Registration of Wallet Holsters: A list member disputed my statement that wallet holsters which allow the pistol to be fired while it is still holstered must be registered under the provisions of the National Firearms Act. Wikipedia provides a good summary: ..."Any Other Weapons" (AOWs) also include disguised firearms, firearms that can be fired from within a wallet holster, or a briefcase. A short-barreled shotgun which came from the factory with a pistol grip is categorized as an AOW rather than a SBS, because the Gun Control Act describes a shotgun as "...designed or redesigned to be fired from the shoulder..." The AOW classification also includes handguns with a forward vertical grip. It is therefore illegal to place an aftermarket foregrip on any pistol without first registering it as an AOW and paying the making tax... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Firearms_Act ATF has ruled that simultaneous possession of the holster and a pistol that will fit it requires tax payment (registration) as an AOW. http://www.nfaoa.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=985&sid=f57c211fe41b63ae888ec90404ddfd52 http://reviews.ebay.com/Wallet-Holsters-amp-ATF-Regulations_W0QQugidZ10000000001714210QQ_trksidZp3286.c0.m17 Further, "wallet guns" are specifically banned in some states, such as California. http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=pen&group=12001-13000&file=12020-12040 --- New York Still Contemplates Impact of Heller: After Rashawn Handsome of Brooklyn was arrested for keeping three handguns in a sneaker box in his apartment - without any license for them - his Legal Aid attorney argued that Handsome had a right to bear arms under the Second Amendment of the Constitution. As we reported last year, a Criminal Court judge emphatically disagreed. The guarantee of the right to bear arms, Judge Michael Gerstein said, referred to state militias. No one, the judge reasoned, intended for every individual to "own firearms for their private, civilian use." But now the Supreme Court has spoken on this issue - in a case involving the District of Columbia's restrictions on guns. Could Handsome and his Legal Aid Society attorney have been right? http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/law/20080728/13/2595 --- Oops, Wrong House: A man fatally shot one of three armed intruders who broke into his Woodland Hills home Friday in an apparent home invasion robbery, police said. The dead intruder, a man in his 20s whose name has not been released, was found with a handgun, said Officer Jason Lee, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department. The other two suspects remain at large. Officers detained one man, but later let him go after concluding that he had no role in the incident, Lee said. The shooting occurred about 2:45 p.m. in the 24300 block of Burbank Boulevard when the three men allegedly kicked in the door. In the house at the time were an elderly couple and their two grown sons. Police did not release information about who fired the fatal shot or how many might have been involved in the gunplay. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-woodland2-2008aug02,0,6507606.story --- On the Radio Today: This weekend on, Anise Jenkins of "FreeDC.org," a D.C. resident, will be on at 1 PM MST to tell why the Heller decision is a bad thing. At 1:30, Dick Anthony Heller himself will bat clean up. Liberty Watch/America Armed & Free is on KVOI AM 690 in Tucson, AM 930 KAPR Douglas, and AM 1240 KJAA Globe, from noon to two PM. The previous show, Swap Shop, is a free market on air swap meet on the same stations, and WELCOMES the sale of lawfully held firearms. It is free. Both shows are streamed live on the internet at http://kvoi.com/listenlive.php and click "listen live," then chose Winamp or Windows media. If you miss it or cannot hear it live, Liberty Watch/America Armed & Free is archived at www.libertywatchradio.com/listen , and should be posted by 4 PM MST 8/3/08. --- NRA-ILA Alerts: Alerts for the week are posted on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/GrassrootsAlerts/read.aspx --- From AzCDL: The AzCDL Newsletter for July 2008 is available for viewing and downloading at: http://www.azcdl.org/html/newsletters.html . Inside you'll find a review of the 2008 legislative session. Also included is an invitation to the FREE 2008 Gun Rights Policy Conference (GRPC) to be held this year in Phoenix, on September 26-28, 2008. You can find out more about GRPC here: http://www.saf.org/default.asp?p=GRPC The July newsletter was mailed to all active AzCDL members. If you did not get your copy, and your membership has not lapsed, please contact treasurer@AzCDL.org to make sure we have your correct address. If you would like to receive a printed version of future newsletters, please go here and follow the instructions: http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html . 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/accomplishments.html Copyright © 2008 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. --- From John Farnam: 27 July 08 Success story, from a female student: "Last week, I had just returned home from shopping. My house is set back from the street and up forty stairs. Shrubs on both sides of the stairway obscure the view and severely restrict any exit except down the stairs. When I arrived home, I parked my car in the driveway, carried a load of groceries up to the house, then returned to the car to bring up the last load. As I got my arms full again, I heard a man's voice saying, 'Hey lady! I have something to sell you.' I turned to see a strange man, scrubby, dirty, and poorly dressed, advancing on me from the street. I replied, 'I'm not interested,' and started walking quickly toward the stairs. The man followed. I turned toward him and said sternly, 'I'm not interested. Get off my property!' He replied, 'Let me come in and show you what I have for sale.' He continued to advance on me. I abruptly dropped my packages, got my hand on my snubby revolver, and ran up the stairs to my front door, entered my house, and locked the door behind me. Once inside, I called 911 and reported an 'assault-in-progress.' I took a breath, thinking the man had probably left. No such luck! The man appeared at my doorway and started pounding and kicking the locked door, yelling, "Let me in! Let me in!" Still on the line, the 911 operator, hearing the pounding, said, 'What is that?' I replied, 'Operator, send the police now! A violent felon is breaking into my house!' Having only marginal faith in the stoutness of my front door, I retreated up the stairs to a landing. I used a support post for cover as I pointed my revolver at the door. I calculated I would be shooting down (safe backstop), plus the attacker would not see me right away. Fortunately, I had thought about, and rehearsed, all this before, so there was no hesitation on my part. I shouted, 'Go away! I've called the police, and they are on the way. I have a gun, and I will shoot! The pounding abruptly stopped, and I could hear him running back down the stairs. From an upstairs window, I saw a faded van drive up, pick the man up, and drive away. Never saw him again! Police were there minutes afterward. They indicated that what I had experienced fit the MO of a gang of grubs that had spread out over the neighborhood lately. The moral of this story for me is the confirmation of the value of my professional defensive handgun training and my ongoing practice with my Training Group. My pistol was loaded, as always, with high-performance ammunition, and I entertained no uncertainty with regard to my ability to stop this felon with gunfire, and I was fully prepared to do so, without hesitation. Happily, it was not necessary, this time!" Lessons: (1) Be alert! Pay attention. Keep your head up. Have a well-tuned ability to detect trouble in the making. The more time you have to prepare yourself and refine your Plan accordingly, the better the outcome. (2) Face facts! Don't con yourself. Don't delude yourself into thinking you're not really seeing what is in front of you. (3) Have a Plan! Know your Plan. Rehearse your Plan. But, don't fall in love with your Plan! Those without a plan will predictably dither and die! (4) Stern, clear, uncluttered verbal challenges will often prevent the necessity of using deadly force. Verbal challenges need to be short, to the point, one-way, and unequivocal. Don't bluff, and don't engage in a conversation! (5) Be armed! Like wearing seatbelts when in a car, you can't know when they will be necessary, so you wear them all the time! (6) Stay in motion! Get your feet out of cement. A moving target is a difficult target. (7) There is no substitute for competent firearms training and continuous practice. When you've never taken lessons, it is unlikely you'll be able to suddenly sit down in front of a piano and make music, no matter how nice a piano it is! (8) Be prepared to go it alone. Don't wait to be rescued! Even a relatively fast response police is still far too slow to make any difference in the outcome of most life-threatening situations. When you are not prepared to handle it yourself, right now, without assistance from anyone, you probably won't live through it. (9) Do whatever is necessary, at the critical moment, without hesitation. Don't worry about being perfect, and don't look back! (10) Lose your fear of dying! There are no guarantees in this life, and, end the end, we're all dead anyway. Who look for "fairness" in the way the world is ordered, do so in vane! /John 28 July 08 Incisive analyses, as always, from Skip Gochenour and the ATSA Crew: "While all ten of the points you enumerate are valid and germane, these two are, by far, the most important: >>Face facts! Don't con yourself. Don't delude yourself into thinking you're not really seeing what is in front of you. >>Lose your fear of dying! There are no guarantees in this life, and, end the end, we're all dead anyway. Who look for 'fairness' in the way the world is ordered, do so in vain! In four decades of studying violent encounters, and in discussions with regard to victim selection and engagement are governed almost entirely by their perception of the potential victim's understanding of, and personal commitment to, the foregoing. VCAs understand that the willful reluctance of the target/victim to accept the reality and urgency of the situation, catalyzes the victim's inclination to engage in fantasy-delusion sufficient to persuade the victim to suspend reality just long enough for the victimization to take place. In the VCA's convergence upon an engagement decision, he will accept all the other points you made, so long as the two enumerated above are in his favor. He will thus be heavily influenced by his perception (correct or incorrect) that the target/victim is willing to wager his life on the outcome of the next few moments. When the target/victim is obviously unwilling to make that irrevocable wager, and instead submerges himself in aboulic fantasy, the VCA has a green light, no matter what other factors figure into the equation! Since the success, and continued good health, of the VCA turns on his ability to correctly perceive this willingness, or its absence, he is well-advised to hone that perceptive skill. His first wrong call may well be his last, as it nearly was in the incident you cited." Comment: Fear, like all other emotions, needs to be managed and contained. Fear is normal, even beneficial in some circumstances. But, when out of control, fear leads, by a short route, to delusion and paralysis, as Skip noted above. Fear will drive you to inaction, and maybe crazy to boot! Its paralyzing grip must be broken by personal courage, resolve, and icy determination, which you either have or you don't! In the words of Sitting Bull, "Brothers! Test your armor, but only test the front!" /John -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .