452 - Amends Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) further providing for persons prohibited from possessing, using, manufacturing, controlling, selling or transferring firearms and for the PA State Police.
INTRODUCED BY FRANKEL, CALTAGIRONE, COHEN, CURRY, JAMES, KULA, MELIO,
SWANGER AND YOUNGBLOOD,
In the past innocent citizens who have been involuntary committed to mental institutions (302) for political or personal reasons (merely on the “allegation” of being mentally unstable) and have been locked up against their will. After they have proved that they are of sound mind, and after having spent a considerable amount of money to prove their innocence, this bill would then make them spend even more money to get their Constitutional rights back.
If anything, legislation should be introduced to eliminate involuntarily commitment of citizens in PA without a trial, or at least to require someone to be held accountable for committing people to mental intuitions without a hearing.
HB-957 - Possession or use of certain firearms prohibited in this Commonwealth, offense defined, grading, "five-seven pistol" defined (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY CRUZ, YOUNGBLOOD, KING AND JOSEPHS,
This will ban the possession or use of a” five-seven pistol" or any pistol that fires the ammunition in the caliber of 5.7mm. Possession is a third degree felony.
HB 485 –Firearms and ammunition, limitation on regulation (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, BISHOP, CALTAGIRONE, DONATUCCI, JAMES, JOSEPHS,
MYERS, M. O'BRIEN, PARKER, THOMAS, W. KELLER AND HENNESSEY,
This is a very bad idea. It would allow a first class city, to have a firearms enforcement commission with the Authority to establish their own firearm laws without the requirement of being uniform throughout the state!
In effect any first class city can regulate the following and more:
1) Sales of firearms, and additional waiting periods & background checks
2) Possession of firearms or ammunition
3) Gun club firing ranges and the discharging of firearms
4) Sales and transfers of firearms and ammunition or components
5) Storage of firearms and ammunition
6) Possession, carrying, or “manner of carrying” of firearms reasonably in zones surrounding schools, playgrounds,
universities, colleges, bars or other places of general public accommodations.
7) Ownership, possession, transfer, and transportation of so called assault weapons.
(See HB 30 for assault gun definition)
An individual’s constitutional right can be taken away by one simple majority vote on a referendum question! In short this would open the door for every form of gun control that any anti-gunner could ever think of. Even worse, it can be enacted anywhere in the state. This would be a costly legal nightmare for gun owners in PA, to comply with the possibility of hundreds of local laws, not to mention that the laws can differ depending on which locale you reside in or travel through.
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HB 608– Child Firearm Safety Lock
INTRODUCED BY WATERS, BISHOP, BLACKWELL, DALEY, JAMES, W. KELLER, KIRKLAND,
MELIO, MICOZZIE, MYERS, PARKER, PERRY AND YOUNGBLOOD
1) Requires all sales or transferred firearms to have a locking device included for that firearm. Failure to provide a locking device is penalized by suspension or revocation of dealer’s license, and a fine not more than $10,000.
2) Any person that fails to properly secure a firearm against theft or access without permission shall be subject to civil liability for damages resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of that firearm.
As an analogy, if this same bill was applied to your stolen car, you could be sued for all monetary damages done with your car by the thief’s criminal action if you didn’t use a steering wheel lock or securely lock your car in a garage. Crazy is it not!!! You would be legally responsible for any damages done with the misuse of your stolen firearms. Instead of holding the criminal totally responsible for their actions, some lawyer could portray the criminal as a victim and sue you for letting them have access to your improperly stored firearms. How about that for justice?
HB 760 – ALL Firearms Registration Act.
INTRODUCED BY CRUZ, YOUNGBLOOD, PARKER, WHEATLEY, BENNINGTON AND CURRY
1) You are required to register all of your firearms with the PA state police, other than machine guns or “antique firearms”.
2) Beginning with, and every year after registration begins, you are required to submit or provide all the following personal information in your renewal application for every firearm you own:
- Your name
- Your home address
- Your business address
- Your telephone number
- Your birth date
- Your social security number
- Your age & citizenship
- The name, make, model, manufacture, caliber or gauge and serial number for
every firearm.
- Two passport sized photos taken less than 30 days prior to your renewal.
- $10 per firearm application fee every year.
- You also must submit your fingerprints to the PA state police.
3) If you are approved to continue to own your firearms, you will be issued an owner’s registration certificate with your photo, along with your other personal information, for each firearm. You must carry it at all times with that firearm, and you must show “your papers” to any police officer upon demand.
4) Your additional duties as a registered firearm owner:
- You must notify the state police within 48 hours of the loss, theft or destruction of a firearm, or the registration certificate for it.
- Any change of any information on the registration certificate must be reported within 48 hours.
- If you sell one of your registered guns or buy or transfer a firearm, you must notify the state police not less than 48 hours prior to delivery.
- You must return to the state police the original registration certificate for any firearm is lost, stolen, destroyed or disposed of with 48 hours.
5) You must keep any firearm in your possession unloaded and disassembled or bound by trigger lock or stored in a gun safe unless the firearm is in your immediate possession or under control at your home, your business, or while you are still allowed to use it in lawful recreational purposes.
6) The PA state police are empowered to make up any additional rules or regulations that they deem fit to allow you the privilege of keeping your registered firearms.
The proposed fee is only $10 per firearm, however expect future increases to fully administer all sections of this act. Also watch the summary offense for violating any section of this act change to a misdemeanor or a felony, with real jail time and a very large fine.
PRO-GUN LEGISLATION Summary as of Oct 2007
By enacting more anti-gun laws on the books, violent crime in our state will be virtually eliminated! Believe it? Well don’t, because it’s wishful thinking. For example, there is one mandatory sentence law currently on the books (Title 42, Section 9712) that makes using firearms in the commission of a crime a 5-year mandatory jail sentence. This law is routinely plea-bargained away by the courts and the DA’s. WHY?? So, are we to believe that more gun control legislation will make a difference when current laws are being plea-bargained away? Currently the ‘Laws Relating to Firearms’ booklet published by the state contains approximately 126 pages. This is an increase of an additional 76 pages of gun control laws that have been added since 1995. One has to ask how much is enough and, perhaps more importantly, where are we headed as a society IF we predicate freedoms based on the actions of criminals? As has been shown by the National Academy of Sciences and the Centers for Disease Control, this increase in Pennsylvania gun laws has shown no impact on crime. Perhaps it is time to start considering a new direction in controlling crime?
On the positive side we have several PRO-gun bills pending in Harrisburg that will help protect the families and property of law-abiding citizens by acting as real deterrents to criminal actions. Police officers can’t be everywhere to protect your family’s safety and even if you could make a phone call, the response time for emergency help is, at best, several minutes away in cities, in the rural area it can take over 30 minutes or more. If that’s not bad enough, the Supreme Court has consistently ruled each and every time that police are not responsible for protecting your family or property from criminal acts. Many PRO-gun legislators recognize these flaws in current existing laws and are working with us to introduce legislation to correct these real problems.
HB 19 – Offenders, serious drug trafficking, violent repeat, not to possess firearms.
INTRODUCED BY D. EVANS, GERBER, CALTAGIRONE, MYERS, STURLA, WHEATLEY,
WILLIAMS, BENNINGTON, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY,
JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
Anti-gun politicians are always screaming for more “so called” common sense gun control to prevent criminal access to firearms. Unfortunately, almost of their proposed bills focus on the firearms of law abiding gun owners and not on the criminal’s actions or illegal possession of firearms.
This bill changes all that by forcing the District Attorney’s, judges and court system to punish repeat offending predatory criminals who use firearms in commission on crimes. By providing real common sense mandatory jail time and additional felony charges for prior criminal convictions using firearms in the past.
Many innocent people in PA have been injured or killed by repeat violent offenders being let back out on the streets early, from charges that were plea bargained away instead of enforced. Wow, what a novel concept; prosecuting repeat criminals for offenses they commit with firearms. How much safer will police officers and citizens be when these criminal predators are off the streets, incarcerated in jail paying a time penalty for their actions.
Gun control has a real human cost. It’s time criminals start to pay 100% for their crimes with time behind bars instead of citizens having to put bars on their homes and live in fear.
HB 142 – Right to hunt, fish, harvest game
INTRODUCED BY BAKER, ROHRER, ARGALL, BENNINGHOFF, BELFANTI,BOYD,
CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, CAUSER, CLYMER, DALLY,DENLINGER, ELLIS, FAIRCHILD,
GEIST, GODSHALL, GOODMAN, GRELL, HARHAI, HESS, HUTCHINSON, KAUFFMAN,
M. KELLER, MANN,MARKOSEK, McILHATTAN, METCALFE, MOUL, PERRY, PHILLIPS,PICKETT,
PYLE, RAPP, REICHLEY, ROAE, SOLOBAY, STABACK, STERN, R. STEVENSON, WALKO AND WOJNAROSKI
This proposed bill would amend the PA constitution after a general election referendum vote. It aims to make hunting and fishing a right with proper state issued licenses according to restrictions provided by laws of the commonwealth.
HB 205 – PGC Commission, composition & former employees
INTRODUCED BY PICKETT, PHILLIPS, R. STEVENSON, CREIGHTON, GEIST,HERSHEY,
YOUNGBLOOD, CALTAGIRONE, MUSTIO, GODSHALL, ROHRER,SONNEY, McILHATTAN,
HENNESSEY, KULA, J. EVANS, CAUSER, RUBLEY, RAPP AND SWANGER
This bill requires an independent game commission composed of 8 competent PA citizens who are well informed on the subject of wildlife conservation, restoration and who are not PGC employees. They will be appointed by governor with the advice and consent of 2/3 of the senate.
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HB 618 - Rights, restoration, offenses under prior laws of the Commonwealth
INTRODUCED BY HANNA, DENLINGER, GEIST, GEORGE, GERGELY, GODSHALLAND GRUCELA
This bill provides for restoration of rights for past non-violent offenses for those sentenced under very old laws involving the vehicle and penal codes where over the course of many decades the definitions have changed. People who had been convicted of or plead guilty to minor offenses in the past which presently would not be a serious violation of current law and the sentencing was an ambiguous misdemeanor shall have the option to have their rights restored to own and posses firearms for lawful purposes.
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HB 641 – Self-protection, general principals of justifications, definitions, protection of other persons, use of force, civil immunity for use of force, sentences for firearms offenses
INTRODUCED BY CAPPELLI, BENNINGHOFF, BAKER, BARRAR, BASTIAN,BELFANTI,
BOYD, CALTAGIRONE, CASORIO, CAUSER, CLYMER,DENLINGER, ELLIS, EVERETT,
FAIRCHILD, GEIST, GEORGE,GINGRICH, GODSHALL, GRELL, GRUCELA, HALUSKA,
HARRIS, HERSHEY,HESS, HICKERNELL, HUTCHINSON, KAUFFMAN, M. KELLER,
KILLION,KOTIK, MAJOR, MARSICO, METCALFE, R. MILLER, PAYNE, PEIFER,PETRARCA,
PETRI, PHILLIPS, PICKETT, PYLE, RAPP, SAINATO,SAYLOR, SIPTROTH, S. H. SMITH,
SOLOBAY, SONNEY, STERN,R. STEVENSON, SURRA, TURZAI AND WANSACZ
This bill, commonly referred to as the “castle doctrine”, is very similar to ones enacted in other states which have a proven history of acting as a real deterrent to violent criminal confrontations. Under PA law currently you are required to demonstrate that you retreated or attempted to retreat from any criminal confrontation other than inside you home. This presumes that you have the time and opportunity to call the police to intervene and hopefully they will make it in time to save you. If you do anything to protect your self or property outside your homes, even IF you are still on your own property/land, to harm the criminal or protect your family from imminent attack you can be held criminally and or civilly liable for your actions, justified or not, by an over zealous DA or criminals family. This bill would provide protections against punitive lawsuits for civilians as well as off duty law enforcement officers and their families. This single proposed bill, if passed into law, will restore balance to a justice system that has for decades favored the criminal over the victim. Citizens will be ‘less’ likely to fall into harms way because of fear of losing everything if they protect themselves and criminals will be less likely to commit these acts IF they do not know if they are armed or not. It’s a really cost effective way to deter criminals, with average citizens providing added security when the police are not around.
HB 641 would provide civil immunity for the use of force against criminals without having to surrender your personal safety or to needless retreat in the face of intrusion or attack outside the person home or vehicle. This bill also provides for very strict provisions on the use of deadly force and cannot be used by anyone while they are engaged in unlawful or illegal acts, or used against a peace officer acting in the performance of their official duties.
HB 819 – Game Commission, regulations relating to hunting with flintlock muzzleloader.
INTRODUCED BY DENLINGER, CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, COX, GEIST,GINGRICH,
GODSHALL, HARRIS, HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, KAUFFMAN,KORTZ, MENSCH, MILLARD,
PALLONE, PICKETT, RAPP, READSHAW,REICHLEY, ROCK, ROHRER, SCAVELLO,
SIPTROTH, SONNEY AND STERN
This bill simply allows the use of ‘inline’ muzzle loaders whenever a ‘flintlock’ season is called for in the hunting regulations.
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HB 1029 - Firearms, sale or transfer, further provided
INTRODUCED BY R. STEVENSON, METCALFE, BAKER, BELFANTI, BOYD,BROOKS,
CAPPELLI, CAUSER, CLYMER, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DALEY,DENLINGER, J. EVANS,
EVERETT, GEIST, HALUSKA, HENNESSEY,HESS, HUTCHINSON, KORTZ, KOTIK,
LONGIETTI, McILHATTAN,MILLARD, R. MILLER, PETRARCA, PICKETT, PYLE,
RAPP, ROAE,SOLOBAY, SONNEY, STERN AND SURRA
This bill clarifies the instant check requirements for the sale of firearms that the holders of a valid concealed carry permit or any current law enforcement officer’s identification are exempt from the requirements and fees of the Pennsylvania Instant Check System.
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HB 1115 - Pennsylvania Election Code - Disclosure to public of candidate information
INTRODUCED BY MUSTIO, METCALFE, J. EVANS, EVERETT, GEIST, GIBBONS,
GOODMAN, HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, KOTIK, O'NEILL,SCAVELLO, SONNEY,
R. STEVENSON, GINGRICH, KILLION, COX, KORTZ AND HARRIS
This much needed bill clarifies and defines Pa election code requirements for public disclosure of all candidates’ information, voter eligibility requirements, and much needed oversight to the election process of candidates to public offices.
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HB 1145 - Prohibits the Governor in time of a disaster or emergency from seizure, taking or confiscation of lawfully possessed firearms or ammunition
INTRODUCED BY SOLOBAY, BAKER, BELFANTI, BENNINGHOFF, BOYD,CALTAGIRONE,
CAPPELLI, CASORIO, CLYMER, CONKLIN, COX, CUTLER,DALEY, DeWEESE, EVERETT,
FABRIZIO, FAIRCHILD, GEIST, GEORGE,GIBBONS, GOODMAN, HALUSKA, HERSHEY,
HESS, KORTZ, KOTIK,McILHATTAN, METCALFE, MUSTIO, PAYNE, PETRARCA, ROAE,K.
SMITH, SONNEY, R. STEVENSON, SURRA, WALKO AND J. WHITE
This bill prohibits the governor of PA from authorizing anyone from unlawfully taking of firearms or ammo away its citizens in times of any disaster or emergency situation.
As evidence, the accounts of what happened to the survivors of hurricane Katrina wherein the Governor of Louisiana disarmed the citizens who needed their firearms the most to protect themselves from the break down of all civil authority and protect their property from criminal looting and violent attacks. (There are currently no specific protections against this kind seizure of firearms in Pennsylvania law.)
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HB 1160 – Temporary emergency Licenses for carrying further provided
INTRODUCED BY METCALFE, BASTIAN, COX, EVERETT, GERGELY, GRELL,M. KELLER,
KORTZ, MOUL, MUSTIO, PETRARCA, PYLE, RAPP, ROAE,ROHRER, R. STEVENSON,
CAUSER, SWANGER, DENLINGER AND YEWCIC
This bill authorizes the issuance of immediate temporary non-renewable concealed carry license to qualified individuals in imminent danger for their lives. This license would be issued, by the Sheriff in the County of residence, only after the individual provides evidence of the imminent danger AND passes all the background checks necessary for the issuance of a regular license to carry firearms.
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HB 1161 - Offense of unlawful firearms records; penalty prescribed.
INTRODUCED BY METCALFE, BAKER, BASTIAN, CAPPELLI, COX,CREIGHTON,
CUTLER, J. EVANS, EVERETT, GEIST, GERGELY,GIBBONS, HARRIS, HERSHEY,
HESS, HUTCHINSON, M. KELLER, KORTZ,MARSHALL, MUSTIO, RAPP, ROAE, ROHRER,
S. H. SMITH, SONNEY,R. STEVENSON, SURRA, CAUSER, SWANGER, DENLINGER,
SAYLOR ANDYEWCIC
This bill prohibits the state police or any other state agency from keeping or maintaining any registry or any type of database of law abiding firearm owner’s purchases. Free people should never have their gun registered and history has shown that registration has always lead to confiscation of firearms, and given rise to tyranny. People should not fear their governments, governments should be fear of their people. A long as this balance of power by of consent to be governed by the people, honesty, fairness and freedom for all is maintained.
The state police wasted nearly $130 million operating the PICS system, which would have been done at ‘no’ cost to gun owners or the state of Pennsylvania by the National Instant Check system, a part of which is the retention and maintenance of an illegal database of gun owners. How many crimes have the state police solved by the staggering amount of money spent? Conducting the Instant Checks through the state run system has cost Pennsylvania citizens and gun owners dearly.
1998 Start up costs for the PICS System -- $22,000,000.
Yearly costs to operate and maintain PICS -- $6,000,000.
(Total thus far 11 years x $6 million= $66,000,000)
2007 PICS Upgrade -- $32,000,000
Total Costs to date -- $126,000,000
Successfully prosecuted prohibited individuals who tried to buy a gun on average per year--120 - 140
Wouldn’t the money be much better spent catching and locking criminals up rather than making list of law abiding gun owner’s firearms? See also SB 738 for concurrent senate bill.
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HB 1185 – Employees Right to self defense act.
INTRODUCED BY SONNEY, METCALFE, BAKER, BELFANTI, BENNINGHOFF,CAPPELLI,
COX, CUTLER, DALEY, EVERETT, GEIST, GINGRICH,HUTCHINSON, M. KELLER,
KIRKLAND, KORTZ, MARSHALL, McILHATTAN,PICKETT, PYLE, RAPP, ROHRER, SAYLOR,
SOLOBAY, R. STEVENSON,GIBBONS, DENLINGER AND YEWCIC,
This bill prohibits employers from discharging, threatening, or discriminating against an individual who chooses to exercise their right to self-defense throughout the Commonwealth, while on the job or storing their firearm in their privately owned vehicles on company property.
HB 1235 – provides for open access to PSP Records that are used in the denial of a firearms purchase so that a citizen can challenge the accuracy of criminal history records information. Note this bill is currently in senate, passed house vote 197 to 6 against.
INTRODUCED BY J. WHITE, McCALL, EVERETT, METCALFE, SURRA,GERGELY,
SOLOBAY, COX, DALEY, DENLINGER, GIBBONS, GOODMAN,HORNAMAN, KAUFFMAN,
KORTZ, KOTIK, MAHONEY, MANDERINO,McILHATTAN, MOYER, MUSTIO, READSHAW,
SAYLOR, SCAVELLO, WALKO,YEWCIC, HESS, ROAE, SIPTROTH AND CALTAGIRONE
This bill provides a specific and regulated process for the state police to provide show just cause and provide documentation in a specifically designated time frame as to why an individual was denied the right to acquire firearms.
There is also a prescribed manor in where the individual citizen can challenge the accuracy of the state record. The burden to prove the accuracy shall fall upon that agency to prove its records are correct. If the challenge to accuracy is ruled valid, the individual also has the right to appeal the decision directly to PA the Attorney General for another review. If that review fails you shall have the added recourse of appealing to the commonwealth court. This is vastly superior to the current system of hiring a lawyer and paying legal fees to obtain the same information.
HB 1292 – Limits the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, to regulate the possession of firearms inconsistent with provisions of statutory law.
INTRODUCED BY FAIRCHILD, METCALFE, BAKER, BASTIAN, CALTAGIRONE,CASORIO,
CLYMER, CUTLER, DENLINGER, EVERETT, FABRIZIO, GEIST, GEORGE, GERGELY,
GINGRICH, GODSHALL, HALUSKA, HARHAI, HARRIS,HERSHEY, HESS, KILLION, KORTZ,
MARSHALL, McILHATTAN,R. MILLER, MURT, PAYNE, PHILLIPS, PICKETT, PYLE,
RAPP,READSHAW, REICHLEY, ROAE, ROHRER, SAYLOR, SEIP, S. H. SMITH,SONNEY,
STERN, SURRA, YEWCIC AND SWANGER
This bill restricts the DCNR from regulating the possession of firearms by concealed carry permit holders or off duty law enforcement officers in PA state parks or any other area of their jurisdiction against state law.
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HB 1392 – defining “Firearm” in theft and related offenses.
INTRODUCED BY O'NEILL, CAPPELLI, CUTLER, EVERETT, FRANKEL,GIBBONS,
HERSHEY, HESS, M. KELLER, KENNEY, MAHONEY, MILLARD,R. MILLER, MILNE,
MURT, NAILOR, REICHLEY, ROEBUCK, RUBLEY,SAYLOR, STERN, SWANGER, J. TAYLOR,
WATSON, YOUNGBLOOD AND YUDICHAK
This bill closes a loop hole in current law and specifically defines what a firearm is in relationship to theft and other related
offenses to be consistent with other definitions of the term firearm used in other laws
HB 1569 - Criminal history record expungement.
INTRODUCED BY BENNINGHOFF, THOMAS, BUXTON, CARROLL, CREIGHTON,DENLINGER,
FABRIZIO, GEORGE, GIBBONS, GINGRICH, HERSHEY,JAMES, KIRKLAND, KORTZ, LEACH,
McILHATTAN, MELIO, R. MILLER,MOUL, PRESTON, REICHLEY, ROAE, RUBLEY AND SOLOBAY
This bill provides for specific procedures for limited individuals that have paid their debt to society turned the lives around
and have lead a productive life a means to have their rights restored as full citizens of PA.
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HR 296 - Federal REAL ID ACT unfunded mandate costing PA taxpayers $ Millions
INTRODUCED BY SIPTROTH, JOSEPHS, THOMAS, MARKOSEK, McCALL, CARROLL,SCAVELLO,
CONKLIN, SANTONI, DeWEESE, MANDERINO,DALLY, W. KELLER, WALKO, FREEMAN, KULA,
SEIP, COSTA,PETRARCA, PALLONE, CASORIO, HARKINS, CURRY, HARHAI, SAINATO,
HORNAMAN, R. TAYLOR, BIANCUCCI, GRUCELA, RAMALEY, WANSACZ,GOODMAN, KING,
MUNDY, GEORGE, FAIRCHILD, BEYER, HENNESSEY ANDBARRAR
Note this resolution is currently in senate, passed house vote 200 to 3 against
This resolution opposes the costly unfunded mandate for the state of PA driver’s license to comply with federal
standard imposed under the REAL ID ACT of 2005. It’s estimated that compliance with this act by
PA taxpayers is going to be approximately 86 million dollars and raises privacy and security concerns
that will affect all citizens. Additional other state legislators from Maine, Idaho, Arkansas, Montana,
Washington, Georgia, Texas, West Virginia, New York, Maryland, Ohio and others are rejecting this act
as well PA will also reject this unfounded mandate.
SB 738 – Unlawful registry of privately owned firearms or maintaining an illegal database of firearm owners.
This bill is the senate version of HB 1161 – see it for review.
If you would like to have any of this PRO-GUN legislation become a law in PA.
Please write your PA representatives letters and emails and ask them to support these
proposed PRO-GUN legislation. Be sure to mention the bill numbers and thank them for their support of your Constitutional right.
You can also make copies of the Vote NO and Vote YES legislation list, have members
of your gun club or friends sign them and send them to the legislators.
We ask you to vote NO on the following bills as they are a direct violation of our
Constitutional rights under Article 1 Section 21 & Section 25
THANK YOU FOR COMMITTING TO VOTE NO ON THESE BILLS
We ask you to vote YES for the following bills. We also ask you to pass reality based laws which protect Citizens’ rights, and
which lock up and punish criminals that prey upon the people that elected you to make their lives and this Commonwealth a safer place.
THANK YOU FOR COMMITTING TO VOTE YES ON THESE BILLS
Anti Gun Rights Bills Summary as of March 25, 2008
Urban politicians scapegoat guns and gunowners instead of addressing the real causes of crime.
This is as scientific as the doctors of old who were convinced that they could cure all disease by bleeding
their patients. If the patient died, they didn’t bleed him enough. This failure to face reality does nothing to
ensure the security or safety of the law-abiding citizens of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Sponsors of these bills
claim they will fight crime or prevent criminal behavior; however they don’t focus on criminal behavior.
Instead, they focus only on the guns as the reason for crime in their neighborhoods. As an analogy, this line of thought
would effectively ignore the fault of motor vehicle operators in any motor vehicle accident, and just blame the car or the auto dealers.
Like doctors of old who turned their back on bleeding, lawmakers who study the issue with scientific objectivity
will acknowledge that the problem is not the availability of guns on the street; it’s the failure to remove criminals
FROM the street. Noticeably absent in any of these proposed bills is an initiative to build more prisons for repeat
criminals and to prohibit early releases of violent criminals due to prison overcrowding. Also, these bills fail miserably
to address the ongoing problem of prosecutor’s plea bargaining away OR failing to apply already existing state
law gun violations. District attorneys, prosecutors and judges willingly allow and condone this. It makes their jobs easier.
Yet they scream the mantra: “We need more gun laws”.
Currently, there are enough existing gun laws to resolve the so-called “gun crime” issue. Yet many present laws are not enforced.
As a whole, this barrage of legislation would accomplish only one thing: the elimination, for ALL intents and purposes, of Pennsylvania citizens’ constitutionally protected rights to legally bear arms. Certain lawmakers wish to ban our right
to keep & bear arms, and in doing so, set a landmark precedent for other states to follow. Passing more useless
laws against law abiding citizens, as a politically correct solution, does nothing to address the real problem of
criminals on our streets: criminals preying on law-abiding citizens and putting police officers’ lives at risk.
FYI 1st degree felony: up to 20 years in jail & maximum $25,000 fine.
2nd degree felony: up to 10 years in jail & maximum $25,000 fine.
3rd degree felony: up to 7 years in jail & maximum $15,000 fine.
1st degree misdemeanor: up to 5 years in jail & maximum $10,000 fine.
2nd degree misdemeanor: up to 2 years in jail & maximum $5,000 fine.
3rd degree misdemeanor: up to 1 year in jail & maximum $2,500 fine.
Under current PA law, anyone using a firearm in the commission of a crime can have an additional 5-year mandatory sentence
that can be imposed on them if the courts do their job.
Any ungraded offense in the Uniform Firearm Act is a first-degree misdemeanor, which means upon conviction you LOSE your
constitutional right to firearm ownership for the REST of your life.
Pennsylvania pays for instant check – a job that most states let the feds do for free. Perhaps this is why PICS has never
issued a cost-benefit analysis.
The Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS) from 1998 to 2008 has cost the tax payers in excess of 130,000,000.00 dollars
to administer to date for background checks for all firearm purchases. The federal NICS would do the same job for no
additional cost to taxpayers.
Here are the results of all that money spent, do the math, what is the cost to ONLY catch someone that was later
successful prosecuted for more additional taxpayer money.
1998-2004 a total of 57,283 people denied.
1998-2004 a total arrests of 1,181 people
1998-2004 a total conviction of ONLY 637 people
1998-2004 a total referral to the ATF for concurrent jurisdiction of ONLY 59 people
The PA State Police wasted nearly $130 million operating the duplicative Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS)
system between 1998 and 2007, which would have been done at ‘no’ cost to gun owners or Pennsylvania by the
National Instant Check system, a part of which is the retention and maintenance of an illegal database of gun owners.
How many crimes have the state police solved by the staggering amount of money spent?
HB 18 - Ammunition, limitations on regulation, municipal powers (Amend 18 and 53 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY D. EVANS, JAMES, MYERS, PARKER, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY,
FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI & ROEBUCK
This legislation will balkanize Pennsylvania with a patchwork quilt of inconsistent gun laws that will confuse and ensnare the citizens.
In short this legislation will open the door for every form of gun control that any anti-gunner could ever think of. Even worse,
it could be enacted anywhere in the state. This would be a costly legal nightmare for gun owners in PA, to comply with the possibility
of hundreds of local laws, not to mention that the laws can differ depending on which locale you reside in or travel through.
HB 20 – Mandatory Gun Storage within easy access to minors prohibited; penalties (Amend 18 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY D. EVANS, GERBER, CALTAGIRONE, JAMES, MYERS, WHEATLEY, WILLIAMS,
BENNINGTON, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND,
LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI & ROEBUCK
18Pa 6110 already makes it unlawful to make a firearm available for a person under the age of 18 even if the person is well
trained and responsible and the gun is in the home for purposes of self defense. This “feel good” legislation seeks to make a bad law even worse.
HB 21 – Display or use of firearm, further providing for bail, governed by general rules (Amend 42 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY JAMES, D. EVANS, GERBER, BUXTON, MYERS, PARKER, STURLA, WILLIAMS,
BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M.
O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
This legislation mandates significantly higher bail for “use or display of a firearm”. We oppose this legislation because the
authors do not limit this to “use or display of a firearm” during the commission of a crime of violence, but just use or display.
This would, of course, apply to anyone merely showing a weapon to ward off a would-be mugger.
HB 22 – Handgun purchases and sales, limit; Violence Prevention Fund, establishing; municipal regulation of
firearms and ammunition (Amend 18 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY MYERS, D. EVANS, GERBER, JAMES, WILLIAMS, BENNINGTON, BISHOP,
COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN,
PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
This will mandate that no one could buy more than one handgun per month. It will, of course, require
a massive database of gun owners’ personal information to make it operational. This has been tried in other states
with no reduction in crime. Maryland
and Virginia have it and Baltimore and Richmond have higher homicide rates than Philadelphia. South Carolina was the
first state to adopt gun a month and was the first state to abandon this failed idea. This bill would also affect municipal regulation
of firearms and ammunition.
HB 23 – Handgun and ammunition, regulation; limitation on municipal powers (Amend 18 and 53 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY MYERS, D. EVANS, GERBER, JAMES, WILLIAMS, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY,
FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
This is a very bad idea. It will remove the uniformity of law throughout the state, letting a first class city limit firearm purchases to one
hand gun a month. Despite the fact that other states have tried this concept and found no value as a crime fighting tool and in fact
these states have a higher per capita rate of violent crime than Pennsylvania.
Again this will require an expensive database of all gun purchasers to make it viable system. An individual’s constitutional right
would be taken away by one simple majority vote on a referendum question!
HB 24 - Tracing Guns, illegal possession by anyone under 21 years of age (Amend 18 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY MYERS, D. EVANS, GERBER, BENNINGTON, JAMES, STURLA, WHEATLEY,
WILLIAMS, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
This bill will require firearm tracing from anyone under 21 years of age who illegally possesses a firearm. It will require
all local police to trace any firearm recovered using the existing Federal National Tracing Center maintained by the BATFE
and report all information to the PA state police. Pennsylvania police already can do all of these things.
What the bill really does is allow the PA state police to “legally” create and maintain a registry of firearms – something that is
expressly forbidden in law.
HB 25 – Firearms and ammunition, regulation; limitation on municipal powers (Amend 18 and 53 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY MYERS, D. EVANS, GERBER, JAMES, WILLIAMS, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ,
CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI & ROEBUCK
Another bad idea. Removing the uniformity of law throughout the state by letting a first class city make it unlawful to own, use,
possess or transfer a so called assault weapon or any accessory or ammunition for an “assault weapon”. See HB 30 & SB 48 for
definition of assault weapons (basically it would be a BAN ammunition also).
Again, an individual’s constitutional right could be taken away by one simple majority vote on a referendum question.
HB 28 - Persons prohibited from possessing, using, manufacturing, controlling, selling or transferring; carrying
firearms on public streets or property in Philadelphia, prohibited (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, D. EVANS, W. KELLER, MYERS, STURLA, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK,
Citizens traveling thru any part Philadelphia from anywhere in PA, while in possession of a firearm or rifle or shotgun,
will become unintentional criminals. This would be a third degree felony, but if you were eligible possess a concealed carry
permit it’s considered only a first degree misdemeanor although a prosecution for this section means you would lose your right
to own a firearm and EVER possess a License to Carry a Firearm. This section would make it illegal to even transport a
rifle or shotgun through Philadelphia.
HB 29 – Registry for lost or stolen, failure to report, State Police duties (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, D. EVANS, GERBER, CALTAGIRONE, JAMES, W. KELLER, MYERS,
WHEATLEY, BISHOP, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND,
LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
Failure to report lost or stolen firearms to the appropriate local law enforcement official within 24 hours is a summary
offense punishable by a fine up to $500. A person intentionally failing to report a loss or theft of a firearm commits a
misdemeanor of the third degree. A court, in addition to any penalty prescribed by law, may prohibit you from
acquiring a firearm for a period of six months.
Allows PA state police to” legally” create and maintain a database of stolen firearms. It prohibits any law enforcement
agency to create, operate or maintain any registry of firearm ownership.
This legislation was resoundingly defeated in ‘Committee of the Whole” and defeated again as an amendment to HB 1845.
HB 30 - Assault Weapon Ban, prohibition, registration, penalties (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY FRANKEL, D. EVANS, BISHOP, WHEATLEY, YOUNGBLOOD, COHEN,
BENNINGTON, GERBER, JAMES, MYERS, STURLA, WILLIAMS, CRUZ, CURRY, GALLOWAY,
JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI AND ROEBUCK
This is an extremely bad bill. It will make it illegal to possess a huge number of common firearms now owned and used
by NRA competitive shooters and many other law abiding gun owners in PA. This bill makes the following unlawful:
1) To own, use, possess or sell an unregistered “assault weapon”.
2) Any accessory such as any detachable magazine over 10 rounds, barrel shroud, folding stock, thumbhole stock,
telescoping stock, muzzle break or muzzle compensator. These parts described above are defined as “conversion kits”.
Possession of conversion kits or components carries the penalty of first degree felony.
3) To keep your “assault weapon” you MUST register it with the state police every year, pay a registration fee every year
and undergo a complete background check every year. You will be required to safely and securely store “assault weapons
” pursuant to regulations. You will be legally permitted to use the “assault weapon” only on your property or duly licensed firing range.
When transporting an “assault weapon,” you will only be allowed to travel directly to and from certain locations (without intermittent stops)
and with special storage requirements.
Your registered “assault weapon” will have zero resale value, as you will be banned from selling, trading or transferring it.
Someone will be allowed to inherit it provided they comply with all the above requirements within 30 days. The only way to
dispose of your “assault weapon” will be to turn it over to the state police for destruction or permanent disabling so
that it is incapable of discharging a projectile. Note: the state police will be allowed to perform a compliance inspectio
n at your home once a year to ensure that you are not violating any provision of this law. If you are found in violation, the penalty is a third degree felony.
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HR 35 – Study new technologies to identify firearms used in crime.
INTRODUCED BY JOSEPHS, D. EVANS, COHEN, BISHOP, BLACKWELL, CALTAGIRONE, CURRY, FRANKEL, JAMES, KULA,
MANDERINO, MELIO, M. O'BRIEN, PARKER, SONNEY, J. TAYLOR, WILLIAMS, YOUNGBLOOD AND DONATUCCI
This will require investigating new technologies that are designed to equip firearms with a microscopic array of characters
that identify the make, model and serial number of the firearm on the empty cartridge when fired.
A huge expensive database will have to be created to pay for this experiment – siilar schemes in other states have proven to be ineffective at reducing crime.
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HB 73 – Cruelty to animals, live pigeon shoots prohibited (Amend 18 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY SHIMKUS, CARROLL, BUXTON, CURRY, JOSEPHS, LEACH, ROEBUCK,
SIPTROTH, BENNINGTON, BISHOP,
CASORIO, DePASQUALE, FRANKEL, WALKO, MANDERINO, MELIO, MYERS, M. O'BRIEN,
TANGRETTI, CRUZ, COSTA, VITALI,
FREEMAN, CIVERA, COHEN, STURLA, CALTAGIRONE, MAHER, PRESTON, KULA,
YOUNGBLOOD, W. KELLER, PAYNE, ROSS,
SAMUELSON, RUBLEY, SWANGER AND MUNDY
The groups that are supporting banning live pigeon shoots have publicly stated that this legislation is the beginning of t
he animal rights move to eliminate private shooting preserves and paint ALL hunting and fishing pursuits as cruelty to animals.
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HB 277 - Ballistics ID of Bullets & Mandatory Use of Trigger Locks.
INTRODUCED BY BISHOP, BLACKWELL, CURRY, DONATUCCI, FRANKEL, JAMES, JOSEPHS, MELIO, PARKER, S
OLOBAY, WILLIAMS, YOUNGBLOOD AND MYERS, FEBRUARY 6, 2007
Again, another terrible bill. Every handgun except antique models shall be equipped with a trigger lock. No handgun may
be sold or transferred unless a digitized or electronic image of its fired bullet and shell casing is placed in a qualified database
along with make, model, caliber, serial number and ballistics identifier.
Other states have implemented similar programs with no reduction in crime and no appreciable increase in crimes being solved
with this added information. A huge waste of our taxpayer money! Anyone who sells or has the intent to sell or transfer a handgun
without a ballistics identifier will be subjected to a civil penalty of $7,500 to $15,000 and a fine from $500 to $1,000 for each handgun.
Since criminals typically don’t buy handguns from dealers, this merely creates another burden for the law-abiding citizen
attempting to purchase or sell a firearm. Note: These identifiers are easily rendered useless through the intentional alteration
of parts or over time, with use and wear of the firearm yet still it is sold to the public as a crime fighting bill.
Once again, this is another intrusive law that imposes a greater burden and increase in the prices of firearms for the honest citizen
and violates his constitutionally protected rights. And it is yet another proposed law that does nothing to prevent a criminal from illegally using a firearm.
HB 291 – Handgun Safety, Testing & Certification; providing for implementation of personalized handgun requirements
and forfeiture of certain handguns.
INTRODUCED BY YOUNGBLOOD, CRUZ, THOMAS, CURRY, WATERS, BISHOP, PARKER & JOSEPHS
This bill creates a new “safety standard” of “smart guns” (guns personalized to a specific user) that can be fired only by the
authorized user or users. Four years after the adoption of this safety standard bill, all non-compliant handguns become
contraband and may not be sold, offered for sale, traded, or transferred, or possessed by you, under the penalty of a felony
of the third degree. Additionally, such handguns may not be sold, offered for sale, traded, transferred, shipped or leased or
distributed by dealers after four years from the adoption of this bill.
In the simplest of terms, if the bill becomes law, whether the practical technology to manufacture a “smart gun” exists or not, all other
handguns will be illegal to possess, own, sell or transfer. There will be no compensation for the taking of your private property.
However, as it will be a crime to own a “dumb” handgun, your property will be worthless. This is another bill that makes criminals
out of law abiding gun owners with no focus on criminals that happen to use a firearm to commit crime.
HB 452 - Amends Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) further providing for persons prohibited from possessing, using, manufacturing, controlling, selling or transferring firearms and for the PA State Police.
INTRODUCED BY FRANKEL, CALTAGIRONE, COHEN, CURRY, JAMES, KULA, MELIO, SWANGER AND YOUNGBLOOD,
This legislation requires that mental health providers notify the State Police of voluntary commitments.
This violates privacy and doctor - patient confidentiality and works against the public interest by discouraging people from seeking mental health treatment.
HB 485 –Firearms and ammunition, limitation on regulation (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, BISHOP, CALTAGIRONE, DONATUCCI, JAMES, JOSEPHS, MYERS, M. O'BRIEN, PARKER, THOMAS,
W. KELLER AND HENNESSEY,
This is a very bad idea. It would allow a first class city, to have a firearms enforcement commission with the Authority to establish their own firearm laws without the requirement of being uniform throughout the state!
In effect any first class city can regulate the following and more:
1) Sales of firearms, and additional waiting periods & background checks
2) Possession of firearms or ammunition
3) Gun club firing ranges and the discharging of firearms
4) Sales and transfers of firearms and ammunition or components
5) Storage of firearms and ammunition
6) Possession, carrying, or “manner of carrying” of firearms reasonably in
zones surrounding schools, playgrounds, universities, colleges, bars or other places of
general public accommodations.
7) Ownership, possession, transfer, and transportation of so called assault weapons.
(See HB 30 for assault gun definition)
An individual’s constitutional right can be taken away by one simple majority vote on a referendum question! In short this would open the door for every form of gun control that any anti-gunner could ever think of. Even worse, it can be enacted anywhere in the state. This would be a costly legal nightmare for gun owners in PA, to comply with the possibility of hundreds of local laws, not to mention that the laws can differ depending on which locale you reside in or travel through.
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HB 608– Child Firearm Safety Lock
INTRODUCED BY WATERS, BISHOP, BLACKWELL, DALEY, JAMES, W. KELLER, KIRKLAND, MELIO, MICOZZIE, MYERS,
PARKER, PERRY AND YOUNGBLOOD
This legislation will make it illegal to maintain firearms in a condition where they may be used for self defense.
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HB 760 – ALL Firearms Registration Act.
INTRODUCED BY CRUZ, YOUNGBLOOD, PARKER, WHEATLEY, BENNINGTON AND CURRY
1) You are required to register all of your firearms with the PA state police, other than machine guns or “antique firearms”.
DEFEATED BY GUN OWNERS -- 2007
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HB-957 - Possession or use of certain firearms prohibited in this Commonwealth, offense defined, grading, "five-seven pistol" defined (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY CRUZ, YOUNGBLOOD, KING AND JOSEPHS,
This will ban the possession or use of a” five-seven pistol" or any pistol that fires the ammunition in the caliber of 5.7mm. Possession is a third degree felony.
