NRA-ILA Alerts - NRA - Legislation

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 18, No. 47 11/18/11

U.S. House of Representatives Adopts Right-to-Carry Reciprocity—
All Anti-Gun Amendments Defeated!

On Wednesday, Nov. 16, the ongoing effort to fully vindicate the fundamental, individual right to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense took a major step forward with House passage of H.R. 822, the “National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011.” The bill, sponsored by Reps. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), which has 245 cosponsors, was approved by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 272-154.


Senate Judiciary Committee Holds Hearing on Schumer Registration and Rights Denial Bill :

On Tuesday November 16, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism held a hearing on Sen. Charles Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) S. 436. Dubbed by anti-gunners the “Fix Gun Checks Act,” rather than “fix” the current National Instant Criminal Background Check System, the legislation would eliminate private sales and gun shows as we know them and expand the range of persons prohibited from owning firearms.

Twelve Big Wins for Gun Owners:

The final conference report on the combined Fiscal Year 2012 Agriculture, Commerce/Justice/Science (CJS) and Transportation/Housing/Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bills—also known as the “Mini-Bus,” was passed by both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate, and has been signed into law.

NRA to Fight Proposed Obama Administration Ban on Recreational Shooting on Public Lands :

NRA will fight the proposal by the Obama administration and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to drastically restrict recreational shooting opportunities on public lands. NRA is particularly concerned about the stated motive of this action. A spokesman for the BLM told U.S. News and World Report that the proposed ban was being enacted in response to "urbanites" who "freak out" when they hear shooting on public lands. The spokesman also acknowledged that the impetus for this restriction was not rooted in safety, rather it was introduced to reduce "social conflict."


Internet Rumors About Cerberus, Freedom Group Are Patently False:

Recently, an old rumor regarding Cerberus--the private equity firm that owns Freedom group, a holding company that in turn owns a number of firearms manufacturers, including Remington, Marlin, Bushmaster, and DPMS--was in some way tied to George Soros.
This rumor is completely false and baseless.

STATE ROUNDUP

So... Call me clueless but does this mean I can carry across state lines now?

Not with your neutered license brohammed.

Sent from my Incredible 2 HD using Tapatalk

Brown is voting no.

The NRA-ILA has been pushing this for many years,we need all the
help we can get to pass it this time,I already told Brown that he has
lost my vote for him if he does not change his vote on this,he needs
the pressure put on him.

Email Scott - Scott Brown

I know Charlie,but we are not going to give up the fight.

Whoa!! Quit yelling at me like I stole your favorite cowboy hat...

Like I said, clueless. And, as 5-0 said... I have a neutered license. I can't carry here in Mass with my "Sport & Target" restriction. Thanks Chief G. Certainly can't have guys like me packin'...

I was originally against the CC reciprocity, but since the McDonald decision applied the second amendment via the 14th to the states, section 5 of the 14th Amendment gives the federal government clear rights enforcement power on the topic.

As for Brown, I wrote him that if he didn't support it, I would not be supporting him in the next election. Considering how much support and volunteering time I gave him in the special election--I even reported poll closing numbers to the campaign--I hope it helps change his mind. What's comical to means his opposition to this bill, based on a states rights argument, was in a letter to Menino who doesn't support allowing his own feudal subjects to carry.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 18, No. 48 12/02/11


NRA University--Bring Us To Your Campus This Spring!

In an effort to educate the next generation of gun rights advocates on exercising and maintaining their constitutionally guaranteed Right to Keep and Bear Arms, NRA has developed a comprehensive program for college students called “NRA University”-- NRA U for short.
NRA U is a two-hour training seminar for college students interested in learning more about NRA, the Second Amendment, gun safety, legislative threats to gun rights and the gun control debate. NRA-ILA staff will travel to a college campus and provide seminar attendees with the tools they’ll need to become more effective activists in the fight to protect our freedom, both on and off campus.
Staff will address the myths of gun control, covering topics such as the history of the Second Amendment and the use of guns for self-defense, and provide the NRA’s solutions to reducing gun crime and accidents.

Hunters Fight for Access in Big Cypress:

In the early 1970s, hunters were instrumental in preventing South Florida’s Big Cypress Swamp from being drained and transformed into the world’s largest jetport.

The culmination of that successful effort was the creation of the Big Cypress National Preserve in 1974, a 582,000-acre area situated just north of Everglades National Park that stretches roughly from Miami in the east to Naples in the west.

Congress, through the preserve’s enabling legislation, directed the National Park Service to continue managing for traditional activities in the area. This included hunting, fishing and swamp buggy use. The area was designated as a preserve instead of a national park for the precise reason of allowing such activities to continue. Anything less would have been a non-starter for hunters and local landowners in the preservation discussion.

STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 18, No. 49 12/09/11

No Surprises Here--
BATFE Wanted Fast and Furious to Justify Gun Control

From the first moment that the American people became aware that senior BATFE officials ordered agents in the field to allow guns sold in the U.S. to be smuggled on an all-but-certain path to Mexico’s vicious drug cartels, many of us have wondered “why.”

What possible legitimate purpose could be fulfilled by allowing a large number of guns—over 2,000, by some estimates—to disappear across our southwestern border without the Mexican government’s knowledge?
There has been only one logical answer possible. Someone within the BATFE or higher in the Department of Justice wanted the smuggled guns to be recovered at crime scenes in Mexico, and traced to sources within the U.S., so that the Obama Administration could claim a need for one or another gun control measure being pushed by anti-gun groups. Someone who values gun control more than the lives of innocent people killed by cartel operatives armed with the BATFE’s “walked” guns. Someone who believes, as one BATFE official put it, that “to make an omelet, you have to break some eggs.”


Holder’s Talking, but What is He Saying?

So far, NRA, 52 U.S. Representatives, two U.S. Senators, and multiple GOP Presidential candidates have called on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign because of his role in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive’s failed “Operation Fast and Furious.”

STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 18, No. 50 12/16/11


The Year In Review

Here are some of the top stories we brought you in the NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert in 2011. With what will be a critically important 2012, we must increase our efforts to ensure we're prepared to meet the great opportunities and challenges we will face next year. We will continue to provide you with information in future Alerts to ensure our mutual success.


January:

• The Ohio Supreme Court issued a ruling upholding Ohio's firearms preemption law and siding with both the state's and NRA's position, as outlined in a “friend of the court” brief filed with the court. The case, City of Cleveland v. State of Ohio, stemmed from the city’s scheme to establish a series of restrictive gun laws despite Ohio law, which clearly prohibits such municipal gun ordinances.
• The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 was signed into law. The legislation included several provisions developed by NRA-ILA and pro-Second Amendment members of Congress, that provide practical benefits to gun owners while protecting the privacy and Second Amendment rights of gun-owning military personnel and their families and civilian employees of the Department of Defense.
• U.S. Reps. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) and Leonard Boswell (D-Iowa) introduced H.R. 420 -- the "Veterans' Heritage Firearms Act." The legislation would provide a limited amnesty period for veterans who served overseas before 1968. During the amnesty period, the veterans would be able to register war relic firearms without fear of prosecution. This amnesty would also extend to a veteran's lawful family members.

