California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
did the right thing when he
vetoed a so-called “gun safety educationâ€
bill because of its potential
to allow anti-gun propaganda to be
taught in the guise of public safety,
CCRKBA stated. The bill, SB1177
“was an attempt to politicize hunting
and self-defense issues within
schools in an open-ended manner,
with no state guidance,†stated
CCRKBA California representative
Jim March. “On a cost basis alone,
it was a disaster in the making.â€
CCRKBA Chairman Alan M. Gottlieb
said CCRKBA “opposed this legislation
from the outset. It seemed clear
to us that SB1177, authored by antigun
rights zealot Sen. Jack Scott,
easily would have been abused to
promote an anti-self-defense message.â€
A mid-July ruling by Ramsey
County, Minnesota District Court
Judge John Finley that the state’s
two-year-old concealed carry law
is unconstitutional is an affront to
the state’s law-abiding citizens and
should be quickly appealed by
an appeals court, said CCRKBA.
“Judge Finley’s ruling is a slap in
the face to more than 30,000 Minnesota
residents who have legally
obtained concealed pistol licenses,â€
said CCRKBA Chairman Alan M.
Gottlieb. “We urge Attorney General
Michael Hatch to quickly appeal
this decision and, in the meantime,
make certain that a stay is granted
so that Minnesota firearms owners
can continue obtaining their licenses
immediately upon completing the
requirements.†CCRKBA Executive
Director Joe Waldron said that, “no
Minnesota resident should have his
or her safety placed in jeopardy by
this lower court decision.â€
While there can be no doubt that
police officers in Oshkosh, WI recently
conducted a neighborhood search
for a gunman who shot and wounded
Officer Nate Gallagher with good
intentions, CCRKBA Chairman Alan
M. Gottlieb believes there remain serious
questions about the seizure of
firearms from one of the residences
without benefit of a warrant. “We’ve
received all the information we could
get about this case,†said Gottlieb,
“and we remain concerned that some
innocent person’s firearms were removed
from his home, without him
knowing about it, and without benefit
of a search warrant. Although these
searches reportedly were conducted
with the consent of the homeowners,
taking someone else’s guns without
telling him could be a serious legal
breech, regardless of any concerns
about catching an armed criminal.â€
The police returned guns to the one
resident from whom they were taken
without consent.
An Alameda County, California
Superior Court jury early last month
found that firearm manufacturer
Beretta U.S.A. Corp. was not responsible
for the tragic 1994 accidental
shooting death of a 14-year-old boy.
Kenzo Dix was killed when his friend
played with a firearm that was left
unloaded and unlocked by an irresponsible
parent. The jury deliberated
only five hours before returning
a verdict in favor of Beretta U.S.A.
Corp., finding the pistol’s design did
not cause the accident. The lawsuit
was filed in 1995 on behalf of the
parents of Dix by lawyers from Handgun
Control, Inc., since renamed
as the Brady Center to Prevent Gun
Violence. The anti-gun group tried to
claim that Beretta was at fault for not
having included a built-in lock and
for not providing more warnings by
having a different “loaded chamber
indicator†feature than the one on
the firearm.
