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MN: Appeals court orders new homicide trial, citing inconsistent jury instructions
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The appellate court agreed with Valdez that the jury instruction was inconsistent with the statutory right to use reasonable force to help a reason who is resisting offensive behavior that threatens bodily harm. It found that the jury instruction did not regard whether the stepbrother could have retreated or if the step-brother would have survived the ongoing attack.
�The practical effect of the district court�s instruction would be to retroactively impose on Valdez a requirement that, to avoid criminal liability, he had to abandon [his stepbrother] and leave him in danger of bodily harm or death,� the court wrote. |
Suicide hits gun owners hard, but few were talking about it � until an industry insider began
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As a 21-year-old who grew up in San Francisco, Mike Sodini was plenty uncomfortable at his first gun show in 1998.
Sodini�s family ran a firearms business in New Jersey, but he was raised on the other side of the country by his mother. He knew almost nothing about guns, yet he was expected to step into the business after college.
At the gun shows, Sodini saw a lot of tough guys, some who he would discover were quietly living with depression and other mental health challenges. Sometimes, one would just disappear and Sodini would later learn the man had ended his life with a gun. |
Auto-Switch Crimes Show Futility of Gun Control
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In recent years, there have been several articles complaining about the proliferation of auto or Glock switches (auto sears). These items are used by criminals to illegally modify commonly-owned semiautomatic handguns into machineguns. Those concerned about these items should focus on enforcement of existing federal law.
Reasonable people can question the wisdom of banning the mere possession of inanimate objects rather than focusing on their intentional misuse. However, no one can deny that the federal government currently has the statutes necessary to confront possession and use of these items. |
MT: Fourth Montana Grizzly Shot By Hunter Claiming Self-Defense
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For the fourth time this year, a grizzly was killed in Montana by someone claiming self-defense after being charged by a bear.
A hunter told wildlife agents that he had to shoot and kill a grizzly Saturday when it charged him during a �close encounter� in the Gravelly Range near Ennis, Montana, according to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
Some other details, such as what type of firearm was used, weren�t available early Wednesday, FWP spokesman Greg Lemon told Cowboy State Daily. The hunter�s name was not released. |
6 Principles For Talking to the Police After a Self-Defense Shooting
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Personal safety is paramount, so understanding the intricacies of self-defense is crucial. It's not just about stopping the attacker with well-aimed shots. I mean, of course, that comes first, but there is more, much, much more to consider.
One topic that we don't talk as much about is knowing what to do after the shooting. More specifically, should we talk to the police after a shooting, and if so, what should we say, and what shouldn't we say? This is a very important topic because we need to survive the physical attack by using justified, legal force, and do our best to stay out of court. |
FL: Gun fight in Palatka: Man claimed self defense, other shooter held without bond
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The 5.56 mm shell casings were a match for the gun belonging to Bryant.
The FDLE ballistics report assisted Detectives in confirming the events of the incident as described by Bryant. The evidence supports Bryant�s actions in discharging his firearm at Atkins as a means of self-defense.
At the conclusion of the investigation, Detectives obtained a warrant for Atkins arrest for one count of aggravated assault and one count of firing a missile into a dwelling. |
CA: Man Shot Dead By Livermore Gun Shop Owner During Sunday Robbery
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A gun store owner likely acted in self-defense Sunday afternoon when he shot and killed a man with a hammer who tried to rob him, police said.
The owner of East Bay Firearms on First Street in downtown Livermore fired two rounds when the man wearing a mask and gloves threatened him with a hammer and tried to steal a gun, police said.
�The gun store owner is cooperating with the investigation and is not a suspect in a crime at this time,� Livermore police said in a statement. �At this stage in the investigation, it appears that this was a case of self-defense.� |
CA: Why California�s newest batch of gun restrictions won�t make the state safer
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Despite his claim that California is �the freedom state,� Gov. Gavin Newsom is passing unconstitutional laws that will make Californians less free and less safe.
In late September, Newsom signed the �Gun Violence Prevention and School Safety Act,� or Assembly Bill 28. The controversial bill will affect how Californians purchase and carry legal firearms, creating a prohibitive excise tax on gun and ammunition purchases.
While California has many Second Amendment restrictions, this year�s newest curtailments are more harmful than their predecessors. |
NJ: New Jersey urges US appeals court to uphold gun restrictions
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A federal appeals court on Wednesday sharply questioned whether a recently enacted New Jersey law restricting where people may carry guns was constitutional in light of last year's landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that expanded gun rights.
A lawyer for the state urged a three-judge panel of the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rule that a lower-court judge wrongly concluded that the law violated the right to "keep and bear arms" under the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment.
But judges on the panel questioned whether the law went too far by broadly restricting carrying firearms at 25 categories of "sensitive places" that included parks, schools, libraries, beaches, bars, restaurants with alcohol... |
CA: Judge eviscerates new heavy-handed California gun laws
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For the second time this year, U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez struck down heavy-handed California laws regulating the Second Amendment�s right �to keep and bear arms.� In September, he threw out a law limiting magazines to 10 rounds. Last week he dumped a California law banning so-called �assault weapons,� which really are just mean-looking rifles that scare politicians who don�t know anything about guns.
He ruled, �The American tradition is rich and deep in protecting a citizen�s enduring right to keep and bear common arms like rifles, shotguns, and pistols. However, among the American tradition of firearm ownership, there is nothing like California�s prohibition on rifles, shotguns, and handguns based on their looks or attributes.� |
NY: Judge: NYC denying gun permits based on analysis of 'good moral character' is unconstitutional
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A federal judge on Tuesday struck down recent provisions in New York City�s gun restrictions as unconstitutional, saying officials have been allowed too much discretion to deny gun permits to people deemed �not of good moral character.�
Judge John P. Cronan in Manhattan said in a written ruling that the �magnitude of discretion� afforded to city gun licensing officials under facets of the city's administrative code violated the Constitution's 2nd and 14th amendments.
In particular, the judge cited provisions empowering officials to evaluate an applicant's �good moral character� and whether �good cause exists for the denial� of gun permits. |
ME: America�s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
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At least 16 people � and according to some officials, as many as 22 � have been killed and several dozen injured in a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, the northern state�s second-largest city.
The shooter wasn�t immediately apprehended and appears to have opened fire at two locations on Wednesday evening: a bowling alley and bar on Wednesday. State and local law enforcement have asked residents of Lewiston and the surrounding area to shelter in place as officials work to find the shooter. Schools and many businesses in the area have been shuttered. |
NJ: Strict concealed carry restrictions remain in New Jersey
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The latest skirmish in the battle over the concealed carry of a firearm played out in a Federal Appeals Court in Philadelphia on Wednesday.
A resolution, however, could still be months away.
The three judge panel head from the attorneys representing Gov. Phil Murphy's administration and gun rights advocates.
At issue is a whether Murphy and his legislative allies overstepped when they imposed severe restrictions on where residents can carry a concealed handgun. |
Springfield Armory Limited Edition Custom Clip Point Field Knife
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A few weeks back I received this massive blade in the mail from Springfield Armory as it was provided to me for a review. While I�m not usually the kind of guy who uses large fixed blades like this Custom Clip Point Field Knife, I will be making an attempt to take this blade out into the woods and bang on it a bit. I�m also a bit conflicted about this because this is a beautiful blade! Stay tuned for more info on this large knife in the future. For now, here are the specs from Springfield Armory and a few pictures. |
Senate passes Kennedy amendment protecting veterans' Second Amendment rights
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The amendment was spearheaded by Kennedy and fellow Republican Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas, who championed the measure in June as one that would "would prevent government workers from unduly stripping veterans of their right to bear arms."
"All our amendment would do, would be able would be to say: The VA, just because you've asked for help with your money, can not automatically take away your firearm or report you to [the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System] unless a judge has ruled that that veteran is a danger to himself or to others," Kennedy said on the Senate floor Wednesday. |
Federal Judge Tosses Gun Charge for Drug Use, Upholds Felony Indictment Gun Ban
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Banning users of unlawful controlled substances from possessing firearms violates the Second Amendment. But the same isn�t true for those facing felony indictments.
That was the conclusion U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan reached on Tuesday when she dismissed one count of an indictment against a North Carolina man for violating the federal prohibition. Flanagan said that drug users are part of �the people� protected by the Second Amendment and that there is no valid historical analogue for permanently disarming them. |
PA: Gun control proposals a cause for concern
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The state House of Representatives are mulling four bills this legislative session to adopt additional gun control measures.
The measures are fortunately not as invasive or as hostile to the Second Amendment as many gun control advocates would like. Our Republican majority in the state Senate has earned a strong record on the Second Amendment that discouraged pursuit of the most excessive of proposals. We believe we all should be thankful for that. |
ATF pursuit of decorated American soldier about headlines, not justice
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The ATF wants to imprison a decorated American soldier for a series of victimless crimes, even though the federal regulations he�s accused of violating may not be constitutional, and questions about ATF�s potential involvement in the case remain unanswered.
The same federal agency that ran guns across the border into Mexico � which were used by drug cartels to murder Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and scores of Mexican nationals � believes that retired special operations veteran Larry Vickers needs to be locked up, even though none of his weapons ended up in cartel hands. |
Hunter Biden legal team may need to overhaul defense strategy in gun case
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�This would be embarrassing for at least two reasons,� Andrew McCarthy, a former federal prosecutor, told the Washington Examiner. �First, Joe Biden championed the law under which Hunter has been charged. Second, if it weren�t for Weiss�s inexcusable delay in charging Hunter, there would be no Second Amendment defense. The Supreme Court�s Bruen case was not decided until four years after Hunter�s gun offense.�
McCarthy was referring to the Supreme Court�s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc v. Bruen, a 2022 case that provided a new legal framework for evaluating gun laws. The Bruen decision forces courts to weigh whether firearm restrictions fit into the �historical tradition� of Second Amendment rights. |
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