Law & Order – Page 6

Duh.. Violent crime increasing the most in high crime neighborhoods

Mapping gun violence: A closer look at the intersection between place and gun homicides in four cities

The rise in gun homicides in the United States is having reverberating political ramifications at the federal, state, and local levels, with many elected officials falling back into “tough on crime” policies to curb the violence. This punitive turn can be seen in President Joe Biden’s proposed federal budget, in which he calls for “more police officers on the beat” and allocates an additional $30 billion for state and local governments to support law enforcement. Many local leaders are mirroring this approach, centering their gun violence prevention strategies on increasing funding for police and rolling back criminal justice reforms.

What these enforcement-based approaches fail to recognize is that the recent rise in homicides is more nuanced than it appears. Rather than a widespread dispersal of gun violence within cities, the increases in gun homicides are largely concentrated in disinvested and structurally disadvantaged neighborhoods that had high rates of gun violence to begin with. This geographic concentration is a persistent challenge, not a new one—and it requires targeted solutions to improve outcomes in disinvested places rather than reverting to the old “tough on crime” playbook.

This piece takes a deeper look at patterns of gun violence in four cities—Chicago, Nashville, Kansas City, Mo. and Baltimore—and finds that each city’s gun homicide increases were driven predominantly by increases in neighborhoods where gun violence has long been a persistent fixture of daily life, alongside systemic disinvestment, segregation, and economic inequality. These patterns point to the longer-term need to address the place-based factors that influence violence and invest in the critical community infrastructure that has not only been proven to make communities safer, but can also help them thrive.

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I can guarantee with near metaphysical certitude that if you hear this on the MSM, it’ll be spun to appear as racist as possible.

Experts Say the ‘Defund the Police’ Movement Led to a Massive Spike in Black Murders.

The immediate aftermath of the murder of George Floyd saw a dramatic increase in violent crime across the country. But the political movement Floyd’s death spawned — “Defund the Police” — ended up creating a massive spike in the murders of black people as law enforcement pulled back from policing black communities in what’s referred to as “The Ferguson Effect.”

The left sniffs at the Ferguson Effect because it, in essence, blames their coddling of violent protesters for the spike in crime. But given the anecdotal evidence from every large city about the reality of the effect —some police making a conscious effort not to get involved — it would seem that the Ferguson Effect can certainly be included among any causes for the increase in violent crime.

The year 2020 may have been unique because of the pandemic and conditions surrounding the lockdowns.

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Man, 21, arrested a week after 3 killed at Georgia gun range

GRANTVILLE, Ga. (AP) — A 21-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a fatal armed robbery at a Georgia gun range that left three members of a family dead last week.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Friday that Jacob Christian Muse, of College Park, is charged with three counts of malice murder.

Grantville officers who arrived at the scene of Lock Stock & Barrel Shooting Range on the night of April 8 discovered the bodies of the gun range’s owner, along with his wife and grandson.

Investigators said that as many as 40 guns and the range’s surveillance camera were also stolen. Authorities did not release additional information about Muse’s arrest.

All those state and federal laws about possession of guns by crims being illegal….and they just don’t seem to work.

26-Year-Old Arrested in Connection With Sacramento Mass Shooting, Police Chief Says

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento police have arrested a 26-year-old man in connection with Sunday’s deadly mass shooting, the city’s police chief confirmed.

Dandrae Martin was taken into custody and booked on charges of assault with a firearm and being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, police Chief Kathy Lester told KCRA 3’s Ty Steele in an exclusive interview Monday morning.

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With all the smuggled fentanyl being confiscated, I’d think an OD with that would work just fine.

South Carolina is ready for death by firing squad after shortage of lethal injection drugs left 37 on death row waiting execution

South Carolina is set to use firing squads to carry out executions
The state put a halt on the process when it could only provide deaths by the electric chair last year, which death row inmates rejected as their only choice
The Corrections Department has spent $53,600 to upgrade its capital punishment facility to accommodate death by firing squad
Experts have said the method is humane and kills instantly, with the last such execution taking place in Utah in 2010
Two death row inmates in Oklahoma had asked for death by firing squad over lethal injection, but their plea was rejected by a US District Court judge
Inmates Brad Sigmon and Freddie Owens are expected to be the first to be given the choice between death by electrocution or firing squad in South Carolina

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Sure sounds like the prosecutor really wanted to charge and prosecute, but realized he didn’t have a case

Homeowner who shot alleged burglar in self defense won’t face charges

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – The Hennepin County Attorney is declining to file charges against the homeowner accused of shooting an intruder last month in Minneapolis who claimed she acted in self-defense.

Thirty-year-old Martin Lee Johnson was shot and killed outside a home along the 3300 block of 25th Avenue South on February 22.

According to police, Johnson was shot after apparently trying to break into a home that night. The county attorney says Ring camera video shows Johnson jumping six-foot privacy fence that surrounds the backyard of the home and trying to enter through a patio door.

