Pelosi confuses NRA’s role with intelligence community
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) appeared to confuse the National Rifle Association with the National Security Agency during remarks on May 23 at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation’s 2017 Fiscal Summit, according to the Washington Free Beacon.
While being interviewed by CNN’s Dana Bash, Pelosi discussed the ongoing investigation into whether there was collusion between Donald Trump’s campaign and the Russians, and whether he may have obstructed justice, according to NTK Network.
“To have a president say, if he did, to the director of the FBI, or the DNI, the Director of National Intelligence, or the NRA person that—um, uh, that they should not go forward, it raises questions that need to be answered in a facts and law way, and not hearsay,” Pelosi said.
This is, of course, not the first time that the former Speaker of the House has display he confusion with the names of people or organizations.
The NRA, of course, is the short way to say the National Rifle Association, the largest American a gun rights advocacy organization, with whom Pelosi has always shared some mutual antipathy.
Missouri man doubles down on murder for hire charge
The United States Attorney’s Office in St. Louis recently reported today that William “Chuckie” Clarett was convicted of federal conspiracy to commit murder for hire involving the murder of Travis Hayden, after trying to hire a hit man to kill a witness, but he may have assured his own conviction.
The story begins on April 22, 2015 when Travis Hayden was murdered in Berkeley, MO. A witness identified William Clarett, aka “Chuckie,” as the shooter. That same day, the witness gave a written statement to police and picked Clarett out in a photospread. On Dec. 31, 2015, investigators arrested Clarett for the murder of Travis Hayden. A complaint was issued on Jan. 1, 2016, charging Clarett with Murder 1st Degree and Armed Criminal Action. Clarett was detained at the St. Louis County Justice Center.
On February 10, 2016, the witness testified before a grand jury in St. Louis County and the Grand Jury returned a true bill on the murder and ACA counts. The witness’ name and address were publicly disclosed in connection with the indictment.
While Clarett was detained in the Justice Center on the murder charge, he began talking to an inmate that he knew from the neighborhood. The inmate advised authorities that Clarett was asking him to help find someone to kill the witness. ATF then arranged to have an undercover officer pose as a potential hitman. Between June 14, 2016 and June 30, 2016, Clarett spoke to the undercover agent six times over the phone about killing the witness.
On July 1, 2016, Clarett met with false hit man at the Justice Center and told him he would provide him with the down payment for the murder. Thereafter, Clarett released $500 from his commissary which was later given to the undercover cop along with the photograph of the witness.
Clarett, 34, Berkeley, MO, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit murder for hire. The three-day trial was held before US District Judge Audrey Fleissig. Sentencing has been set for September 2017.
Clarett is facing a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Cottleville Police Department.
CNN dumps Kathy Griffin over decapitation video
At the end of May, it was announced that CNN had cut ties with comedian Kathy Griffin, the co-host for several years running of its New Year’s Eve celebration with Anderson Cooper, over a video she posted in which she holds up a fake-blood-covered prop version of President Donald Trump’s head.
“CNN has terminated our agreement with Kathy Griffin to appear on our New Year’s Eve program,” the network’s communications team posted on its Twitter account.
In an earlier statement, CNN+, apparently unamused, called the image of Griffin holding up the fake version of Trump’s head “disgusting and offensive” but said it was “pleased” that she had apologized. Still, the network said at the time it was “evaluating New Year’s Eve.”
Griffin’s New Year’s Eve co-host, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, said he was “appalled by the photo shoot Kathy Griffin took part in. It is clearly disgusting and completely inappropriate.”
On Twitter later, Trump wrote that “Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself. My children, especially my 11 year old son, Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick!”
Apparently, there are some lines even CNN will not cross, even as it flogs Trump daily and almost hourly.
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2A protects some bladed weapons, not just firearms
Commenting in his blog on The Washington Post, Eugene Volokh noted that the New Jersey machete decision is important because it rejects a “spontaneity” requirement for arming yourself at home (the state’s theory that you could pick up a weapon against an imminent attack, but you can’t come to the door with the weapon just in case). But it’s also important because it reaffirms that the Second Amendment protects not just guns but other weapons as well.
“This should be obvious, I think: The Second Amendment protects “arms,” and the D.C. v. Heller opinion discusses bows and knives as examples of such arms; opinions in the 1800s and 1900s dealing with state constitutional rights to bear arms also mention bladed weapons; and post-Heller opinions, such as from courts in Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin agree. But some have disagreed — the Massachusetts government in the Caetano stun gun case before the Massachusetts high court, for instance, argued that Heller was limited to firearms. The New Jersey decision should be a helpful precedent, then, for other non-gun cases (though of course it doesn’t dispose of the question of exactly what weapons are protected, and where they can be possessed).
MI sheriff’s deputies deliver gun locks
Oakland County, MI, Sheriff Michael Bouchard said gun safety locks will now be available for distribution from county patrol vehicles, The Oakland Press reported.
Bouchard made the gun lock announcement at the county’s annual Gun Safety Awareness press conference on in Pontiac.
June is National Gun Safety Awareness Month.
“We are always looking for ways to do things better and expand our outreach with gun safety,” said Bouchard. “Depending on how busy our substations are on any given day, we will actually deliver gun locks to homes in our patrol cars. This is another way for us to get these locks in the hands of people that want to secure their weapons.”
The event in Pontiac brought together law enforcement officials from around the county, along with health division officials, county commissioners and sheriff’s office deputies to speak on the importance of gun safety, how to properly store a firearm and to collect gun locks for distribution.
Bouchard said that from 2014 to 2016, 152 children in the United States died from accidental firearm discharges. From 2009 through 2014, 342 county residents died from a self-inflicted firearm injury, according to the Oakland County Health Division.
“This was 100 percent preventable if the guns would have been properly secured in the home,” said Bouchard.
Brownback allows bill to take effect
Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) announced in June that he intends to let House Bill 2278 become law without his signature, the National Rifle Association reported.
HB 2278 makes it unlawful for individuals to carry a firearm for self-defense into a state or municipal-owned medical care facility, including the Kansas University Hospital. In addition, HB 2278 prevents the lawful carry of a firearm into community health centers and state or municipal-owned adult care homes. It will take effect immediately.
Dayton bus riders allowed to carry
Riders who can show proof of a valid CCW license will now be allowed to carry guns on Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority buses, the Dayton Daily News reported.
Under the new rules, anyone lawfully licensed to carry a concealed weapon may do so in the public areas of RTA property, such as the transit center platforms and on buses. Anyone not prohibited by law may openly carry a firearm on the transit platforms but must have a CCW permit to board the bus with the weapon.
The changes come after pro-firearms groups protested the RTA’s ban on all weapons, saying it doesn’t align with Ohio laws about municipal bans on firearms.
Firearms groups test California gun control laws
The California Rifle and Pistol Association and the National Rifle Association have filed a second lawsuit challenging Golden State gun laws that restrict ammunition magazines, contending that the ban on so-called “high capacity magazines” is unconstitutional.
The action, filed in federal district court in San Diego, comes in the wake of an earlier legal action that challenges the ban on sales of semi-auto sport/utility rifles equipped with so-called “bullet buttons.” That device was acceptable for several years, but the law was changed last year in reaction to the San Bernardino terrorist attack, which the Los Angeles Times preferred to call a “mass shooting.”
Passage of Proposition 63 last November provided the magazine ban.
However, the gun groups are claiming that this amounts to an unconstitutional taking of private property without compensation.
Two recent high-profile shootings in California might help erode claims that banning magazines that hold more than ten rounds will help reduce violence. Another shooting in San Bernardino and a separate incident in Fresno put the lie to that argument. In both cases, the gunmen used revolvers and were able to reload quickly.
“Banning magazines over 10 rounds is no more likely to reduce criminal abuse of guns than banning high horsepower engines is likely to reduce criminal abuse of automobiles,” the plaintiffs contend in their lawsuit.
In a prepared statement Chris Cox, head of the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, asserted, “Legislators in California routinely enact laws that only affect the law-abiding and do nothing to enhance public safety. This lawsuit, and others that will follow, is an effort to ensure the rights of law-abiding gun owners are respected in California.”
When PoliceOne.com conducted a survey of more than 15,000 law enforcement professionals four years ago, 95 percent of the respondents said banning the manufacture and sale of magazines that hold more than ten rounds would not reduce violent crime.
NY congressman arming for security
New York Congressman Chris Collins (R-27th) told CNN that he plans to carry a concealed firearm at all times in the wake of the shooting of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA).
Collins credited Scalise’s Capitol Police detail with saving countless lives on June 14 after a gunman opened fire on a group of Republican lawmakers who were practicing for a bi-partisan baseball game in Alexandria, VA.
“I think we would have had a massacre on our hands had it not been for Steve Scalise’s police detail that was with him,” said Collins, who added Scalise is only one of three GOP House members with a Capitol Police detail. The other two are House Speaker Paul Ryan and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
Collins and Rep. Scalise know each other well, as Collins is part of Scalise’s whip team, helping him advocate for the passage of Republican-led legislation in the House.
Members of the House are now looking at security measures in the wake of the shooting. In fact, Collins has already made a few changes of his own, beefing up security at his home and at his district office in Lancaster. He’s considering moving his Geneseo office to a more secure location.
Collins also told WROC-TV News 8 in Rochester that he plans to arm himself, for his own security, while in Western New York.
“We need to make sure, and I will be reaching out to local law enforcement, if it’s a large public gathering, to make sure we’ve got some armed protection there. I’ve got a carry permit, I can tell you I’m going to be carrying at home from now on.”
He noted that current Washington, DC, laws make it impossible to carry guns while on Capitol Hill.
Collins expects there may be new protocols in place for House members moving forward when it comes to safety and security out in public.
CMP awards 158 $1OOO scholarships to student athletes
The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), a federally chartered non-profit, has awarded $158,000 towards outstanding junior marksmen through its CMP Scholarship Program to be used for the 2017-2018 term – over $5,000 more than the previous year.
A total of 289 applications were received, with 158 awarded to both junior males and females.
The $1,000 CMP Scholarships are available to graduating high school JROTC, 4-H and other junior shooting club members. Scholarship applications are only accepted if they are received completed and if the applicant is a US citizen, shows good moral character, is a contributing member to society and is a scholar marksman.
Of the 247 fully-completed applications reviewed for consideration, 122 were submitted by female juniors and 125 by male. Students from Georgia submitted the most, with 22, followed by last year’s leader Pennsylvania (17) and North Carolina (16). Hawaii, Alaska and overseas military posts were also represented in the process, with a total of 20 combined submissions.
In addition to the scholarships awarded to talented marksmen across the country, six local scholarships were awarded to athletes near the CMP offices in the Port Clinton, Ohio, and Talladega, Ala. – three to each location.
All junior marksmen are encouraged to stay focused on their academic careers as well as in becoming involved with their communities and other positive extra curricular activities. The CMP is proud to provide support to junior marksmen in their continuing education and helping to shape their fulfilling futures.
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, log onto TheCMP.org.
Ruger issues recall of Mark IV pistols
Ruger is recalling all Mark IV™ pistols (including 22/45™ models) manufactured prior to June 1, 2017. Ruger recently discovered that the pistols have the potential to discharge unintentionally if the safety is not utilized correctly. In particular, if the trigger is pulled while the safety lever is midway between the “safe” and “fire” positions (that is, the safety is not fully engaged or fully disengaged), the pistol may not fire when the trigger is pulled. However, if the trigger is released and the safety lever is then moved from the mid position to the “fire” position, the pistol may fire at that time.
Although only a small percentage of Mark IV pistols appear to be affected and the company is not aware of any injuries, Ruger is firmly committed to safety and would like to retrofit all potentially affected pistols with an updated safety mechanism.
As a responsible manufacturer, Ruger wants to make its customers aware of this free safety upgrade. All Mark IV pistols with serial numbers beginning with “401” (2017 models) or “WBR” (2016 models) are subject to the recall. Mark IV owners should visit the Mark IV Recall website at Ruger.com/MarkIVRecall to look up the serial number of their Mark IV and verify if it is subject to the recall, sign up for the recall, and obtain additional information.
The new parts are being built and Ruger will retrofit Mark IV pistols on a first-come, first-served basis. When Ruger is ready to retrofit a consumer’s pistol, a prepaid USPS box with a shipping label and detailed packaging and shipping instructions will be sent to the consumer. The consumer should return only the grip frame assembly to Ruger. Ruger will install the updated safety mechanism, and return the grip frame assembly, free of charge. All retrofitted grip frame assemblies will be returned with a free magazine as a “thank you” for consumers’ patience and cooperation. The company will make every effort to return each pistol within one week of the day it arrives at Ruger.
Ruger strongly recommends that consumers not use their Mark IV pistols until the safety retrofit has been installed.