In Madison, Wisconsin, State
Rep. Frank Lasee of Bellevue said
he plans to introduce a bill that,
if enacted into law, would allow
teachers, principals, administrators
and other school personnel to keep
firearms at school if they’re locked
in a cabinet or safe. “To make our
schools safe for our students to
learn, all options should be on the
table,†he declared. “Israel and
Thailand have well-trained teachers
carrying weapons and keeping their
children safe from harm. It can work
in Wisconsin.†Lasee indicated that
the measure would hinge on school
staff members getting strict training
on the use of weapons. He also
said he would have to work around
the federal Gun Free School Zones
Act.
In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania,
State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe introduced
a bill to provide victims of domestic
violence with a temporary emergency
license to carry a firearm to, in his
words, “make sure that they’re able
to defend themselves.†Metcalfe
said the measure, if enacted into
law, not only would aid domestic
violence victims in protecting themselves,
but overall would decrease
violence. He said that giving victims
“the ability to protect themselves
ultimately is going to be a great help
in preventing violence. Under House
Bill 2946, any individual who can
demonstrate evidence of imminent
danger to themselves or a member
of their family would be entitled to
a temporary emergency license to
carry a firearm after passing a computerized
check of criminal history,
juvenile delinquency and mental
health records.â€
In Seattle, Washington, police
said a man who was visiting downtown
and minding his own business
was brutally attacked by a stranger.
The victim of the attack, however,
had a gun and a license to carry it,
so he shot and killed the attacker, according
to KING5.com. Just before
that incident, police had received
complaints about a man who had
been attacking shoppers but who
then began assaulting a complete
stranger, repeatedly kicking him.
“When officers saw the person (who
had been attacked and fired in selfdefense)
he did not attempt to run,â€
said Jim Pugel of the Seattle Police
Department. “He said, ‘I’m the one
who did it and he handed the weapon
to officers.’†Police said they had no
plans to charge the man who fired
the gun.
In Fairfax, Virginia, the National
Rifle Association featured a “Parting
Shot†column by CCRKBA Public
Affairs Director John Snyder in the
October issue of its monthly journal,
America’s 1st Freedom. The column
proclaimed that, “Law-Abiding
Citizens Need Guns More Now Than
Ever.†It declared that, “easing legal
access to firearms for law-abiding
citizens correlates with precipitous
decreases in rates of violent crime.
Guns save lives. It’s time public
policy reflected this truth.â€
“‘Shoot First’ laws are well
grounded,†writes Seth Pate of
Arizona State University on www.
asuwebdevil.com. “Citizens of the
United States always have had the
right to stand their ground, so long as
the forcible felony occurred in their
own homes,†he notes. “There’s a
long precedent that a man’s home
is his castle and, therefore, defending
the castle, even with deadly
force, is allowable. An equally long
precedent maintains that in a public
place, such as a park or a school,
the defendant must attempt to run
away before using deadly force.
The defendant had to prove their attempt
to retreat, and that they acted
in self-defense. The prosecution
must now prove the reverse in states
with stand your ground legislation.
They must show that the defendant
didn’t act in self-defense. The law
seems to be popular in most areas
that enforced it, perhaps because
it removes that curious stumbling
block to self-defense, the ‘duty to
retreat.’â€
The White House last month
convened a Conference on School
Safety at the National 4-H Conference
Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Gun-grabbers were upset they
weren’t among the 300 who were
invited, according to a pre-Conference
statement issued by “States
United to Prevent Gun Violence.â€