This cartridge is used in rifles and pistols and has ballistics similar to the ancient .22 Hornet.
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HB-1198 - Illegal Firearm Task Force Program
INTRODUCED BY J. TAYLOR, KENNEY, BARRAR, BLACKWELL,CAPPELLI, FRANKEL, GOODMAN, HARPER, HENNESSEY, JAMES, W. KELLER, KILLION, KIRKLAND, LEACH, LENTZ, McGEEHAN, MICOZZIE, MURT, MYERS, D. O'BRIEN, O'NEILL, RAYMOND, ROSS, STABACK, STURLA, VEREB, WATSON AND YOUNGBLOOD
This chapter provides for the creation of the Illegal Firearm Task Force Program. The Office of Attorney General would provide resources (5 million in fiscal year) and direct grant money prioritized to cities with the greatest number of firearm homicides. In other words the big cities like Philly and Pittsburgh would get almost all of the resources.
The purpose is to establish illegal firearm task forces to investigate firearm theft, illegal firearm sales, transfers and possession. All of these activities are illegal already, so what is the purpose to investigate them?
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HB-1478 - ($10 Instant Check FEE Increase) Firearm Sale Surcharge
INTRODUCED BY D. EVANS, BLACKWELL AND PRESTON
An additional $10 sales tax is charged for the transfer of firearms to be deposited into the Pennsylvania Instant Check System records funds. The sponsor and co-sponsors of this legislation are ALL TOO EAGER to raise the cost of gun ownership to law abiding citizens but cannot be found when it comes time to raise the cost of committing crime for criminals. Note: the federal instant check system will do the same background check at no cost! The PICS system from 1998 to 2008 has already cost taxpayers in the last 10 years over 130 million dollars. From the PICS records 1998-2004 a total of 57,283 people that were prevented from the transfer of firearms for a variety of reasons. Strangely during the same time period only 1,181 people were arrested, and out of that, ONLY 637 were successfully prosecuted. So much for the “being tough on crime” rhetoric.
HB-1536 – Further prohibitions on the sale or transfer of firearms
INTRODUCED BY McGEEHAN, BLACKWELL, BRENNAN, CRUZ, JAMES AND LEVDANSKY
All firearm sales will be delayed for an additional 48 hours unless the purchaser or transferee has completed a firearm safety education program approved by the PSP commissioner.
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HB-1633 - First Class City Firearms Registration Act
INTRODUCED BY CRUZ, YOUNGBLOOD, BLACKWELL, JAMES AND THOMAS
This bill is very similar to HB 760 except no $10 tax is charged per firearm and, it only applies to residents of first class cities. Any non-resident owning “unregistered” firearms being transported through their jurisdiction must have these firearms broken down into a “non-functioning state”, or unloaded & enclosed in a case during transportation. Any registered firearm unless in a person’s immediate possession and control must be unloaded, disassembled or bound by a trigger lock or similar device.
Note there is no provision for LTCF permit holders (unless defending your life) that could be classified as a lawful recreation purpose within the city limits.
See HB 760 for reasons why this bill is a just on more from a long line of bad ideas, all of which do nothing at all to address the crime control problem.
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HB-1745 – Extra 2% tax on Firearms and Ammunition sold in PA
INTRODUCED BY JAMES, YOUNGBLOOD, JOSEPHS, CURRY, KIRKLAND, MYERS, THOMAS AND WILLIAMS
Extra 2% tax on firearms and ammunition sold in PA. How does this stop crime?
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HB-1746 - First Class City Firearms Restriction Act
INTRODUCED BY THOMAS
Authorizes first class cities (Philadelphia) to impose extra restrictions on purchase, sale and possession of firearms. With this law in place they could outlaw the possession of any firearm, or impose any other restriction that could be dreamed up, with a stroke of a pen.
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HB-1758 - The illegal Firearm Local Control Act
INTRODUCED BY THOMAS
Allows municipalities to enact their own firearm laws with restrictions on purchase, sale and possession without any regard to state law. See HB 485 for reason why this is another really bad idea
HB-1927 – Sale or Transfer of Firearms - Amends title 18 section 6111
INTRODUCED BY O'NEILL, BARRAR, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL,CRUZ, CURRY, CUTLER, GEIST, GINGRICH,
GODSHALL, HERSHEY, KENNEY, KILLION, MANN, McILHATTAN, MICOZZIE, R. MILLER, MILNE, MURT, NAILOR, PICKETT,
QUINN, REICHLEY, ROSS, RUBLEY, SABATINA, SANTONI, SCHRODER, SIPTROTH, SONNEY, STURLA, SWANGER, THOMAS AND YOUNGBLOOD
This is already illegal under federal and state law. This bill amends (title 18 section 6116) relating to unsworn falsification to authorities. Anyone convicted for violating this section commits a third degree felony.
As a side note; Supreme Court has ruled that previously convicted criminals cannot be prosecuted for violating this section, because it’s a violation of their constitutional rights under the Fifth Amendment (self incrimination). See Haynes vs. US 1968
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HB-1966 - Extra 1% tax on Firearms and establishing Violence Reduction Fund
INTRODUCED BY PAYTON, COHEN, JAMES, JOSEPHS, LENTZ, McGEEHAN, M. O'BRIEN, PARKER, SIPTROTH, STURLA,
THOMAS, WHEATLEY AND YOUNGBLOOD
An extra 1% tax on the purchase price of firearms, and all tax monies collected will go to the PSP to assist local police forces with programs to reduce violence. It could be used to fund local anti-gun programs, or highly popular and illegal “gun buy back” programs, or for any type of “reduce violence” scheme that local police deem fit-use for the money.
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HB-2168 – False reports to Law Enforcements Authorities
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, BLACKWELL, CIVERA, CREIGHTON, DePASQUALE, JAMES, JOSEPHS, KENNEY, McGEEHAN,
MELIO, MURT, D. O'BRIEN, PRESTON, SABATINA AND FRANKEL
Making a false report regarding lost or stolen firearms to law enforcement authorities is considered a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the report is made during a declared state of emergency it will be up graded to a third degree felony.
For example, IF you were one of the victims of hurricane Katrina and police came to illegally confiscate your firearms, you are posed with a moral dilemma; do you just roll over and give them up or do you lie?
What we need passed is HB 1145. This would prohibit the Governor in time of disaster or emergency from the seizure, taking or confiscation of lawfully possessed firearms or ammunition.
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HB-2224 - illegal Transfer of Firearms - Amends title 18 section 6111.1 (k)
INTRODUCED BY D. O'BRIEN, PRESTON, SABATINA AND FRANKEL, GINGRICH, HELM, JOSEPHS, W. KELLER, KILLION,
McGEEHAN, MELIO, MICOZZIE, R. MILLER, MURT, MYERS, M. O'BRIEN, REICHLEY, MICOZZIE, R. MILLER, MURT, MYERS,
M. O'BRIEN, REICHLEY
Authorizes PA State Police to compile, analyze, and use the information sent to PSP as part of the Pa Instant Check System for the application of transfer or sale of firearms. This would legalize the illegitimate firearms ‘record of sale’ database that the PSP currently retains on Pennsylvania gun owners.
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HB-2228 – Encoded Ammunition Act
INTRODUCED BY MYERS, M. O'BRIEN, McGEEHAN, THOMAS, PARKER, JOSEPHS, FRANKEL, KENNEY, YOUNGBLOOD,
W. KELLER, MELIO, WATERS, WILLIAMS, WHEATLEY, KIRKLAND, JAMES, BLACKWELL, ROEBUCK AND OLIVER
1) All ammunition sold or possessed must have a unique serial number on the base of the bullet, a matching number on the cartridge casing, and your ammunition purchase will be registered with the PA state police.
2) The seller of ammunition must collect and submit all of the following information to the PSP for use in their database::
- date of each ammunition purchased
- serial numbers of all ammunition purchased by you
- your driver license number
- Your name
- Your birth date
- any other additional information the PSP deemed as necessary.
3) You will fund this ammunition database, containing your personal information, with an extra .05 cents tax for each round of encoded ammunition purchased. The outside each box of is labeled with the name of manufacturer and a list of all serial numbers of ammunition contained within the box.
4) Everyone is required to dispose of all ammunition that is not encoded, by Jan 1, 2010. The penalty is not spelled out for possession of un-coded ammo; however the default on any un-graded offense in the Uniform Firearm Act is a first-degree misdemeanor. Therefore, firearm ownership would be prohibited upon the conviction of possessing a single round of un-coded ammo. Are we to think that won’t ever happen in PA? Currently there are people in New Jersey serving one year of jail time for each hollow point in their possession!
5) Anyone that willfully destroys or renders the encoded information unreadable commits a misdemeanor of the third degree. If you get sentenced to one year in jail, you loose your right to own firearms.
6) There is nothing in this act that lets you hand load or reload your own ammunition. If you want to load your own ammunition you must obtain a federal license to engage in the business of manufacturing ammo, therefore requiring you to comply with all the numerous federal laws and regulations. This includes paying your yearly Special Occupation Tax along with all provisions required of this act just to reload ammo. Are you ready to be made into a criminal? All of this, to allegedly solve a crime, which career criminals routinely, gets plea-bargained down.
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SB 48 - Assault Weapon Ban, prohibition, registration, penalties (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY WILLIAMS, AND KITCHEN
See HB 30 FOR REVIEW, it’s very similarly worded. This is another extremely bad piece of proposed legislation that does nothing to focus on existing criminal behavior.
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SB-49 – Firearm tracing title 18 section 6127
INTRODUCED BY C. WILLIAMS
Any firearm recovered from a person under 21 years of age, for illegally possession of firearm, shall be traced to attempt to find out how they gained possession. This law puts the burden on local law enforcement to trace the information and report to PSP for their registry of these firearms.
There is no provision in this legislation to return stolen firearms to rightful owners.
Yes you read that last sentence correctly. Right now stolen firearms confiscated by police spend more time locked up than the thieves that stole them do, especially if they are under 18.
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SB-291 – Constitutional Convention
INTRODUCED BY FERLO, FONTANA, RAFFERTY, GREENLEAF, O'PAKE, PIPPY, EARLL, BROWNE, BOSCOLA AND BRUBAKER
A Constitutional Convention is intended to address certain defects in governmental operations OR to rewrite the entire form of government in accordance with the delegates selected by the political powers that be extant at the time of the call for the convention. Proponents of this concept see this as the best way to reform government without fully investigating what is at fault now. Reducing the size of government is more about shrinking the bureaucracy and NOT in shrinking representation, which is the eventual goal of proponents in PA. The TRUE problem with PA government is a lack of accountability and responsibility for ones’ actions.
Some proponents state that a constitutional convention can be controlled and yet every constitutional scholar flatly states that no controls can be effective over delegates to this process as it is out of the hands of legislators at that point.
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SB-701 - Sale or Transfer of Firearms - Amends title 18 section 6111 (g) (2)
INTRODUCED BY GREENLEAF, WASHINGTON, RAFFERTY, COSTA, BOSCOL, O'PAKE, TARTAGLIONE AND C. WILLIAMS
This amends title 18 section 6111(g)(2)by raising the penalty in existing law for licensed firearm dealers who illegally transfer firearms from a third degree to a second degree felony.
It also adds a new section of law (6111.6 Straw Purchases). With the presumption of you being guilty unless you can prove you are innocent. Any firearm, absent a stolen police report filed by the original purchaser or a record of lawful transfer after the date of purchase, found in possession of anyone other than the original purchaser is under the presumption that the original purchaser made a straw purchase then illegally transferred the firearm. Violation of this section is a second degree felony to be imposed on the original purchaser. The only other exemption is for firearms purchased with the intent they are going to be given as bona fide gifts to another individual. (Such as transfer of firearms from parent to child or grand parent to grand children)
This new section of law also legalizes the Pennsylvania State Police desire to create, retain and maintain a database related to all handgun information, transferred, sold or amount purchased by a person or licensed dealer / manufacturer in PA – existing statute to the contrary.
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SB-1038 - Persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.) 6105 (c), (f), 6105.1 (a), 6109 LTCF permits (c), (e), (i.1), 6111.1(f), (g)
INTRODUCED BY WASHINGTON, FONTANA, KITCHEN, TARTAGLIONE, C. WILLIAMS AND HUGHES,
This bill makes numerous changes in the existing laws dealing specifically with prohibiting firearm ownership to anyone ordered to undergo involuntary mental health treatment on a “out patient” basis.
Involuntary mental health commitment has been abused in the past by Pennsylvania law enforcement in an attempt to cover up their mistakes.
This bill possibly could make a whole new class of prohibited persons in PA with no real proof of any problems that now exist in current law, without addressing real abuses to the misapplication of mental health laws now on the books.
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SB-1042 – Limit on handgun purchases and sales in Cities of First Class - Amends title 18 section 6111.6
INTRODUCED BY WASHINGTON, KITCHEN, TARTAGLIONE, STACK AND C. WILLIAMS,
Creates a new section of law 6111.6 in title 18 and is very similar language to HB 22 or SB 1043.
This will mandate that no one can purchase more than one handgun per 30 day period in cities of the first class (Philadelphia). See SB 1043 for the right questions to be asked before enactment of this ill conceived proposed bill should be brought up for a vote.
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SB-1043 - Limit on handgun purchases
INTRODUCED BY WASHINGTON, FONTANA, STACK, TARTAGLIONE AND C. WILLIAMS
Creates a new section of law 6111.6 in title 18 and is very similar language to HB 22 or SB 1042.
This will mandate that no one can purchase more than one handgun in any 30 day period.
This legislation will mandate that no one could buy more than one handgun per month. It will, of course, require a massive database of gun owners’ personal information to make it operational. This has been tried in other states with no reduction in crime. Maryland and Virginia have it and Baltimore and Richmond have higher homicide rates than Philadelphia. South Carolina was the first state to adopt gun a month and was the first state to abandon this failed idea. This bill would also affect municipal regulation of firearms and ammunition.
Right now straw purchasers break the existing laws with impunity, and only get caught because they do so many the sheer number of them they leave an easy to follow paper trail right back to them, sad fact is when finally caught they are not aggressively prosecuted provided by law. People who sell firearms unlawfully can be charged with the same crime that the buyer used the gun for and face similar civil liability.
What this bill will most certainly create is a new expensive administrational bureaucracy to oversee this program. It will, of course, require a massive database of all gun owners’ personal information to make it operational. This has been tried in other states with no reduction in crime. Again, the taxpayers and gun owners would be burdened with paying for the upkeep of this database registration system. This bill also creates a new anti-gun bureaucracy called the Violence Prevention Fund.
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SB-1150 - Cruelty to animals, live pigeon shoots prohibited (Amend 18 Pa.C.S)
INTRODUCED BY BROWNE, COSTA, DINNIMAN, WASHINGTON, GREENLEAF, KITCHEN, BOSCOLA, D. WHITE, HUGHES,
RAFFERTY, A. WILLIAMS, MUSTO, C. WILLIAMS, TARTAGLIONE AND FERLO,
The groups that are supporting banning live pigeon shoots have publicly stated that this legislation is the beginning of the animal rights move to eliminate private shooting preserves and paint ALL hunting and fishing pursuits as cruelty to animals. See HB 73 for similar proposed legislation.
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SB-1171 – Firearms not to be carried without a license Amends title 18 section 6106 (a)
INTRODUCED BY FUMO, TARTAGLIONE, STACK, KITCHEN, A. WILLIAMS, HUGHES AND WASHINGTON
Upgrades section 6106 with Increased penalty with a one year mandatory sentence imposed.
Anyone who carries a firearm in their vehicle, concealed carry or open carry on their person without a License To Carry Firearm permit outside of their home or fixed place of business commits a third degree felony and upon conviction must serve a mandatory one-year minimum sentence. If you have no criminal record and are eligible to posse a License To Carry Firearm permit (but don’t for whatever reason) and has not committed any other criminal violation still constitutes a first degree misdemeanor and must serve mandatory one-year minimum sentence. With either conviction you are prohibiting from owning any more firearms, even if there is no criminal intent on your part.
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SB-1205 - altering or obliterating marks of identification
INTRODUCED BY HUGHES, WASHINGTON, KITCHEN, FUMO, TARTAGLIONE, A. WILLIAMS, C. WILLIAMS AND STACK
These changes would give police the ability to destroy any confiscated firearms when the legal owner can’t be located after a “reasonable” time of only 120 days. It modifies title 18 sections 6111(c) and 6111.1 (b), 6117. This bill prohibits any law enforcement agency to sell or transfer any confiscated firearm, which is commendable. The bad thing in this bill is this: It only requires the police to make a “reasonable” effort to find the legal owner of any confiscated firearms before they are destroyed. Conveniently absent from this bill is the definition of “reasonable effort”.
This bill also creates a new section 6117.1 relating to destruction of confiscated firearms: this would create a confiscated firearm database, and specific methods and procedures for the destruction of confiscated firearms, including making that “reasonable” effort to find the legal owner and failing to identify the lawful owner of the destruction process. The only exception is a stay of destruction if the confiscated firearm is evidence pertinent to an on going investigation or in a criminal prosecution or civil litigation. As soon as that is completed all confiscated firearms not claimed by their lawful owners will be destroyed.
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SB-1213 - Mandatory Firearms Registration in First Class City Act
INTRODUCED BY TARTAGLIONE, WASHINGTON, KITCHEN, A. WILLIAM, FUMO, HUGHES, FONTANA AND C. WILLIAMS
This bill is very similar to HB 760 except no $10 tax is charged per firearm and, it only applies to residents of first class cities. Any non-resident owning “unregistered” firearms being transported through their jurisdiction must have these firearms be broken down into a “non-functioning state”, or unloaded & enclosed in a case during transportation. Any registered firearm unless in a person’s immediate possession and control must be unloaded, disassembled or bound by a trigger lock or similar device.
Note there is no provision for LTCF permit holders unless (defending your life) that could be classified as a lawful recreation purpose within the city limits.
See HB 760 for reasons why this bill is just more of a long line of bad ideas, all of which do nothing at all to address the crime control problem.
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SB-1214 – Registry for lost or stolen, failure to report, State Police duties (Amend 18 Pa.C.S.)
INTRODUCED BY TARTAGLIONE, WASHINGTON, KITCHEN, A. WILLIAMS, FUMO, STACK, HUGHES, FONTANA AND C. WILLIAMS
This bill is very similar to HB 29. It requires any owner or other person lawfully in possession of a firearm who suffers the loss
or theft of a weapon shall report the facts and circumstances to the police department having jurisdiction within 24 hours of the discovery.
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SB-1215 - Sale or Transfer of Firearms - Amends title 18 section 6111 (g) (5) & (6)
INTRODUCED BY KITCHEN, TARTAGLIONE, HUGHES AND FUMO
This amends 6111 (g) (5) & (6) in regards the sale or transfer of firearms. In Ohio and in many other states, it is legal to sell a firearm to another person without using a dealer to facilitate the transfer. In Pennsylvania, since 1995, private transfers are illegal unless you go through a dealer. In Pennsylvania if you sell to a person whom you have reason to believe intends to use firearm unlawfully, the seller is liable for the same criminal and civil penalties as the person who uses the gun in a crime. This is one of the strongest deterrents against private sales to persons with known criminal intent. This legislation removes the “reason to believe” language, so that if a person sells handgun to his brother, who is not a criminal, but years later the brother uses the gun in a crime, the seller can be convicted of the same crime. This tramples Blackstone’s concept of culpability and replaces it with an Orwellian concept of the ministry of justice.
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SB-1217 - Firearms not to be carried without a license Amends title 18 section 6106 (a)
INTRODUCED BY A. WILLIAMS, WASHINGTON, McILHINNEY, KITCHEN, TARTAGLIONE, COSTA, LAVALLE AND WOZNIAK
This legislation allows the state to confiscate vehicles and vessels if a passenger is carrying a firearm unlawfully. And prohibits the owner from filing a claim in court for return of his property.
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SB-1228 – Restrictions License To Carry Firearms in First Class City
INTRODUCED BY A. WILLIAMS, C. WILLIAMS, TARTAGLIONE, HUGHE, WASHINGTON AND KITCHEN
This legislation would roll back the clock and allow Philadelphia to return to the days when only the politically connected could get a license to carry a firearm. Everyone else is left with two uncomfortable choices, either be a (government disarmed) victim of the criminals or illegally carry a firearm for self defense and take your chances not to be caught as a victim of a unjust law.
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Only YOU, by your active involvement, can stop these gun owner’s nightmares from becoming law.
West Mifflin Borough Council Rejects the Installation of Metal Detectors-
Complies with the Law
On January 20 at a public hearing before Council the issue of the installation of metal detectors and the discrimination against law-abiding citizens carrying concealed firearms finally came to a head. With dozens of pro-gun activist in attendance, Council heard from Greg Rotz and Kim Stolfer as to the lack of authority for council to enact a law of this kind as well as the possible ramifications for this action. In addition the justification laid out by Council President was laid bare when the shooting in Missouri was exposed as philosophically bankrupt because state law already prohibits the carrying of firearms in government buildings in Missouri. It also came as a shock to those in attendance to find out that two police officers were murdered in cold blood and there are service weapons used to carry out the criminal act.
