On The Eve of a Heller Decision...: The District of Columbia police department is preparing to launch a massive new home-by-home search program to confiscate and destroy handguns, despite arguments pending before the U.S. Supreme Court that challenges the constitutionality of its ban on residents having such weapons. "Right now we're working under the laws that we have, and we'll continue working under the laws that we have," Police Chief Cathy Lanier said in announcing the program that targets all handguns in the district. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=58825 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/12/AR2008031202717.html SAF Comments: A plan to conduct "consent searches" for guns in District of Columbia residences is "an outrageous exercise of police state demagoguery," the Second Amendment Foundation said today. SAF founder Alan Gottlieb condemned the plan as "a public relations effort designed to influence, through crass dramatics, Tuesday's scheduled oral arguments on the constitutionality of the District's handgun ban before the Supreme Court. Launching this effort," he stated, "on the eve of Supreme Court arguments over the city's horribly failed handgun ban underscores the Draconian mentality that lies at the root of gun laws like the District handgun ban. Arthur B. Spitzer with the American Civil Liberties Union in Washington, D.C. was right when he told the Washington Post that this 'sends a message to the public that the police ought to be able to search your house anytime for any reason.'" http://www.sunherald.com/447/story/430375.html --- Standing Room Only at SCOTUS?: John Payton, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund's president and director-counsel, says "it will be really hot" Tuesday at the U.S. Supreme Court. So hot, in fact, that he is not certain he will get a seat when crowds line up to hear oral arguments in the gun-control case, District of Columbia v. Dick Heller...That the Heller hearing, which will determine the legality of the District's 1976 handgun ban, will be hot is about the only thing Mr. Payton and two other panelists agreed upon during yesterday's American Constitutional Society for Law and Policy forum at the National Press Club. In what could only be described as a "Hardball" preview to Tuesday's showdown before the Supreme Court, Mr. Peyton, Roger Williams University law professor Carl T. Bogus and David B. Kopel, research director of the Independence Institute, voiced their respective legal opinions... http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080314/METRO/266988623/1004 --- Bush Cares About Second Amendment, Just Not Very Much: Robert Novak reports that "disorganization and weakness in the eighth year of [Bush's]presidency" are responsible for the bizarre split within the Bush administration over whether the Supreme Court should uphold the D.C. Circuit decision overturning the District of Columbia's gun ban. To the dismay of gun rights advocates, Solicitor General Paul Clement is asking the Court to send the case back to the D.C. Circuit to consider whether the District's laws can withstand "intermediate scrutiny" under the Second Amendment...Lord knows Novak's sources are much better than mine, but I'm not sure I buy this. If Bush cared enough about the issue, he could and would have intervened... http://reason.com/blog/show/125481.html --- US News Gets It Wrong: ...While many federal courts have taken to this idea, there are two important falsehoods here: The interpretation has not held sway for "most of American history," and the Supreme Court has never accepted it (or "favored" it, whatever that means). The collective-right view stems not from the 1939 Supreme Court case U.S. v. Miller - which itself wouldn't even constitute a majority of American history - but from a subsequent misreading of it by circuit courts. In the case, two bootleggers challenged a sawed-off shotgun ban on Second Amendment grounds. The court upheld the ban, but not because the men were bootleggers rather than militia members. Rather, the logic was that the Second Amendment protects ownership of guns of the type a militia could use, and the men had not proved such was the case for a sawed-off shotgun... http://media.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YWY1NzY0ZjNmZDhmMzZmMGZiMzM0ZmRhODNjNzQ1NzA= --- More Comments on Heller: ..."This is one of the only cases in our lifetime when the Supreme Court will interpret meaning," said legal expert Randy Barnett, a professor of legal theory at Georgetown University Law Center, on a conference call yesterday afternoon. Barnett recently signed an amicus brief filed on behalf of Academics for the Second Amendment that intends a focus on the original meaning of the amendment...The swing vote in the Supreme Court may - as it often is - be Justice Anthony Kennedy, the only firm moderate on the Court. If the ban is overruled, Barnett said he could think of no gun law that would be threatened by this case - aside from Chicago, where similar gun laws are in place... http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=25504 --- Prohibitionist Senator Howard Metzenbaum Dies: ...Mr. Metzenbaum, nicknamed Headline Howard for his love of publicity, denounced big oil companies, the insurance industry, savings and loans and the National Rifle Association, among many targets. At the Senate Judiciary Committee's 1991 hearings on the nomination of Judge Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court, he hammered Mr. Thomas relentlessly on accusations of sexual harassment. Finally, Judge Thomas responded, "God is my judge, not you, Mr. Metzenbaum." (During his Senate tenure, Metzenbuam authored numerous anti-RKBA bills, including the first Gun Free School Zones Act, which was subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court, and the original version of the Brady Bill.) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/14/us/14metzenbaum.html?