DC To File En Banc Appeal: D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty said city officials on Monday will file a legal challenge to a federal appeals court decision that struck down the District's 30-year-old gun ban...The District's gun laws, which are among the nation's strictest, will remain in place through the appeals process. Chris W. Cox, chief lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, said the District's appeal was expected. (It's amazing how the NRA has now become the voice for Parker.) http://www.washtimes.com/metro/20070406-103240-7202r.htm Sen. Larry Craig Comments: http://mensnewsdaily.com/2007/04/06/second-amendment-comes-first/ --- Major New Mexico CCW Reform: This week, Governor Bill Richardson (D) signed into law House Bill 588. Sponsored by State Representative John Heaton (D-Carlsbad), this NRA-backed legislation will allow Concealed Handgun License holders to protect themselves in establishments that sell alcohol for off-premises consumption. This law will take effect on July 1, 2007. http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Read.aspx?id=2833 --- Colorado May Extend CCW Database: A proposal to continue a database of the state's concealed weapons permit holders advanced in the Senate Thursday after a Western Slope Democrat switched her vote to support it. The database is set to expire July 1. The measure (House Bill 1174) would extend it for another four years and require the state auditor to study whether the information is accurate and whether it is helping law enforcement and public safety. http://cbs4denver.com/politics/local_story_096075443.html --- Albany NY Mayor Blinks: Two days after proposing stricter gun laws, Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings is taking a step back. The mayor says after receiving a number of phone calls from gun owners he realizes some of his proposed law already exists...The president of the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association says the mayor has targeted gun owners who abide by the laws and not those who don't. http://www.wnyt.com/x12789.xml?ag=x995&sb=x183 Related Article: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=578459&category=REGION&newsdate=4/6/2007 Related Commentary: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=578500&category=OPINION&newsdate=4/6/2007 --- Pennsylvania Gun Owners Will Protest Registration Bill: The State in considering stiffer registration laws. The proposed law, House Bill 760, would require ALL firearms to be registered annually. The registration would cost $10 per gun each year. Owners would have to provide two forms of photo identification and fingerprints...On Tuesday, April 24, gun owners voices can be heard in Harrisburg at the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Pro-2nd Amendment Press Conference. The conference will run 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. inside the Capital Building on the Rotunda Steps. http://www.solanconews.com/Gov/Articles/2007/070406_gunregistration.htm --- Mitt Romney, Small-Game Hunter: The former Massachusetts governor has called himself a lifelong hunter, yet his campaign acknowledged that he has been on just two hunting trips - one when he was 15 and the other just last year. "I'm not a big-game hunter. I've made that very clear," he said. "I've always been a rodent and rabbit hunter. Small varmints, if you will. I began when I was 15 or so and I have hunted those kinds of varmints since then. More than two times." http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8OAQAK82&show_article=1 "I'm more Jed Clampett than Teddy Roosevelt": Officials in the four states where Mitt Romney has lived say the Republican presidential contender, who calls himself a lifelong hunter, never took out a license. Romney says that's because he has seldom hunted where he needed one...Of the four states, Utah has the most liberal hunting regulations for small game. Jack rabbits can be hunted without a license and killed without limit, but cottontail rabbits and snowshoe hares require a license. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/04/06/politics/p181509D49.DTL&type=politics --- Prohibitionists Protest Memorial Statue: A planned statue depicting a local hero, a Navy SEAL killed in Afghanistan, has drawn opposition from some parents, who say the image and location are inappropriate for children. A bronze sculpture of Petty Officer 2nd Class Danny Dietz Jr. showing him cradling his rifle across his chest is scheduled to be unveiled July 4 at Berry Park here, where he grew up and attended school...But a group of parents wants the city to recast the statue or place it elsewhere, arguing that the site, near three elementary schools and two parks, is a hub for young children who could find the weapon disturbing. http://www.washtimes.com/national/20070406-115248-9955r.htm --- The Law Of Unintended Consequences: Mike Vanderboegh recalls a conversation he had with a gun-banning "child psychiatrist" a few years ago. (For those who may not be familiar with it, John Ross wrote a docu-fiction novel entitled Unintended Consequences, involving a spontaneous rebellion against the BATF and other government agencies. Reportedly out of print at one time, it is currently offered by Amazon, among other vendors.) http://waronguns.blogspot.com/2007/04/guest-editorial-you-cant-repeal-law-of.html --- Idaho FFL Loses Round In Court: A federal judge has refused to grant temporary relief to a local gun shop barred from trading and buying guns. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives stripped Red's Trading Post, 215 Shoshone St. South, of its license on March 5, freezing further trades and purchases until the matter is settled in court. http://www.magicvalley.com/articles/2007/04/06/news/local_state/109638.txt --- Rule Five Reminder: Once again, from New Jersey...A Jersey City cop thought he'd left behind a little more than he intended when he stopped at a Port Authority facility to use a restroom, officials said. But it turns out he'd left his gun not on the toilet but in his home, police said yesterday. (Rule Five: Maintain control of your firearm. While this rule is primarily oriented toward limiting unauthorized access, it also relates to maintaining your own access in an emergency.) http://www.nj.com/news/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/news-4/1175839265168110.xml&coll=3 --- Oops, Wrong House: A Tennessee man picked the wrong home to invade. Investigators say the man came to the door with a gun drawn. They say the home owner acted in self-defense and fired with his own weapons, fatally wounding the would-be home invader on the porch of the home. http://www.wrcbtv.com/news/index.cfm?sid=7446 --- Oops, Wrong Strip Club: Two robbers burst into the South Baltimore strip club just before closing time early Thursday morning. The pair demanded money. One aimed a shotgun at the ceiling and fired a round, the other brandished a handgun. Among the 20 or so patrons still at Fantasies Nightclub were two city police officers...Both drew their service weapons to break up the 2 a.m. robbery - one robber died in the subsequent shootout, the other was injured. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-shooting0405,0,5404244.story?coll=bal-home-headlines --- Want To Tell Your Self-Defense Story?: ABC News purports to be seeking people who have used firearms in self-defense. "If you have a story of self-defense involving the aid of a gun and would like to tell it to 20/20, please fill out the form below. A "20/20" producer may contact you." (Be aware that TV journalists and their editors "cut and paste" their video material and may only use carefully selected portions of your interview.) http://www.abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=3015150 --- More On Sale Of Remington: Although Remington Arms Co. posted a profit last year after several years of losses, it still faces an increasingly competitive market, analysts said Thursday...Still, the firearms industry is highly competitive, with overseas markets and U.S. manufacturers diversifying into new markets and shaking up the industry, according to some analysts..."Given that Smith & Wesson is now aggressively entering the long-gun space, Remington should expect some competition," Dayal said. http://www.uticaod.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070406/NEWS/704060322/1001 --- From CCRKBA: The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms today said it is an outrage that the Los Angeles city council supports new efforts to ratchet down on the rights of law-abiding gun owners, while it touts itself a "Sanctuary City" for illegal aliens... http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-06-2007/0004561042&EDATE= --- NRA's Froman Knocks New Orleans' Actions: National Rifle Association (NRA) President Sandra S. Froman returned to her alma mater last night to lash out at New Orleans' response to post-Hurricane Katrina security. Speaking at Harvard Law School, Froman - who received her Harvard JD in 1974 - criticized New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin's decision to confiscate guns from residents immediately following the natural disaster, and she said the New Orleans government demonstrated that it was "profoundly incompetent" through its response. http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=518065 --- NRA Unit Sponsors Student Essay Contest: The NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund is sponsoring an essay contest for students in the United States celebrating the Second Amendment as an integral part of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The theme for the essay is: "The Second Amendment to the Constitution: Why it is important to our nation." The contest is open to all students enrolled in an elementary, junior high, or high school during the 2007-08 academic year who have not previously received a prize. http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,660207873,00.html --- From NRA-ILA: Since the current format of the NRA-ILA alerts is no longer friendly toward forwarding in bulk, those who appreciate the alerts for their states can select the updates of interest on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/State/ --- From AzCDL: HB 2469, which reduces the penalty for a concealed weapon permit holder failing to have their permit in their possession while carrying concealed, passed the Senate on April 4, 2007 by a vote of 22-7, and was sent to the Governor on April 5, 2007. Details of the Senate vote can be found here; http://tinyurl.com/24oeqe HB 2469 passed in the House by a vote of 45-10 on February 19, 2007: http://tinyurl.com/29bqlf Under current law (ARS 13-3112.D), a person is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor offense if they fail to present a concealed weapons permit upon the request of a law enforcement officer. The language of the current law does not clarify that a person must be a concealed weapons permit holder, or in possession of a weapon, or even if a weapon must be concealed. However, if they produce a legible permit that was valid at the time of the violation when they go to court, "they shall not be convicted." Meanwhile, they have been subjected to possible arrest and confiscation of their weapon prior to appearing in court. Furthermore, their concealed weapon permit information was available to the arresting officer at the time of the encounter. The proposed language in HB 2469: