Litigation

• VW Update. We reported last week about a deputy sheriff in Tennessee suing Volkswagen after he was fired for having his service weapon in his car at their plant where he worked. The deputy’s attorney, Reed Martz, reached out to me and reported that they first tried mediation but it failed. The state court lawsuit was removed to federal court. VW then moved to compel arbitration. There are going to be more claims filed for other terminated employees.
• The US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a federal law barring home distilleries used for alcohol consumption last Friday as it held the government could not ban an activity under its power to tax. OK now do guns, which are actually protected in the Bill of Rights.
• The US Second Circuit Court of Appeals has left NYC’s stun gun ban intact, because the plaintiffs failed to show the arms in question are in “common use,” and are therefore not protected by the Second Amendment. Well #1, what is “common,” and #2, maybe they’re not common because they are banned.
• US District Court Judge Corey L. Maze of the Northern District of Alabama has issued an order staying further proceedings in a challenge to the ATF 2024 Final Rule on the definition of “engaged in the business” of dealing in firearms. The stay will remain in effect until the US Senate votes on the nomination of Robert Cekada to serve as the permanent Director of the ATF.
• Meanwhile at the Fifth Circuit, the DOJ has abandoned its defense of the “engaged in the business” rule and filed a motion to dismiss the landmark federal lawsuit Texas v. ATF.
• The Second Amendment Foundation and Firearms Policy Coalition have filed a lawsuit challenging California’s 11% excise tax on firearms and ammunition, arguing that “The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that conduct protected by a constitutional right cannot, for any reason, be singled out for special taxation.” OK, well what about the 89-year-old federal excise tax collected on firearm sales under the Pittman-Robertson Act (no relation) since 1937 to provide funding for wildlife conservation? That one, too, has always been unconstitutional.
• The US DOJ has warned the Commonwealth of Virginia that if Virginia enacts a slate of anti-gun bills now sitting on the governor’s desk, the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division is prepared to sue.
• Grassroots Judicial Report—April 15, 2026.
• SCOTUS Gun Watch 4/13/2026.

Government

• The US Department of Justice is moving to restart the Federal Firearms Rights Restoration program under 18 U.S.C. § 925(c), which allows individuals convicted of non-violent felonies, drug offenses, financial crimes, and similar charges and who have clean record since to petition to have their Second Amendment rights restored. This mechanism that has technically existed in federal law for decades but was defunded by Congress in the early 1990s and has been essentially dead ever since.
• DOJ Reverses Course Again on Frames & Receivers Rule, New Rewrite Coming.

NRA

• Rehash: A positive report on the 2026 NRA Board election.

Enemies & Liars

• Media.
• Spain. Tell me, what else was this poor old man supposed to do?
• Gun-banning lawyer and former Democrat Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife early Thursday before taking his own life inside their Annandale home, police said. We don’t know whether Fairfax cleared a background check to purchase the gun that he criminally misused. Fairfax was touted as a “gun safety champion” by the Giffords gun control group after he won election in 2017, with them saying “Justin proved that he has the courage to stick to his convictions and put the interests of Virginia families first.” The couple’s two children were also home at the time of the killings.
• The National Shooting Sports Foundation has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Giffords PAC, the political fundraising arm of the gun ban group Giffords: Courage to Fight Gun Violence, alleging that Giffords PAC and its allies are violating the FEC’s joint fundraising rules.

Friends

• Clarence speaks.