Former state representative Richard Olasz, who is now a Council member, took immediate action at the end of testimony and brought forth a motion to terminate consideration of the metal detector. This motion was voted on and approved with the Council President voting against dropping the matter.
This was another example of a cooperative effort between numerous grass-roots pro-gun groups within Pennsylvania. Working together we can have a decided impact and the of special merit and recognition should be the assistance of Greg Rotz, Rich Banks, Mike Christeson and numerous gun owners from the Allegheny County Sportsmen’s league and Pennsylvania Open Carry Association.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?pageId=88218
Federal licensing, registration bill introduced
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
A bill that would require the licensing of all handgun owners and anyone who owns any semi-automatic handgun, rifle or shotgun that accepts a detachable magazine has been introduced by an Illinois Democrat.
The bill would also set up a federal registration system for all transfers of these so-called "qualifying firearms." Perhaps the most ominous part of the bill is that it defines "qualifying firearm" as "any handgun; or any semi-automatic firearm that can accept any detachable ammunition feeding device; and does not include any antique."
Gun rights activist David Codrea has labeled Rep. Bobby Rush's HR 45, the "Blair Holt Firearms Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009" a "declaration of war on American gunowners."
HR-45 was introduced into the House of Representatives in early January, just days after the 111th Congress convened. Rush (D-lst District), who was in 1968 a co-founder of the Illinois Black Panther Party and a member of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, is the lead sponsor.
According to Sharon Jenkins, Rush's director of National Media Relations and Marketing, "It's a simple, straightforward law enforcement measure that would require every gun manufactured or sold in America to have a 'gun identification number' (GIN) similar to what's currently required for American automobiles (VIN-Vehicle Identification Number). It does not prohibit or in any way limit consumers' Second Amendment rights ft)" gun ownership."
Named in memory of a heroic Chicago high school student who shielded the body of another student on a bus when a gunman boarded and opened fire, the bill would require private citizens to apply for a firearm license to the Attorney General, and pass a test on safe handling and storage of firearms, the use of firearms in the home and risks associated with such use, and the legal responsibilities of firearms owners, including a knowledge of federal, state and local laws. Each citizen applying for a gun license would have to open his mental health records to the Attorney General "or an authorized representative" and also submit a current passport-sized photograph with their name, address and the date and place of their birth.
This license would carry a number "unique to each licensed individual," and be renewable every five years. The license can be revoked.
It would require owners of "qualifying firearms" to report any change of address within 60 days of the move, and it would also be a violation of law to not report loss of a firearm to the Attorney General within 72 hours after the loss or theft is discovered.
There is also a section relating to child safety, and it also provides for heavy fines and imprisonment for violations of the act.
Under the Rush bill, it would be illegal to sell, deliver or transfer a firearm to anyone who is not licensed. In addition, nine months after the date of enactment, this legislation requires the Attorney General to establish and maintain a federal record of sale system that would log every firearm transfer conducted in the United States that is processed by a federally licensed firearms dealer.
It also eliminates the prohibition on gun registration that is now a part of federal law.
There is an exception for "the infrequent transfer of a firearm by gift, bequest, intestate succession or other means by an individual to a parent, child, grandparent, or grandchild of the individual, or to any loan of a firearm for any lawful purpose for not more than 30 days between persons who are personally known to each other."
There was no immediate indication from the Obama Administration whether it would support this measure.
Codrea sent out a blog on the proposed legislation that suggested the bill would ,leap to "the front burner" if there is just one shooting in a "gun free zone."
Under Rush's legislation, the Attorney General would create regulations that specify procedures for submission of gun license applications. These applications would be made through licensed dealers or federal agencies.
The license fee "shall not exceed $25."
As word of the licensing scheme spread across the Internet, gunowners reacted with both indignation and defiance.
Rush issued a "fact sheet" on the legislation in which he claimed that "The purpose of this bill is to restrict the availability of firearms to criminals, youth and gang members."
He further argued that "No sensible individual can argue with the fact that with over 200 million guns in the United States, we need a uniform system to keep track of these weapons." The New GUN WEEK, February 15, 2009
Pittsburgh City Council Passes ‘Illegal’ Gun Ordinance-Legal Action Unavoidable
Pittsburgh City Council has passed an ordinance – Mandatory Reporting of Lost or Stolen Firearms - that is in direct conflict with PA Crimes Code (statewide preemption law—Title Section 6120).
The City legislators have been trying to help Cease Fire PA and anti-gun state representative Dave Levdansky pass this measure in the state house without success this past spring. Now the council members have acted in flagrant disregard of the law, the home rule charter, prior court orders and even the advice of their own solicitors in enacting ‘Mandatory Reporting of Lost or Stolen Firearms’ as a city ordinance with only one ‘no’ vote-Councilman Burgess.
Prior to the enactment of this ordinance the City Council held a ‘post-agenda’ hearing where the ACSL participated and gave testimony and stood for questioning by council members. During the course of this hearing it became clear that ‘NO’ amount of logic or reason would dissuade Councilmen Shields or Peduto from prostrating public policy at the feet of Cease Fire PA and their willingness to commit criminal acts in pursuit of this agenda.
It is also a fact that criminals who misuse firearms in this state do not fear being prosecuted for violations of the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms Act because they know that that is the first thing that will be plea-bargained away. Of course City Council is, apparently, unconcerned with those problems or in going after career violent criminals and that is exactly what the vote on this ordinance demonstrated—political demagoguery.
As part of my testimony at the post-agenda meeting I mentioned the Boston Gun Project and the success that they had in stopping youth firearms homicides for 29 months. Councilman Burgess stated for the benefit of the media that Council was doing everything in its power and ‘turning over every stone’ to stop the killings. Yet nothing has been done in the last decade to bring to Pittsburgh, until very recently, this kind of a project. My question to all of council is ‘why’?? If Councilman Shields, as well as the rest of council, were truly concerned about gun violence then success stories like Boston should have been fast tracked into action!
In addition the City of Pittsburgh has twice before ignored state law, subsequently successfully sued by the ACSL and then told by Common Pleas Court (Judge James) to ‘abide by state law’ and ordered to, in effect, cease and desist. These issues involved Council’s enactment of an Assault Weapon Ban and, later, their active participation with Janet Reno’s U.S. Justice Department to register and track ‘every’ gun owner in western PA in a sophisticated computer database.
In a rude and disrespectful display of political arrogance, Councilman Burgess sent a letter to Kim Stolfer (Chairman of the ACSL Legislative Committee) explaining that he recognized the ‘illegality’ of the proposed ordinance and would have voted for it if he could. Instead of stopping there, Councilman Burgess went on to ‘challenge’ Kim Stolfer to a public debate on handguns and then scoffed at the likelihood of our participating in this debate. The letter from Burgess was distributed to local media on Thursday and Kim Stolfer did NOT receive his copy until Friday morning after the media contacted him numerous times.
Interestingly, the written reply to Burgess to accept his challenge as well as rebut his unfounded and insulting points resulted in the Tribune Review following up with story on the merits of our accusations and positions. You can read more at this link -- http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_602272.html
As of this writing, Councilman Burgess and Kim Stolfer will be squaring off on the Kevin Miller show on KDKA radio (1020-AM) on December 19th at 2p.m. The debate will be a lively one to be sure!
The fact of the matter is that barring a selfless and ethical act on the part of the Allegheny County DA (Zappala) arresting and incarcerating ‘all’ of the council members who voted for this, the City of Pittsburgh is facing a guaranteed legal action against their actions.
West Mifflin Borough Installing Metal Detectors and They Say NO to CCW
The borough of West Mifflin has been contacted by the legislative committee, as well as a number of other groups and individuals interested in this issue, to ascertain exactly what they plan to do with the installation of metal detectors and to inform them that denying individuals the ability to enter Council chambers is a violation of law, the home rule charter, the Ortiz decision, and court precedent in Allegheny County pursuant to the court order issued against the city of Pittsburgh.
While this contact has resulted in a number of articles written about this particular issue, the response from West Mifflin borough has been complete silence. No attempt to communicate in any fashion has been forthcoming therefore a small group of gun owners is planning to attend the borough council meeting on January 20. Early indications are that they are going to try to muzzle gun owners and individuals who would like to speak at this meeting from talking due to the apparent publication of articles where in legal challenges to their authority were mentioned.
This is an ongoing and developing problem that we will be following and dealing with at each turn.
More to come on this as well!
Pittsburgh Mayor Passes on ‘Illegal’ Gun Ordinance-Legal Action Pending
The city of Pittsburgh is now in violation of the Pennsylvania crimes code, the home rule charter, the Ortiz Supreme Court decision and a 13-year-old Allegheny County Court order. The passage of the legislation "mandatory reporting of lost or stolen firearms" and the failure of Pittsburgh mayor Luke Ravenstall to take a principled stand against these violations of the law and court orders clears the way for legal action to, once again, put the genie back in the bottle and force government to comply with the law.
Wow, what a novel idea!
Wouldn't it be nice if there was a prosecutor or judge who was willing to stand on principle and seated Councilman arrested for the crimes they have committed?!
After the above transpired Kim Stolfer was challenged by the only opposition to this legislation, Councilman Rick Burgess, to do a live debate on the radio show hosted by Kevin Miller on KDKA radio. Kim Stolfer responded swiftly with a three-page response to the innuendo and misstatements of the Councilman as well as accepting the challenge to debate him anywhere anytime. As the date for the debate approached it became apparent that KDKA radio was going to make some changes to their broadcast schedule and that Kevin Miller was going to be replaced and as a
result of this the Councilman chose this as an opportunity to cancel the debate. A curious man would wonder why this particular radio talk show host was so important to the Councilman that no substitutions were possible.
The end result is that we are in the planning stages of putting together a legal challenge to the lunacy that seems to run unchecked within City Hall.
More to come as circumstances develop.
Obama's AG pick Holder has long anti-gun history
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
Eric Holder, the man chosen by president-elect Barack Obama to be the next attorney general of the United States, has an anti-gun track record that has gun rights activists alarmed, not only about the man, but about the signals that Obama is sending about how his administration will actually deal with gun rights.
Within hours after Holder's nomination was announced, activist Internet forums were busily discussing his background, with ample documentation.
Prominent among those was the transcript of Holder's weekly briefing on March 20, 2000, when he was deputy attorney general under Janet Reno during the Clinton Administration. At that time, he went on record urging Congress to pass legislation
requiring handgun licensing and "safety certification" for all handgun buyers, and a federal law mandating trigger locks on all handguns that are sold. He also pushed for adoption of "smart gun" legislation that would explore technology ultimately resulting in the development of firearms that could only be used by a single individual.
Before that, he had lobbied Congress to pass federal legislation requiring background checks on all gun show transactions, even between private parties.
Holder was one of several people who signed an amicus brief in the Heller case that supported the Washington, DC, handgun ban and also argued that the Second Amendment did not affirm an individual civil right.
Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, said Holder's nomination to become this nation's chief law enforcement officer "tells American gunowners that Obama's campaign claims supporting the Second Amendment were empty rhetoric."
"America's 85 million gun owners have ample reason to be pessimistic about how their civil rights will fare under the Obama administration," Gottlieb said. "Mr. Obama will have a Congress with an anti-gun Democrat majority leadership to push his gun control agenda. Gunowners have not forgotten Mr. Obama's acknowledged opposition to concealed carry rights, nor his support for a ban on handgun ownership when he was running for the Illinois state senate."
Gottlieb told Gun Week that it is no small wonder there was a rush on gun shops all over the country immediately after the election.
With Holder, he indicated, there is a concern that the Justice Department might be lethargic about protecting the rights of gunowners. He also said that Holder's addition to the Obama team is another signal about the direction that the new administration is going to tilt when it comes to gun rights versus gun control.
"Barack Mama vigorously portrayed himself on the campaign trail as a man who supports gun ownership," Gottlieb said, "but now that he has won he is surrounding himself with people who are avowed gun prohibitionists.” The New GUN WEEK, December 15, 2008
Pennsylvania woman plans suit stemming from open carry issue
Meleanie Hain's attorney says the Lebanon, PA, woman has endured the ridicule of neighbors and lost baby- sitting jobs since she achieved notoriety for openly, and legally, carrying a gun to her 5-year-old daughter's soccer game, according to The Patriot-News of Harrisburg.
And it's Sheriff Michael DeLeo's fault, according to a malicious-prosecution lawsuit that civil rights attorney Matthew Weisberg said he planned to file on Nov. 24.
"The sheriff should have known Meleanie had the right to openly carry," the Philadelphia-area attorney said.
Since DeLeo tried to take away her permit to carry a concealed weapon, "she has become a pariah in her small. community," Weisberg said in the newspaper's report.
Hain achieved national attention after she took a gun, holstered on her hip, to a soccer game Sept. 11 at Optimist Park in Lebanon. After some other parents complained, DeLeo revoked her concealed weapons permit, saying she showed poor judgment.
Lebanon County Judge Robert J. Eby reversed the sheriff's decision on appeal during a court hearing attended by about 60 gun rights activists.
Eby also lectured Hain, telling her that what is legal is not necessarily right.
He asked her to conceal her gun if she carried it to soccer games. But Hain said after the hearing that she planned to continue carrying it openly since it is her right under the Second Amendment.
Weisberg said the parents who sent their children to her in-home baby- sitting service knew she openly carried a gun, but didn't care until after the sheriff revoked her license.
"She lost those jobs because of the negativity surrounding her prosecution," he said.
Weisberg said the lawsuit will seek damages for Hain's pain and suffering, as well as money for her attorney fees.
George Christiansen, attorney for the Lebanon County Sheriff's Department, acknowledged he has received a letter from Weisberg about the intention to sue, and he has turned it over to the county's insurance company.
"I don't know the legal basis for the lawsuit," Christiansen said. "Mike DeLeo exercised what the state statute put upon him regarding the issuance of permits. I'm convinced it was a valid judgment call. Everybody can sue anybody for anything."
DeLeo revoked Hain's permit under the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms Act, which gives sheriffs the right to deny permits to anyone "whose character and reputation is such that the individual would be likely to act in a dangerous manner to public safety."
"I just did my job," DeLeo told the newspaper. "The courts have ruled, and we respect that ruling." The New GUN WEEK, December 15, 2008
Local communities challenge the enforcement of Pennsylvania law
In what appears to be a coordinated effort a number of local communities are feeding off the anti-gun antics of the Philadelphia city Council and Mayor by introducing their own legislation mandating the reporting of lost or stolen firearms. This is being done in the shadow of the decision by Commonwealth court that there is no authority for any community to make these decisions.
The fact that they are prohibited from enacting these ordinances by Pennsylvania title 18 crimes code subsection 6120 but also the home rule charter seems to fall on deaf ears even though each community retains their own solicitor who was supposed to advise them on the legality of their efforts.
These efforts appear to be headed for a showdown in the Supreme Court and more will be coming out in the near future about additional efforts to confront these clearly illegal policies.
Pro-Gun House Bill 1845 PASSES House and Senate
October 8th, House Bill 1845, a pro-gun legislative package passed the State House and State Senate and is on the way to Governor Ed Rendell’s desk for his signature.
This legislation contained four specific pro-gun provisions for Pennsylvania gun owners. Among the provisions was an “Emergency Powers” provision prohibiting any government agency from arbitrarily confiscating firearms during a state of emergency, such as occurred in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Other important provisions include:
༨ Establishing lawful carry of a concealed firearm in state parks
༨ Funding for the acclaimed “Don’t Lie For The Other Guy” program administered by the National Shooting Sports Foundation
༨ Emergency permitting system for concealed carry licenses for individuals who are under immediate threat.
PLEASE thank your Senator and your Representative for supporting this important legislation and encourage the Governor to sign it with your e-mails and phone calls.
Our thanks to all of the gun owners who have supported us over the last two years in making this victory a reality!!
2008 Election-Gun Owners Eye Results-Many Confused on Candidate Positions
In what many foresee as a rough road ahead the outcome of the 2008 elections, nationally and within the state of Pennsylvania, has many gunowners and sportsmen deeply concerned.
The election of Barack Obama and his selection of members of his cabinet leave little room for doubt that gun owners will be squarely in the crosshairs of the new administration. In fact during the course of the campaign President elect Obama stated on NPR radio that he believes in a national ban on the carrying of concealed firearms for self-defense.
The following items appear to be on the short list for consideration within the next 100 days of the administration:
༨ "Making the expired federal assault weapons ban permanent." Perhaps no other firearm issue has been more dishonestly portrayed by gun prohibitionists. Notwithstanding their predictions that the ban's expiration in 2004 would bring about the end of civilization, for the last four years the nation's murder rate has been lower than anytime since the mid-1960s. Studies for Congress, the Congressional Research Service, the National Institute of Justice, the National Academy of Sciences, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found no evidence that gun prohibition or gun control reduces crime. Guns that were affected by the ban are used in only a tiny fraction of violent crime-about 35 times as many people are murdered without any sort of firearm (knives, bare hands, etc.), as with "assault weapons." Obama says that "assault weapons" are machine guns that "belong on foreign battlefields," but that is a lie; the guns are only semi-automatic, and they are not used by a military force anywhere on the planet.
༨ "Repeal the Tiahrt Amendment." The amendment--endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police--prohibits the release of federal firearm tracing information to anyone other than a law enforcement agency conducting a bona fide criminal investigation. Anti-gun activists oppose the restriction, because it prevents them from obtaining tracing information and using it in frivolous lawsuits against law-abiding firearm manufacturers. Their lawsuits seek to obtain huge financial judgments against firearm manufacturers when a criminal uses a gun to inflict harm, even though the manufacturers have complied with all applicable laws.
༨ "Closing the gun show loophole." There is no "loophole." Under federal law, a firearm dealer must conduct a background check on anyone to whom he sells a gun, regardless of where the sale takes place. A person who is not a dealer may sell a gun from his personal collection without conducting a check. Gun prohibitionists claim that many criminals obtain guns from gun shows, though the most recent federal survey of convicted felons put the figure at only 0.7 percent. They also claim that non-dealers should be required to conduct checks when selling guns at shows, but the legislation they support goes far beyond imposing that lone requirement. In fact, anti-gun members of Congress voted against that limited measure, holding out for a broader bill intended to drive shows out of business.
༨ "Making guns in this country childproof." "Childproof" is a codeword for a variety of schemes designed to prevent the sale of firearms by imposing impossible or highly expensive design requirements, such as biometric shooter-identification systems. While no one opposes keeping children safe, the fact is that accidental firearm-related deaths among children have decreased 86 percent since 1975, even as the numbers of children and guns have risen dramatically. Today, the chances of a child being killed in a firearm accident are less than one in a million.
The items listed above in addition to the ban on concealed carry of firearms are ones most likely to be subject to early legislative efforts.
Congress:
Across the country a small but not insignificant number of pro-gun Congressman incumbents have lost their seats to dedicated anti-gun individuals. Here in Pennsylvania Congressman Phil English was unseated by a woman who is an avowed enemy of the Second Amendment.
Pennsylvania:
Gun owners and sportsmen lost a small number of pro-gun votes but did pick up several seats that would otherwise have gone against us in legislative areas. More will be coming out on these races but at this time the final results have not been determined and several campaigns are being challenged.
DEP SECRETARY REMINDS PENNSYLVANIANS TO STAY OUT OF MINES, QUARRIES
‘Stay Out – Stay Alive’ Program Highlights Dangers of Active, Abandoned Mines
The idle equipment, steep cliffs, serene pools of water, and mysterious shaft openings of active and abandoned mines can be alluring for adventure seekers, but many times are deadly, according to Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty.
The secretary visited an abandoned strip mine in Joffre today that is less than 10 feet from the Pan Handle Trail—a popular recreation spot in the community—to warn residents to stay out of mines, quarries and abandoned mine lands because of the many dangers these sites can hold.
“There are thousands of abandoned sites just like this across Pennsylvania with steep cliffs, hidden underground mine openings and dangerous water bodies,” said McGinty. “Mines are not safe places for swimming, exploring or off-road riding. When you venture into these sites, you put your life and the lives of emergency personnel who conduct the search and rescue operations at risk.”
McGinty’s remarks kicked off the 2008 “Stay Out - Stay Alive” campaign to warn people about the dangers of trespassing in mines and quarries.
Since 2000, 31 people have died trespassing in mines and quarries in 19 Pennsylvania counties. The U.S. Mine Safety and Heath Administration (MSHA) reports that 249 people have died nationally during that same period.
To combat this problem, DEP has partnered with MSHA, other mining states and the mining industry to promote the Stay Out - Stay Alive program.
“Pennsylvania has been blessed with great mineral resources, and mining has been a cornerstone of our economy for more than 200 years, but the unregulated mining practices of the past have left us with one-quarter million acres of dangerous and deadly mine lands,” said McGinty. “Every year we hear of more tragic accidents: swimmers drowning in abandoned water-filled pits where water temperatures drop dramatically just below the surface; people entering abandoned mines or dilapidated structures and getting lost or trapped; and all-terrain vehicle riders breaking through brush on the crest of an old mine site and rolling down a hillside.
Be safe this summer. Mines and quarries are not playgrounds; they can kill you. Stay out and stay alive.”
DEP recently began airing 30-second radio and television messages across the state as part the campaign to underscore the dangers of abandoned mine sites and quarries. The department conducts educational programs for community groups and distributes Stay Out - Stay Alive information to those receiving hunting and fishing licenses through the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the Fish and Boat Commission. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources also distributes Stay Out – Stay Alive information with all off-road vehicle and snowmobile registrations and to users of state parks and forests. Additionally, DEP works with state and local police and emergency responders to identify and limit access to dangerous sites. Pennsylvania has the largest abandoned mine lands problem in the country. Approximately 1 million Pennsylvanians live within one mile of a dangerous abandoned mine, while active mining operations are found in all but one of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties.
Since 2003, Governor Edward G. Rendell has committed more than $145 million to 240 abandoned mine reclamation projects across Pennsylvania, turning more than 6,100 acres of dangerous wasteland into opportunities for economic growth and improved quality of life.
“The $625 million Growing Greener II initiative allocates $60 million to clean up rivers and streams affected by abandoned acid mine drainage and reclaim dangerous sites.
Governor Rendell was instrumental in persuading Congress to reauthorize the Abandoned Mine Lands Fund for another 15 years. The federal program, which is funded by a tax on modern mining activities, will direct $27.6 million to Pennsylvania during 2008 to reclaim abandoned coal mines.
For more information on abandoned mine reclamation, or to view the public service announcement, visit www.depweb.state.pa.us, keyword: Stay Out Stay Alive.
Source: PA DEP
Prepare for Fall with the GreenScapes Seasonal Planner
GreenScapes has developed a Seasonal Planner (PDF) (2 pp, 1MB) to help you garden sustainably throughout all the seasons. Fall is just around the corner and The GreenScapes Seasonal Planner reminds you of how your gardening practices should change from Summer to Fall, so that you don't have to keep track of it all yourself. Learn how to save energy, water, and time maintaining your lawn, as the weather cools and the leaves start to fall. We encourage you to share it with friends and colleagues.
Source: U.S. EPA
House Passes DC Gun Rights Legislation
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
Voting 266-152, the House of Representatives with 181 Republicans and 85 Democrats in the majority passed a bill from which the original language was stripped and in its place was substituted strong pro-gun language authored by a freshman Democrat from Mississippi.
The "National Capital Security and Safety Act" was passed
despite a last-minute effort by the District of Columbia City Council to amend its own restrictive handgun registration regulations before Congress stepped in and took over gun regulation in the city.
The city had originally adopted an ordinance allowing the
registration of only revolvers, while still banning semi-automatic
handguns and requiring trigger locks. The high court ruling in the
Heller decision specifically noted that requiring trigger locks, to
prevent the gun from being used until it is required for self-defense, is unconstitutional.
Some 50 Democrats signed on as co-sponsors of the bill, authored by Mississippi Rep. Travis Childers, that became the substitute language of the original HR 6842, which had been introduced by anti-gun Washington, DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. She subsequently ended up opposing the measure with her name on it, even though as a delegate to the House,
she cannot vote.
The bill, which still must pass the Senate and be signed by
President George Bush, removes semiautomatic firearms from the
District's long-standing definition of a machinegun. It also strips
authority from the city council to regulate gun ownership, including a requirement that firearms be registered. The legislation also allows District residents to purchase handguns in neighboring Virginia and Maryland, while allowing the possession of unregistered firearms.
The city's effort to head off this House bill included a similar
provision allowing semi-autos and removing them from the definition of "machinegun," according to The Washington Times. The city's ordinance still limits magazine capacity to 10 rounds.
The House measure, which had the support of the National Rifle
Association, was in direct response to the deliberately complicated regulations initially adopted by the city after it lost the landmark
Heller case that struck down the city's handgun ban. Not only did
those first regulations enrage gunowners all over the country, they angered pro-gun members of Congress in both parties.
However, passage of the legislation in the House does not guarantee the bill will become law. What the vote did accomplish was give several Democrats from conservative districts the ability to campaign as pro-gunners in tight races.
That much was recognized by the Second Amendment Foundation, which cautioned Democrats against feeling too smug about touting this single vote.
"Those Democrats are fully aware that chances of this bill getting
through the Senate during this session of Congress are virtually nil," said SAF founder Alan Gottlieb, "but this issue gave them a chance to cast a pro-gun vote they can brag about on the campaign trail.
You can bet your gun collection that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will block a vote on this."
Gottlieb also blasted the District council for essentially creating the problem and then scrambling to provide a fix before Congress stepped in.
He lauded the House for having "rightfully assumed responsibility for enforcing the Second Amendment in our nation's capitol city."
However, he was far less cordial to five Washington state Democrats who all voted against the bill. The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms took to task Reps. Dicks,
McDermott, Inslee, Larsen and Smith, all of whom joined a majority of Democrats to oppose the measure. In all, 145 Democrats and 7 liberal Republicans voted against the bill. The New GUN WEEK, October 15, 2008
Republicans v. Democrats:
Party Platforms Steering Gun Rights Voters In 2008
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
Forget about Sen. Barrack Obama's short but decidedly anti-gun voting history and Sen. Joe Biden's much longer pattern of supporting every gun control measure on Capitol Hill.
Ignore Sen. John McCain's record— with the notable exceptions of cosponsoring a controversial gun show bill and co-authoring a "campaign finance reform" law that infuriated gun rights activists—of opposing gun control on the grounds that it failed to reduce violent crime. And pay no attention at all to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's life membership in the National Rifle Association, and her background as an ardent big game hunter and angler.
Gunowners are paying more attention to the respective party platforms showing where Republicans and Democrats stand on the gun rights issue, and a careful reading of both position statements reflects a world of difference between where the parties stand.
In the Democrat document, the party donates 126 words to firearms rights.
"We recognize that the right to bear arms is an important part of the American tradition, and we will preserve Americans' Second Amendment right to own and use firearms," the party states. "We believe that the right to own firearms is subject to reasonable regulation, but we know that what works in Chicago may not work in Cheyenne. We can work together to enact and enforce commonsense laws and improvements – like closing the gun show loophole, improving our background check system, and reinstating the assault weapons ban, so that guns do not fall into the hands of terrorists or criminals. Acting responsibly and with respect for differing views on this issue, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our communities and our children safe."
Republicans go a little farther and get considerably more focused on concerns of gunowners with their 185-word dissertation.
"We uphold the right of individual Americans to own firearms, a right which antedated the Constitution and was solemnly confirmed by the Second Amendment," the Republican platform explains. "We applaud the Supreme Court's decision in Heller affirming that right, and we assert the individual responsibility to safely use and store firearms.
"We call on the next president to appoint judges who will similarly respect the Constitution," Republicans continue. "Gun ownership is responsible citizenship, enabling Americans to defend themselves, their property, and communities.
"We call for education in constitutional rights in schools, and we support the option of firearms training in federal programs serving senior citizens and women," the GOP statement adds. "We urge immediate action to review the automatic denial of gun ownership to returning members of the Armed Forces who have suffered trauma during service to their country. We condemn frivolous lawsuits against firearms manufacturers, which are transparent attempts to deprive citizens of their rights. We oppose federal licensing of law-abiding gun owners and national gun registration as violations of the Second Amendment. We recognize that gun control only affects and penalizes law-abiding citizens, and that such proposals are ineffective at reducing violent crime."
Recently, in an opinion piece circulated to newspapers around the country, SAF founder Alan Gottlieb and this reporter noted that Democrats have finally brought to an end their 14-year-courtship of the nation's gun owners, with this platform and by nominating Obama and Biden as this year's presidential and vice presidential candidates.
We noted that "instead of a goodbye kiss, there was a slap in the face; the political approximation of a domestic assault." The New GUN WEEK, October 15, 2008
Next President & Supreme Court: lessons learned in `Hanoi Hilton'
by James H. Warner
I know that there are many gun owners who do not want to vote for Sen. John McCain for president. Most of you have had many policy
differences with him over the years. I myself have disagreed with him on a number of issues. Nevertheless, I am telling you, as a fellow gun owner,
that you must vote for McCain. If he is not elected president our gun rights will be in greater danger than ever before. Let me explain
I know the importance of judges who can read the Constitution and understand it to mean exactly what it says. I am an attorney, retired
from the legal office of the National Rifle Association. While I was at the NRA our office had several occasions to participate in legal actions defending your rights. Although I am otherwise retired, I recently wrote one of the briefs (a written legal argument) submitted to the US Supreme
Court in the recent case challenging two restrictive gun laws in the District of Columbia. Our side argued that these laws violated the individual right to keep
and bear arms which is protected by the Second Amendment. We succeeded. This was the first time in the history of our country that the Supreme
Court has recognized that the Second Amendment protects an individual right. You may think that the battle is over. You would be wrong.
Our gun rights are in greater danger today than ever before. Let me explain. The decision in the Supreme Court was 5-4. That is a razor thin margin.
One of the justices who voted against us was Justice John Paul Stevens. He is 88 years old. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who also voted
against us, is 75 years old and is believed to be in poor health. If two justices leave the Court the next president of the United
States would appoint their successors. If Barack Obama is elected, and these two justices leave the Court, he could appoint nominees like Charles Schumer and
Dianne Feinstein to the bench. If that were to happen, nothing would have changed and our margin would remain a razor thin one vote margin.
However, if they were to be replaced with justices who take our view of the law, our majority would then be 7-2, a much safer margin.
But what if three justices, or even four, were to leave the Court? Justice Anthony Kennedy, who voted with us, is 72, as is Justice Antonin Scalia, who was also in our corner. What if they left the Court and President Obama replaced them with Hillary Clinton and Richard Durbin?
The anti-gun crowd would have a 6-3 majority. Where would our gun rights be then? For that matter, where would our guns be?
If there should be a Democratic president and a Democratic Congress, you can be sure that there would be a flood of new gun laws.
You can be sure that many of the guns that are currently in your gun locker would be made illegal.I know that there are others who don't trust McCain. I have a different perspective.He has been my friend for 37 years. I didn't meet him at a Washington fundraiser, or a lobbyist's cocktail party. I met him when 36 of us were
taken from Hoa Lo prison (the infamous "Hanoi Hilton") and put in cramped 61/2 by 3-foot cells in a place we were told was a "punishment camp." I would trust his integrity if my life depended on it. I say this because I saw how he performed when we were forced to trust in the integrity of our comrades. I have seen, with my own eyes, that John McCain's word can be trusted. He has said that if elected he would appoint judges whose view of the law is similar to that of Justice Samuel Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts. I believe him and I urge you to trust him also.Regardless of any other differences you may have with McCain,
you must help elect him so we can keep our guns. I was disarmed once (when I was captured) and it did not work out so well. I don't want
that to happen to you. James H. Warner is an attorney who is retired from the legal office of the NRA. He served as a domestic policy advisor to President Ronald Reagan from 1985 until 1989. He was a Marine officer in Vietnam and was held as a POW in North Vietnam for years.
The New GUN WEEK, September 15, 2008
DC/Heller Ruling Leaves Nation Polarized
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
In the beginning, it was the Supreme Court's 5-4 ideological split that defined the Second Amendment as protective of an individual right to keep and bear arms regardless of affiliation with a militia.
But the historic ruling, written by Justice Antonin Scalia, quickly divided a nation, and in the aftermath there did not seem to be much middle ground. The evidence was clear, in the hysteria-steeped reaction by anti-gunners including Washington, DC, Mayor Adrian Fenty, California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, contrasting sharply with the victory remarks from gun rights leaders and activists, including Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, and Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation.
Perhaps Daley's outlook was glum because less than an hour after the high court announced its ruling, SAF and the Illinois State Rifle Association filed a federal lawsuit against Daley and the city of Chicago over the handgun ban there (see related story).
"This is a great moment in American history," LaPierre said. "It vindicates individual Americans all over this country who have always known that this is their freedom worth protecting.""Wisdom and truth have triumphed over hysteria and falsehood," Gottlieb added. "This decision makes it clear that a right 'of the people' is a right enjoyed by, and affirmed for, all citizens. It destroys a cornerstone of anti-gun rights elitism, which has fostered through years of deceit and political demagoguery the erosion of this important civil right."
Scalia's majority opinion brought to an end decades of dispute over the meaning of the Second
Amendment. The high court ruled that the amendment "protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home."
The opinion, supported by Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Anthony M. Kennedy, left the door open to regulation of the right, noting that "like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited."
"The court's opinion," Scalia wrote, "should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms."
The ruling also demolished the argument long advanced by anti-gunners that the 1939 Miller case (See Hindsight column in the July 1 issue of Gun Week) relegated the right to bear arms as being conditional to militia service.
But Scalia's majority opinion also castigated the arguments offered in the two dissenting opinions authored by liberal Justices John Paul Stevens and Steven G. Breyer, who were joined by David Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In Stevens' case, the majority opinion suggested that the argument put forth in his dissent that the Second Amendment's right to bear arms would "cause the protected right to consist of the right to be a soldier or to wage war"
amounted to "an absurdity that no commentator has ever endorsed."
The majority also stated that Stevens' arguments, based on his reading of the drafting history of the amendment, indicate that Stevens "flatly misreads the historical record."
Scalia also wrote that "Justice Breyer's assertion that individual self-defense is merely a 'subsidiary interest' of the right to keep and bear arms...is profoundly mistaken."
Scalia's opinion castigates dissenting minority rulings
Stevens lamented in his dissenting opinon that "I fear the District's policy choice (the gun ban) may well be just the first of an unknown number of dominoes to be knocked off the table" by the majority opinion. He argued that the majority opinion upholding an individual right interpretation amounted to "the announcement of a new constitutional right to own and use firearms for private purposes..."
Breyer contended that gun violence in modern-day America had created an environment in which handguns contributed to the problem. He stated that "there simply is no untouchable constitutional right guaranteed by the Second Amendment to keep loaded handguns in the house in crime-ridden urban areas."
But Scalia countered in the finale paragraph of his majority opinion that, "We are aware of the problem of handgun violence in this country, and we take seriously the concerns raised by the many amici who believe that prohibition of handgun ownership is a solution...But the enshrinement of constitutional rights necessarily takes certain policy choices off the table.
"Undoubtedly," he continued, "some think that the Second Amendment is outmoded in a society where our standing army is the pride of our Nation, where well-trained police forces provide personal security, and where gun violence is a serious problem. That is perhaps debatable, but what is not debatable is that it is not the role of this Court to pronounce the Second Amendment extinct."
The ruling ignited a firestorm, with supporters of the ban complaining that it will lead to increased violence in Washington, DC, and across the nation.
Polls run by several news organizations found an overwhelming majority of on-line respondents supported the individual rights ruling That did not
stop the invective from spilling over on several newspaper forums It reached a fever pitch with the traditionally antigun Chicago Tribune calling for a repeal of the Second Amendment in an editorial the following day.
Within hours of the ruling, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence was out with a fund-raising plea that declared, "The Heller decision will no doubt embolden ideological extremists to file new legal attacks on existing gun laws. But with the help of the Brady Center's legal team, those attacks can, and must, be successfully resisted in the interest of public safety."
They were attempting to raise $50,000 by June 30, and it was not clear whether they met that goal.
"We disagree with the Court's decision giving individuals a right to possess guns for private purpose," the news release stated. "However, what is critically important is that all nine Justices agreed that a wide variety of gun laws are constitutional, including restrictions on carrying concealed weapons, guns in schools and other sensitive places, and bans on 'dangerous and unusual' weapons."
An anti-gun forum called "The Gun Guys" called the ruling a "misguided decision" that will lead to an increase in violent crime. They have an archive of stories about shooting victims called "America's Shooting Gallery."
"We only wish that the justices of the Supreme Court could have first looked at an archive similar to ours to see the devastation of guns in America," the website stated. "Maybe, the discussion and subsequent ruling from the Court would have had a different outcome."
But LaPierre disagreed with that assessment.
"Our founding fathers wrote and intended the Second Amendment to be an individual right," he said. "The Supreme Court has now acknowledged it. The Second Amendment as an individual right now becomes a real permanent part of American Constitutional law." The New GUN WEEK, July 1, 2008
ALERT!!!!
Allegheny County Sportsmen's
League, Inc.
Pennsylvania Sportsmen’s Association
October 2, 2008
EMERGENCY ACTION REQUEST: H.B. 1845 Needs Your Help to Move it Out of Committee and onto the Floor for a Senate Vote
Fellow gun owners and sportsmen:
Your help is needed to correct serious deficiencies in Pennsylvania firearms law.
House Bill 1845 originally dealt with increasing the penalties for removing or obliterating serial numbers on firearms. Pro-gun legislators amended it by adding critically important pro-gun amendments.
The amended House Bill 1845 passed the House and the Senate Judiciary Committee but has remained bogged down in the Senate Appropriations Committee where it will die and ALL of our hard work will be LOST unless you act quickly. It is important to point out that law enforcement supports this amended Senate version as does the PA District Attorney’s Association.
PLEASE ACT NOW – there are VERY FEW DAYS left to get House Bill 1845 enacted into law before it dies at the end of this session. There are ONLY 3 days left in the Senate -- Oct 6, 7 & 8 so please CALL, WRITE OR EMAIL ALL 50 Senators, not just your own, to urge them to VOTE FOR House Bill 1845 (with Amendment #AO9226 ONLY).
The pro-gun initiatives are included below:
Prohibits DNCR from undermining state law. (originally House Bill 1292)
This bill clarifies that the DCNR cannot continue to pass regulations that undermine state firearms laws. Without this legislation, the DCNR will continue to deny the lawful possession of firearms by concealed carry permit holders and off duty law enforcement officers in PA state parks.
Prohibits government from confiscating Firearms or Ammunition from Citizens during a disaster (such as happened to law abiding homeowners after the Katrina hurricane) (originally House Bill 1145)
This bill prohibits the Governor and other government officials from using an emergency as pretext to confiscate firearms, ammo or firearm accessories from citizens just when they need them.
There are currently no specific protections against this kind seizure of firearms in Pennsylvania law.
Provides for the emergency issue of a License To Carry Firearms (valid for 45 days) with a letter from law enforcement or a police report. (House Bill 1160 as amended by AO9226)
This bill authorizes the issuance of immediate temporary non-renewable concealed carry license to qualified individuals who are in imminent danger. This license will be issued, by the Sheriff in the County of residence, only after the individual provides evidence of imminent danger. As amended by AO9226, this bill has the support of the Pennsylvania
District Attorneys Association. The PCADV (PA Coalition Against Domestic Violence) sent a letter to the Senate asking them to remove this amendment from the bill, citing the Kellerman Studies as justification. The PCADV forgot to mention that the Kellerman Studies were reviewed and discredited by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) and the NAS (National Academy of Sciences).
Open Records. This will enable a citizen to challenge inaccurate criminal history records information if used to deny the purchase of a firearm (originally House Bill 1235).
Without this legislation, the procedure for appealing a denial is almost Soviet like in its unfairness. The state police do not have to tell you or your lawyer exactly why they have denied your
application to purchase a firearm until the moment you appear in court to argue your case. By then it is too late for you and your lawyer to investigate the claims of the state police and prepare a defense.
All bills not passed by both chambers will die at end of this legislative session. If you don’t act now and get HB 1845 passed within the next few days, your guns will remain vulnerable to government confiscation.
Please contact ALL 50 Senators to express your support for bill. Do it now. Please do NOT forward this document to the senator – just CALL, WRITE OR EMAIL a message in support of HB 1845 WITH AMENDMENT AO9226 and NO OTHER AMENDMENTS.
Deepest Appreciation and Thanks For Your Help!!
Kim Stolfer Harry Schneider
Legislative Committee, Chairman Legislative Committee, Chairman
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association
E-Mail -- activist@fyi.net P.O. Box 2227
Cranberry Township, PA 16066
(412) 221-3346, Home Phone psa@pagunlaws.com
(412) 257-1099, Home Fax
Senator Contact Information:
If you want to batch email all 50 senators
garmstrong@pasen.gov; lbaker@pasen.gov; boscola@pasenate.com; pbrowne@pasen.gov; mbrubaker@pasen.gov; jcorman@pasen.gov; costa@pasenate.com; andydinniman@pasenate.com; jearll@pasen.gov; jeichelberger@pasen.gov; eerickson@pasen.gov; ferlo@pasenate.com; mfolmer@pasen.gov; fontana@pasenate.com; Senator_Fumo@fumo.com; jgordner@pasen.gov; sgreenleaf@pasen.gov; hughes@pasenate.com; kitchen@pasenate.com; lavalle@pasenate.com; logan@pasenate.com; rmadigan@pasen.gov; cmcilhinney@pasen.gov; mellow@pasenate.com; musto@pasenate.com; opake@pasenate.com; jorie@pasen.gov; jpiccola@pasen.gov; dpileggi@pasen.gov; jpippy@pasen.gov; skohr@pasen.gov; jrafferty@pasen.gov; bregola@pasen.gov; jrhoades@pasen.gov; rrobbins@pasen.gov; jscarnati@pasen.gov; stack@pasenate.com; stout@pasenate.com; tartaglione@pasenate.com; rtomlinson@pasen.gov; pvance@pasen.gov; washington@pasenate.com; mwaugh@pasen.gov; dwhite@pasen.gov; mwhite@pasen.gov; williams@pasenate.com; chwilliams@pasenate.com; rwonderling@pasen.gov; wozniak@pasenate.com; rkasunic@pasenate.com
PA Mayors Association Convention
Gun Control Takes Center Stage
On July 18th the Allegheny County Sportsmen's League legislative committee chairman and Firearms Owners against Crime chairman, Kim Stolfer, made a presentation to the annual gathering of the Pennsylvania mayor's held in Gettysburg Pennsylvania. The crux of this meeting was initially to discuss Representative David Levdansky's controversial legislation that would have made it a crime to not report a lost or stolen gun. We were offered the opportunity to present the opposing viewpoint.
