Shoot And Don't Ask Questions

Leave it to the leadership of the National Rifle Association to do all it possibly can to fight any possible common-sense gun control measure and also allege that the rights of law-abiding firearms owners are being infringed while the body count of innocent victims of gun violence continues to climb.

“Oh, there you go, libtard (still get a kick out of that one). What about enforcing the laws that are already on the books? And what about mandatory sentences for repeat gun offenders?”

Fine. Hire more cops for enforcement if the budget allows (a big “if” there), but don’t waste my time with mandatory sentencing. Our prisons are already overcrowded, and we can’t arrest and house everybody. Besides, the biggest byproduct of mandatory guidelines is the creation of a permanent underclass of criminals sent to prison for offenses that don’t warrant the sentences that were required by law.

You want to do something about gun crime? Attack “straw” purchases (someone buying guns legitimately from an owner and then selling them on the street for what is often a significant markup…and yes, there are already laws against this, but they’re difficult to enforce). You want to attack “straw” purchases? Pass the law at long last – one gun a month. Done.

But instead, we have this from the state of Oklahoma (which is about the same thing as saying that it’s from the NRA).

Also, I’m not sure why, but the rest of this AP story was omitted from the Denver Post story.

Democratic Gov. Brad Henry signed it and said: "This act will allow law-abiding Oklahomans to protect themselves, their loved ones and their property."

Besides Oklahoma, the nine other states to sign on are Arizona, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and South Dakota, according to the NRA.

Critics say the NRA is overstating its success. Only six of those states expanded self-defense into public places, said Zach Ragbourn, a spokesman at the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. There already is a presumption in law that a person does not have to retreat in their home or car, he said.

And there have been a few high-profile defeats, too.

In New Hampshire, the measure passed the legislature only narrowly and then was vetoed by Democratic Gov. John Lynch, who was joined by police and prosecutors.

Police Chief Nathaniel H. Sawyer Jr. of New Hampton, N.H., said the legislation addressed a problem that does not exist. In 26 years in law enforcement, he has never seen anyone wrongfully charged with a crime for self-defense, he said.

"I think it increases the chance for violence," said Sawyer, also the president of the New Hampshire Association of Police Chiefs. "It increases the chance of innocent people being around the violence and becoming involved in it or hurt."

The bill would have allowed a person "to use deadly force in response to non-deadly force, even in public places such as shopping malls, public streets, restaurants and churches," Lynch said when he vetoed the legislation. Existing law already gives citizens the right to protect themselves, he said.

The NRA argues that victims wind up with an unfair burden if the law, as it does in New Hampshire, requires a duty to retreat, if possible. "That does crime victims little good when they have to make a split-second decision to protect their life from violent attack by a criminal," said Wayne LaPierre, the NRA's executive director.

"The only people that have anything to fear from this type of law is someone who plans on robbing, shooting or raping someone," LaPierre said.

That argument sounds good and it's winning supporters, said Florida state Rep. Dan Gelber, a critic of the law when it passed in his state last year and a former federal prosecutor.

But like Sawyer in New Hampshire, he does not see any instances now or in the past of a victim being prosecuted for failing to retreat. He sees the Florida law, and the national campaign, as an effort by the NRA to build support and keep its members riled up.

"The NRA is a victim of its own successes. No political party in Florida today is going to advance any serious gun-control agenda," said Gelber, a Democrat. "What's left is these little things which have no impact on every day life, but inspire and activate the base."

And, he argued, it gives defense attorneys a potential avenue to seek acquittal for crimes. In effect, criminals will benefit much more often than any innocent victim. "It's going to give the guy who's really looking for a fight, or does something totally irresponsible or venal, a defense he would not otherwise have."

Last week in Arizona, the state appellate court delayed the start of jury deliberations in the trial of a retired school teacher charged with second-degree murder for shooting a man on a hiking trail in May 2004. The court is deciding whether the new law applies to his claim of self-defense.

To show how easy it is to get a gun in PA, for example (where the state disallowed the city of Philadelphia from enacting its own gun laws, and again, substitite “NRA” for “state” in that sentence), Inquirer reporter Tom Ferrick, Jr. purchased a Taurus PT-140 semiautomatic pistol with a 13-bullet clip and writes about it here. Ferrick also wrote this column about Philadelphia police officer Gary Skerski who was recently slain (and the fact that if PA House Bill 871 had been enacted, maybe – just maybe – Skerski would be alive today).