February

• U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) asked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to respond to allegations that it allowed suspicious firearm transactions to proceed, and that a gun sold in one of those cases may have been involved in a shootout that claimed the life of a U.S. Border Patrol agent.
• The U.S. House voted for an amendment to H.R. 1 offered by Reps. Denny Rehberg and Dan Boren that prohibits the use of federal funds for a new and unauthorized multiple sales reporting scheme proposed by BATFE. The measure passed the chamber with broad bipartisan support.
• In 2009, the Obama administration approved the importation and sale of collectible, American-made M1 Garand rifles and M1 carbines from South Korea. However, the administration reversed its decision in March 2010, deciding instead to prevent these rifles –legal to make and purchase in the United States—from entering the country. S. 381—the Collectible Firearms Protection Act—and its House companion bill, H.R. 615 were introduced. The bills seek to once again allow these American-made firearms to be re-imported and sold in the U.S.
• NRA worked with a coalition of the nation's largest hunting and conservation groups to address the wolf management crisis. The coalition thanked members of Congress for taking several steps in the right direction for wolf conservation, and reminded Congress that all wolves in the Rockies and Great Lakes area are recovered and should now be managed by state biologists. The coalition supports all four pending bills in the House and Senate to move recovered wolf populations to state wildlife management.
• H.R. 822, was introduced in the U.S. House by Representatives Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and Heath Shuler (D-N.C.). The measure would allow any person with a valid state-issued concealed carry permit to carry a concealed firearm in any state that issues concealed firearm permits, or that does not prohibit the carrying of concealed firearms. A state's laws governing where concealed firearms may be carried would apply within its borders. The bill also applies to Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and U.S. territories. H.R. 822 would not create a federal licensing system. Rather, it would require the states to recognize each others' carry permits, just as they recognize drivers' licenses and carry permits held by armored car guards.
• A peerless friend of gun owners, retired U.S. Sen. James A. McClure, R-Idaho—who aggressively led the advancement of the Second Amendment cause in the U.S. Senate for two decades—died on February 26.

March

• U.S. Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) introduced S. 570 -- "a bill to prohibit the Department of Justice from tracking and cataloguing the purchases of multiple rifles and shotguns." The bill would prohibit the use of federal funds for a multiple sales reporting scheme proposed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
• NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris Cox sent letters to key leaders in Congress calling for hearings to examine the firearms trafficking investigations tactics employed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Those tactics have allegedly allowed firearms to fall into the hands of Mexican criminal organizations, with the knowledge of the BATFE. In the letters sent to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) and Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.) and their counterparts in the U.S. Senate, Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Cox wrote that the BATFE project “reportedly allowed over 2,000 firearms to be sold to individuals already linked to Mexican drug cartels. Many of those transactions were reported as suspicious by the licensed firearms dealers themselves, but BATFE reportedly encouraged them to proceed with these sales, which the dealers would otherwise have turned down.”
• Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R) signed legislation authorizing a mourning dove hunting season. With this historic expansion of hunting opportunities through SF 464, the Legislature and Governor demonstrated their steadfast commitment to sportsmen and gun owners.
• Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) signed into law House Bill 2013 and Senate Bill 152. HB 2013 enables residents of Kansas to purchase long guns in non-contiguous states and residents of non-contiguous states to purchase long guns in Kansas. SB 152 allows persons licensed to carry a concealed firearm to lawfully carry their firearm while hunting.
• “Permitless Carry” legislation, Senate File 47, and “Castle Doctrine” legislation, House Bill 167, were signed into law by Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead (R).
• House Bill 1079, signed into law by Gov. Dennis Daugaard (R), clarifies that residents of non-contiguous states may purchase long guns in South Dakota.
• Gov. Steve Beshear (D) signed into law House Bill 308. The legislation will implement the federal NICS Improvements Amendments Act by enabling residents of Kentucky, who have lost their firearm rights because of a mental health-related commitment or adjudication, to petition a court to have them restored.

April

• The continuing resolution for FY 2011 included a general provision that delists certain populations of wolves from the Endangered Species Act. Wolf populations in Montana and Idaho as well as portions of Utah, Oregon and Washington would be declared recovered by reinstating the 2009 ruling from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), paving the way for regulated wolf hunting seasons.
• The NRA, and American gun owners, lost a loyal friend on April 16, 2011, when former U.S. Rep. Harold L. Volkmer died in his hometown of Hannibal, Missouri. He had just celebrated his 80th birthday, and was pleased to read the hundreds of cards he had received from grateful gun owners.
• The Mexican government continued its attempt to blame the American gun community for Mexico’s internal strife, and retained the New York City-based law firm of Reid Collins & Tsai to examine its options for suing U.S. gun manufacturers and distributors. Such lawsuits have been used for decades as a tactic by anti-gun groups and governments in their attempts to bankrupt gun manufacturers and circumvent the political process. However, the “Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act” protects firearm manufacturers, distributors, dealers and importers from lawsuits brought about as a result of "the harm solely caused by the criminal or unlawful misuse of firearm products or ammunition products by others when the product functioned as designed and intended."
• U.S. Senators Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and John Thune (R-S.D.) and U.S. Representatives Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), Mike Ross (D-Ark.), Bob Latta (R-Ohio) and Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), introduced legislation to protect traditional lead ammunition and fishing tackle from a potential ban by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
• Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) signed into law the “Fraudulent Firearms Purchase Prevention Act.” Senate Bill 856 protects lawful firearm retailers from illegal gun sting operations.
• Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R) signed into law two pro-gun reforms. House Bill 1438 allows North Dakota workers to store their firearms in locked personal vehicles on publicly accessible parking lots without fear of being fired. House Bill 1269 will grant persons who have lost their firearm rights because of a mental health commitment or adjudication the right to petition to have them restored.
• Senate File 456, signed into law by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R), is designed to improve the language under last session’s "shall-issue" law and allow Iowa state law to meet the requirements set forth in the federal NICS Improvement Amendments Act.
• Gov. Jan Brewer (R) brought pro-gun reforms to the state of Arizona by signing key pieces of legislation. Senate Bill 1469 strengths the current “Castle Doctrine” language by broadening the definition of reasonable use of force, including deadly force, to provide greater protection for those forced to defend themselves or family from an attacker. House Bill 2645 is designed to meet the requirements of the federal NICS Improvement Amendments Act by enabling persons who have lost their firearm rights because of a mental health-related commitment or adjudication to petition a court to have them restored.
• Gov. Dave Heineman (R) signed Legislative Bill 512 into law. LB 152 requires the state to provide information concerning mental health adjudications to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) database and sets up a relief from disabilities process. In addition, LB 512 makes numerous improvements to Nebraska’s right-to-carry laws.

May

• On May 1, Navy SEALS provide America with an historic event that will forever be seared in our memories: the killing of Osama bin Laden -- the mastermind behind the September 11 terrorist attacks on our nation.
• NRA filed its formal comments on the "ATF Study on the Importability of Certain Shotguns." The "study," published in January, proposed to ban the importation of any shotgun, regardless of action type, if it has one or more supposedly non-"sporting" features.
• NRA challenged the constitutionality of Illinois' complete and total ban on carrying firearms for self-defense outside the home or place of business. The case, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, is Shepard v. Madigan. The lead plaintiff is church treasurer Mary Shepard; joining her is the Illinois State Rifle Association, NRA's state affiliate.
• Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio) and Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.) introduced H.R. 1865, the Recreational Lands Self-Defense Act, which is designed to protect the rights of gun owners on lands owned or managed by the Army Corps of Engineers.
• Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) signed into law five pro-firearm bills: Senate Enrolled Act 506 (Transport Permit Reform), Senate Enrolled Act 292 (Firearm Preemption Reform), Senate Enrolled Act 94 (Non-Contiguous State Firearm Purchase), Senate Enrolled Act 411 (Parking Lot), and Senate Enrolled Act 154 (allows loaded firearms on off-road vehicles on private property if the person has permission to be on the property).
• The FBI estimated that the number of violent crimes decreased 5.5 percent from 2009 to 2010, including a 4.4 percent decrease in the number of murders. Because the U.S. population increased during the period, the figures imply that the total violent crime per capita rate and the murder rate decreased more than six percent and five percent, respectively. This brings the violent crime to a 37-year low and the murder rate to a 47-year low.
• Assembly Bill 217, signed into law by Gov. Brian Sandoval (R), allows residents of non-contiguous states to purchase long guns in Nevada. It also allows Nevada residents to purchase long guns in non-contiguous states.

June

• The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals conclusively and forcefully held, without need for oral argument, that the National Rifle Association has the right to recover attorneys' fees in its lawsuits against the city of Chicago's and the village of Oak Park's unconstitutional gun bans. The court held that NRA was a prevailing party in the case of National Rifle Association v. City of Chicago and Village of Oak Park.
• Congressional hearings held by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform revealed that the gun smuggling investigation known as “Fast and Furious,” implemented out of the Phoenix Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives office, was conducted in a reckless manner that led to the illegal sale of thousands of firearms. Many of those firearms ended up in the hands of Mexican drug cartels and other criminals, and may have contributed to the death of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.
• A proposal by U.S. Rep. John Campbell (R-Calif.) and Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) to prohibit necessary and legal practices used to effectively manage wildlife and predator species was overwhelmingly defeated in the House of Representatives. The amendment to H.R. 2112—the Agriculture appropriations bill—was strongly opposed by NRA and other pro-hunting organizations. It was pushed by the Humane Society of the United States and other radical anti-hunting groups.
• Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) signed into law Senate Bill 321, worker protection/parking lot legislation. The Governor also signed legislation to extend the Right to Carry to your boat or personal watercraft (House Bill 25); to allow properly permitted landowners or helicopter owners to contract with third parties to ride on helicopters and take depredating feral hogs and coyotes (House Bill 716); to prevent rules restricting a foster parent's ability to transport a foster child in a private vehicle if a handgun is present (House Bill 2560); and to limit the ability of local governments to sue owners or operators of sport shooting ranges (Senate Bill 766).
• Lawful firearm retailers are protected from illegal gun sting operations such as those by anti-gun New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley (R) signed HB 450, Fraudulent Firearms Purchase Prevention legislation
• Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) signed into law Legislative Document 35. This key piece of legislation prohibits an employer from banning an employee with a valid concealed firearms permit from keeping a firearm in the employee's vehicle as long as the vehicle is locked and the firearm is not visible.
• Gov. Rick Scott (R) signed into law Senate Bill 234 and House Bill 45. SB 234 brings reform to Florida’s “Right-to-Carry” law and allows residents to purchase long guns in other states. HB 45 stops local politicians and governments from violating Florida law by providing penalties for willful violations.
• Louisiana residents may purchase a long gun in any state with the passage of Senate Bill 39—signed into law by Gov. Bobby Jindal (R).
• Gov. John Kasich (R) signed House Bill 54 into law. HB 54 brings Ohio in compliance with federal law to provide for the restoration of firearm rights for certain individuals.
• Gov. Bev Perdue (D) signed into law House Bill 650. HB 650 contains "Castle Doctrine" language, Fraudulent Firearms Purchase language, allows Right-to-Carry permit holders to store firearms in their vehicles when parked on the grounds of certain state properties and courthouses, allows for the purchase of rifles and shotguns by North Carolina residents in other states, and makes other improvements.

July

• NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre and NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox joined Gov. Scott Walker (R) as he signed the Wisconsin Personal Protection Act into law. This made Wisconsin the 49th state to give law-abiding citizens an option to carry a concealed firearm for personal protection.
• Gov. Tom Corbett (R) signed Pennsylvania “Castle Doctrine” legislation into law. This common-sense measure permits law-abiding citizens to use force, including deadly force, against attackers in their homes and any place where they have a legal right to be. It also protects individuals from civil lawsuits by attackers or attackers' families when force is used.
• The Obama administration formally announced that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will require firearm dealers in the southwestern border states to file “multiple sale” reports on detachable-magazine rifles larger than .22 caliber. Under the plan, each dealer will be required to report to the BATFE any sale of two or more such rifles to a single individual within five business days.
• NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre drew a line in the sand on behalf of American gun owners at the United Nations. LaPierre spoke to the UN’s Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) Preparatory Committee, the group drafting an international treaty that will supposedly control all non-nuclear arms, worldwide, including civilian firearms. He told the audience of delegates from approximately 150 U.N. member states that the NRA would vehemently oppose any UN treaty that in any way restricts American gun owners’ rights.
• Gov. Jay Nixon (D) signed into law House Bill 294. HB 294 expands a variety of firearm rights for Missouri gun owners, and addresses a number of Right-to-Carry issues. HB 294 finally lowered Missouri’s Right-to-Carry minimum age requirement (formerly the oldest in the nation) from 23-years old to 21-years old.
• Gov. Jack Markell (D) signed into law House Bill 48. This new law updates Delaware state law to meet the requirements set forth in the federal NICS Improvement Amendments Act. In addition to conforming Delaware law to the NIAA, this legislation also repeals Delaware’s instant check for firearm purchases and moves all background checks to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

August

• NRA supports a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration's demand that Federal Firearms License holders report multiple sales of certain long guns in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas. The suit asserts that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives lacks statutory authority to demand these reports.
• Riots, looting, violent assaults and arson left London and other UK cities looking like war zones. The current bedlam showed us what a disarmed country looks like and how little is left when free men and women surrender the right to own a firearm. Chris Cox wrote a compelling op-ed on "Britain's Criminal Utopia" for the Daily Caller.
• The Iowa Administrative Rules Committee met to review the Natural Resource Commission's (NRC) final rule for Iowa's first dove hunting season in nearly a century. In a 9-1 bipartisan vote, legislators overwhelmingly rejected the NRC's underhanded attempt to include a statewide traditional ammunition ban in the final rule. This vote allowed for a "session-delay" of the lead ammunition ban, meaning the legislature will have to act during the next legislative session to remove the ban from the final dove rule. However, Iowa's first dove season will proceed and will not include a traditional ammunition ban.
• In what can only be described as "Washington D.C. logic," the three BATFE agents who were responsible for the "Fast and Furious" debacle in Phoenix were promoted. The Department of Justice announced the appointment of U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota, B. Todd Jones, to serve as Acting Director of BATFE, replacing Kenneth Melson. The DOJ also announced that Dennis Burke, U.S. attorney for the district of Arizona, resigned. And the Wall Street Journal reported that Emory Hurley, the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the day-to-day operations of "Fast and Furious," was removed from his post and reassigned to the department's Civil Division.

September

• Senators Jim Webb (D-Va.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.) introduced S. 1588—“The Recreational Land Self–Defense Act." S. 1588 is the Senate companion bill to H.R. 1865 and is designed to protect the rights of gun owners on lands owned or managed by the Army Corps of Engineers.
• The Obama campaign launched a new website, AttackWatch.com. The purpose of the site is to give Obama supporters a way to report "attacks" on the president, implying that any criticism must be based on lies or misinformation. When it comes to firearm issues, it's this site that is misrepresenting President Obama's record on guns.
• In what promises to be a continuing debate on the rights of law-abiding citizens, the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled that banning firearms on the grounds of Oregon's public universities exceeded the scope of the university system's authority, thereby opening up the state's campuses to individuals who hold valid concealed handgun licenses.
• The New Hampshire House voted to override the Governor’s veto of Senate Bill 88. SB 88 is now law, and establishes that the law-abiding have the right to defend themselves from assault wherever they have a legal right to be when they believe there is an imminent threat to their life and well being.

October

• A divided federal appeals court upheld the District of Columbia's controversial ban on semi-automatic rifles and so-called “large capacity” magazines, but asked a lower court to reconsider certain aspects of its gun registration system.
• The “Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act,” which was added to H.R. 2349 as an amendment, passed the House. The bill will provide individuals receiving veterans' benefits with added protection against loss of the right to possess firearms due to mental health decisions.
• House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) subpoenaed the Justice Department in the “Fast and Furious” scandal. The subpoena seeks documents and all communications between the office of Attorney General Eric Holder, his deputies, and the White House in connection with the now-infamous Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive’s failed operation.
• U.S. Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Mark Begich (D-Alaska) introduced the Senate companion bill to H.R. 58, the “Firearms Interstate Commerce Reform Act,” which was reintroduced in the U.S. House in Jan. 2011. This common sense reform to broaden lawful interstate sales of firearms has been an NRA priority for many years.

November

• NRA launched an ad campaign to tell President Obama to fire Attorney General Eric Holder. The cauldron that is the “Fast and Furious” scandal continues to boil, with an increasing number of members of Congress now calling for Attorney General Eric Holder’s immediate resignation. Meanwhile, the White House and the Justice Department remain silent and stubbornly continue to ignore the demands to remove Holder.
• The Washington state Court of Appeals affirmed that a gun ban in Seattle's parks is illegal. The decision comes more than a year after a King County judge sided with several area gun owners, NRA, the Second Amendment Foundation.
• The ongoing effort to fully vindicate the fundamental, individual right to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense took a major step forward with House passage of H.R. 822, the “National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011.” The bill, sponsored by Reps. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), which had 245 cosponsors, was approved by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 272-154.
• The final conference report on the combined Fiscal Year 2012 Agriculture, Commerce/Justice/Science (CJS) and Transportation/Housing/Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill was passed by both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate, and was signed into law. This conference report contains 12 provisions that strengthen legal protections for the Second Amendment.
• NRA will fight the proposal by the Obama administration and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to drastically restrict recreational shooting opportunities on public lands. NRA is particularly concerned about the stated motive of this action. A spokesman for the BLM told U.S. News and World Report that the proposed ban was being enacted in response to "urbanites" who "freak out" when they hear shooting on public lands. The spokesman also acknowledged that the impetus for this restriction was not rooted in safety, but to reduce "social conflict."
• The Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism held a hearing on Sen. Charles Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) S. 436. Dubbed by anti-gunners the “Fix Gun Checks Act,” the legislation would eliminate private sales and gun shows as we know them and expand the range of persons prohibited from owning firearms.

December

• NRA opposition helps defeat the nomination of Caitlin Halligan to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Halligan had a record of attacks on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans. NRA’s opposition to this nomination began in March 2011, when we expressed our concerns to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary
• Gov. Scott Walker (R) signed Assembly Bill 69 into law. This law provides essential protections for law-abiding citizens who defend themselves and their families from a criminal looking to do them harm.

STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 18, No. 51 12/23/11


Three More Wins for Gun Owners

H.R. 2055—the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2012—has been passed by the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and has been sent to the President for his expected signature. This bill contains three NRA-backed provisions that will strengthen our Second Amendment rights and prohibit your federal tax dollars from being used to advance an anti-gun agenda.

Rumor Alert: Appropriations Bill Blocks New Shotgun Ban—Does Not Repeal “Sporting Purposes” Test:

This year, NRA-ILA worked with pro-gun legislators to include a provision in the 2012 Commerce, Justice and Science appropriations legislation to help prohibit the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from banning the importation of shotguns that are currently legally imported. That legislation was a part of a consolidated appropriations bill that Congress passed to fund major portions of the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year 2012.


Firearm Accident Fatalities at an All-Time Low:

Data recently released by the National Center for Health Statistics shows that in 2008, the number and per capita rate of firearm accident deaths fell to an all-time low. There were 592 firearm accident deaths (0.19 such accidents per 100,000 population) in 2008, as compared to 613 accidents (.20 per 100,000) in 2007. In 2008, the chance of a child dying in a firearm accident was roughly one in a million.


List of Congressmen Calling for Holder’s Resignation Continues to Grow:

Attorney General Eric Holder remains embroiled in controversy over the highly publicized and ill-fated “Operation Fast and Furious.”

There will be no State Roundup in this week’s Grassroots Alert. NRA will be closing at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, December 23rd, and will
remain closed on Monday, December 26th. Additionally, NRA will be closing at
3:00 p.m. Friday, December 30th, and will remain closed on Monday, January 2nd.

Because of this abbreviated schedule, we will not transmit the Grassroots Alert next week.

We will re-open on Tuesday, January 3rd, at 8:30 a.m., EST,
and will transmit the next Grassroots Alert on Friday, January 6, 2012.Please have a safe and happy Holiday season!

NRA-ILA Legal Update -- December 2011

Opening Briefs Filed in Federal Age Limit Challenge

On Dec. 5, the NRA filed its opening appellate brief on behalf of several law-abiding young adults challenging the federal ban on dealer sales of handguns and handgun ammunition to persons between the ages of 18 and 20. The case is Jennings v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and will be heard in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. (A similar case challenging Texas' age limit of 21 for issuance of concealed handgun licenses remains pending in the trial court.)
The appeal challenges a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, which held that the law does not violate the Second Amendment. The lower court wrongly compared the ban to other restrictions the Supreme Court has said would be “presumptively lawful," such as the ban on sales to convicted felons.
In response, the brief points out that nearly a decade before Supreme Court decided District of Columbia v. Heller, the Fifth Circuit itself had held (in the 2001 case of United States v. Emerson) that Second Amendment claims should be decided based on the amendment's "history and text." The history of the Founding era makes clear that 18-year-olds were considered adults for purposes of the right to keep and bear arms; for example, the Militia Act of 1792 required 18-year-olds to "be enrolled in the militia" and to arm themselves accordingly.
The brief also argues that the right to possess arms clearly implies a right to acquire arms—a principle that has been recognized in other areas, such as First Amendment law. For example, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a New York City anti-graffiti law banning retail sales of marking pens and spray paint to people under 21, even though older friends or relatives could buy these items for use by legitimate young artists.
Amazingly, the government makes a similar argument in Jennings, suggesting that the ban on dealer sales is constitutional because young adults could legally receive handguns or ammunition as gifts, or buy them in private, unlicensed sales. (The government's argument surely must be causing heartburn at the Brady Center, since the alternatives suggested by the government would not be subject to background checks in most states.)
But as the NRA's brief notes, "none of the Plaintiffs has found this mode of random scrounging for second-hand pistols from unlicensed individual gun owners to be a satisfactory avenue for acquiring reliable, safe, and popular handguns." And a "friend of the court" brief by the National Shooting Sports Foundation points out that the ban deprives young buyers of benefits that are more readily available through licensed dealers, such as warranties, instruction manuals and safety training.