_r=1&ref=obituaries&oref=slogin Some of Metzenbaum's History: http://snipurl.com/21rvh [www_gunowners_org] Statement of Sarah Brady: http://bradycampaign.org/media/release.php?release=969 --- Obama Claims Little Difference with Clinton on Firearms: ...I think our positions are fairly similar. I'd let her characterize her own position. I certainly believe in the Second Amendment right, that people have the right to bear arms. But I also believe it is important to have some common-sense gun laws in place to make sure that straw purchasers aren't being used to fill up our streets with illegal firearms, and that we have stronger background checks so we keep firearms out of the hands of people with mental health problems or young people or those who have committed crimes. I think it is important for us to strengthen our ability to trace guns that have been used in crimes to gun dealers to make sure they are not operating in an illegal way. I think it's possible to reconcile the tradition of gun ownership, and the rights of sportsmen, hunters and those who want to protect their families, with keeping handguns that are used in crime off the streets. You can protect the rights of gun owners and at the same time keep guns out of the hands of criminals. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_557231.html --- Virginia Governor Endorses Double Standard: Gov. Tim Kaine incurred the wrath of gun rights advocates when he vetoed two bills that would have relaxed concealed-carry laws. Now that he has signed legislation to expand the right of certain gun owners to carry hidden handguns, he's under fire again. The bill, signed Friday, will allow prosecutors and assistant prosecutors to carry a hidden firearm without the standard training or certification - which the Virginia Citizens Defense League said would create a "double standard" of state gun laws...Kaine's signature stands in contrast to his vetoes earlier this year of a bill that would have let a person keep a gun in a glove box without a concealed-carry permit, and another to allow someone to enter a bar or restaurant with a hidden firearm - if they had a permit and didn't drink... http://www.examiner.com/a-1275766%7EKaine_signs_concealed_carry_expansion__some_protest.html --- South Carolina Could Approve Campus Carry: ...A bill making it's way through the South Carolina State House may allow people with concealed weapons permits to be allowed to take guns on state property, including universities. "Our law enforcement community tells us that this is not in the interest of campus safety," said Winthrop spokesperson Rebecca Masters..."Well, if you're a perpetrator, you take guns onto school property any way... You can look at Virginia Tech as a clear example," said State Representative Gary Simrill, who has a Concealed Weapons Permit, and takes his gun with him to the state house. He said, "As soon as I pull into the state house parking deck I am in violation of the law." He says the bill is to clear up some of those loop holes in the law to allow those who legally have permits, who have gone through SLED training, and intensive back ground checks to carry weapons in accordance to the law... http://www.wbtv.com/news/topstories/16651416.html --- Diluted Campus-Carry Bill Advances in Oklahoma: The state House on Thursday easily passed a weakened bill that would allow military veterans and trained law enforcement personnel to carry concealed weapons onto college campuses. Before the bill was passed, 65-36, it was stripped of more liberal provisions that would have allowed anyone age 21 or above with a concealed carry permit to be armed on campus. Lawmakers argued over whether arming some students would make campuses more safe or dangerous. Rep. Jason Murphey, R-Guthrie, who noted the National Rifle Association supports the bill, said, "We're not going to tell a veteran that he cannot defend himself." http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20080313_1__OKLAH52415 --- CWP Applications Surge in Colorado: Applications for concealed-weapon permits have skyrocketed in Colorado, with the increase fueled by everything from heavily publicized mass shootings to routine renewals, according to the state's sheriffs. In 2007, 9,880 people statewide sought permits, compared with 6,649 people in 2006 and 6,670 people in 2005, according to the County Sheriffs of Colorado. And the surge has continued into 2008 in several counties. Law-enforcement experts have different ideas on why more people want to carry concealed weapons. Some believe it is due to a rash of violent outbreaks at Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois University and a mall in Utah. Some sheriff's offices believe churches concerned about protecting their flocks are seeking concealed-carry permits. Another official believes many of the initial batch of five-year permits in the state are expiring soon and that people are simply renewing applications. Those seeking permits are not required to explain why they want to carry a weapon. Whatever the reason, the trend is real. http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_8538818 --- Oops, Wrong House: Two gunmen involved in a home invasion were chased away by the victim's wife...The men reportedly tried to force "Michelle's" husband to open the door to his home. But the former security guard fought back. "Michelle" says she was watching it all from inside her home. She tells us, "I reached for the gun. It was up here. Then I got some shells from in here." She says, "I keep telling him, 'Duck and I'll shoot! Duck and I'll shoot.' And he said, 'No, don't! Don't!' And I was debating whether to shoot or not. Then I just shot that way. The truck was right there." The shots spooked the intruders and forced them to flee. A tree outside is still marked by the pellets. "You hear about thing like this happening, but you never think it will happen to you," "Michelle" tells us. The shotgun was taken by deputies for the investigation. But the couple says they'll be buying another gun... (And maybe some more training than what comes in the box with the gun?) http://www.newschannel5.tv/2008/3/12/988076/Victim-s-Wife-Shoots-at-Home-Invaders --- Security Tips for "Senior Citizens": Some of these recommendations are good enough to be valid for "junior citizens" as well. Conspicuously absent is the recommendation to learn how to use a firearm and carry one wherever it is legal to do so. http://www.newsmax.com/us/crime_prevention/2008/03/14/80405.html -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .