Arms and the Law

Story in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel -- which I won't link because of a particularly annoying and hard to get rid of pop-up ad -- says that House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations will hold hearings on Feb. 27. Justice's Office of Inspector General is also investigating. Targets are four storefront sting operations, one in Milwaukee. In that one BATF lured a mentally retarded young man in, then charged him, they trashed the premises they'd rented, and lost three guns, one a full auto, which have never been recovered.

Story here. Further proof that being pro-gun is not always the same as being conservative!

A Federal Court of Claims judge calls the government's conduct "disturbing" and "wrenching". There are other reports that the judge said it was the worst case he'd seen in all his years on the bench.

Agent Jay Dobyns spent years infiltrating the Hell's Angels, until his cover was blown and he started getting death threats from folks whose threats mean something. He'd fallen into disfavor, and BATF did nothing. An arson attack burned his home ... and the agency tried to frame him for it. The trial revealed an email where one supervisor emailed another about hiding information from higher level management, and assured the other that "I can hide the ball with the best of them."

It's posted at the Volokh Conspiracy, which is now one of the Washington Post blogs (a wonder in itself!)

Basically, in 1986:

Under 10% of the US population lived in "shall issue" States.
About 33% lived in States that had no CCW permit process at all.
The remaining 57% lived in "may issue" States.
Only residents of Vermont could carry concealed without a permit.

As of today:

66% of the population lives in "shall issue" States.
No States have no CCW permit system at all.
27% live in "may issue" States.
7% live in States where you can carry concealed without a permit.

(And if the effect of the Peruta ruling is to make "shall issue" the rule in California and Hawaii, the percent in "may issue" will fall to 14%, and "shall issue" will rise to 79%).

Never mind the inconsistency with all its other positions, and despite two Supreme Court rulings to the contrary, ACLU still refuses to read the Second Amendment as reflecting an individual right.

It's drawn over 1,300 comments, mostly in opposition, and some amusing. ("How does an ACLU lawyer count to ten? 1, 3, 4, 5...")

Years back, Glenn Reynolds and Don Kates published a "thought experiment" on the Second Amendment. What if we assume the "collective right" approach is true, that the amendment was meant only to ensure that States could have militias to resist the Federal government? OK, so any State can create an organized militia free of Federal control. And arm it sufficiently to where it could resist the national military. Any person who joined such a militia has an unfettered right to full autos, artillery, military aircraft. Perhaps even nukes -- the Feds have them. I wonder how ACLU would regard the logical outcome of its position?

The county has 14 calendar days from the date of the ruling to move for rehearing en banc. If the county fails to move, any judge of the court, of their own volition, move for such rehearing within 21 days of the ruling. This seems to fit the grounds for such a motion, in particular conflict with other circuits and an issue of pressing national importance. A majority of the court can vote to grant.

En banc: normally, ruling are handed down by 3-judge panels. En banc in all other circuits means that all of the judges of the court take part and vote, after rehearing the matter. The 9th is so large, however (27 active-duty judges) that it has adopted a special rule. Ten judges are chosen at random, plus the chief judge (Alex Kosinski, a supporter of the 2A). For whatever it's worth, the 27 active-duty judges divide into 18 Democratic appointments and 9 Republican ones.

To complicate things, the Circuit can also vote to have a true en banc, with all 27 judges participating.

Once the en banc panel is chosen, it votes on whether to have additional briefing or argument. They almost always for for additional argument, I don't know about briefing.

If the en banc court reverses the panel ruling here, it'd make a really nice case for the Supreme Court (and maybe even if it upholds it). Big circuit split -

Opinion here!!!!

California's handgun carry permit system says a permit may issue for "good cause," with a definition that is essentially "some special and exceptional reason beyond the average person's carrying for self-defense." The Circuit panel holds that a constitutional right cannot be so arbitrarily restricted. It's the first time a Circuit has accepted that (to my mind, very strong) argument. The opinion also accepts that the right to arms extends outside the home.

Hurrah!

Hat tip to reader Gene Hoffman, of Calguns Foundation.

Former New Orleans mayor, and member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns Ray Nagin has been convicted of 20 counts of conspiracy, accepting bribes, wire fraud, laundering money and filing false tax returns.

McGruff the Crime Dog gets sentenced to 16 years for drug and arms offenses. What next -- Smokey the Bear starts a forest fire while smoking crack?

At 5:40 PM EST I'll be on the Teri O'Brien Show, discussing the Second Amendment and the decision of major gun makers to abandon the California market.

Story here. Be careful what you wish for, because you may get it. Via Instapundit.

From The American Thinker: "Gun Control: a War, Not a Conversation". I've been writing an article on this theme.....

Target of the raid kills a deputy as he breaks in, grand jury refuses to indict him for homicide. He was represented by Dick DeGuerin, one of the top, if not the top, criminal defense men in Texas.

Three men try to rob two women. One of the women shoots two of the men; the third flees, breaks into a house, and the homeowner decks him with a shotgun.

The sheriff's reaction:

"You've got to pat this lady on the back. She got two out of three of them with a 9mm, and then reloaded and was wanting some more," said Wright. "I'm going to ask her if she wants a job, apparently she knows how to shoot real well."

Hartford, CT: gun used to shoot up a bar traces to a shipment of guns from Smith and Wesson that was stolen by the delivery driver.

Mayor Bill Finch proclaims, "This incident is a perfect example of why we need stronger gun laws in the United States. Loopholes need to be tightened up."

Story here. Open carry of a long arm is legal there, so the basis for the arrests isn't clear. Equally troubling, after someone posted a physical threat to open carriers, the PD refused even to let a report be filed.

David Codrea has a interesting post on BATF's capitiulation in an FFL revocation proceeding against Brink's security. Brinks' attorneys uncovered a lot of evidence that initiation of such proceedings was utterly arbitrary, and particularly so in its case. BATF compromised: if Brinks would not appeal its revocation, BATF would issue it four new FFL licenses.

Mark Dice, famed for soliciting (and getting) signatures on outrageous petitions, visits a California college campus and successfully gets signatures on a petition to confiscate all guns. He builds on that by adding steadily more outrageous descriptions of the petition -- repeal the Second Amendment, house to house searches by the military, lock gun owners up in concentration camps, and still they sign. He goes even farther -- we want to have gun owners executed, or just shot down, they are just peasants, peasants shouldn't have guns ... and still they sign.

To be fair, one guy did refuse to "repeat after me" the line about peasants, though.

From New Zealand comes this article, arguing that progressives should oppose rather than support gun control here.

"In January 2011 (following Representative Gifford's shooting and renewed calls for gun control), Dan Baum wrote in the Huffington Post that progressives have wasted a generation of progress on health care, women's rights, immigration reform, income fairness and climate change because "we keep messing with people's guns." "

It's reporting that some of the two lots of M-22 listed were double-charged with powder. I'd guess that someone fired a round, with the expected result.