of a local computer business says he did not break the law when he pulled a gun last month, in the presence of several angry residents. Witnesses say it happened after Dell Schanze sped through a Draper neighborhood in his black sports car. Moments later, Schanze was reportedly approached by three men acting in a threatening manner. One witness told ABC 4 News that the angry neighbors had threatened Schanze with a rock. At that point, Schanze, who holds a concealed weapons permit, pulled a handgun from his holster. However, he claims he was acting in self-defense --and that he never meant for people to see his gun. .... Utah state code No. 76-10-506 states that if a person draws a weapon in the presence of two or more persons, and is not acting in self defense, then that person is in the wrong. Schanze says, therefore, because he was acting in self defense he broke no law." (07/16/05)
http://www.4utah.com/local_news/local_headlines/story.aspx?content_id=32BFF214-059F-4593-9904-535286A0F32C
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(30) Florida: Rare rifle back in WWII veteran's hands
Palm Beach Post
" Sixty years after he helped the United States defeat Japan in World War II, Navy veteran Bruno Filippelli won a small battle of his own Friday.
The 79-year-old Delray Beach man retrieved the rare Japanese rifle he had turned in to West Palm Beach police Saturday for a $75 Target gift card, as part of the department's gun buyback program. .... The weeklong saga began when a photo of Filippelli and the rifle appeared in Sunday's edition of The Palm Beach Post. The picture prompted local collectors and gun aficionados to contact police and request that the gun be spared from destruction. Fewer than 100 of the rifles were produced. Gun experts and dealers say as few as 50 remain, including about 20 in the United States. .... Filippelli said he kept the gun in his closet for 60 years, unaware of its rarity. When he heard that West Palm Beach was conducting a buyback program to curb violence, he said he wanted to get involved." [Editor's note: Well, frankly, I don't think he deserves to get it back.-MLS] (07/16/05)
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2005/07/16/m1a_buyback_0716.html
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(31) RI: Area residents question effectiveness of new gun law
Chariho Times
"Rhode Islanders with a permanent restraining order against them will have to surrender their guns. As of last Wednesday--when Governor Carcieri singed the domestic violence legislation into law--guns belonging to people with permanent restraining orders against them must be surrendered within 48 hours of being served with the order. They also have the option of selling their firearms to a licensed firearm dealer, or give them to a another person who is not related by blood or marriage." (07/15/05)
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1717&dept_id=74264&newsid=14859895&PAG=461&rfi=9
(32) California: Experts called in weapons case
San Luis Obispo Tribune
"The Atascadero Police Department and the San Luis Obispo County Bomb Task Force took possession of a large number of weapons and ammunition found Thursday in the 6600 block of Alcantara Avenue in Atascadero. Around 11:40 a.m. Thursday, Atascadero officers responded to a report of suspicious circumstances in the Alcantara Avenue neighborhood. The suspicious circumstances were determined to be unfounded, but during a follow-up investigation, officers discovered a collection of weapons. The collection included about 35 firearms ranging from handguns to shotguns and rifles, about 25 swords, bayonets and daggers, between 2,000 and 3,000 rounds of ammunition and roughly 15 potentially explosive devices resembling hand grenades. .... According to a police report, the property taken into custody did not appear to be connected to any criminal activity." (07/15/05)
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/news/local/12140276.htm
COMMENTARY
(33) The NRA fights back!
Mens News Daily
by John Longnecker
"The papers are filled with tears from the crying towel of liberals who just don’t get it: the NRA is not an extremist group as intentionally mislabeled, it is a liberty advocacy group, the things liberals used to be for, and it is one of the oldest in the nation, if not the very oldest civil rights group.
Still, the Columbus City Council cries foul, unable to see how they bite the hand that feeds them: commerce and liberty.Ohio is a right-to-carry state, which means that the People have elected to permit law-abiding to carry weapons. There are no bad weapons, only bad people who use them. And why shouldn’t people carry? The law-abiding don’t commit crimes. A rational city council would have nothing to fear from law-abiding citizens. Only irrational, unwell public servants fear the public when they should fear criminals." (07/20/05)
http://mensnewsdaily.com/blog/longenecker/
(34) Gun control is a pipe dream
Sierra Times
by Michael E. Cook
"I set here today kind of sore all over as I was on another trail ride
with our four wheelers yesterday. You see I ride with my son-in-law
and his brother and some of their young friends. They are very patient
and wait for the old guy when they get to far ahead. I must say it
sure is fun and very relaxing however with all the muscles you use
doing this extreme type riding the body gets sore. We are riding as
mush as possible right now before the forest is closed because of fire
danger. Anyway while riding on this day we were taking a break and the
subject of gun control came up. One of the young men asked why we had to fight so hard all the time to keep a right that was in the
Constitution. I thought about that and felt it was a good question. So
I feel I have the answer. You see there are people in this country who
would love to see our way of life and freedoms lost forever." (07/18/05)
http://www.sierratimes.com/05/07/19/64_28_53_250_99213.htm
(35) The Second Amendment is already dead
Etherzone
by David Browlow
"Was the 2nd Amendment included in the Constitution to protect our right to hunt, our right to target shoot, or our right to defend ourselves from the local neighborhood hoodlums? While those may be important benefits of the "right of the people to keep and bear arms," is that really why our founders declared it an unalienable right, and locked it in the Bill of Rights at the number two spot - right behind the freedoms of speech, assembly and religion? The short answer is of course, no. The 2nd Amendment was intended to protect the states and the people from being forced to suffer through another "long train of abuses" like the ones that led to the war against Britain - a purpose for which, unfortunately, the 2nd Amendment it is already dead." (07/18/05)
http://www.etherzone.com/2005/brow071805.shtml
(36) Americans losing concept of freedom
Herald Bulletin
Ron Wilkins
"We Americans are fond of talking about freedom, especially around the time of patriotic holidays, but I fear we’re losing the concept. Maybe that’s because the idea of freedom is so intoxicating that we’ve forgotten to talk about responsibilities. For example, we have the freedom in the Second Amendment that gives us the right to own firearms, but with that freedom comes a weighty responsibility. If you misuse that freedom, you go to prison. We have the freedom to work or not to work, but we also have a responsibility to provide food, shelter, clothing and other essentials for ourselves and our family." (07/18/05)
http://www.theheraldbulletin.com/story.asp?id=14236
(37) DC mayor wants citizens to be "subjects"
Liberty For All
by CCRKBA staff
"The proposed legislation is known as the District of Columbia
Personal Protection Act. Mayor Anthony A. Williams told a House
committee that ending the District's 30-year-old handgun ban would be
'a slap in the face to me and to the people who live in this city' and
'an indignity to the democratic process.' In response, CCRKBA Chairman
Alan M. Gottlieb noted, 'A far greater indignity is suffered by
victims of violent crime every day in the capital of the free world.
How dare Mayor Williams suggest that saving his political face is more
important than restoring the right of self-defense to the citizens of
the city?'" (07/18/05)
http://www.libertyforall.net/2005/july24/subjects.html
(38) Rock n roll ala mode
Backwoods Home
Claire Wolfe
"It's the Hardyville Whiskey Day Memorial Machine Gun Shoot and Ice Cream Social. And everything you see out there, sitting amid the sagebrush at the foot of the hill, is about to become history. .... To set off fireworks is a grand American tradition. So, of course, is shooting -- however nervous it makes Our Beloved Leaders (hot-house city folk, almost to the last). Machine gun shooting can be a combination of fireworks and firepower that, while it may not have that much real world application, is a whale of a lot of fun. And if semi-auto shooting unhinges the Schumers and Feinsteins of the world, full-auto fire really, really, really makes Our Beloved Leaders quake in their Guccis and Pradas. Which is (some would say) one perfectly good reason to do it. Yes, the combo of machine guns and Hardyville is long overdue." (07/15/05)
http://www.backwoodshome.com/columns/wolfe050715.html
(39) Gun law doesn't help victims, hurts second amendment
Chariho Times
staff
"Rhode Island's newest gun control measure creates a dan-gerous precedent. Surely, those who created and supported the law had, and have only the best of intentions. Any attempt to curb and pre-vent domestic violence is to be commended. It's a problem that needs to be addressed. The state's newest gun control leg-islation, which requires gun owners with permanent re-straining orders against them to relinquish their guns, brings the issue of domestic violence closer to the forefront. To truly end domestic vio-lence, we need to change hearts and minds, not gun laws. Re-gardless of how cliché it is, the old saying 'guns don't kill peo-ple, people kill people' rings true." (07/14/05)
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1717&dept_id=74261&newsid=14860040&PAG=461&rfi=9
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