Supreme Court Declines to Hear Carry Cases

On Nov. 28, the U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review the second of two cases involving the right to bear arms outside the home. The Nov. 28 denial in United States v. Masciandaro follows an Oct. 3 denial in Williams v. Maryland.
Masciandaro involved a challenge to the now-repealed ban on possessing firearms in national parks. The defendant was arrested after police found him sleeping in his car on National Park Service property near Washington, D.C. and a search of the vehicle revealed his handgun. Two judges on a three-judge panel of the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the regulation, arguing that the lower courts should wait for the Supreme Court to provide clearer guidance before striking down carry bans.
Williams was an appeal from Maryland's highest court, which upheld the conviction of a defendant who was caught carrying his pistol in a backpack at a bus stop. The Maryland Court of Appeals court held—very wrongly—that the Second Amendment simply provides no protection for carrying firearms outside the home.
While the Supreme Court's decision not to hear these cases greatly reduces the chance that the court will explore this aspect of the Second Amendment during the 2011-12 term, several excellent cases addressing carriage outside the home are currently pending in the lower courts. Those include the NRA-supported cases of Peruta v. County of San Diego, which challenges discriminatory permit issuance under California law; Jennings v. McCraw, the Texas carriage case noted above; and Shepard v. Madigan, challenging Illinois' complete denial of any lawful way to carry firearms for self-defense outside one's home or place of business. Peruta is pending in the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; Jennings is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas; and Shepard is awaiting action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.

Washington Court Rules That Seattle Gun Ban is Illegal

On Oct. 31, the Washington state Court of Appeals affirmed that a gun ban in Seattle's parks is illegal. The decision comes more than a year after a King County judge sided with several area gun owners, the NRA and the Second Amendment Foundation by blocking enforcement of the law.
In 2008, the city of Seattle and then-Mayor Greg Nickels (D) enacted a rule that banned firearms and "dangerous weapons" from city parks, community centers and other city properties. In 2009, the city added another rule that banned guns from parks where children are "likely to be present."
In October 2009, the NRA and other plaintiffs asked the King County Superior Court to strike down the ban as a violation of Washington's preemption statute, which forbids localities from enacting this type of ban. Specifically, the preemption statute says the state preempts the field of firearm regulation, and prohibits cities from regulating firearms—a position supported by an Oct. 2008 legal opinion from state Attorney General Rob McKenna (R).
In response, the city claimed the ban wasn't a "law" or a criminal regulation, and that it was acting in its "proprietary capacity" as a property owner.
In February 2010, the Superior Court of King County struck down the Seattle City Parks and Recreation rule banning firearms from city parks, including possession by Right-to-Carry permit holders. The city appealed.
In the Oct. 31 ruling, the Court of Appeals panel wrote: "We hold that under the plain language of RCW 9.41.290 and RCW 9.41.300, the City's attempt to regulate the possession of firearms at designated park areas and park facilities open to the public by adopting the Firearms Rule is preempted by state law."
The court's opinion further stated, "The Firearms Rule regulates the possession of firearms at designated city parks and park facilities open to the general public. [The case law on which the City relies] does not support the City's position that RCW 9.41.290 does not apply because it is acting as a property owner and setting conditions on use of its property. Except as authorized by the legislature, RCW 9.41.290 precludes a municipality from regulating the possession of firearms at city-owned park facilities open to the general public."
Unfortunately, this long-running case isn't yet over; the city has appealed to the Washington Supreme Court.


NRA Briefs Defend the Fourth Amendment

The NRA and the California Rifle and Pistol Association Foundation have filed two "friend of the court" briefs in U.S. Supreme Court cases involving the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. The cases highlight the importance of other provisions of the Bill of Rights in protecting the rights of gun owners and hunters.
The first case, Messerschmidt v. Millender, involves a civil rights lawsuit brought by Augusta Millender of Los Angeles. The events leading to the suit began when police searching for a domestic assault suspect obtained a search warrant for Ms. Millender's house; Ms. Millender, then 73 years old, had been the suspect's foster mother 15 years earlier. Although the police knew the suspect's gun was a "black sawed off shotgun with a pistol grip," and officers even had photographs of the suspect holding it, they obtained a warrant for, among other things:
All handguns, rifles or shotguns of any caliber, or any firearms capable of firing ammunition or firearms or devices modified or designed to allow it [sic] to fire ammunition. All caliber of ammunition, miscellaneous gun parts, gun cleaning kits, holsters which could hold or have held any caliber handgun being sought. Any receipts or paperwork, showing the purchase, ownership, or possession of the handguns being sought. Any firearm for which there is no proof of ownership. Any firearm capable of firing or chambered to fire any caliber ammunition.
At Ms. Millender's house, officers seized her personal shotgun, which clearly didn't match the description or photos. (It had a wooden stock and wasn't sawed off.) Both the trial court and the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals agreed with Ms. Millender that the officers were not immune from suit, because the warrant failed to meet the Fourth Amendment's requirement that warrants "particularly describe[e] the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
The government is now appealing the Ninth Circuit's decision. The NRA/CRPAF brief argues that "Since firearms are lawful to possess and are constitutionally protected, no basis exists for a search warrant to seize them absent rigorous fulfillment of the Fourth Amendment's probable cause and particularity requirements." The brief goes on to explain that one of the original reasons for enactment of the Fourth Amendment was to prevent seizure of firearms, as had occurred in 17th century England and in Colonial America a century later. Likewise, a key purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment was to prevent seizure of arms from freedmen after the Civil War.
The second case, Maikhio v. California, should be of special interest to hunters—but also to any gun owner who might be mistaken for a hunter or fisherman, perhaps by having pro-hunting stickers on his vehicle. That's because the case is an appeal of a California Supreme Court decision in an illegal fishing case; the court held that a game warden could stop a vehicle without a warrant or reasonable suspicion if the "game warden had reason to believe an occupant had recently been fishing or hunting."
The NRA/CRPAF brief argues that the California Supreme Court's decision wrongly created a lower standard for hunters and fishermen, in violation of Supreme Court precedent and in spite of the long and honorable tradition of hunting and fishing in the United States.


City of Los Angeles Forced to Turn Over Documents Regarding Concealed Carry License Decisions

On December 13, 2011, in a victory for self-defense civil rights activists, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Chalfant (Department 85 - Central District Courthouse) granted a motion to compel and ordered the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Police Department ("LAPD"), and the LAPD Chief of Police Charlie Beck to produce documents relating to the LAPD's policies and procedures for processing applications for a license to carry a concealed firearm.
In 1992 and 1994, the City's unlawful refusal to properly process CCW applications was challenged in two lawsuits. To settle the suits, LAPD agreed to a court-ordered application processing procedure. The LAPD agreed to a definition of "good cause" that was articulated in the settlement, and agreed that all citizens who request a CCW permit application would be provided a CCW application at any LAPD station house, along with a copy of the LAPD's procedure for handling the application, and the procedures for appealing the denial of a CCW application. The settlementsalso resulted in the establishment of a Citizens Advisory Review Panel, made up of appointed citizens who would review CCW applications denied by the LAPD and make recommendations regarding whether the Chief should reverse the denial.
The LAPD has repeatedly failed to honor its legal obligations under the settlements. It has not made CCW applications and a written copy of the CCW policy and appeal process available at all station houses. And it has ignored the recommendations of the Citizens Advisory Review Panel and has instead enacted a de facto policy of again issuing no CCWs, despite whatever showing of good cause the applicants might make.
To rectify this situation two new legal actions, funded by NRA-ILA and CRPAF through our joint Legal Action Project, were filed.
The first is a motion to enforce the court's old order in the 1994 case, Assenza v. City of Los Angeles. Some of the original plaintiffs from that Assenza case seek to force the LAPD to reinstate its agreed-to policy of providing applications and copies of its written policy at all LAPD station houses. In support of its motion, NRA grassroots activist citizens were recruited to investigate the LAPD's practices and submitted declarations about their recent attempts to get CCW applications. They were frustrated by uncooperative officers at individual station houses, all of whom had a complete lack of understanding of the LAPD's application process, and who in almost all instances could not provide a CCW application to the requesting citizen, much less a copy of the LAPD’s written policy. Perhaps most egregiously, LAPD officers bluntly told citizens that unless they were celebrities, they shouldn't even bother filling out the CCW application because they would be denied a CCW as a matter of LAPD policy.
The second action is a new lawsuit, Davis v. City of Los Angeles. The nine plaintiffs in this suit, some of whom have had CCW applications pending and unresolved with the LAPD for years, have been subjected to a litany of abuses by LAPD in its handling of their CCW applications relating to LAPD's continued failure to comply with the original Assenza judgment. These abuses include not only the failures to provide applications and copies of the written policies at LAPD station houses, but also refusals to timely consider their applications, failures to respond to inquiries regarding the status of applications, failures to acknowledge the availability of the Citizens Advisory Review Panel as a method of appealing denial, and failure to give any weight to recommendations by the Citizens Advisory Review Panel.
As part of the Davis lawsuit, NRA-ILA and CRPA propounded discovery requests on the City seeking all documents produced, generated, created, consulted, referenced, and/or utilized which showed Chief Charlie Beck's evaluation, assessment, and decision to follow, and not follow, the positive recommendations of the Citizens Advisory Review Panel. We also sought documents relating to the current City and County of LA residents with active CCW licenses issued by Chief Charlie Beck.
The City refused to turn over any documents relating to these requests based on frivolous objections such as relevance, attorney-client and work product privilege, and vagueness, ambiguity, and burdensomeness. We quickly responded and informed the City that their objections lacked merit, especially because all of these requests were public records pursuant to the California Public Records Act.
The City also raised the novel, but unsupportable argument, that the Assenza procedures they should have been operating under in considering the Davis plaintiffs' CCW applications did not apply to the Davis plaintiffs, or any other citizen in Los Angeles other than the original Assenza plaintiffs. Thus, the City claimed that it should not have to produce any discovery materials to the Davis plaintiffs about whether the City's past handling of CCW applications complied with Assenza's procedures because the City argues that such procedures are irrelevant to the City's handling of the Davis plaintiffs' CCW applications.
Needless to say, the Court was asked to intervene and we filed a motion to compel to produce the requested documents. In ordering the City to produce the documents, the Court noted that the City's attempt to justify its refusal to turn them over consisted of mere "boilerplate objections," some of which were not made "in good faith." Furthermore, the Court indicated that the requests were directly relevant to investigating whether the City is in compliance with the Assenza judgment and the requirements of Penal Code section 12050.


Cases Pending


For more detail concerning these cases, go to http://nraila.org/legalupdate/.

California – Challenge to "May Issue" Carry Law
Peruta v. County of San Diego, (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit) -- challenges San Diego County Sheriff William Gore's refusal to issue carry permits to qualified applicants.
California – Ban on Online Ammunition Sales

Parker v. California (Fresno Superior Court) – challenges a ban on direct mail order and online purchases of ammunition. The state of California has filed an appeal to the permanent injunction on the enforcement of the law which was issued in January.

Delaware – Second Amendment Rights in Public Housing
Doe v. Wilmington Public Housing Authority – challenges restrictions on firearm ownership for residents of public housing.

Illinois – Ban on Gun Stores in Chicago
Benson v. City of Chicago (U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois) -- challenges the ban on gun stores in the city of Chicago.

New York -- Handguns for Part-Time Residents
Osterweil v. Bartlett (Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals) -- challenges New York state law that prevents part-time residents from getting permits to possess handguns in their homes.

Washington, D.C. – Second Amendment Rights in Public Housing
Scott v. District of Columbia Housing Authority -- challenges restrictions on firearm ownership for residents of public housing. The court has issued a stay, postponing any action on this case while the D.C. government issues new regulations.

NRA-ILA Referrals and NRA-ILA Supported Litigation

Referrals

The NRA maintains a list of attorneys who have identified themselves as willing to consider cases involving NRA members. If a referral is given, the member must negotiate fees and arrangements with the attorney directly. By providing referrals, we are not endorsing or recommending any attorney on the list for any purpose -- the attorneys on the list have simply asked to be placed on our list but have not been vetted by the NRA.

Supported Litigation: How NRA-ILA Accepts Cases

NRA-ILA cannot generally insert itself into litigation in which we are not a party. In order to get involved, we must be invited by a party or the court. Feel free to let us know about cases that may be of interest; however, please do not contact us to become involved in cases to which you are not a party.

NRA-ILA generally assists in cases that affect the Second Amendment civil liberties or civil rights of large numbers of our members and gun owners in general, rather than those involving a dispute between individual parties. The basic questions we ask when reviewing a potential case are:

1. Is this a significant Second Amendment civil liberties or civil rights issue or a vital but derivative civil liberties or civil rights issue?
2. What effect will this case have on people other than the applicant?
3. Do we have the necessary resources to take this case?

Unfortunately, despite the thousands of requests for assistance we receive each year, there are many legitimate and compelling cases in which NRA-ILA is simply unable to assist, as we do not have unlimited resources. We regret that we cannot provide assistance in many cases even if they fall within the guidelines discussed above. To that end, we encourage you to contact the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund (Civil Rights Legal Defense Fund - Default), which provides legal and financial assistance to selected individuals and organizations defending their right to keep and bear arms.

Important Note Regarding Deadlines

All legal claims have time deadlines. These deadlines may be different depending on the nature of the issue and the parties involved. For some kinds of civil cases, you may need to file a claim with a government agency before you can sue, and agencies have their own time deadlines.
If you do not comply with the applicable deadlines, you may be legally barred from pursuing your claim in court. Contacting us to describe your problem does not mean that we represent you, nor does it stop the statute of limitations from running. NRA-ILA cannot give you advice about the specific deadlines that apply to your case. To protect your rights, please consult an attorney promptly to find out what deadlines may apply to your particular situation.

Tell Us What You Think!

If you have any comments on the NRA-ILA Legal Update or suggestions for topics, please e-mail us at legalupdate@nrahq.org. Please do not send requests for legal assistance to this address. Those should be sent to the attention of NRA-ILA Legislative Counsel via phone at (703) 267-1161; fax to (703) 267-1164; or e-mail to ILALegal@nrahq.org.

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 19, No. 01 01/06/12

Holder to Testify on “Fast and Furious” Before House Committee

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) announced this week that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will testify on Feb. 2 before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee about his role in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ now-infamous “Operation Fast and Furious.”

Issa, who is chairman of the House committee, and Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) have led an ongoing investigation into the role of Holder and the Department of Justice in the operation.

Rumor Alert: Veterans’ Health and “Sporting Purposes” Among the thousands of questions NRA-ILA answers every month by email, phone and letter are scores that begin “This guy told me he heard …” Unfortunately, all too often this is the telltale sign of one of the rampant rumors that circulate around campfires or gun store counters, and especially on the Internet. Three of the most recent top rumors involve veterans’ gun rights, the status of the “sporting purposes” test for firearms importation, and new restrictions on gun shows.

Record NICS Checks in 2011: In January, the FBI reported that the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) performed a record number of background checks in 2011. Over 99 percent of NICS checks are firearm-related.

