Contemptuous Nagin Should Leave Bloomberg Coalition: The Second Amendment Foundation - which is suing Nagin over the post-Katrina gun seizures in New Orleans - today said Nagin should step down or be asked to leave Michael Bloomberg's "Mayors Against Illegal Guns" unless that group wants him as their poster child. http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/02-14-2007/0004527820&EDATE= --- Colorado Rejects Two Anti-RKBA Measures: The Colorado senate has temporarily blocked a bill that would have required that holders of out-of-state concealed-weapon permits be residents of the issuing state. The house has approved a bill to extend the state's castle doctrine to businesses. Apparently still pending is whether the state's database of CWP-holders will be extended beyond its sunset base of July 1. http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5349962,00.html --- Stand-Your-Ground Bill Passes North Dakota House: Opposition from prosecutors and law enforcement officers could not derail legislation giving North Dakotans the right to shoot a burglar or carjacker with protection from criminal prosecution or civil lawsuits if they do...The police and prosecutors are correct that North Dakotans already have a right to defend themselves. The problem, which this bill solves, is that before North Dakotans can exercise that right they must first try to flee their assailants under current law. http://www.kxma.com/getARticle.asp?ArticleId=94961 --- DC Reports 50% Increase In Firearm-Related Crime Over Six Weeks: The number of violent crimes committed with guns in the first six weeks of the year has increased by 50 percent compared with the same period last year, according to Metropolitan Police Department statistics..."It's a continuing problem," said council member Phil Mendelson, at-large Democrat. "There are far too many guns." (Maybe they're just in the wrong hands, thanks to DC's virtual ban on privately owned firearms.) http://www.washtimes.com/metro/20070214-101922-8138r.htm --- Meanwhile, In Tennessee...: Spurred by violent crime in Memphis and elsewhere, Tennessee legislators have filed several bills to expand the legal rights of people to use deadly force when threatened by would-be attackers. One would specifically allow people in motor vehicles to kill or "cause serious bodily injury" to attackers - both inside or outside the vehicle - who they believe are threatening to murder, rape, kidnap, rob or carjack the car's occupants. http://www.commercialappeal.com/mca/midsouth_news/article/0,1426,MCA_1497_5349925,00.html --- Campus-Carry Bill Advances In Utah: A compromise between university leaders and legislators to create gun-free areas on campuses passed out of committee Tuesday but not without a parade of opposition from students and gun-rights advocacy groups. The 3-2 vote came after more than an hour of testimony against the bill by students who say they will feel unsafe if they are not allowed to carry guns and by citizens who say they are being stripped of their rights. http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,660195371,00.html --- Utah Mall Shootings Spur Debate, Interest In CCW: The debate between gun-control advocates and gun-rights supporters is a familiar aftermath to any outburst of gun violence in America...Aposhian noted that it is impossible to know whether a concealed-weapon holder could make a difference in every violent confrontation. "But we do know what happens when there is no one with a concealed weapon in these situations - people die." http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_5219765 --- North Dakota Women Offered Firearms Safety Course: Women unfamiliar with the guns their hunter spouses and kids keep in the house will have an opportunity to learn more about them. A women's-only home firearms safety class is planned from 2 to 4 p.m. March 18 and March 25. It's sponsored by the Bismarck-Mandan Rifle & Pistol Association. http://www.bismarcktribune.com/articles/2007/02/14/news/columnists/hinton/128780.txt --- Froman Rapped For Metaphor: The editorial board of The Stanford Daily does not like NRA president and Stanford alumna Sandra Froman's likening of California's safety-training test to purchase a handgun to Jim Crow voting laws that were used in the South. http://daily.stanford.edu/article/2007/2/14/editorialBoardMetaphorsAndGunsDontMix --- Oops, Wrong Store: A jewelry-store owner in Philadelphia took advantage of the distraction caused by his employee returning from lunch to grab his own gun and shoot two of three masked robbers who had decided to attend his Valentine's Day sale. The third suspect is still being sought. (Not enough information is furnished to assess whether a holstered gun might have been more readily accessible in this scenario.) http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=local&id=5021015 --- From AzCDL: Pro-rights bills to be debated by the full House and Senate on 02/15/07! Spread this message far and wide! We need to show the legislature that gun owners are politically involved and care about the legislative process. They need to feel YOUR pressure. On Thursday, February 15, 2007, the Committee of the Whole (COW) in both the House and Senate will debate and vote on bills that have passed out of committee. The House will decide on HB 2469 and the Senate will decide on SB 1250 and SB 1302. Information on these and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html . The following is a synopsis of these bills: HB 2469 reduces the penalty for a concealed weapon permit holder failing to have their permit in their possession while carrying concealed. Under current law (ARS 13-3112.D), a person is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor offense if they fail to present a concealed weapons permit upon the request of a law enforcement officer. The language of the current law does not clarify that a person must be a concealed weapons permit holder, or in possession of a weapon, or even if a weapon must be concealed. However, if they produce a legible permit that was valid at the time of the violation when they go to court, "they shall not be convicted." The proposed language in HB 2469: · Restricts the application of the law to concealed weapons permit holders. · Reduces the penalty to a petty offense. · Retains the "shall not convict" language. · Clarifies that a permit holder can only be charged if they are carrying a concealed weapon when they fail to present their permit at the request of a law enforcement officer. SB 1250 eliminates the fingerprint requirement for concealed carry permit renewals. SB 1302 clarifies that the intent of the Castle Doctrine bill that restored "innocent until proven guilty" applied to all court cases pending on April 24, 2006 when the bill was signed. Sadly, there was a high-profile case pending at the time against a hiker who used a gun to defend himself against an attack. The judge in the case did not allow the case to be heard under the new law. The hiker was convicted of murder under the old law where he had to first admit to shooting someone, and then had to try to prove his innocence to a jury with the prosecuting attorney controlling all the evidence. Now comes YOUR part - Take the time to let EVERY Senator and Representative know that you want them to vote FOR these bills, and that you are monitoring their vote. The following are cut-and-paste messages you can use, or personalize to your taste. Following the letters are emails lists of both the House and Senate in semi-colon and comma separated formats. Use the one that works with your email software. SENATE LETTER: Subject: Vote FOR SB 1250 & SB 1302 Dear Senator: The Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) has informed me that the Committee of the Whole (COW) will be hearing SB 1250 and SB 1302 on February 15, 2007. I urge you to vote FOR passage of these important bills. SB 1250 simply eliminates the fingerprint requirement for the renewal of concealed weapons permits. Current law, ARS 13-3112.L, requires that applicants submit fingerprints for the initial permit application and the first renewal. A person's fingerprints do not change. It's time to eliminate this needless burden and reduce the cost to Arizona taxpayers for storing and processing additional fingerprints. SB 1302 clarifies that the intent of the Castle Doctrine bill that restored "innocent until proven guilty" last year applied to all court cases pending on April 26, 2006 when the bill was signed. There has been uneven application of the intent of the legislature with defendants prosecuted by different standards at the whim of the courts. Again, I urge you to vote FOR these bills. Sincerely, Your name Street address City, State & zip-code telephone number HOUSE LETTER: Subject: Vote FOR HB 2469 Dear Representative: The Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) has informed me that the Committee of the Whole (COW) will be hearing HB 2469 on February 15, 2007. I urge you to vote FOR passage of this important bill. Under the current provisions of ARS 13-3112.D, I am subject to a class 2 misdemeanor if I am unable to present a concealed weapons permit upon the request of a law enforcement officer, even though law enforcement has immediate access to State concealed weapons databases. Furthermore, the language of the current law does not clarify that I must even be a concealed weapons permit holder, or in possession of a weapon, or even if a weapon must be concealed. Finally, the law says I "shall not be convicted" if I produce a valid permit to the court. HB 2469 clarifies that ARS 13-3112.D applies only to concealed weapons permit holders who are in possession of a concealed weapon. The penalty is reduced to a petty offense while the "shall not convict" language is retained for those producing a valid permit to the court. This allows honest mistakes by law-abiding citizens to be handled quickly, allowing scarce law enforcement and court resources to be focused on more important issues. Again, I urge you to vote FOR passage of HB 2469. Sincerely, Your name Street address City, State & zip-code telephone number Senate members in semi-colon format: paboud@azleg.gov; aaguirre@azleg.gov; callen@azleg.gov; marzberger@azleg.gov; tbee@azleg.gov; rblendu@azleg.gov; rburns@azleg.gov; mburtoncahill@azleg.gov; kcheuvront@azleg.gov; jflake@azleg.gov; jgarcia@azleg.gov; pgorman@azleg.gov; rgould@azleg.gov; cgray@azleg.gov; lgray@azleg.gov; ahale@azleg.gov; jharper@azleg.gov; jhuppenthal@azleg.gov; kjohnson@azleg.gov; llandrumtaylor@azleg.gov; bleff@azleg.gov; dmccunedavis@azleg.gov; rmiranda@azleg.gov; to'halleran@azleg.gov; cpesquiera@azleg.gov; rrios@azleg.gov; vsoltero@azleg.gov; jtibshraeny@azleg.gov; tverschoor@azleg.gov; jwaring@azleg.gov Senate members in comma format: paboud@azleg.gov, aaguirre@azleg.gov, callen@azleg.gov, marzberger@azleg.gov, tbee@azleg.gov, rblendu@azleg.gov, rburns@azleg.gov, mburtoncahill@azleg.gov, kcheuvront@azleg.gov, jflake@azleg.gov, jgarcia@azleg.gov, pgorman@azleg.gov, rgould@azleg.gov, cgray@azleg.gov, lgray@azleg.gov, ahale@azleg.gov, jharper@azleg.gov, jhuppenthal@azleg.gov, kjohnson@azleg.gov, llandrumtaylor@azleg.gov, bleff@azleg.gov, dmccunedavis@azleg.gov, rmiranda@azleg.gov, to'halleran@azleg.gov, cpesquiera@azleg.gov, rrios@azleg.gov, vsoltero@azleg.gov, jtibshraeny@azleg.gov, tverschoor@azleg.gov, jwaring@azleg.gov House members in semi-colon format: jkavanagh@azleg.gov; akirkpatrick@azleg.gov; bkonopnicki@azleg.gov; plopes@azleg.gov; llopez@azleg.gov; dlujan@azleg.gov; lmason@azleg.gov; mmcclure@azleg.gov; jmccomish@azleg.gov; bmcguire@azleg.gov; nmclain@azleg.gov; rmeza@azleg.gov; bmiranda@azleg.gov; rmurphy@azleg.gov; jnelson@azleg.gov; wnichols@azleg.gov; lpancrazi@azleg.gov; jpaton@azleg.gov; rpearce@azleg.gov; tprezelski@azleg.gov; mreagan@azleg.gov; prios@azleg.gov; brobson@azleg.gov; lsaradnik@azleg.gov; dschapira@azleg.gov; ksinema@azleg.gov; bstump@azleg.gov; jthrasher@azleg.gov; atobin@azleg.gov; atom@azleg.gov; tulmer@azleg.gov; jweiers@azleg.gov; jpweiers@azleg.gov; syarbrough@azleg.gov House members in comma format: jkavanagh@azleg.gov, akirkpatrick@azleg.gov, bkonopnicki@azleg.gov, plopes@azleg.gov, llopez@azleg.gov, dlujan@azleg.gov, lmason@azleg.gov, mmcclure@azleg.gov, jmccomish@azleg.gov, bmcguire@azleg.gov, nmclain@azleg.gov, rmeza@azleg.gov, bmiranda@azleg.gov, rmurphy@azleg.gov, jnelson@azleg.gov, wnichols@azleg.gov, lpancrazi@azleg.gov, jpaton@azleg.gov, rpearce@azleg.gov, tprezelski@azleg.gov, mreagan@azleg.gov, prios@azleg.gov, brobson@azleg.gov, lsaradnik@azleg.gov, dschapira@azleg.gov, ksinema@azleg.gov, bstump@azleg.gov, jthrasher@azleg.gov, atobin@azleg.gov, atom@azleg.gov, tulmer@azleg.gov, jweiers@azleg.gov, jpweiers@azleg.gov, syarbrough@azleg.gov It's important that ALL legislators hear from YOU. It affects their support for these bills and others they might be asked to support in the future. These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! AzCDL - Protecting Your Freedom http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html Copyright © 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .