Arms and the Law

I was just researching in the Clinton Presidential Library archives, and came across this. The cover sheet is my summary, the rest is a fax from "Deputy Secretary" (of what, is unstated) to Clinton's Domestic Policy Council, relating to settlement terms to demand in the lawsuits against gun manufacturers (which were then being brought by New York, some other jurisdictions, and private plaintiffs, and held the risk of bankrupting the industry.

It lists demands which would have achieved most of the antigun legislative objectives, without the work of getting Congress to agree. One gun a month, gun registration, eliminate non-inventory small FFLs, no guns capable of taking greater than ten round magazines, no sales of greater than ten round magazines, no juveniles allowed on gun dealer premises without a parent or guardian, gun manufacturers to finance a fund to propagandize on the dangers of guns, etc., etc.. And all without asking Congress to pass legislation.

An interesting study. Law faculties are the most liberal/left of all 60+ categories of attorneys, more so than other fields where you might expect the practitioners to be liberal -- civil rights lawyers, criminal defense lawyers, government lawyers.

My Primal Scream has an interesting post on the matter. From 1803 onward, DC forbade its militiamen to show up for muster while carrying arms, and also tightly controlled the possession of flints. By 1812 only a third of its military had the required muskets, and those of course lacked flints. Congress protested without avail.

While there were a great many causes for the American rout at the Battle of Bladensburg (terrible tactics, divided command, use of Revolution War drill in place of the more modern systems evolved out of the Napoleonic Wars), the fact that Washington's militia was largely disarmed and short on flints (and got into position late because it took time to issue the flints) certainly didn't help things.

From the Washpo:

"Repeat violent offenders, according to Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D), are a chief problem. She makes the point that at least 22 homicide suspects were under supervision pending trial or on probation or parole at the time of the crime, and almost half, or 45 percent, had prior gun-related arrests in the District (compared with 27 percent in 2014).

Not to get all existential, but the problem is much deeper than synthetic drugs, high-capacity gun magazines, turf wars, rejiggering police deployment or keeping an eye on repeat violent offenders.

We have on our hands -- in our neighborhoods, on our streets and maybe living next door -- walking disasters: individuals who believe that their lives matter, but not yours or mine. Neither do our laws and institutions."

John Lott will be appearing on CBS Evening News tonight to discuss gun control issues. The show will be on at 6:30PM EDT, though it can't be predicted when Lott's segment will be on.

"Brady's Empty Suits", at America's First Freedom. The title is a pun on a phrase lawyers use -- "empty suit," or just "suit," to describe a person whose clothing is impressive but their contents are not.

Rather, he was just a homeless guy hoping to stick up train passengers for food money. Exactly how a homeless guy would have acquired an AK-47 and a lot of ammo for it is not explained. Heck, at current ammo prices he could have dined on steak and lobster for what he invested in 7.62x39.

"Give me back my gun!"

Why he was making the demand is beyond all understanding....

We have a 7.62x39 derringer, and a 5.56 with 6.5" barrel attached to a 9.5" something else. BATF contends it's a suppressor, although apparently it doesn't suppress, and Sig contends it's a muzzle brake, although it looks designed to increase muzzle flip. Perhaps it meets the needs of those who really need to feel the muzzle blast on their feet?

Text here. A 1982 ruling. At trial, the prosecution got admitted into evidence a certificate from the NFA branch records custodian to the effect that the possessor of the NFA arm had never tried to register it, had never paid the $200 tax, and that the firearm had never been registered. The court rules that the certificate could be used to establish the last, that it had never been registered, but was hearsay at to the first two. The NFA records (the only ones of which the person signing the certificate was custodian) would not reflect whether the transfer had been applied for, and the tax stamp was issued by the IRS, not the BATF.

PA Attorney General Kathleen Kane goes antigun. And gets indicted for perjury, official oppression, obstruction of justice and a few other things. The charges are that, to get back at a critic, she leaked grand jury information, and then lied about it.

Another perp involved has taken a plea to 30 years' imprisonment. Another perp also got 30 years, and the guy who bought the guns got under five years.

These are all quite lenient. The gunmen faced the death penalty, and the gun buyer could probably have, too (aiding and abetting the murder makes him guilty of murder). If prosecuted under Arizona law (and they still could be, since the offense broke both State and Federal law), they'd be very likely to get death, and at the very least to get life without parole ("natural life"). I've seen killers get the latter for a single murder and one not committed in the course of a plan for violent criminal acts.

Story here.

"Hero SAS sniper saves father and eight-year-old son from being beheaded by ISIS maniac". No way you'd see that in an American paper.

Panama Lifts Ban on Gun Imports Amidst Rising Crime Wave / More Firearms Will Mean Fewer Homicides, Says Public Safety Minister."

John F. Kennedy's National Match M-1.

He introduces himself at the door with the words "Live or die?" And winds up being the one dying. He's a suspect in ten murders.

$39 million, over defective safeties.

Here is advice from Simplisafe Security Sellers. Put a deadbolt lock on a closet and retreat there, then use your cellphone to call for help. I guess it never occurred to them that a modern closet door (and for that matter, most interior doors) are nothing but two very thin sheets of plywood that would be easily broken by a kick.

But don't grab a weapon, not even pepper spray! "They all sound like a good idea, but again, we don't know how the burglar will react to seeing an armed person." No, but we can probably predict how he will react to the impact of 1.25 ounces of 00 buck.

Report here. I suppose that, as with any other law that demands people give up their right to defend themselves, some folks will choose to disobey the unreasonable demand.