Obama to Congress: I’ll Decide What’s Constitutional: This week, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox wrote a comprehensive op-ed for the Daily Caller regarding President Obama abusing executive privilege and seeking new ways to vilify gun owners and further his anti-gun agenda.

To read the piece, please click here.

Get Involved In This Year’s Elections: NRA, along with America’s gun owners and Second Amendment supporters, have long been anticipating the 2012 elections—discussing, planning, preparing to ensure that our nation heads in the right direction of protecting freedom and our Second Amendment rights. Now is the time to put those plans into action, and with the help of the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division, we are confident in victory for 2012!
STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 19, No. 02 01/13/12

Federal Court Upholds Obama/Holder Gun Registration Scheme; Congressional Action Needed

Moments before this alert was to go out, a federal district court in Washington, D.C. issued a ruling upholding an Obama administration policy that requires federally licensed firearms retailers in states bordering Mexico to report multiple sales of semi-automatic rifles. The case was brought by two NRA-backed firearms retailers and by the National Shooting Sports Foundation acting on behalf of its affected members. Plaintiffs plan to appeal immediately—but in the meantime, your help is urgently needed in seeking congressional action to end this illegal policy.
Devised by Attorney General Eric Holder’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the plan requires all of the 8,700 firearm dealers in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to report all sales of two or more semi-automatic rifles within five consecutive business days, if the rifles are larger than .22 caliber and use detachable magazines. (The plaintiffs in the case pointed out that this was about 20 times more dealers than had been subject to any similar “demand letter” before, but in today's decision the court nonetheless found the new requirement “limited in scope.”)
It is imperative that you contact your U.S. Senators and ask them to cosponsor and support S. 570. You can find contact information for your elected officials by using the "Write Your Representatives" tool at www.NRAILA.org, or you can call your U.S. senators at (202) 224-3121.

Gun Control Activists Fire Squib Loads:

On Monday, Josh Horwitz of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence—previously known as the National Coalition to Ban Handguns— penned an item for the very left-leaning Huffington Post website, deriding media reporters for writing articles that say gun sales are booming.

STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 19, No. 03 01/20/12

NRA Will Appeal Texas Concealed Handgun Case

NRA will appeal yesterday’s decision by a federal court in Texas, which held that the Second Amendment doesn’t protect any right to keep or bear arms outside the home.

The decision, handed down by U.S. District Judge Sam Cummings of the Northern District of Texas, came in the case of Jennings v. McCraw, in which a group of law-abiding 18- to 20-year old adults challenged the state law prohibiting issuance of concealed handgun licenses to persons under 21, who are treated as adults for virtually every other purpose under the law. (NRA is also a party on behalf of its members in this age group.) Judge Cummings ruled that it was unnecessary to address the state’s discrimination against young adults because “the right to carry a handgun outside of the home … seems to be beyond the scope of the core Second Amendment concern articulated in Heller [v. District of Columbia].”

Chicago: Challenge to Ban on Guns Outside the Home Goes Forward:
On January 19, a federal judge in Chicago allowed NRA-supported plaintiffs to move ahead with a challenge to that city’s laws that ban anyone from possessing or carrying a handgun except in his or her home, and that ban possession or carriage of a long gun anywhere outside his or her home or place of business.

Congressional Action Needed to Stop Obama/Holder Gun Registration Scheme: Last week, a federal district court in Washington, D.C. issued a ruling upholding an Obama administration policy that requires federally licensed firearms retailers in states bordering Mexico to report multiple sales of semi-automatic rifles. The case was brought by two NRA-backed firearms retailers and by the National Shooting Sports Foundation acting on behalf of its affected members. Plaintiffs have already filed an appeal—but while we await the outcome, your help is urgently needed in seeking congressional action to end this illegal policy.

Rumor Alert: The Vehicle Gun Theft “Epidemic”: Long before Al Gore “created” the Internet, gun owners were busy perfecting grassroots networking. Today, gun owners have an almost unlimited number of ways to spread information crucial to our community. And, while the Internet is certainly an indispensible tool for protecting our rights, an unfortunate side effect has been the fast and easy spread of rumors.

STATE ROUNDUP

NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT
Vol. 19, No. 04 01/27/12

Act Now to Stop Obama/Holder Gun Registration Scheme

Recently, a federal district court in Washington, D.C. issued a ruling upholding an Obama administration policy that requires federally licensed firearms retailers in states bordering Mexico to report multiple sales of semi-automatic rifles. The case was brought by two NRA-backed firearm retailers and by the National Shooting Sports Foundation acting on behalf of its affected members. Plaintiffs have already filed an appeal—but while we await the outcome, your help is urgently needed in seeking congressional action to end this illegal policy.

Devised by Attorney General Eric Holder’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the plan requires all of the 8,700 firearm dealers in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to report all sales of two or more semi-automatic rifles within five consecutive business days, if the rifles are larger than .22 caliber and use detachable magazines.

“A Significant Indictment” of DOJ’s “Integrity”:In a move that stunned members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the chief of the criminal division in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona has cited his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination and refused to testify.

Outrage of the Week: Politician Attacks Sheriff’s Support of Self-Defense: During an Oct. 31 press conference following the attempted rape of a woman walking her dog by a convicted felon, Spartanburg County, S.C., Sheriff Chuck Wright didn’t mince words. “It’s too bad someone with a concealed weapons permit didn’t walk by. That would fix it,” Wright said. Wright then repeatedly told his constituents “I want you to get a concealed weapons permit.” To hammer the point home he held up a fanny pack, saying, “They make this right here where you can conceal a small pistol in them.”

Vol. 19, No. 05 02/03/12

Holder Testifies on “Fast and Furious”

On Thursday, February 2, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee regarding his role in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' gun running operation known as “Fast and Furious.”

During the hearing, Holder continued to deny any foreknowledge of the botched operation. Representative Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), chairman of the House committee, led the charge in questioning Holder on his involvement and knowledge. When Issa asked Holder if he had been briefed on the wiretaps presented in this case, Holder responded, "These wiretaps are very voluminous, read well kinds of things. I have not read them."

The U.S. Attorney General has an obligation to the American people to know what is going on under his watch, but throughout the hearing Holder continuously tried to distance himself from the activities of his staff.

At one point during the hearing, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) told Holder, "You've not taken action, you've not fired anybody, you haven't changed policy, because it's clear you didn't enforce the policy before.

" Help Defeat Gun Registration Scheme:

“Fast and Furious” was also used as justification to force what amounts to a gun registration scheme. Devised by Holder and the Obama administration, the scheme requires federally licensed firearms retailers in states bordering Mexico to report all sales of two or more semiautomatic rifles within five consecutive business days, if the rifles are larger than .22 caliber and use detachable magazines. Yet, under existing law, the bureau has full access to every record of every firearm transaction by every licensed dealer, whether during a bona fide criminal investigation or simply to enforce compliance with record keeping requirements. This reporting scheme would create a registry of owners of many of today's most popular rifles--firearms owned by millions of Americans for self-defense, hunting and other lawful purposes. Emerging evidence has made it clear that “Fast and Furious” was used as justification to force the multiple sales reporting requirement.

MAIG Super Bowl Super Stunt:

Vitriolic anti-gun mayor Michael Bloomberg (I-NYC) and his gun control group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), are paying for their 30 seconds of fame. According to a New York Times piece, Bloomberg will join his gun-grabbing cohort, Mayor Tom Menino of Boston (D), in a Super Bowl-themed ad calling for more gun control laws.

