Smith & Wesson to stop selling guns in California due to microstamping law
Smith & Wesson announced it will stop selling its handguns in California rather than manufacture them to comply with the new microstamping law. The other publicly traded firearms manufacturer in the U.S., Sturm, Ruger, also said this month that it will stop new sales to California.
The announcement late Wednesday came a week after the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade association for firearms manufacturers, filed suit against California for requiring that all new semi-automatic pistols that are not already on the state’s approved gun roster have the microstamping technology.
Smith & Wesson President and CEO James Debney said, “As our products fall off the roster due to California’s interpretation of the Unsafe Handgun Act, we will continue to work with the NRA and the NSSF to oppose this poorly conceived law which mandates the unproven and unreliable concept of microstamping and makes it impossible for Californians to have access to the best products with the latest innovations.”
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The announcement late Wednesday came a week after the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade association for firearms manufacturers, filed suit against California for requiring that all new semi-automatic pistols that are not already on the state’s approved gun roster have the microstamping technology.
Smith & Wesson President and CEO James Debney said, “As our products fall off the roster due to California’s interpretation of the Unsafe Handgun Act, we will continue to work with the NRA and the NSSF to oppose this poorly conceived law which mandates the unproven and unreliable concept of microstamping and makes it impossible for Californians to have access to the best products with the latest innovations.”
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STATE TROOPER CAN CARRY A GUN, JUST NOT OFF DUTY
Pennsylvania State Trooper Michael Keyes can carry a firearm while on duty but when he clocks out, he must surrender his firearm(s) or be in violation of federal law. How is this possible?
Seven years ago the good Trooper tried repeatedly to kill himself by overdosing with drugs. Eventually he was involuntarily committed to a mental health institute for treatment. This all happened in 2006 while he was employed by the Pennsylvania State Police.
He remained in treatment for a year and upon completion he began to fight for his job back, according to The Patriot-News. The State Police fought against his reinstatement however an arbitrator disagreed and ordered his return to duty. A Commonwealth Court upheld that decision. The State Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of the lower courts ruling and he was placed back on duty in 2010. In addition to being given his old job back, the Commonwealth Court also saw fit to award him nearly $16,000 in back pay.
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Seven years ago the good Trooper tried repeatedly to kill himself by overdosing with drugs. Eventually he was involuntarily committed to a mental health institute for treatment. This all happened in 2006 while he was employed by the Pennsylvania State Police.
He remained in treatment for a year and upon completion he began to fight for his job back, according to The Patriot-News. The State Police fought against his reinstatement however an arbitrator disagreed and ordered his return to duty. A Commonwealth Court upheld that decision. The State Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of the lower courts ruling and he was placed back on duty in 2010. In addition to being given his old job back, the Commonwealth Court also saw fit to award him nearly $16,000 in back pay.
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Man out for walk says he showed gun, halted armed robbery of Mpls. market
A northeast Minneapolis man said he interrupted an armed and bloody robbery at a corner market in his neighborhood, sending the two suspects fleeing when he drew his handgun from his holster and had it “at the ready.”
The confrontation occurred shortly after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday outside the University Market in the 300 block of 37th Avenue, according to police and the man who stepped in and halted the crime.
Store owner Mohamed S. Ahmed, 41, had the “back of his skull split open pretty good” from being pistol-whipped by one of the suspects, said Matt Dosser, the armed citizen who came upon the unfolding crime scene and cared for Ahmed until police arrived.
Ahmed said Wednesday morning from home that he has received medical attention and hopes that video surveillance showing “a clear face of one of those guys” will lead to arrests. He was otherwise still too shaken to talk about the robbery and assault.
Dosser said he was out for a walk and the two people, possibly in their late teens, “were pounding on the window of the store. … They seemed really agitated, super agitated.”
At first, “nothing made sense, then I saw the gun” that one of the two had, Dosser continued.
The gunman “turned around and looked at me,” Dosser said. “He stared at me. I had my weapon up. I didn’t point the gun at the person. I had it at the ready, out of the holster.
“His buddy said something to him, and then he had this surprised look on his face, and they both ran to his vehicle and took off.”
Dosser went into the store, finding some of its contents overturned and Ahmed wounded and screaming on the phone to 911. Dosser said he calmed down the store owner and finished the emergency call for him, making sure to tell the dispatcher what he looked like so officers would not mistake him for a perpetrator.
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The confrontation occurred shortly after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday outside the University Market in the 300 block of 37th Avenue, according to police and the man who stepped in and halted the crime.
Store owner Mohamed S. Ahmed, 41, had the “back of his skull split open pretty good” from being pistol-whipped by one of the suspects, said Matt Dosser, the armed citizen who came upon the unfolding crime scene and cared for Ahmed until police arrived.
Ahmed said Wednesday morning from home that he has received medical attention and hopes that video surveillance showing “a clear face of one of those guys” will lead to arrests. He was otherwise still too shaken to talk about the robbery and assault.
Dosser said he was out for a walk and the two people, possibly in their late teens, “were pounding on the window of the store. … They seemed really agitated, super agitated.”
At first, “nothing made sense, then I saw the gun” that one of the two had, Dosser continued.
The gunman “turned around and looked at me,” Dosser said. “He stared at me. I had my weapon up. I didn’t point the gun at the person. I had it at the ready, out of the holster.
“His buddy said something to him, and then he had this surprised look on his face, and they both ran to his vehicle and took off.”
Dosser went into the store, finding some of its contents overturned and Ahmed wounded and screaming on the phone to 911. Dosser said he calmed down the store owner and finished the emergency call for him, making sure to tell the dispatcher what he looked like so officers would not mistake him for a perpetrator.
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Carry Permit Holder Fends Off Crowbar-Wielding Intruder
Construction worker Craig Paulson was thinking about where to go for lunch as he worked on renovations inside a bank-owned residence in a quiet, tree-lined and well-manicured neighborhood in Uptown on one of the last days in November.
His appetite and lunchtime thoughts quickly faded, however, when Paulson, working alone in a back room inside the residence on the 3300 block of Girard Avenue, turned around and found himself faced with a “large” man wielding Paulson’s own three-foot crowbar just steps from where he was working.
Instinctively, Paulson – who has a permit-to-carry a firearm and describes himself as a “lifestyle” carrier who has a gun on him “every moment” that he’s awake – reached for and drew his concealed firearm and pointed it at the crowbar wielding intruder.
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His appetite and lunchtime thoughts quickly faded, however, when Paulson, working alone in a back room inside the residence on the 3300 block of Girard Avenue, turned around and found himself faced with a “large” man wielding Paulson’s own three-foot crowbar just steps from where he was working.
Instinctively, Paulson – who has a permit-to-carry a firearm and describes himself as a “lifestyle” carrier who has a gun on him “every moment” that he’s awake – reached for and drew his concealed firearm and pointed it at the crowbar wielding intruder.
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Firearms Sales Booming
Nationally, calls for firearms purchases using the FBI's instant criminal background check system totaled nearly 1.2 million in March, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a firearms industry trade group. The number is up 20 percent over a year ago and marks the 22nd straight month-over-month increase, NSSF said.
"The wholesalers are having a hard time getting guns from any of the manufacturers on a nice even flow," said Brian Rafn, portfolio manager at Morgan Dempsey Capital Management, which has offices in Milwaukee and Delafield. "The backlogs go for months on end."
Rafn says the rise in gun sales in recent years has been "stratospheric." He estimates that 11 million guns were sold in the United States in 2011.
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"The wholesalers are having a hard time getting guns from any of the manufacturers on a nice even flow," said Brian Rafn, portfolio manager at Morgan Dempsey Capital Management, which has offices in Milwaukee and Delafield. "The backlogs go for months on end."
Rafn says the rise in gun sales in recent years has been "stratospheric." He estimates that 11 million guns were sold in the United States in 2011.
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THE IMPACT OF CONCEALED CARRY
CBS News is asking whether concealed carry gun laws contribute to crime, using Colorado as its lab rat. The dire warnings in Minnesota never materialized. Road rage incidents didn't lead to shootouts and Wild West in the streets.
Permit To Carry Insurance
Concealed Carry License Holders are Turning to Affordable Family Insurance for Help Protecting Themselves against Legal Fees and Civil Suits Stemming from Self-Defense ShootingsAffordable Family Insurance has become the Midwest’s leading source for information on Self-Defense coverage with all the changes occurring in Wisconsin over the last six months. Chris Monge, Agency Manager at Affordable Family Insurance says “Intentional acts and intentional injuries are specifically excluded in many homeowner’s insurance and umbrella policies and most Concealed Carry license holders are unaware they are unprotected against civil suits and open to paying legal fees if they are involved in a self-defense shooting while carrying a weapon under Wisconsin’s new Concealed Carry Law.”
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Georgia Woman Fights Off Attackers
Campbell said she couldn’t find it, got out and checked the truck’s backseat to look for it in her purse. As she searched, she said she heard a voice in her head whisper to her to get into the front seat and lock the door. She immediately did, and she said that likely saved her life.
Seconds later, two men carrying guns approached her. One of them, later identified by police as Brenton Lance Spencer, 32, started to shout at her through the front passenger door to open the vehicle up and give him her money. The other, whom Macon police have identified as Dantre Horatio Shivers, 30, stood in front of the truck, also pointing a gun.
“(Spencer) shouted, ‘Give me the f------ money and open the f------ door!’ ” Campbell said. “I said, ‘Oh my God, somebody is going to rob me.’ I said, ‘Baby, you’re going to kill me anyway, so I don’t have to open it!’ ”
Campbell said she reached for her .38-caliber revolver just as Spencer allegedly fired at her. She felt Spencer’s bullet whiz by her chest as she fired back. Her shot hit Spencer in the chest.
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Seconds later, two men carrying guns approached her. One of them, later identified by police as Brenton Lance Spencer, 32, started to shout at her through the front passenger door to open the vehicle up and give him her money. The other, whom Macon police have identified as Dantre Horatio Shivers, 30, stood in front of the truck, also pointing a gun.
“(Spencer) shouted, ‘Give me the f------ money and open the f------ door!’ ” Campbell said. “I said, ‘Oh my God, somebody is going to rob me.’ I said, ‘Baby, you’re going to kill me anyway, so I don’t have to open it!’ ”
Campbell said she reached for her .38-caliber revolver just as Spencer allegedly fired at her. She felt Spencer’s bullet whiz by her chest as she fired back. Her shot hit Spencer in the chest.
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100,000 Wisconsin Concealed Carry Permits Issued
The state’s attorney general says he’s not sure if Wisconsin is any safer, now that 100-thousand people are allowed to carry concealed weapons. But J.B. Van Hollen said today there have been no problems since the concealed carry law took effect almost six months ago. And if it’s done anything to reduce crime, Van Hollen says it’s all the better. The AG held a news conference in Madison, where the 100,000th state permit was being printed. He’s not sure who will receive it. Van Hollen has Permit Number-One. Wisconsin hit the 100,000 mark faster than expected. The Justice Department expected around 125-thousand permits to be issued in the first year. Officials said the early rush of applications has slowed from thousands-a-day to hundreds-a-day. And there’s only been one heavily-publicized incident directly related to concealed carry. That was the Aldi’s shooting in Milwaukee in January, where a shopper with a concealed carry permit shot at two men who tried-but-failed to rob the place. The store had a sign prohibiting concealed weapons – but prosecutors decided not to charge the shooter.
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Minneapolis Police Consider Curfew After Mob Attacks
There have been six mob attacks, in all, since February. Now, police are now wondering if an 8 o’clock curfew keeping anyone 17 and under from two downtown streets will stop the violence.
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Conceal Carry Permit Holder Stops Shooter at Church
A concealed carry permit holder in Boiling Springs, SC was able to detain a shooter at his local church this Sunday until Sheriff's deputies arrived on the scene.
Jesse Gates, an attendee at Boiling Springs' South Side Freewill Baptist Church was acting like he was having a heart attack on Sunday morning, according to Rev. Henry Guyton. Gates was cleared by EMS and left the premises, only to return later that morning and pull at shotgun out of the trunk of his car. Rev. Guyton's grandson, Aaron Guyton, saw Gates pull the shotgun out and immediately went into the main building of the church and locked the doors. Gates kicked in the side door. Aaron Guyton, a concealed weapons permit holder, held Gates at gunpoint while church member Jesse Smith and Leland Powers held him to the floor waiting for deputies to arrive.
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Jesse Gates, an attendee at Boiling Springs' South Side Freewill Baptist Church was acting like he was having a heart attack on Sunday morning, according to Rev. Henry Guyton. Gates was cleared by EMS and left the premises, only to return later that morning and pull at shotgun out of the trunk of his car. Rev. Guyton's grandson, Aaron Guyton, saw Gates pull the shotgun out and immediately went into the main building of the church and locked the doors. Gates kicked in the side door. Aaron Guyton, a concealed weapons permit holder, held Gates at gunpoint while church member Jesse Smith and Leland Powers held him to the floor waiting for deputies to arrive.
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5 Year Old Shot When Jumping on Bed
A 5-year-old girl was in good condition early Sunday after she was shot in her ankle Saturday afternoon while jumping on a bed when a gun hidden under the mattress accidentally went off.
The girl was jumping on the bed in a home in the 6400 block of South Artesian about 12:20 p.m. when the gun discharged, according to police. She was taken to University of Chicago Comer’s Children’s Hospital, police said. She was in good condition following the treatment.
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The girl was jumping on the bed in a home in the 6400 block of South Artesian about 12:20 p.m. when the gun discharged, according to police. She was taken to University of Chicago Comer’s Children’s Hospital, police said. She was in good condition following the treatment.
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78-Year-Old in Kentucky Defends Home With a Pistol and a Shotgun
"MARSHALL COUNTY, Ky. — It was still dark, before 4 a.m. Monday, but Jack Thompson, 78, was able to make out two figures in the night.
It was noise outside that had woken him up and the sight confirmed his fears. He reached under his pillow and grabbed his pistol.
Seconds later, there was a noise he described as a "thud." The two men had kicked in the door of his Brewers-area home and one was charging up the stairs to the Thompson's bedroom.
"He knew where he was going. He headed for me. He knew where I slept," he said of the possibility the intruders had previously cased his house."
It was noise outside that had woken him up and the sight confirmed his fears. He reached under his pillow and grabbed his pistol.
Seconds later, there was a noise he described as a "thud." The two men had kicked in the door of his Brewers-area home and one was charging up the stairs to the Thompson's bedroom.
"He knew where he was going. He headed for me. He knew where I slept," he said of the possibility the intruders had previously cased his house."
The Minnesota State Senate Passes HF1467! This law, if signed by the Governor will be a big win for Minnesotans right to self defense.
Stand Your Ground:HF 1467 would remove a person’s “duty to retreat” from an attacker, allowing law-abiding citizens to stand their ground and protect themselves or their family anywhere they are lawfully present. It would create a presumption that an individual who forcefully or stealthily enters or attempts to enter your home or vehicle is there to cause substantial or great bodily injury or death, so the occupant may use force, including deadly force, against that individual. It would also expressly allow an individual to use force, including deadly force, to prevent a forcible felony, and it provides protections against criminal prosecution when justifiable force is used.Universal Recognition:
Currently, Minnesota has reciprocal agreements with only fifteen states and 23 states recognize Minnesota's permit to carry. Unfortunately, Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety has not sought out any additional reciprocity agreements. By adding our proposed language, Minnesota will recognize every state that offers a carry permit and drastically improve Minnesotans’ abilities to carry for self-defense in other states. This legislation would also require Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety to enter in to reciprocity agreements.
Emergency Powers Reform:This legislation would prohibit any government agency from confiscating or regulating the lawful possession, carrying, transfer, transportation and defensive use of firearms or ammunition during a state of emergency, such as occurred in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, Louisiana.Please contact the Governor and ask for his support of the bill, it should be passed tonight by the senate!
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Friday, February 24, 2012 7:19 PM SD Senate committee passes concealed carry bill
Senate committee approved a bill Friday that would let people carry concealed weapons without getting a permit if they had a driver's license and met state standards for gun ownership. The bill would let people carry concealed weapons within South Dakota without a permit. Residents going to states that honor South Dakota's concealed carry permit would still need to have one to take their guns into states such as Colorado, Montana and Wyoming.
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Tuesday, February 14, 2012 Despite opposition, Hoffman sticks to her guns
"Senator Gretchen Hoffman isn’t letting police union opposition to a gun bill she sponsored get to her. Instead, she’s focused on the voices of support she’s received on a piece of legislation she’s dubbed the “Stand Your Ground” bill.
The bill (SF 1357) expands gun owners’ self-defense rights. Currently, the use of deadly force is authorized when a person believes they are in danger of bodily harm or death, but the new bill presumes that threat may be posed by a home invader. It also eliminates residents’ “duty to retreat” from a threat if possible, instead allowing deadly force."
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Stand Your Ground:HF 1467 would remove a person’s “duty to retreat” from an attacker, allowing law-abiding citizens to stand their ground and protect themselves or their family anywhere they are lawfully present. It would create a presumption that an individual who forcefully or stealthily enters or attempts to enter your home or vehicle is there to cause substantial or great bodily injury or death, so the occupant may use force, including deadly force, against that individual. It would also expressly allow an individual to use force, including deadly force, to prevent a forcible felony, and it provides protections against criminal prosecution when justifiable force is used.Universal Recognition:
Currently, Minnesota has reciprocal agreements with only fifteen states and 23 states recognize Minnesota's permit to carry. Unfortunately, Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety has not sought out any additional reciprocity agreements. By adding our proposed language, Minnesota will recognize every state that offers a carry permit and drastically improve Minnesotans’ abilities to carry for self-defense in other states. This legislation would also require Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety to enter in to reciprocity agreements.
Emergency Powers Reform:This legislation would prohibit any government agency from confiscating or regulating the lawful possession, carrying, transfer, transportation and defensive use of firearms or ammunition during a state of emergency, such as occurred in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, Louisiana.Please contact the Governor and ask for his support of the bill, it should be passed tonight by the senate!
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Friday, February 24, 2012 7:19 PM SD Senate committee passes concealed carry bill
Senate committee approved a bill Friday that would let people carry concealed weapons without getting a permit if they had a driver's license and met state standards for gun ownership. The bill would let people carry concealed weapons within South Dakota without a permit. Residents going to states that honor South Dakota's concealed carry permit would still need to have one to take their guns into states such as Colorado, Montana and Wyoming.
Read More...
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Tuesday, February 14, 2012 Despite opposition, Hoffman sticks to her guns
"Senator Gretchen Hoffman isn’t letting police union opposition to a gun bill she sponsored get to her. Instead, she’s focused on the voices of support she’s received on a piece of legislation she’s dubbed the “Stand Your Ground” bill.
The bill (SF 1357) expands gun owners’ self-defense rights. Currently, the use of deadly force is authorized when a person believes they are in danger of bodily harm or death, but the new bill presumes that threat may be posed by a home invader. It also eliminates residents’ “duty to retreat” from a threat if possible, instead allowing deadly force."
Read More...
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