Once representative Levdansky discovered that we were presenting information in opposition to his position he canceled his attendance at this event and arranged for alternative representation, Chad Ramsey the national field director for the Brady campaign to prevent gun violence (formerly known as handgun control Inc.)
Obviously representative Levdansky has dropped all the appearance of actually believing his position on the private ownership of firearms is not deeply flawed. By arranging for the representation and presentation of his position on this legislation through communication with an anti-gun organization that is avowed enemy of gun owners and sportsmen clearly illustrates how far afield this legislator has gone.
Our presentation was well received and well documented and the mayors in attendance were a receptive audience that showed their acceptance and understanding of our message by the significant applause at the end of our presentation. The representative from the Brady campaign to prevent gun violence did not receive the same accommodation or level of appreciation.
HB 1845 Advances in Senate Judiciary Committee
This past Tuesday, June 10, the Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary committee considered house Bill 1845 along with several amendments. This is the bill that came from the house wherein gunowners defeated the concept of mandatory reporting of lost or stolen firearms as offered by Representative Levdansky. In the house a series of amendments were offered in addition to Representative Levdansky's amendment that corrected a number of laws of Pennsylvania law. Some of the corrections included in this bill are that Pennsylvania citizens will be allowed to carry a concealed firearm in state parks, prohibits gun confiscations during an emergency like what occurred down in Louisiana during the Katrina storm, and provides for an emergency concealed carry permit for domestic abuse victims.
Through a series of meetings with Senators over the past month the Allegheny County Sportsmen's League legislative committee was able to explain and reinforce why these changes were necessary. Senator Jane Orie was of particular help in this area! The Pennsylvania coalition against domestic violence otherwise known as PCADV has been lobbying for months in opposition to the emergency concealed carry permit for victims of domestic abuse. The PCADV has repeatedly tried to impart the notion that citizens cannot defend themselves with firearms, especially women, by using discredited and biased studies, like the tired Kellerman Study, that have been rebuked by peer review throughout academia.
While some in the Senate wanted to remove Metcalfe's amendment that provided for emergency concealed carry permit for victims of domestic abuse we stood fast in support of this concept. We confronted everything the PCADV threw at us with fact and reason and on June 10 we were rewarded by the Senate Judiciary Committee rejecting the attempt to remove the Metcalfe amendment from this legislation. This bill now moves to the Appropriations Committee and then will go directly to the floor for a full Senate vote.
The Senate Judiciary Members who voted PRO-GUN are:
Senator Boscola Senator Stout Senator Browne Senator Earll Senator Gordner Senator Orie
Senator Piccola Senator Rafferty
Senator Scarnati Senator White
The Senate Judiciary Committee Members who voted AGAINST Gun Owners are:
Senator Greenleaf Senator Costa
Senator Fontana Senator Stack
TO ELIMINATE MOSQUITOES AT HOME:
DUMP IT, DRAIN IT, TREAT IT
After discovering the first positive mosquito sample of the year in neighboring Luzerne County, the Department of Environmental Protection and representatives of Lackawanna County’s West Nile program today reminded area residents of simple steps they can take to control mosquitoes in their own yards—an important effort in combating the spread of the West Nile virus.
“DEP and local coordinators are working to keep mosquito populations under control, but residents can also play a big role in managing these insects,” said DEP Northeast Regional Director Michael Bedrin. “Remember: dump it if it has water in it; drain it if it can be drained; and treat it if it has standing water.
“These are easy measures that everyone can take in their own back yards to help protect themselves and their family from the West Nile virus.”
DEP staff and Lackawanna County West Nile Coordinator Mike Chisdock were on hand today at McDade Park to show how homeowners can eliminate standing water.
DEP offers the following tips to eliminate mosquito-breeding sites around the home:
Identify and eliminate standing water that collects on your property. Mosquitoes will breed in any puddle that lasts for more than four days.
Dispose of tin cans, plastic containers, ceramic pots or similar water holding containers, including those that have become overgrown by aquatic vegetation.
Empty water that may accumulate in discarded tires.
Drill holes in the bottom of recycling containers that are left outside.
Have clogged roof gutters cleaned annually, particularly if the leaves from surrounding trees tend to block the drains.
Turn over plastic wading pools when not in use.
Turn over wheelbarrows and do not allow water to stagnate in birdbaths.
Aerate ornamental pools or stock them with fish.
Keep swimming pools clean and chlorinated, and prevent water from collecting on swimming pool covers.
DEP and county West Nile coordinators monitor the type, location and population of immature (larvae and pupae) and adult mosquitoes. This information is then used to treat those areas where high populations of mosquitoes that are known West Nile carriers are found.
Pennsylvania’s aggressive approach has contributed to a drop in the number of human West Nile virus cases. The West Nile virus can cause West Nile fever and encephalitis—an infection that can cause inflammation of the brain and death—when transmitted to people.
Last year, the West Nile virus was found in 25 Pennsylvania counties. Ten state residents contracted the virus, but no deaths were reported. In 2006, two of the nine Pennsylvanians who contracted West Nile virus died and in 2005, 25 residents contracted the disease, with no deaths attributed to the virus.
Most people bitten by an infected mosquito will never develop any symptoms, and only one in 150 with symptoms will develop the more serious West Nile encephalitis.
Because mosquitoes acquire the virus from infected birds, residents are reminded to report dead crows, blue jays and hawks. Residents who discover dead birds and would like to submit them for testing should call the local West Nile county coordinator.
When handling dead birds, use rubber gloves. If you do not have gloves, insert your hand into a plastic bag, grasp the bird carefully and invert the bag over the bird. Each bird should be placed in a tied plastic bag and then placed inside a second tied bag.
If you are not submitting the bird for testing, place the bagged bird in the trash. Wash your hands with soap and water.
For more information about West Nile virus, and register for updates via e-mail, visit www.westnile.state.pa.us. People can also call 1-877-PA-HEALTH for information.
Source: PA DEP
Philadelphia Legislators Attack Gun Owners Once More.
On Tuesday, May 6th, Anti-Gun State Senators from the Philadelphia area attempted to hijack SB 1250 for their continuing agenda of destroying the rights of law abiding citizens in Pennsylvania to own firearms by offering 18 pages of gun control to this legislation.
These amendments ranged from controls on the sale of firearms to even the number and type of firearms that could even be possessed
While this legislation was tabled the amendments will continue to be saved for more action by those bent on excusing the actions of criminals and putting the blame on you and I. We will have these available for your review and comment.
Our thanks go out to Senator Regola and his Chief of Staff, Tom Howa, for bringing this to our attention as quickly as possible.
Breaking news:
The incident in Dickson city where gun owners were accosted police officers acting outside the law where their firearms were seized and one citizen was actually arrested for simply exercising their rights as resulted in a federal civil rights lawsuit being filed.
It is important to note that no charges were filed and that all of this action was promulgated by one citizen calling the police acting on a prejudice against seeing firearms in thinking that someone was going to do something wrong. Instead of the police acting appropriately in informing the citizen that this was legal they chose the path of confrontation and denial of civil liberties in contravention of the law. This is not the first time for the Dickson city police department to be involved in something like this but it just may be a defining moment for their actions to come to the attention of the public and the courts. The Dickson city police department and the officers involved in this lawsuit not only violated civil rights but they broke Pennsylvania crime law which cannot be condoned in any fashion or for any reason.
More to come as developments occur!
Philadelphia Legislators and AG Candidate Attack Gun Owners AGAIN.
05/07/2008
Morganelli Pushes For Gun Regulation
By: Bradley Vasoli , The Bulletin
http://www.thebulletin.us/site/index.cfm?newsid=19667340&BRD=
2737&PAG=461&dept_id=576361&rfi=8
Philadelphia - Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli, a Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania attorney general, attacked his incumbent opponent yesterday as too lax on gun regulation.
Mr. Morganelli said that Republican Attorney General Tom Corbett should issue a regulatory order mandating gun owners who discover their weapons lost or stolen to report them as such within 48 to 72 hours of the losses. He expressed displeasure that Mr. Corbett has not done so.
"One of the most serious public safety issues facing all of our communities, death by gunfire, has been all but ignored by the current attorney general," Mr. Morganelli said. "While the Pennsylvania legislature, Gov. Rendell, mayors of our communities and law enforcement organizations like the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association and individual police departments and officers strive to address this issue, Attorney General Corbett sits on the sidelines conspicuously absent from the debate."
The shooting death of Philadelphia police Sgt. Stephen Liczbinski on Saturday has elicited increased calls for action from gun control advocates. Mr. Morganelli also pointed out that handgun murders involving children occur more often annually in Pennsylvania than in 44 other states and that 1,200 people die annually in Pennsylvania from gunfire.
The Northampton prosecutor said that the state attorney general does not need legislative approval to require Pennsylvania gun owners to report their missing weapons or to mandate gun merchants to inform their customers that they cannot permit their guns' use by anyone not legally authorized to possess a firearm. He believes a Pennsylvania statute stating the "attorney general may adopt, after public hearing, such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the enforcement and administration of the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL)" gives Mr. Corbett the necessary leeway to impose the aforesaid regulations.
The attorney general disagrees with that interpretation of consumer protection law and expressed, through a spokesman, bewilderment that Mr. Morganelli could accuse him of neglecting gun violence.
"I guess John Morganelli must have been living in another state for the last 17 months," said attorney general spokesman Kevin Harley. He said Mr. Corbett has done more than any past Pennsylvania attorney general to reduce gun violence, citing his formation of the Philadelphia Gun Violence Task Force, which has aggressively pursued straw purchasers. It has resulted in 158 arrests, more than 200 weapon seizures and over 500 ongoing investigations.
Bradley Vasoli can be reached at bvasoli@thebulletin.us.
Phosphate Detergent Ban Expanded to Help Improve Water Quality
Gov. Rendell this week signed legislation sponsored by Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-Lancaster) to expand the ban on phosphate detergents statewide to improve water quality.
“Pennsylvania is part of the multi-state Chesapeake 2000 agreement to remove the Chesapeake Bay from the federal list of impaired waters by 2010,” Sen. Brubaker said, noting that under the agreement, the state must reduce its levels of nitrogen going into waterways by 34 percent, phosphorus by 31 percent, and sediment by 11 percent. These reductions are required by both point sources, such as sewage treatment facilities, and nonpoint sources, including farmland and stormwater runoff.
“More often than not, the reductions required by wastewater treatment plants require large capital investments to install nutrient reduction technology,” Sen. Brubaker said.
However, Sen. Brubaker continued, approximately seven to 12 percent of the phosphorus entering such a plant comes from automatic dishwashing detergents.
The new law requires that the phosphate in household automatic dishwashing detergents be reduced from 8.7 percent by weight as allowed under current law to 0.5 percent by weight by July 1, 2010. This is consistent with the detergent industry’s goal to reduce phosphate in these detergents nationwide on the same timeline, which provides time to develop formulas that meet consumer satisfaction for performance and allows for a smooth transition to the new standard.
“Phasing out the level of phosphate in these detergents will help our communities make progress toward their phosphate reduction goals in a small but significant way that is also cost-effective,” Sen. Brubaker said, adding that a similar phase-out has already occurred in liquid hand dish detergents and laundry detergents. “In fact, calculations show that the elimination of phosphorus from automatic dishwashing detergents will reduce total chemical and sludge costs by 23.8 percent, resulting in an average savings for Pennsylvania of about $7 million each year.”
“Passage of this legislation lets every household become part of the solution to reducing pollution going into Pennsylvania’s waterways and we want to thank Senator Brubaker for his leadership on this issue,” said Matthew Ehrhart, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Office of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. “Environmental groups, wastewater plant operators, farmers, county conservation districts and builders are working together to support fair share efforts to reduce pollution and sediment runoff and we welcome leadership from the state and federal
government to help with these efforts.”
A coalition of environmental, farm, businesses and municipal groups developed the PA Fair Share for Clean Water Plan to help wastewater plant ratepayers and farmers finance improvements needed to address Chesapeake Bay and statewide water quality improvement mandates while preserving economic opportunity for future homeowners and businesses.
The groups include: PA Municipal Authorities Association, PA Farm Bureau, PA Builders Association, PA Association of Conservation Districts and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. In addition, the PA Association of Realtors, the Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, local government and other groups have voiced their support for the plan.
The seven-year plan includes $500 million to help finance a portion of the upgrades needed by 184 wastewater treatment plants in the region and $390 million to help farmers install conservation practices.
“I am very pleased that my colleagues also recognized the value of this measure and overwhelmingly supported Senate Bill 1017 as it moved through the legislative process,” Sen. Brubaker said. “As a member of the Chesapeake Bay Commission and part of the Lancaster County Task Force on the Chesapeake Bay Strategy, I will continue to monitor this situation and to work with stakeholders to develop ideas that will help Pennsylvania address its role in the Strategy.”
Senate Bill 1017 is now Act 15.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Fair Share Plan for Clean Water, visit the Fair Share Plan webpage.
Source: PA Environment Digest
Pennsylvanians Turn Out For Gun Rights At Harrisburg Rally
by Dave Workman, Senior Editor
On the same day the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed on a 200-0 vote a comprehensive gun law package, pro-gun activists and lawmakers gathered in the Capitol Rotunda in Harrisburg to rally against attacks on their gun rights.
House Bill 1845 makes it a felony to have a firearm with an altered or erased serial number, adds state penalties for providing false information on a gun purchase form, makes it a crime to falsely report a gun stolen and extends the time from two to five years that charges can be filed against a gun buyer if a gun is traced back to a straw purchase.
Kim Stolfer, chairman of Firearms Owners Against Crime, told Gun Week that the package was the result of pro-gun lobbying to defeat a series of anti-gun amendments a week earlier. He supported the measure that was passed.
But Keystone State gunowners say enough is enough, and they promised to hold anti-gun legislators responsible in November if they push restrictive measures.
The Second Amendment Liberty rally saw conservative Alan Keyes deliver the keynote address, and Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, telling the crowd of more than 500 the importance of political activism and public scrutiny.
Quoted by The Harrisburg Patriot News, Keyes said the battle for gun rights requires “the courage, and the unwillingness to live in the shadow of fear.”
This was the third year for the capitol rally, and Stolfer said the strategy developed by Pennsylvania gun activists is to divide lawmakers up and send individual groups of constituent gunowners around to visit each representative individually. Gunowners, he said, are identifiable by the badges that they wear during their visits around the capital.
Other speakers included: state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, a Cranberry Republican, who helped organize the event in partnership with firearms civil rights groups across the Keystone State. Metcalfe stressed the importance of educating his colleagues who had earlier voted in support of anti-gun amendments to HB-1845 that were defeated.
“A truly safe and liberty-advancing society is an armed society,” he observed.
Metcalfe was among some 40 state lawmakers from both parties who turned out for the rally and gathered on the Rotunda steps behind the microphone.
“As citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we do not need the US Supreme Court, the United Nations or even the governor to reaffirm our God-given rights to defend our lives, loved ones and property, Metcalfe said.
Reminding the audience that Pennsylvania is the “birthplace of the Declaration of Independence,” Metcalfe noted that Pennsylvania’s state constitution contains explicit language on the right of private citizens to bear arms.
In addition, the crowd heard remarks from Jon Mirowitz of the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania, Larry Pratt with Gun Owners of America, Melanie Sellinger, executive director of the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs and Jeff Knox with the Firearms Coalition.
Keyes held the limelight, however, noting, “You cannot defend your life if you give up the means of that defense. If it is your right to stand in defense of your family and your home, then you have the right and means to enable you to fulfill that obligation.”
Gottlieb quipped to Gun Week that Keyes is “a tough act to follow.”
Defeating amendments to HB-1845 a week before the rally added momentum to the gathering. One of those amendments would have penalized gunowners for not promptly reporting a stolen firearm to the police. GOA’s Pratt told the audience that “the victim (of a theft) should not get punished.”
Perhaps what made anti-gunners bristle the most, though, was that Washington, PA, resident Daniel Plovic won a drawing for a new Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol at the conclusion of the event.
The Pittsburgh Tribune Review quoted Joe Grace, executive director of CeaseFirePa, asserting that the drawing “sent the wrong message.” The New GUN WEEK, May 1, 2008
Philadelphia Council and Mayor Pass and Sign Into Law Illegal Gun Control Bills
(April 10th) Just moments ago at 3PM Philadelphia Mayor Nutter signed into law five ordinances passed by City Council in ‘violation’ of Pennsylvania law. These measures cover the following concepts:
1. limit handgun purchases to one a month
2. require lost or stolen firearms to be reported to police within 24 hours
3. forbid individuals under protection from abuse orders from possessing guns if ordered by the court
4. allow removal of firearms from "persons posing a risk of imminent personal injury" to themselves or others, as determined by a judge
5. outlaw the possession and sale certain assault weapons.
It is important to note that violations of these are but summary offenses however the true intent is to try to push the Courts to grant the power that the Legislature will not—Local Control of Gun Laws.
The real issue here is that, again, the Mayor and City Council are COMMITTING criminal acts that carry a punishment of Misdemeanor 1 level of punishment. This is a terrible example to be setting for their constituents and those they want to follow the law now. Instead of going to court over this the first action should see them dragged out of city hall in handcuffs!!
Once again it is going to be up to the gun owners of PA to step forward and fight this evil or it will spread like cancer throughout our communities.
Children Act Fast . . . And So Do Poisons
Contact Information: Donna Heron 215-814-5113 / heron.donna@epa.gov
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advises parents and caregivers to keep potentially harmful products locked up and in a high cabinet out of the reach of children. Poison Prevention Month is observed each March to increase awareness of the danger to children of accidental poisoning from pesticides and household products.
U.S. poison control centers receive a call every 15 seconds about an accidental poisoning. The National Safety Council records show that more than 50 percent of the nearly 2.5 million poisoning incidents each year involve children under six years of age. Most are due to children swallowing common household items like prescription and over-the-counter medications, vitamins, cosmetics, personal care and cleaning products. Poisonings also involve house plants, tobacco products and alcohol.
To reduce the number of unintentional poisoning deaths and injuries, EPA recommends that parents keep items in their original containers, leave the original labels on the products, and read labels before use. Bathrooms and kitchens are the areas in the home most likely to have improperly stored hazards. Whenever possible, purchase products with child-resistant safety packaging and keep all household cleaning products and medicines locked up, out of sight and out of reach of young children.
Poisonings can occur when adults are distracted for just a few moments by the telephone, the doorbell or other household events, which is why locking up potential hazards is so important.
To highlight National Poison Prevention Month, EPA has launched a poison-prevention segment on Green Scene, EPA's new series of environmental videos. During an interview on Green Scene, Assistant Administrator Jim Gulliford, of the Office of Prevention Pesticides and Toxic Substances, discusses how to protect your children from toxic substances around the home and how to respond in case of accidental poisoning.
These simple steps can help you save children from environmental hazards around the home
Always store pesticides, household chemicals/cleaners, medications, vitamins, personal care items, including chlorine bleach, out of the children’s reach – preferably in a locked cabinet.
Read the label first. Pesticide products, household cleaning products, and pet products can be dangerous.
Before applying pesticides or other household chemicals, remove children and their toys, as well as pets, from the area. Keep children and pets away until the pesticide has dried or as long as is recommended on the label.
If your use of pesticide or other household chemicals is interrupted (perhaps by a phone call), properly reclose the container and remove it from children’s reach. Always use household products in child-resistant packaging.
Never transfer pesticides or other household chemicals to containers that a children may associate with food or drink (like soda bottles), and never place rodent or insect baits where small children can get to them.
When applying insect repellents to children, read all directions first. Do not apply over cuts, wounds, or irritated skin, do not apply to eyes, mouth, hands or directly on the face, and use just enough to cover exposed skin or clothing but do not use under clothing.
Act Fast! If you think someone has been poisoned act fast. Don’t wait to see what happens, call the National Poison Control Center RIGHT AWAY at 1-800-222-1222.
Parents and community organizations can obtain additional prevention materials, including the “Ten Tips to Protect Children from Pesticide and Lead Poisonings” and “Poison Prevention: Read the Label First Community Action Kit” brochures by calling EPA's Environmental Publications line at 1-800-490-9198.
Source: U.S. EPA
Water Saving Tips
There are a number of ways to save water, and they all start with you.
When washing dishes by hand, don't let the water run while rinsing. Fill one sink with wash water and the other with rinse water.
Check your sprinkler system frequently and adjust sprinklers so only your lawn is watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street.
Run your washing machine and dishwasher only when they are full and you could save 1000 gallons a month.
Avoid planting turf in areas that are hard to water such as steep inclines and isolated strips along sidewalks and driveways.
Install covers on pools and spas and check for leaks around your pumps.
Use the garbage disposal sparingly.
Compost instead and save gallons every time.
Plant during the spring or fall when the watering requirements are lower.
Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap for cold drinks, so that every drop goes down you not the drain.
Check your water meter and bill to track your water usage.
Minimize evaporation by watering during the early morning hours, when temperatures are cooler and winds are lighter.
Wash your produce in the sink or a pan that is partially filled with water instead of running water from the tap.
Use a layer of organic mulch around plants to reduce evaporation and save hundreds of gallons of water a year.
Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway or sidewalk and save 80 gallons of water every time.
Gun Owners March On Harrisburg Once Again!
On Monday April 7th gun owners once again rallied in Harrisburg to celebrate the ‘Right to Bear Arms and the Constitutional protections of it.
Leading off the Rally was guest speaker Alan Keyes with host legislator Rep. Daryl Metcalfe guiding the rally. Other featured speakers at today’s rally included Larry Pratt, executive director, Gun Owners of America; Alan Gottlieb, chairman, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms; Jeff Knox, director of operations, Firearms Coalition; Kim Stolfer, chairman, Firearms Owners Against Crime; Melody Zullinger, executive director, PA Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, and Jon Mirowitz, Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania.
In attendance were over 500 gun owners from all points of the state and many grassroots groups including: Allegheny County Sportsmen’s League, CCRKBA, GunWeek, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Law Enforcement Alliance of America, Lehigh Valley Firearms Coalition, Mothers Arms - Safely in Mothers Arms Inc., National Rifle Association, National Shooting Sports Foundation, PA Firearms Owners Association, PA Gun Collectors Association, PA Gun Owners Association, PA Rifle and Pistol Association, PA Sportsmen’s Association, Pink Pistols, the Second Amendment Sisters and Unified Sportsmen of PA.
At the end of the Rally a drawing was held for a brand new handgun as a thank you to all of the gun owners who sacrificed their time to come to Harrisburg.
The grassroots lobbying began after the drawing with gun owners breaking up into teams and directing their energies to the House and Senate members on the issue of our Right to Bear Arms.
The legislature passed HB 1845 (without any gun control in it) unanimously while we were lobbying for our freedoms on this day sending it to the Senate for consideration.
Citicorp Refuses to Process Firearms Transactions
January 7, 2008
CREDIT CARD PROCESSING COMPANY REJECTS FIREARMS INDUSTRY
REFUSES TO PROCESS TRANSACTIONS . . .
Citi Merchant Services and First Data Corp. are refusing to process any credit card transactions between federally licensed firearms retailers, distributors and manufacturers -- a move which will severely limit available inventory of firearms and ammunition to military, law enforcement and law-abiding Americans.
The first company to be affected by this decision appears to be firearms distributor CDNN Sports Inc.
We were contacted recently by First Data/Citi Merchant Services by a June Rivera-Mantilla stating that we were terminated and funds were being seized for selling firearms in a non-face-to-face transaction," said Charlie Crawford, president of CDNN Sports Inc. "Although perfectly legal, we were also informed that no transactions would be processed in the future, even for non-firearms. I find this very frightening."
To voice your concern to Citi Merchant Services and First Data Corp., please call 303-488-8000 or toll-free 800-735-3362.
To change to an NSSF-affiliated credit card processing program, contact Payment Alliance International at 1-866-371-2273 (ext. 1131).
Follow up to this issue:
CITI MERCHANT SERVICES AND FIRST DATA UPDATE . . . Following up on a story in last week's Bullet Points, Citi Merchant Services and First Data Corp. have insisted that their policy of refusing to process any non-face-to-face credit card transactions involving firearms, including business-to-business transactions between federally licensed firearms retailers, distributors and manufacturers, is not anti-industry or anti-gun. Read NSSF's response to First Data. As the trade association for the firearms industry, NSSF wants to make sure that Americans are aware of the anti-gun business practices of these groups. If individuals want to voice their discontent to senior management at Citi Merchant Services or First Data, the appropriate contact information is available at the NSSF Web site, www.nssf.org.
07-12-27-CitiLetterToCDNN-TerminationNotice
08-01-09-NSSF_First_Data_response
08-01-10-NSSF_First_Data_Letter
08-01-07-CitiCorp-Bulletin-CDNNTermination
Source: www.nssf.org
Tribute To Our Veterans
Pittsburgh Marriott North
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Sponsored by Senator Jane Orie
Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that Pennsylvania has entered into a new reciprocity agreement with Arizona to promote the lawful carrying of concealed firearms
On February 19, Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that his office has successfully negotiated a reciprocity agreement with Arizona that provides for the mutual recognition of each state's licenses to carry concealed firearms. This agreement comes on the heels of the much-anticipated agreement just months ago with West Virginia and is part of a remarkable string of successes of the office of Attorney General in negotiating these agreements throughout the United States.
The Allegheny County Sportsmen's League, the Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association, and the Pennsylvania Firearms Owners Association have been working with members of the attorney general's staff since last August (2007) on this particular agreement along with several others. We've also been communicating with representatives of the Arizona grassroots gun owners groups to show a mutual desire in both states to enter into an agreement.
On behalf of The Allegheny County Sportsmen's League and the organizations listed above I would like to commend the Attorney General for his diligence and determination in pursuing these agreements. These agreements contribute significantly to the safety and security of citizens in each state and in fact there are recorded instances of self-defense situations arising just weeks after some of these agreements.
Attorney General Tom Corbett will be appearing as a guest speaker at the Allegheny County sportsmen's league's annual banquet and gun owners are encouraged to attend this banquet so that they can personally thank the Attorney General for his support of our rights and freedoms. Anyone interested in attending this banquet can contact Mike Maranche, president of the Allegheny County sportsmen's league, for additional details and tickets.
3rd Annual
Right to Keep and Bear Arms Rally
Monday, April 7, 2008
Rally kicks off at 10 a.m.
State Capitol Rotunda, Harrisburg, PA
A big anti-gun-rights conference is set for 3 p.m. April 9 in Pittsburgh, at Duquesne U.
Ten of the top anti-rights people (Kellerman, Hemenway, James Brady, more) are set to appear.
To provide "balance," one speaker, gun-law expert Alan Korwin, will address the audience.
Symposium and RSVP info: http://www.duq.edu/handgun
Info on Korwin: http://www.gunlaws.com
It's important that some pro-rights people attend.
Anyone in the Pittsbugh area who can attend should do so.
C-SPAN may broadcast the event.
Admission is free.
Because the crowd will likely be hoplophobic, vigorously anti-rights, and terrified of guns and gun owners, anyone who attends should go to great lengths to be respectful, refrain from caustic argument, and do more listening than talking to better understand how these people feel, think and react. The more you understand this side of the aisle, the more effective you can be in the future.
Please remember to refrain from any behavior that might reinforce stereotypes or upset attendees. Don't wear rags.
--
Thanks.
Alan.
--
Alan Korwin
Bloomfield Press
"We publish the gun laws."
4848 E. Cactus, #505-440
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
602-996-4020 Phone
602-494-0679 Fax
1-800-707-4020 Orders
http://www.gunlaws.com
alan@gunlaws.com
Call, write, fax or click for free full-color catalog
(This is our address and info as of Jan. 1, 2007)
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you're reading this in English, thank a veteran.
"No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing
because he could do only a little."
--Edmund Burke
Cold Water Increases Risk of Boating Fatalities
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) strongly encourages boaters to wear their life jackets on cold Pennsylvania waters.
Despite a drastic decline in boating fatalities from 2006, the PFBC stresses the dangers of not wearing a life jacket, especially in cold water where sudden immersion (cold water shock) can kill a boater within seconds of submersion. The PFBC encourages boaters to be safe on the water by wearing their life jackets and taking a safe boating course.
“Too many people are still dying because they don’t recognize the danger of cold water,” PFBC Boating and Access Director Dan Martin said. In every fatal accident in 2007, except one, cold water shock was a probable factor. The vast majority of the fatalities happened when a small boat capsized or the victim fell overboard.
“The sad thing is that all the fatalities were preventable,” Martin said.
The number one way to be safe on the water is to wear a life jacket. Eighty percent of all recreational boating fatalities could be prevented if the victim had been wearing a Coast Guard approved life jacket at the time of the accident. Only two of the boating accident victims in 2007 were wearing a life jacket at the time of the mishap that resulted in their death. None of the victims were known to have taken a boating safety course.
Learn how to become a more responsible boater by visiting the Water & Ice Safety page of the PFBC website and always remember...
BE SAFE. WEAR YOUR LIFE JACKET.
Source: PA Fish & Boat Commission
YOUR Help Needed With Gun Bill Vote Set For Monday March 17 (HB 1845)
District Attorneys Association oppose Levdansky amendment – Click Here
Properly Disposing of Old Medications Can Prevent Pollution
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has launched a new website to increase awareness about possible harm to the environment from chemicals found in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, perfumes, and other personal care products. The website www.epa.gov/ppcp offers consumer tips on properly disposing of these products to help prevent pollution.
Studies have shown that pharmaceuticals are present in our nation’s rivers. As EPA scientists and other researchers continue to investigate the environmental effects, the agency suggests one straight-forward way consumers can help out – properly disposing of expired and unused prescription drugs. The federal government has developed guidelines that strike a balance between environmental protection and human health risks for poison or abuse from discarded medications:
- Take unused, unneeded or expired prescription drugs out of their original containers and throw them in the trash.
- Mix prescription drugs with an undesirable substance like unused coffee or kitty litter, and put them in an impermeable container such as empty cans or sealed bags.
- Flush prescription drugs down the toilet only if the label specifically instructs doing so.
- Participate in community pharmaceutical take-back programs that allow the public to bring unused medications to a central location for proper disposal.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Concealed Carry Permit Issuance Problems Growing in PA
Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office Problems:
Despite a written guarantee from the Allegheny County Sheriffs’ office from several years ago regarding notification of expiration and early renewals, this office has recently been refusing to allow ‘early renewals’ of Licenses to Carry Firearms.
We have also been receiving complaints about spotty notices being sent out for renewals as well.
We are currently exploring the reasoning behind these position changes and our options for addressing them. Early indications are that the PA State Police have adopted regulations that ‘prohibit’ early renewals by Sheriffs in contravention of Section 6109 in the Uniform Firearms Act.
We will have a more in depth report on this next month.
Gun Owners in PA Face Stiff Election Odds AGAIN in 2008
In 2006 the anger over the Rendell instigated Pay Raise resulted in over 50 House Seats changing hands or incumbents being voted out. It appears that 2008 will bring significant change AGAIN to the political landscape. The legislators listed below are either retiring or seeking other office thus creating an opportunity and a challenge for gun owners to elect freshmen legislators who embrace our freedoms.
ཉ Rep. McIlhattan Rep. Yewcic
ཉ Rep. Bennington Rep. Mantz
ཉ Rep. Tangretti Rep. Raymond
ཉ Rep. Steil Rep. Rubely
ཉ Rep. Hershey Rep. Nailor
Rep. Nickol Rep. Leach
ཉ Sen. Armstrong Sen. Williams
There are additional House members considering retirement and/or advancement into other offices (i.e. PA State Senate or Congress that are as yet unconfirmed).
A quick review of these races reveals that gun owners are taking the lions share of hits in these districts.
The time is now to prepare to volunteer your time and efforts to helping candidates get elected that espouse our views and beliefs. It is a ‘guaranteed’ fact that the anti-gun groups are preparing and mobilizing to do the same.
Message Below Was Posted on a Statewide Gun Owners Forum (PAFOA-www.pafoa.org):
Small Victory and Allegheny County
One of my former trainees lives out-of-state, but has family in Allegheny County and has a LTCC. When he went to renew it in August, he was denied because he is not a "resident of Allegheny County." Rather than make internet posts and bark about his rights from the porch, he decided to fight it.
I went to the Sheriff's office to file an administrative appeal. Nobody there had a clue what I was talking about. In fact, I was told my client was "not denied" - they just refused to issue his renewal because "you have to live in Allegheny County." (????) I was also told the prior Sheriff "was wrong" to issue the permit in the first place.
I finally wrung a "denial appeal form" out of them, which is one page. It has about six inches of blah blah blah, and about two inches of space to explain why one is appealing. I threw that away, and send a letter to the Solicitor for the Sheriff's Department, laying out the law establishing the right of out-of-state residents to obtain a permit here, and under what conditions.
Recommended the staff at the Sheriff's office be reversed, and that my client's LTCC be renewed. The Sheriff now understands the requirements of the law. The total cost was well under $1,000.
There are many ways to fight. Some work well, some not so well.
Biting the bullet and going through the legal system works much better than mf'ing the cops or sitting on the porch and barking.
Lo, and behold, the Solicitor has now advised me he has recovered.
Quote:
Originally Posted by elston32
However, the fact that an individual who live out-of-state has to hire a professional to inform local law enforcement in-state law they should already know is really annoying and an unreasonable burden.
---elston.
Yes, it is. But it is much easier than having to choose between knuckling under or risking your life.
Too many people use the fact the system is not perfect (slow, expensive, stacked in favor or monied interests, sometimes gives bad results) as an excuse to do nothing . . . nothing, that is, but whine or bluster.
There will always be somebody (be it individual official or group) who will try to dominate. It may be unfortuante, but, in life, "always the big fish eats the little fish." The question is not whether it should happen, because it will. The question is how one can resist.
I think it is important to recognize that one of the great things about the United States is we can resist government excess or abuse without having to put it all on the line.
This is why I am so contemptuous of those who proclaim: "They can have my gun when they pry my dead, cold hands from around it!* [* So long as I don't have to spend any money, miss any work, or risk getting my name on a list.]" Legal means of resistance are at hand, but these guys always have a reason not to put themselves out. They disregard a precious right to which we were all born (at the expense of those who went before us) simply because it is inconvenient. Then they attempt to cover thier sloth, selfishness and/or cowardice with a bumper-sticker slogan.
I feel very fortunate that it is not necessary for things to come to a choice between physical resistance or subjugation. I am grateful for this right in part because I know those who always have a reason not to put themselves out to defend thier rights in court or take a day off to attend a protest will ever risk their lives to help anyone, even themselves.
My client does not appear to have ever had a moment's doubt. It was just a matter of fact that he was going to fight. He was not happy, but he was not confused about what needed to be done.
If 10% of gun owners were like him, we would not have the problems we have.
http://www.pafoa.org/forum/concealed-open-carry-121/14278-small-victory-allegheny-county.html
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League, Inc.
Pennsylvania Sportsmen’s Association
PRIORITY: High
December 10, 2007
***LEGISLATIVE ACTION ALERT***
Issue: Pending Judiciary Committee Action – House Bill 641
On Tuesday December 11, the House Judiciary Committee will finally consider legislation that will help to reduce violent crime in Pennsylvania. HB 641 (Castle Doctrine) by Rep. Cappelli.
The bill will not make it out of committee unless you generate support. Please contact the members of the Judiciary Committee and let them know that you support this legislation.
HB 641 does not change the use of force requirements. What it does do is eliminate the honest citizens duty to retreat when confronted by violent criminals and provide honest citizens with legal protection if they defend themselves from criminals. It contains an anti-carjacking provision that will change state law so that if a criminal illegally and forcibly enters an occupied vehicle, the presumption is that he intends to harm the passengers. Protections against civil actions are also provided, should your assailant or his relatives sue you for harming the criminal when you defended yourself.
This legislation has been enacted in nearly twenty states and is pending in even more.
Killers are more concerned about law-abiding citizens than police having firearms. This was proven in the Wright-Rossi study and more recently by the example that the Columbine killers (Dylan and Klebold) “shared opposition to a bill in the state legislature that would have made it easier to carry concealed weapons” (NYT, 6/29/1999).
The Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, in collusion with Ed Rendell and others, walked off the floor of the house this past Wednesday demanding the surrender of OUR gun rights and vowing not to return unless GUN CONTROL bills are passed. Rendell, Operation Ceasefire, and the usual antigun mayors will be gathering in Harrisburg Monday 10 Dec 2007 to demand MORE gun control. They will be lobbying the Judiciary committee in opposition to this legislation and our right to be free from unwarranted persecution by anti-gun authorities.
It is up to each of us once again to see to it that this legislation is passed into law and it all begins on Tuesday the 11th of December.
Members of the House Judiciary Committee are listed below (Please focus on the Pro-gun and Undecided legislators once again):
**Representatives listed below are Committee Leadership
State Representative Thomas R. Caltagirone (D-127), Majority Chairman
106 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202127
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2127
(717) 787-3525
Fax: (717) 772-5401
tcaltagi@pahouse.net
State Representative Ron Marsico (R-105), Minority Chairman
218 Ryan Office Building
PO Box 202105
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2105
(717) 783-2014
Fax: (717) 705-2010
rmarsico@pahousegop.com
State Representative Daylin Leach (D-149), Secretary
109A East Wing
PO Box 202149
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2149
(717) 783-9114
Fax: (717) 787-0861
dleach@pahouse.net
**Representatives listed below are Pro 2nd Amendment
State Representative Deberah Kula (D-52)
104A East Wing
PO Box 202052
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2052
(717) 772-1858
Fax: (717) 780-4784
dkula@pahouse.net
State Representative Joseph A. Petrarca (D-55)
220 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202055
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2055
(717) 787-5142
Fax: (717) 705-2014
jpetrarc@pahouse.net
State Representative Jesse White (D-46)
102B East Wing
PO Box 202046
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2046
(717) 783-6437
jwhite@pahouse.net
State Representative Tom C. Creighton (R-37)
400 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202037
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2037
(717) 772-5290
Fax: (717) 783-1904
tcreight@pahousegop.com
State Representative Craig A. Dally (R-138)
211 Ryan Office Building
PO Box 202138
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2138
(717) 783-8573
Fax: (717) 705-1849
cdally@pahousegop.com
State Representative John R. Evans (R-5)
B12 Main Capitol Building
PO Box 202005
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2005
(717) 772-9940
Fax: (717) 772-7099
jevans@pahousegop.com
State Representative Will Gabig (R-199)
410 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202199
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2199
(717) 772-2280
Fax: (717) 705-2012
wgabig@pahousegop.com
State Representative Glen R. Grell (R-87)
404 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202087
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2087
(717) 783-2063
Fax: (717) 772-8418
ggrell@pahousegop.com
State Representative Beverly Mackereth (R-196)
7 East Wing
PO Box 202196
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2196
(717) 783-2655
Fax: (717) 772-9869
bmackere@pahousegop.com
State Representative Todd Rock (R-90)
162A East Wing
PO Box 202090
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2090
(717) 783-5218
Fax: (717) 260-6505
trock@pahousegop.com
State Representative Katie True (R-41)
143A East Wing
PO Box 202041
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2041
(717) 705-7161
Fax: (717) 705-1946
ktrue@pahousegop.com
State Representative Tina Pickett (R-110)
155A East Wing
PO Box 202110
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2110
(717) 783-8238
Fax: (717) 705-1949
tpickett@pahousegop.com
State Representative John E. Pallone (D-54)
325 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202054
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2054
(717) 783-1819
Fax: (717) 772-9984
jpallone@pahouse.net
State Representative Don Walko (D-20)
121 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202020
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2020
(717) 787-5470
Fax: (717) 783-0407
dwalko@pahouse.net
State Representative Sean M. Ramaley (D-16)
323 Main Capitol Building
PO Box 202016
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2016
(717) 787-4444
sramaley@pahouse.net
State Representative Carl W. Mantz (R-187)
53B East Wing
PO Box 202187
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2187
(717) 787-3017
Fax: (717) 772-9869
cmantz@pahousegop.com
**Representatives listed below are Uncommitted on these issues
State Representative Kate Harper (R-61)
149A East Wing
PO Box 202061
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2061
(717) 787-2801
Fax: (717) 787-2022
kharper@pahousegop.com
State Representative Bernie O'Neill (R-29)
B13 Main Capitol Building
PO Box 202029
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2029
(717) 705-7170
Fax: (717) 783-3278
boneill@pahousegop.com
**Representatives listed below are dedicated Anti 2nd Amendment Fanatics
State Representative Kathy Manderino (D-194)
125 East Wing
PO Box 202194
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2194
(717) 787-1254
Fax: (717) 780-4770
kmanderi@pahouse.net
State Representative Lisa Bennington (D-21)
6A East Wing
PO Box 202021
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2021
(717) 705-7011
Fax: (717) 780-4761
lbenning@pahouse.net
State Representative Dan Frankel (D-23)
217 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202023
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2023
(717) 705-1875
Fax: (717) 705-2034
dfrankel@pahouse.net
State Representative Harold James (D-186)
317 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202186
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2186
(717) 787-9477
Fax: (717) 787-7517
hjames@pahouse.net
State Representative Greg Vitali (D-16)
103B East Wing
PO Box 202166
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2166
(717) 787-7647
Fax: (717) 705-2089
gvitali@pahouse.net
State Representative Jewell Williams (D-197)
101 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202197
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2197
(717) 772-2004
Fax: (717) 787-2284
jwilliam@pahouse.net
State Representative Chelsa Wagner (D-22)
109 Irvis Office Building
PO Box 202022
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2022
(717) 783-1582
Fax: (717) 780-4755
cwagner@pahouse.net
State Representative Bryan R. Lentz (D-161)
106B East Wing
PO Box 202161
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2161
(717) 787-8574
Fax: (717) 780-4777
blentz@pahouse.net
The grassroots organizations observing and tracking this bill are listed below:
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League (ACSL),
Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs (PFSC),
Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association (PSA),
National Rifle Association (NRA),
Gun Owners of America (GOA),
Second Amendment Sisters (SAS),
Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association (PR&PA),
Pennsylvania Gun Collectors Association (PGCA)
Lehigh Valley Firearms Coalition (LVFC),
Philadelphia Federation of Sportsmen's Club,
Pennsylvania Gun Owners Association (PGOA)
Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania (USP)
Pennsylvania State Fish & Game Protective Association,
The Pink Pistols
OpenCarry.org
Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association (PAFOA)
National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSA)
Western Pennsylvania 30 Caliber League, Inc
**(FOAC) Firearms Owners Against Crime records all votes related to firearms and the constitutional connections thereof. Mitigating factors are taken into consideration when reviewing these votes such as presenting on record concerns during debate on legislation and will be so noted in the record for each legislator.
We DEEPLY appreciate your patience and help with this very important step forward for our Freedoms and we will do our BEST to keep you informed on the developments ahead!
Respectfully,
Kim Stolfer Harry Schneider
Legislative Committee, Chairman Legislative Committee, Chairman
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association
E-Mail -- activist@fyi.net psa@pagunlaws.com
Website -- www.acslpa.org
(412) 221-3346, Home Phone
(412) 257-1099, Home Fax
FREEDOM PREVAILED ON THIS DAY BECAUSE OF GRASSROOTS ACTION
Thursday evening (Nov. 15), the ACSL and PSA issued an alert that listed the following organizations as being on record as opposing the legislation. The ACSL/PSA alert was widely distributed. Chomping at the bit for its first major legislative fight was the Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association http://www.pafoa.org/. The founder of the PAFOA is an expert in internet communications and has assembled a very large email list of dedicated Pennsylvania activists. Special thanks to Melody Zullinger of the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, Judy Brown of the Second Amendment Sisters, Ken O'Donnell of West Shore Sportsmen's Association, Inc and Jack Lee of the Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association (PR&PA).
Each of them went above and beyond. They certainly did their part as did the members and leaders of every organization listed below.
The grassroots organizations observing and tracking these bills are listed below:
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League (ACSL),
Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs (PFSC),
Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association (PSA),
National Rifle Association (NRA),
Gun Owners of America (GOA),
Second Amendment Sisters (SAS),
Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association (PR&PA),
Pennsylvania Gun Collectors Association (PGCA)
Lehigh Valley Firearms Coalition (LVFC),
Philadelphia Federation of Sportsmen's Club,
Pennsylvania Gun Owners Association (PGOA)
Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania (USP)
National Association of Firearms Retailers (NAFR),
Pennsylvania State Fish & Game Protective Association,
The Pink Pistols
OpenCarry.org
Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association (PAFOA)
National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSA)
Western Pennsylvania 30 Caliber League, Inc
Citizen’s Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA)
**(FOAC) Firearms Owners Against Crime records all votes related to firearms and the constitutional connections thereof. Mitigating factors are taken into consideration when reviewing these votes such as presenting on record concerns during debate on legislation and will be so noted in the record for each legislator.
THE RESPONSE:
The ACSL/PSA alert that was issued Thursday evening (the 15th) included the list of organizations opposed and the email addresses of all House Judiciary Committee members. On Friday morning, one committee member reported that in just over an hour he received more than 400 emails encouraging the defeat of the three bills. Another said that he got so many email messages on his Blackberry that it sounded like a machinegun.
We are very grateful for the cooperation of every person who took part in this event. We only ask for help when legislative leaders ignore us and decide to move bad legislation over our objections. The fact that so many individuals quickly acted upon the information that we provided, proved to legislators that they are concerned and will act. Even Committee Chairman Caltagirone commented on the professional demeanor of the gun owners who were present during the hearing. In short, everyone did what they needed to do to defend freedom.
We are also very grateful to the majority of the members of the Judiciary Committee who voted for freedom.
Recently, when the Associated Press asked the House Judiciary Committee Chairman (Caltagirone) why these anti-gun bills were bottled up in committee, this is what he said:
"Of all the groups I've ever dealt with, this by far is probably the most vocal, the most organized and the most politically savvy - communication-wise as well as networking - that I've seen in my time in the Legislature," said 16-term Rep. Tom Caltagirone, D-Berks, chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Associated Press September 8, 2007
What do you think he (Caltagirone) will say NOW!!!
We strongly believe that the legislature should NOT consider any additional restrictions on Article 1 Section 21 unless they first demonstrate goodwill by removing laws that have been studied and found to not reduce crime to a measurable degree. The burden of proof must be on those who advocate infringements, rather than on those of us who defend freedom!!
The assumptions that justify most gun control laws have NOT withstood independent study.
(2003) (CDC) Centers for Disease Control Task Force (2003) reported that they reviewed 51 published studies about the effectiveness of eight types of gun-control laws. The laws included bans on specific firearms or ammunition, measures barring felons from buying guns, and mandatory waiting periods and firearm registration. In every case the CDC Task Force found "insufficient evidence to determine the effectiveness of any of the firearms laws reviewed for preventing violence." It should be noted that prior to actually studying the issue and producing this report, the Centers for Disease Control used tax dollars to lobby for gun control laws as a public health measure.
(2005) (NAS) National Academy of Sciences Review "Firearms and Violence, a Critical Review "In summary, the committee concludes that existing research studies and data . . . do not credibly demonstrate a causal relationship between the ownership of firearms and the causes or prevention of criminal violence or suicide. The issue of substitution (of the means of committing homicide or suicide) has been almost entirely ignored in the literature . . ."
As further evidence, consider that Vermont has almost no gun laws and very low crime. Clearly, if you want a solution to crime, you need to look beyond scapegoating gun owners. Somehow the Governator forgot to cite those studies in his address to the committee. Of course PA Gun Owners know that these weren’t his first and will not be his last sins of omission when it comes to his advocacy of Gun Control!
We DEEPLY appreciate your patience and help with this attack on our Freedoms and we will do our BEST to keep you informed on the threats ahead!
Respectfully,
Kim Stolfer activist@fyi.net
Legislative Committee, Chairman
Allegheny County Sportsmen's League
Harry Schneider psa@pagunlaws.com
Legislative Committee, Chairman
Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association
Website -- www.acslpa.org
PS; as additional evidence that Governator Rendell is out of touch with real police officers, read this letter to the editor:
The Philadelphia Tribune:
Tue, Apr. 10, 2007
Put the blame where it lies: The killers
We have to stop pointing the finger everywhere but at the very people who prey on us each day. Over time we have allowed our value system to erode. We refuse to hold people accountable for their actions and constantly make excuses for their inexcusable behavior. The incessant cry for tougher gun laws is a good example. Until we're ready to strictly enforce the current laws there is no reason for tougher ones.
Yes, there is a need to work on the social ills at the core of much of the unrest, but that does not mean we should accept those ills as a reason to excuse the behavior. Those engaged in this violent lifestyle know exactly what they're doing. They also know it is wrong. And they also know there are no serious consequences for their actions. It's not a matter of not knowing right from wrong, it's a matter of weighing the risk. And today they face very little risk.
Time after time these budding killers are arrested with guns, only to be returned to the streets with a slap on the wrist. Is it any wonder we have trouble getting witnesses to speak up? Instead of holding vigils at murder scenes, groups like Men United for a Better Philadelphia and Mothers in Charge should throw a ring around the Criminal In-Justice Center and demand that our judges hold the criminals accountable.
More than 80 percent of Philadelphia's cold-blooded killers have criminal records. Most of those records are lengthy, many for violent crimes. Every one of those arrests represents an opportunity to send a clear message, before they take another life.
Joseph Fox
Chief of Detectives
Philadelphia Police Department
Philadelphia
* House Bill 29 was tabled to avoid a sweep by gun owners of these bills and also in the hopes that a very minor amendment can be added so that another vote on this bill can be
taken. There is NO WAY of making this concept better and it is still very bad and dangerous legislation, even with the proposed amendment.
Another bad bill, House Bill 1744 was previously rushed out of Judiciary committee because the NRA tweaked it and then withdrew its objections. The prime sponsor of HB 1744 is Judiciary Chairman Caltagirone who voted FOR--HB 18, HB 22, HB 29. HB 1744 was scheduled for a full House floor vote last Wednesday, but was temporarily derailed because of an analysis drafted by the ACSL and PSA that detailed numerous serious problems in the version released from the House Judiciary Committee, previously overlooked by the NRA. These flaws were discussed after the Judiciary Committee vote in the Appropriations Committee and on Harrisburg radio by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, Larry Pratt of GOA and Melody Zullinger of the PFSC. This legislation did pass out of the Judiciary Committee but is currently on hold in the House of Representatives due to the ACSL/PSA/PRPA/LVFC/PGOA/GOA position in opposition to it.
Please go to the Allegheny County Sportsmen's League website for analysis of these bills: http://www.acslpa.org/
PA Gun owners under attack
DCNR WARNS AGAINST TRANSPORTING FIREWOOD IN WAKE OF EMERALD ASH BORER DISCOVERY
State officials are taking immediate action to contain the spread of the Emerald Ash Borer, a destructive forest pest recently detected in western Pennsylvania. The bureaus of State Parks and Forestry warn campers and other outdoors enthusiasts against transporting firewood anywhere in the state.
“The discovery of this forest pest, which kills ash trees, is grim news, indeed, and the approach of the 4th of July holiday, with its increased camping and other outdoor activities, heightens our concern,” said Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Michael DiBerardinis. “We are asking travelers not to give the Emerald Ash Borer a free ride in firewood they might be transporting. All wood should be purchased locally and burned entirely.”
Meanwhile, both the state departments of Agriculture and Conservation and Natural Resources are working with the U. S. Department of Agriculture to conduct intensive surveys for the insect near the initial detection site in Cranberry Township, Butler County. The state has issued quarantines on moving wood in Butler, Lawrence, Allegheny and Beaver counties in a bid to control the spread of the insect.
At this time, there are no plans for wide-scale eradication of ash trees, which has been undertaken at infestation sites in other states, until surveys in Butler County are completed and results evaluated.
The state’s quarantine restricts the movement of ash nursery stock, green lumber and any other ash material including logs, stumps, roots, and branches, and all wood chips from the quarantine area. Due to the difficulty in distinguishing between species of hardwood firewood, all hardwood firewood — including ash, oak, maple and hickory – are quarantined.
Adult beetles were found June 22 in Cranberry Township by U.S. Department of Agriculture surveyors during a joint survey effort among the federal and state agriculture departments, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Penn State Extension. The insect already has forced quarantines in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland and Michigan.
“Not only is it illegal to move wood from a quarantined area, it’s not a wise idea to move any firewood anywhere in the state, especially with the ongoing threat of other insects and diseases to our state’s forests,” DiBerardinis said. “The ash borer’s discovery reaffirms DCNR’s ongoing efforts to educate campers and state forest visitors about the dangers of bringing firewood into an area and not burning it all.”
Usually visible from May to August, the adult Emerald Ash Borer beetles are slightly less than one-inch long, thin and bright metallic green in color. The beetle is believed to have originated from Asia and was uncovered in North America when it made its initial appearance during 2002 in southeastern Michigan. Since the pest’s arrival to the continent, its range has extended to Ohio, Maryland, Virginia, Indiana and portions of Canada.
The insect prefers green ash but will target all four ash tree species, regardless of whether they are healthy or stressed. The Emerald Ash Borer’s larvae cause girdling and death of branches and entire trees.
DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry officials estimate ash species — green, blue, black and white — make up about 3.6 percent of the state’s woodlands and total almost 308 million trees. Most are found on private land. Known for its strong, light-colored wood, Pennsylvania’s ash is used in the production of furniture, baseball bats and other wood-related industries. Commercial value of white ash alone is estimated at $768 million.
Overseeing 117 state parks, most of which offer camping, the Bureau of State Parks has posted warnings and information at campgrounds and on DCNR’s Web site: www.dcnr.state.pa.us (click on State Parks). Similar information is passed on to campers reserving sites online.
State and federal officials have conducted visual surveys for the Emerald Ash Borer annually throughout the state since 2003. In addition, DCNR established pairs of trap trees at state parks and rest areas in the western part of the state in 2005 and 2006, and state and federal teams established additional trap trees along the western sections of interstate highways. One ash tree at each site was peeled and inspected for borer larvae in fall 2006, and no larvae were detected.
Signs of Emerald Ash Borer infestation include upper crown dieback, woodpecker damage, vertical bark splits, S-shaped galleries under the bark and D-shaped emergence holes.
To report possible infested trees in Pennsylvania, call the Department of Agriculture’s toll-free pest hotline at 1-866-253-7189; or DCNR’s Division of Forest Pest Management at (717) 948-3941. For more information on the Emerald Ash Borer, visit www.emeraldashborer.info, or phone 717-772-5229.
Source: Pa. DCNR
PA Legislative Battles Over Gun Control Continue (November)
Last month we reported on potential developments with certain bills being advanced that presented moderate gun control concepts to appease certain more radical legislator elements within the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. On October 31 the Pennsylvania Judiciary Committee voted two bills out of committee.
The first bill was House Bill 784 which in it’s original form was unacceptable and as a result of request to rewrite the legislation put to the prime sponsor of the bill, Representative Scott Petri, Harry Schneider in Kim Stolfer were able to successfully correct defects in this legislation with the cooperation of several volunteer attorneys, notably Mike McCormick, to put together a more refined and polish language that will focus the intent of the bill.
The other bill that was passed out of the Judiciary Committee was House Bill 1744. As a result of earlier testimony before the Judiciary Committee this Bill was deemed by sportsmen and gun owner representatives as unacceptable in its current form. Our complaints generated a number of amendments that were to supposedly moderate our concerns. Unfortunately the process leading up to this vote did not allow for an open exchange of ideas even though the offer was made with Representative Tom Caltagirone to assist in determining what could be done to improve this legislation and to remove our concerns. In fact several of the amendments were not even available for review until the morning of the committee vote which is an unacceptable situation.
One of the amendments amounts to, in my view, a political payoff for support by giving the NRA taxpayer subsidies to establish 'Eddie Eagle' in Pennsylvania school districts. What is worse yet is that this ‘Firearms Education Fund’ does not mandate the use of ‘Eddie Eagle’ by use of the language “such as” to describe the entity doing the training so now we are opening up the entire PA school system to proselytizing at the expense of the PA taxpayers. For instance the Brady group uses a program called ‘Star’ that is 90% political advocacy for kids to lobby legislators to support gun control. This is a stupid, stupid move and the long term consequences could be disastrous.
his legislation is scheduled for a vote next week and we are asking ALL gun owners to notify their legislators to SUPPORT House Bill 784 and to OPPOSE House Bill 1744. We are going to be asking the statewide gun owner and sportsmen’s groups to join with us in this effort. If you would like copies of the legislation and the votes in the Judiciary Committee please e-mail your request. Also, please forward any comment that your legislator makes on this legislation to us so that we can respond properly. More to come!
HB 19 – Offenders, serious drug trafficking, violent repeat, not to possess firearms.
INTRODUCED BY D. EVANS, GERBER, CALTAGIRONE,
MYERS,
STURLA, WHEATLEY, WILLIAMS, BENNINGTON, BISHOP
, COHEN, CRUZ, CURRY, FRANKEL, GALLOWAY, JOSEPHS
, KIRKLAND, LEACH, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI
AND ROEBUCK
Anti-gun politicians are always screaming for more “so called” common sense gun control to prevent criminal access to firearms. Unfortunately, almost of their proposed bills focus on the firearms of law abiding gun owners and not on the criminal’s actions or illegal possession of firearms.
This bill changes all that by forcing the District Attorney’s, judges and court system to punish repeat offending predatory criminals who use firearms in commission on crimes. By providing real common sense mandatory jail time and additional felony charges for prior criminal convictions using firearms in the past.
Many innocent people in PA have been injured or killed by repeat violent offenders being let back out on the streets early, from charges that were plea bargained away instead of enforced. Wow, what a novel concept; prosecuting repeat criminals for offenses they commit with firearms. How much safer will police officers and citizens be when these criminal predators are off the streets, incarcerated in jail paying a time penalty for their actions.
Gun control has a real human cost. It’s time criminals start to pay 100% for their crimes with time behind bars instead of citizens having to put bars on their homes and live in fear.
HB 142 – Right to hunt, fish, harvest game
INTRODUCED BY BAKER, ROHRER, ARGALL,
BENNINGHOFF,
BELFANTI,BOYD, CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI,
CAUSER,
CLYMER, DALLY,DENLINGER, ELLIS, FAIRCHILD,
GEIST,
GODSHALL, GOODMAN, GRELL, HARHAI, HESS,
HUTCHINSON, KAUFFMAN, M. KELLER, MANN,MARKOSEK,
McILHATTAN, METCALFE, MOUL, PERRY,
HILLIPS,PICKETT,
PYLE, RAPP, REICHLEY, ROAE, SOLOBAY, STABACK,
STERN, R. STEVENSON, WALKO AND WOJNAROSKI
This proposed bill would amend the PA constitution after a general election referendum vote. It aims to make hunting and fishing a right with proper state issued licenses according to restrictions provided by laws of the commonwealth.
HB 205 – PGC Commission, composition & former employees
INTRODUCED BY PICKETT, PHILLIPS, R. STEVENSON,
CREIGHTON, GEIST,HERSHEY, YOUNGBLOOD,
CALTAGIRONE,
MUSTIO, GODSHALL, ROHRER,SONNEY, McILHATTAN,
HENNESSEY, KULA, J. EVANS, CAUSER, RUBLEY,
RAPP AND SWANGER
This bill requires an independent game commission composed of 8 competent PA citizens who are well informed on the subject of wildlife conservation, restoration and who are not PGC employees. They will be appointed by governor with the advice and consent of 2/3 of the senate.
HB 618 - Rights, restoration, offenses under prior
laws of the Commonwealth
INTRODUCED BY HANNA, DENLINGER, GEIST,
GEORGE, GERGELY, GODSHALLAND GRUCELA
This bill provides for restoration of rights for past non-violent offenses for those sentenced under very old laws involving the vehicle and penal codes where over the course of many decades the definitions have changed. People who had been convicted of or plead guilty to minor offenses in the past which presently would not be a serious violation of current law and the sentencing was an ambiguous misdemeanor shall have the option to have their rights restored to own and posses firearms for lawful purposes.
HB 641 – Self-protection, general principals of justifications, definitions, protection of other persons, use of force, civil immunity for use of force, sentences for firearms offenses
INTRODUCED BY CAPPELLI, BENNINGHOFF, BAKER,
BARRAR, BASTIAN,BELFANTI, BOYD, CALTAGIRONE,
CASORIO, CAUSER, CLYMER,DENLINGER, ELLIS,
EVERETT, FAIRCHILD, GEIST, GEORGE,GINGRICH,
GODSHALL, GRELL, GRUCELA, HALUSKA, HARRIS,
HERSHEY,HESS, HICKERNELL, HUTCHINSON,
KAUFFMAN, M. KELLER, KILLION,KOTIK, MAJOR,
MARSICO, METCALFE, R. MILLER, PAYNE,
PEIFER,PETRARCA, PETRI, PHILLIPS, PICKETT,
PYLE, RAPP, SAINATO,SAYLOR, SIPTROTH,
S. H. SMITH, SOLOBAY, SONNEY, STERN,R.
STEVENSON, SURRA, TURZAI AND WANSACZ
This bill, commonly referred to as the “castle doctrine”, is very similar to ones enacted in other states which have a proven history of acting as a real deterrent to violent criminal confrontations. Under PA law currently you are required to demonstrate that you retreated or attempted to retreat from any criminal confrontation other than inside you home. This presumes that you have the time and opportunity to call the police to intervene and hopefully they will make it in time to save you. If you do anything to protect your self or property outside your homes, even IF you are still on your own property/land, to harm the criminal or protect your family from imminent attack you can be held criminally and or civilly liable for your actions, justified or not, by an over zealous DA or criminals family. This bill would provide protections against punitive lawsuits for civilians as well as off duty law enforcement officers and their families. This single proposed bill, if passed into law, will restore balance to a justice system that has for decades favored the criminal over the victim. Citizens will be ‘less’ likely to fall into harms way because of fear of losing everything if they protect themselves and criminals will be less likely to commit these acts IF they do not know if they are armed or not. It’s a really cost effective way to deter criminals, with average citizens providing added security when the police are not around.
HB 641 would provide civil immunity for the use of force against criminals without having to surrender your personal safety or to needless retreat in the face of intrusion or attack outside the person home or vehicle. This bill also provides for very strict provisions on the use of deadly force and cannot be used by anyone while they are engaged in unlawful or illegal acts, or used against a peace officer acting in the performance of their official duties.
ACSL Archives 2007
PLEASE NOTE: We have tried to maintain links where possible, but due to the archival nature of these articles, some links may have changed or be otherwise unavailable.