The Only Ones

• A parole officer with the Connecticut Department of Correction (DOC) faces charges for allegedly failing to properly store a gun for the second time in the last six months, police said. Wendy Vereen, 47, of Bridgeport, was charged with criminally negligent storage of a firearm after allegedly leaving a firearm in the fitting room of a store at the Connecticut Post Mall on Apr. 3. Vereen had previously been charged on Nov. 4, 2025, with improperly storing a pistol/revolver in a motor vehicle by Stamford police, and was placed on paid administrative leave by DOC the following day.
• The Bernalillo County (NM) Sheriff’s Office fired a Deputy Jacob Zamora after his stolen county-issued AR-15 was used in a New Year’s Day killing. Zamora had failed to report the theft and covered it up. Did this “patrol rifle” magically transform into a “weapon of war” in the meantime?
• Former Yolo County (CA) Sheriff’s Office Lieutenant Samuel Machado is one of five people charged with murder following a fireworks warehouse explosion that killed seven workers in the rural Northern California community of Esparto last summer, authorities said. Machado is accused of illegally having 1 million pounds of fireworks on his property at the time of the blast and using his law enforcement position to shield the illicit operation from scrutiny for years, according to the Yolo County district attorney’s office.
• A Funny Story – Ayoob.

DGUs

• Austin gun store owner claims employees acted in self-defense in East Austin shooting. My understanding is that Mr. Cargill’s employees were completely innocent victims who had just pulled into the parking lot and were assaulted without cause before they even got out of the car. This seems to be a case of going stupid places.
• One shot during suspected home invasion on University Boulevard North, Jacksonville police say
• The Armed Citizen (American Rifleman) – April 10, 2026 and April 13, 2026

Almost a DGU. Church.

• Armed Suspect Storms Houston Church With Loaded Gun and 100 Rounds — Stopped Seconds Before Potential Massacre

Not a DGU. School.

• A school shooting rampage in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday has left at least 16 people injured after a 19-year-old former student opened fire with a rifle. “Special security forces” were deployed to the high school AFTER the attack. The attacker – as usual – took his own life with his weapon when police attempted to capture him. The school had previously been classified as “safe” by police.
• Just one day later, a 14-year-old shot and killed nine people and wounded 13 others in a school massacre at a Turkish middle school.
• Turkey has lots of “commonsense” gun control.

Safety

• An 11-year-old Bri’ish boy was shot in the head after finding a pistol in the woods he and a friend mistook for a BB gun – but miraculously escaped without serious injuries. We also note that the idiot media described BB guns as “play guns that shoot pellets,” as if they’re harmless. This is why we teach our kids about guns. The media is unteachable.

Tactics & Stuff

• Victim selection.
• “It’s not enough to shoot a guy until you think he’s dead. You gotta shoot him until he thinks he’s dead.” – John Connor

Industry News

• SAAMI has released updated American National Standard SAAMI Z299.1-2026, Voluntary Industry Performance Standards for Pressure and Velocity of Rimfire Ammunition for the Use of Commercial Manufacturers.
• Safariland’s parent company, Cadre Holdings, is acquiring Alien Gear Holsters.

Products

• You’ve all seen the disclaimer by retailers that all ammunition sales are final, with no returns. I presume this is because they don’t really know what might be in the returned box and are worried about liability when they resell it. But Ammunition Depot says they accept returns for up to 90 days.
• Taurus USA announced the launch of the Taurus RPC, the company’s first entry into a dedicated 9mm PDW category. (Big ol’ pistol that’s not really a pistol and not really a rifle.) Built to “NATO standards.” I was unaware that NATO had standards for PDWs. This one is a roller-delayed, 32-round pifle with a 4.5″ barrel that’s a foot long overall and 4.5 – 5 lbs. I remain largely unimpressed by guns that are in between holsterable pistols and shoulder-stocked SBRs or carbines. About $1000 for this one.
• Springfield Armory’s new Model 2020 Gear Up offers purchasers of select new Model 2020 rifles a free XD-M Elite 10mm pistol worth $674, through August 31.
• Smith & Wesson has released the new Bodyguard 3.0, .38 Special +P lightweight snubnose revolver.
• CMC Triggers Corp has announced the release of its new Remington 700 Adjustable Ultra Precision Trigger Group, a next-generation trigger system now available in both Flat and Curved trigger-bow configurations. $210.