March 15, 2019 Newsletter by Jeff Pittman
Take action on unconstitutional no-due-process federal “red flag” bill.
2019 Mississippi Gun Bills still alive
Next deadline is March 28 for concurrence with bill amendments from other house.
HB 390
Rep. Bounds
Senate-passed version returned to House for concurrence
Clarifies that LEOs under state law or retired LEOs under federal law may be members of an armed church security program, and are eligible for the civil immunity provided under the law.
HB 1581
Reps. Cockerham, White
Signed into law. Effective July 1.
Clarifies that “courtroom” includes a judge’s chamber, witness room and jury room or similar, and does not include hallways, courtroom entrances, courthouse grounds, lobbies, corridors, or other generally public areas on courthouse property, for purposes of legal CCW.
Another Constitutional state
Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin has signed the Senate Bill 150 into law, effective July 1. It “allows” anyone who is legally allowed to own a gun, and is at least 21 years old, to carry a concealed weapon without a permit in the state of Kentucky. Permitless open carry was already legal. Concealed carry permits will still be available (but not mandatory) in the state, and may be useful for reciprocity purposes (in ~35 other states) for travelers. Kentucky is reportedly the 16th state to allow for permitless concealed carry, with at least two restricting the practice to state residents.
“[The proposed law] doesn’t break new ground. It simply says that people do indeed have the right to keep and bear arms,” said Gov Bevin. “… For those people who are offended at this idea and don’t like it, there are other places in America where they could live.” (Those other places are violating the US Constitution. — JP)
In 1986, over 90% of Americans lived in states with either no carry permitted or discretionary “may-issue” carry permits. Today, approximately two-thirds of Americans live in a state with either shall-issue permits or no-permit-needed “constitutional carry.”
Judiciary
The US Senate confirmed Paul Matey to be a judge on the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals (Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and the US Virgin Islands.), effectively flipping control of the court from Democratic-appointed judges to GOP picks, which hardly guarantees anything, but at least is moving in a better direction.
Litigation
Remington/Sandy Hook
You’ve probably seen the news that the Connecticut Supreme Court (CSC) has overturned a lower court and ruled in a split opinion that families of Sandy Hook massacre victims may proceed with a wrongful death civil lawsuit against Remington, based on alleged “fraudulent marketing” of the rifle used in the killings. This is in spite of the federal 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which generally prohibits such suits against innocent gun makers.
The CSC held instead that a jury should decide whether the “promotional schemes alleged in the present case rise to the level of illegal trade practices and whether fault for the tragedy can be laid at their [Remington’s] feet.”
But the PLCAA stipulates that manufacturers have immunity from such suits (federal or state) unless the manufacturer “knowingly violated a State or Federal statute applicable to the sale or marketing of the product, AND (emphasis mine) the violation was a proximate cause of the harm for which relief is sought…” In other words, if they knowingly and illegally sold the gun to someone they shouldn’t have.
The plaintiffs claim that the Bushmaster rifle used by killer is too dangerous for the public and Remington glorified the weapon in marketing it to young people, including those with mental illnesses, saying that Bushmaster and other AR-15-style rifles were designed as military killing machines and should never have been sold to the public, and that Remington targeted younger, “at-risk” males through “militaristic marketing and astute product placement in violent first-person shooter games.”
But in this case, the rifle was legally sold to the killer’s mother, who was later murdered by the killer who stole the rifle and shot up the school. Further, the Second Amendment specifically protects civilians’ possession of military (not just “military-style”) weapons. AND, the AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle is NOT a military or military design weapon.
However, the CSC judges concluded PLCAA does not bar the plaintiffs from proceeding on the single, limited theory that the defendants violated Connecticut law by marketing the rifles to civilians for criminal purposes, and that those wrongful marketing tactics caused or contributed to the Sandy Hook massacre. Yeah, right. Show me that Bushmaster ad.
The case will be appealed to the US Supreme Court.
Portland, OR
Four parents are suing Portland (OR) Public Schools after the district allegedly violated parents’ and students’ First Amendment rights by promoting gun control following last year’s school shooting in Parkland, Florida.
The plaintiffs also allege that the school district used district resources to coordinate with outside activists, helped plan anti-gun political activity, including forced and/or unpunished walkouts, and “indoctrinated” students in the classroom.
BATFE to become just BFE? Seems appropriate.
Alcohol- and tobacco-related cases, combined, only totaled 0.24% of the cases where the agency sought charges, so President Trump wants to transfer alcohol and tobacco to Treasury and BATFE would become the Bureau of Arson, Explosives and Firearms. Me, I have a different idea.
660 million guns in the US?
“Stand your ground” laws racist? Well, only if benefiting black people more than whites is racist. I don’t think that is racist.
Quacks
Some commenters have noted that regarding physicians representing themselves as “gun safety experts,” uninformed doctors promoting their own unsolicited amateur and PC ideas of “gun safety” is like the anti-vaxxers promoting their brand of medical safety for everyone else, and we should start referring to those folks as “the anti-vaxxers of gun safety.”
DGUs
A man who was holding a gun to his estranged wife’s head was killed by a Cherokee County (GA) Sheriff’s deputy this week.
Another gun free zone fail
New Zealand
You’ve seen the news about the massacre of 49 people and the wounding of many more at two mosques in New Zealand this week. Apparently it ended when an armed Muslim chased and fired shots at the attackers with his long gun. Four suspects are in custody as of this writing.
New Zealand has strict gun control. Gun owners must be licensed, a process that includes a review of criminal activity and mental health, attendance at a safety program, an explanation of how the gun would be used (self defense is not an acceptable reason), a residence visit to ensure secure storage, and testimonials from relatives and friends. One report indicates that NZ police officers are not usually armed.
That may be why we found no reports of any other victims shooting back.
The shooter, a self-described eco-fascist, also published a 74-page anti-immigrant manifesto explaining his motivation and a justification for his use of firearms for the mass murder.
His stated goal was to prompt a greater push for gun control and the abolition of the Second Amendment in the USA.
So-far-left-as-to-have-fallen-off-the-edge nutball US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wasted no time in blaming the NRA for an insane Australian facist’s attack of New Zealand mosques.
Why carry at home?
Pistols vs. Bears: 97% effective?
- Outdoor Writer Re-Thinks Pistols as a Defense Against Bears [Gun Watch]
- Defense Against Bears with Pistols: 97% Success rate, 37 incidents by Caliber [Ammoland]
Enemies
The Walmart-owned British supermarket chain Asda is going to stop selling individual kitchen knives after a rash of stabbings in the country. Asda said in a statement that “the decision to stop selling these items comes in response to rising concerns about knife crime in the UK, particularly those involving children and young people.” We note that the UK is also awash in crimes by criminals armed with guns, which was supposed to have been cured by its gun bans.
Dick’s Sporting Goods’ CEO Ed Stack has announced that the chain “will remove ‘Hunt’ from approximately 125 additional Dick’s stores in 2019 where the category underperforms.” Dick’s defines the hunting category as rifles and ammunition, plus “accessories associated with firearms, hunting apparel, anything associated with hunting,” but not “kayaks and other outdoor activities like that.” They’re probably underperforming now because folks prone to buy guns and hunting gear ain’t patronizing them anymore, because we don’t give aid, comfort, or money to our enemies.
An unidentified and unarmed anti-gun activist at a public hearing on gun control legislation in the Connecticut State Capitol was “expelled,” but not arrested by State Capitol Police after someone photographed her sending a text message in which she stated, “If I had a gun, I’d blow away [CT state senator Rob] Sampson and a large group of NRA.” So because THEY want to go around killing people, the anti-gunners want to take away OUR guns. No. Your move.
Controversial leftist country music singer/songwriter Maren (I have another name for her) Morris continues to shill for gun control while not selling any music here.
Demanding Mommies caught lying in legislative hearing
Morris Dees, founder of the hate group Southern Poverty Law Center, has been fired for doing some unspecified “really bad” thing. He has a history of that. More when we know it. SPLC is apparently chock-full of “lawyers” and is based in Montgomery, AL, and has offices in Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana.
Dept. of Idiocy
A man has been arrested and jailed in West Virginia after allegedly stealing gun parts from the ATF.
The Only Ones
An unidentified 27-year-old policewoman who was on duty at the entrance to the new Paris Police headquarters was fatally shot by an unidentified 28-year-old colleague when the pair were reportedly playing a game of drawing their guns on each other and one weapon went off “by accident,” shooting her in the head.
Memphis Police Officer Dartelle Joyner got into a fight with a woman inside of an East Memphis restaurant last week. When a security guard tried to break it up, the nine-year MPD veteran allegedly went to his car, got an ax and used it to threaten the security guard. Joyner was arrested.
5.11 Academy
5.11 Tactical has announced that they’ll be offering free training classes called ABR (Always Be Ready) Academy in their company-owned stores around the country. The classes will cover five general topics; trauma care, self-defense, everyday/concealed carry, fitness and outdoor adventure.
Blackhawk! SERPA holsters. Don’t. Just don’t.
- The Serpa Compendium [Active Response Training]
- Involuntary Hand Clenches Leading to Accidental Discharge [Active Response Training]
S&W M&P15-22 Safety Alert
Fires from an open bolt. Note that engaging the safety will not prevent this.
Products
Charter Arms will introduce the PROFESSIONAL model next week. The PROFESSIONAL is a 7-shot defensive revolver chambered in .32 H&R Magnum, with a stainless steel frame, cylinder and 3-inch barrel, all treated with Blacknitride+™. The PROFESSIONAL comes with contoured walnut grips, and a neon-green LitePipe front sight. 22 oz. $438. A customized Galco pancake holster in black American premium saddle leather is also available. Why not .327 Federal Magnum, I don’t know.
Quotes
Socialism — something you can vote yourself into, but you have to shoot your way out of.
“No man has a natural right to commit aggression on the equal rights of another, and this is all from which the laws ought to restrain him.” — Thomas Jefferson
“Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties. And not to Democrats alone do I make this appeal, but to all who love these great and true principles.” — Abraham Lincoln, running for election to the US Senate as a Republican in 1856