Firearms Law Seminar:

The 15th Annual Firearms Law Seminar will be held on Friday, April 13, 2012, as part of the NRA Annual Meeting. The gold standard in firearms CLE classes, this day-long seminar provides legal instruction for practicing attorneys who represent firearms owners, licensed dealers and gunsmiths, attorneys wishing to expand their practice to such clients, and others having an interest in Second Amendment law. The nationally-renowned faculty will include Stephen Halbrook, Second Amendment attorney and author; Robert Dowlut, NRA General Counsel; Missouri attorney and author Kevin Jamison; Cindy Hill, attorney and author of Brady Denial? You CAN Get Your Guns Back!; Missouri Supreme Court Judge Zel Fischer; and officials from the F.B.I. and A.T.F. The special luncheon speaker will be Lt. Col. Oliver North. Topics to be discussed include: pending litigation; federal firearms prohibitions and the restoration of firearms rights; the 2007 NICS Improvement Act and its implementation; defending outdoor shooting ranges; current legal issues for gunsmiths; gun forfeitures; the National Firearms Act and NFA Trusts.

STATE ROUNDUP

Massachusetts: Castle Doctrine Legislation to be Heard Tomorrow

Contact members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary TODAY!

Tomorrow, the state Joint Committee on the Judiciary is scheduled to hear important self-defense legislation at 1:00 p.m. in room B-1 of the State House. Senate Bill 661, Castle Doctrine legislation introduced by state Senator Stephen Brewer, would provide essential protections for law-abiding citizens who defend themselves and their families from a criminal looking to do them harm.

The “Castle Doctrine” establishes the presumption that an individual who forcibly enters one’s home, business or occupied motor vehicle is there to cause death or great bodily harm, and allows the use of force, including deadly force, against that person. This bill also eliminates any “duty to retreat” so that law-abiding citizens no longer must turn their back on a criminal and try to run when attacked.

Finally, SB 661 would provide that any person who uses force, authorized by law, shall not be prosecuted for using such force and also prohibits criminals and their families from suing victims for injuring or killing the criminals who have attacked them. In short, it restores rights to law-abiding people and forces judges and prosecutors to focus on protecting victims.

Please call AND e-mail members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary TODAY and urge them to SUPPORT SB 661. Contact information for the committee can be found here.


This alert is posted to http://www.nraila.org/legislation/state-legislation/2012/massachusetts/massachusetts-castle-doctrine-legislation-to-be-heard-tomorrow.aspx?s=&st=&ps=

Vol. 19, No. 06 02/10/12

Diminishing the Constitution

It is certainly no surprise for gun owners to see the New York Times run a story belittling the United States Constitution. After all, the Times has worked for decades to devalue our founding document.

“ts influence is waning,” opines the Times. It is “terse and old, and it guarantees relatively few rights.” The paper faults the Constitution for being difficult to amend and reflective of the times in which it was written. While the Times does not go so far as to claim the U.S. Constitution has been bad for America, it does lament that it is of “little current use to, say, a new African nation.”
But it was a much bigger shock when the Times reported in the same story that Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a sitting associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and grande dame of the Court’s liberal voting bloc, shares the Times’ dim view of the Constitution. Ginsburg said “I would not look to the United States Constitution if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012.” Her personal recommendations would instead include “the South African Constitution, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the European Convention on Human Rights.” Read more…

Bloomberg: Police Your Police:

Despite Mayor Bloomberg’s publicity stunt last week in the form of a Super Bowl gun control ad with his gun-grabbing cohort, Boston Mayor Tom Menino, Bloomberg’s time in reducing gun crime could better be spent policing his own…police. Read more…

Holder Tells Congress the Obama Administration Wants To Ban Guns:

This week, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox wrote an op-ed for the Daily Caller regarding U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder’s February 2 appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, where Holder answered questions about his role in the deadly “Fast and Furious” gun-running scandal. Of particular import during the hearings was Holder’s admission to Congress that the Obama administration still hopes to reinstate former President Bill Clinton’s so-called “assault weapons” ban.

To read the article, please click here.

Defeat the Holder/Obama Gun Registration Scheme:

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the Obama administration have devised and implemented a plan that amounts to a gun registration scheme. Read more…
Firearms Law Seminar: The 15th Annual Firearms Law Seminar will be held on Friday, April 13, 2012, as part of the NRA Annual Meeting. Read more…

CPAC 2012: NRA EVP & CEO Wayne LaPierre

Watch "Gunny" Take Charge in Our New TV Ad!

Too many Americans have, for one reason or another, have chosen to sit on the sidelines by not registering to vote. Unfortunately, this includes too many American gun owners. It's part of my job to do something about that.
That's why the NRA Freedom Action Foundation is wasting no time this year to launch our massive "Trigger the Vote" voter registration drive. Protecting our freedoms requires an informed electorate that's motivated to go to the polls. We know that when gun owners vote, freedom wins!
But in virtually every state, you have to be registered before you can vote. That's why the NRA Freedom Action Foundation sponsors the important "Trigger the Vote" voter registration campaign, featuring film legend Chuck Norris as our Honorary Chairman.
This year, Chuck is getting an assist from another action hero - R. Lee "Gunny" Ermey, retired Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant, and member of the NRA Board of Directors. We are proud that Gunny volunteered his time to film a new voter registration PSA, and we wanted to give NRA Members the first look. Here's what Gunny had to say about the ad:
"Listen up and hear me well! This is a critical time for our nation, and too many people are sitting back to let others do the hard work. So it's time for all of us to put some gas in it and persuade all eligible gun owners to register. That's why I volunteered my time to film the ad shown here. Now it's your turn and I want to see results! Start now by sending this message to everyone you know who supports the Second Amendment. I expect 110% right now from everyone who values our freedoms! NO EXCUSES. And remember -- pain is just weakness leaving the body!"
- R. Lee "Gunny" Ermey, NRA Board of Directors
Sounds like he's serious! Watch the ad http://www.triggerthevote.org/landing2/ and send it to your friends, family, and fellow gun owners.
Sincerely,

Chris W. Cox
Executive Director
NRA Institute for Legislative Action

Massachusetts: Castle Doctrine Legislation Remains in Committee

Contact members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary TODAY!

The Massachusetts Joint Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing on February 6 on Senate Bill 661, an important self-defense bill, but has not yet voted this bill out of committee. Please call AND e-mail members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary TODAY and urge them to vote SB 661 out of the committee, so it may move forward though the legislative process. Contact information for the committee can be found here.

SB 661, Castle Doctrine legislation introduced by state Senator Stephen Brewer, would provide essential protections for law-abiding citizens who defend themselves and their families from a criminal looking to do them harm.

The “Castle Doctrine” establishes the presumption that an individual who forcibly enters one’s home, business or occupied motor vehicle is there to cause death or great bodily harm, and allows the use of force, including deadly force, against that person. This bill also eliminates any “duty to retreat” so that law-abiding citizens no longer must turn their back on a criminal and try to run when attacked.

Finally, SB 661 would provide that any person who uses force, authorized by law, shall not be prosecuted for using such force and also prohibits criminals and their families from suing victims for injuring or killing the criminals who have attacked them. In short, it restores rights to law-abiding people and forces judges and prosecutors to focus on protecting victims.




This alert is posted to http://nraila.org/legislation/state-legislation/2012/02/massachusetts-castle-doctrine-legislation-remains-in-committee