Prosecutors say the video shows that, after failing to get in the patio door, Johnson then went into a detached garage through a door in the backyard.

Is it self-defense to shoot an intruder who has entered your detached garage? The Hennepin County Attorney’s office said Monday it is “deferring” a charging decision in the Feb. 22 shooting that left a man dead.

By this point, prosecutors say the homeowner had spotted Johnson on the Ring camera. Arming herself with a pistol, the homeowner went to make sure Johnson had left and had not tried to enter her home. Police say she also told her son to grab a rifle from downstairs in case the man tried to get inside. According to prosecutors, the homeowner has a legal permit to carry.

After realizing the man was still in the garage, the homeowner told police she fired warning shots with the pistol and warned the man to leave. But the homeowner says the man continue walking towards the homeowner and her son.

Ultimately, police say the man was shot once in the chest and later died from those injuries. The homeowner told police the man appeared to reach into his waistband when she shot him with the rifle.

Prosecutors say, after the shooting, the homeowner gave voluntary interviews with officers and allowed investigators to access the Ring camera footage.

As for the evidence, prosecutors say the medical examiner was unable to determine, with 100 percent certainty, which gun fired the fatal bullet. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman says they don’t have evidence to disapprove a self-defense argument.

“While this case is tragic, there is not sufficient proof that the homeowner and/or her son are guilty of a crime,” a news release from the county attorney reads. “Based on the evidence provided to our office, it appears the woman and her son would have valid self-defense claims.”

Not surprisingly, crimes like this aren’t happening all that much in places where demoncraps aren’t in charge of the goobermint

Carjackings in cities like NYC, Philadelphia jump over 200% – often with kids behind the wheel, officials say.

Carjackings have skyrocketed 200% — or more — in multiple big cities across the county in past years, as law enforcement officials and crime experts pleaded with lawmakers on Tuesday for help addressing the rampant issue, with one official warning: “Anyone in a car is a potential victim.”

“The primary goal is to do our best to ensure that no one has a gun in their face demanding their car in the first place.”

— Dallas Police Chief Edgardo “Eddie” Garcia, to Fox News Digital

Law enforcement executives and officials from crime monitoring agencies from across the country convened on Capitol Hill on Tuesday morning to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee for a hearing to address the startling trends related to carjackings. During his time at the microphone, National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) president and CEO David Glawe revealed some cities saw carjacking upticks as high as more than 280% between 2019 and 2021.

“A disturbing subplot to these bleak numbers is that many carjackings are often committed in furtherance of other serious violent crimes, and many carjackings are committed by juveniles are committed by juveniles — some as young as 11 years old,” Glawe explained.

Glawe was joined by Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart, Metropolitan Family Services executive director Vaughn Bryant, Alliance for Automotive Innovation president and CEO John Bozzella, former U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman and Dallas Police Department Chief Edgardo “Eddie” Garcia.

Garcia, who also spoke on behalf of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, testified that the increase in carjackings is being driven by certain factors, such as financial gain and to further other violent criminal activity.

“Many of these carjackings are also committed by juveniles seeking to gain notoriety on social media or as part of gang initiations,” he said.

He pointed to reluctant prosecutors and judges who “continue to release violent and repeat offenders pretrial,” and noted that the challenges also apply to juvenile offenders.

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Seattle PD having trouble hiring new officers

Politicians often can’t really afford to be far-sighted. Their constituents want immediate results, not the promise of better days down the road.

Yet officials can be far too short-sighted for their own good. Seattle, for example, was another of a handful of cities that cut funding to their police department not all that long ago.

Now, that may well be causing problems.

Violent crime reached a 14-year high in Seattle last year as the city’s police department deals with a staffing shortage that is straining its ability to protect the community.

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said during his state of the city address this week that there is funding to hire 125 new officers this year and put more resources on the street.

“The depleted staffing we see today does not allow us to react to emergencies and crime with the response times our residents deserve,” Harrell said Tuesday.

“It does not allow us to staff the specialty teams we need for issues like domestic violence or DUI or financial crimes targeting the elderly,” he said. “It does not allow us to conduct the thorough investigations we expect to make sustainable change.”

Twenty officers left the force in January, 171 officers exited last year, and 186 officers separated from the force in 2020 amid the push to defund the police, according to KOMO. Only 137 officers have been hired in that time span.

In other words, Seattle treated officers like crap, demonized them, and then are absolutely and completely shocked that they can’t hire officers.

Yep. The whole thing is an absolute mystery. Not a soul could have seen this one coming, now could they?

I mean, other than every person with a functional brain, that is.

Look, cops are people. Not only does that mean some will be good and some will be bad, it also means they want to be appreciated for what they do and know they’re supported by their leadership.

Additionally, when you’ve demonized them in the press, you can’t really expect applicants to flock to fill the void. It’s just not going to work that way.

“You know, the media and the city have been treating police like crap. I just can’t wait to get me some of that!” said no one ever.

This is of Seattle’s own making, much like what’s going on in San Francisco right now. You can’t demonize the police then be surprised when things don’t go well in the aftermath.

I get that they shouldn’t be lionized and shielded from liability for their mistakes, but there’s a middle ground that most people can understand and respect between those two extremes. Most people want that middle ground, even.

Unfortunately, public officials are too short-sighted to see that appeasing a mob one day might come back to bite them in the backside in the not-so-distant future.

So, here we are. Seattle can’t get enough police officers and seems genuinely confused as to why. Frankly, were it not for good people who are going to get hurt, I’d just sit here and laugh at them.

These proggies voted their proggie goobermint in.
They sowed the wind, and we know what you reap from that…
The Whirlwind!

San Francisco residents report police doing nothing

During the push to “defund the police,” San Francisco was knee-deep in things. In fact, while few places actually reduced police funding, they did.

Eventually, due to soaring crime, the city reversed that. They really didn’t have a choice at that point.

However, it doesn’t seem to be helping. Why? Because the police don’t seem interested in actually arresting anyone.

After weeks battling the bewildering bureaucracy of San Francisco’s criminal justice system, Danielle Kuzinich finally has some answers in the strange case of the thrashed parklet and the do-nothing cops.

Just before dawn on Dec. 31, firefighters witnessed a man wrecking the charming parklet outside the San Francisco Wine Society in the Financial District and notified police. Security camera footage from a nearby hotel shows police arriving, chatting with a firefighter, talking to a man sitting next to piles of parklet debris and leaving. It then shows the man continuing to trash the area.

Now, a man police believe is the culprit is in jail — busted only because he allegedly went on to commit more vandalism days after the Wine Society mess. But the episode spotlighted an issue bigger than one arrest: a pattern of some officers on the San Francisco force seemingly uninterested in dealing with crime.

Numerous readers shared stories of police indifference after reading last week’s column about Kuzinich’s frustrating experience — and how it adds to their feeling that San Francisco city government, and its criminal justice system in particular, is broken.

They had questions. Is property crime in some ways allowed in our city? Are police on an unofficial strike or work stoppage?

In a visit to The Chronicle newsroom Tuesday, Police Chief Bill Scott promised that’s not the case.

“I can confidently say that’s not happening,” he said. “I get a report every morning of last night’s activities, and there’s a lot of great work being done.”

Not officially, in any case.

However, if this is a recurring problem, there’s probably a reason for it. Scott knows this, too.

He acknowledged, though, that the department has “serious morale issues” because of understaffing, intense scrutiny amid the police reform movement and tussles with District Attorney Chesa Boudin. Still, he said, that’s no excuse for not addressing crime.

“Despite the reason that an officer may be in that mental state where they might think it’s not a big deal for them to bother with it, it is a big deal,” Scott said. “And when they don’t do their job, I have to hold them accountable.”

The problem, though, is that they were thrown under the bus for something that didn’t even happen in their city.

Following the death of George Floyd during an arrest, departments all over the nation felt the heat. A few, like San Francisco, saw their funding cut by politicians who were essentially blaming them for something that happened in Minneapolis.

As a result, one shouldn’t be surprised when the police are less inclined to engage with someone committing a crime.

After all, any criminal offense can result in someone dying under certain circumstances. Is it any wonder that these guys would opt not to do much?

I’m not excusing it, mind you, just understanding it. They’re paid to do a job and they’re supposed to do it. Failure to do that should result in some degree of punishment. That’s simply not a matter up for debate in my book.

But the leadership in San Francisco needs to accept their own role in this. They need to understand that while the officers on the street need to step up, they’re not doing so as a result of their own actions.

Police officers aren’t mindless myrmidons who simply do as they’re told without thought or feeling. They’re people who are trying to do the best they can in most cases, and they don’t appreciate being vilified by their own leadership.

There already is a proven solution to this. Richmond Virginia tried it out awhile back and it worked very well; Project Exile.
Among those 500 people, I’m betting about half of them have evidence that can lead to more arrests. DC has about 3400 officers, so why can’t they round up about 2000 officers to pick them all up simultaneously?

Study: DC gun crimes involve ‘small number’ of people

A study finds that suspects in violent crime in the District share a lot of characteristics.

The National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform looked at the numbers for homicides and nonfatal shooting in D.C. in 2019 and 2020, and found that “most gun violence is tightly concentrated on a small number of very high-risk young Black male adults that share a common set of risk factors.”

Those factors include involvements in street crews, a previous criminal justice history and connection to a recent shooting. Often, they’ve been the victims of crime themselves. While the motive for the shooting “may not be a traditional gang war,” the report says, “often shootings are precipitated by a petty conflict over a young woman, a simple argument, or the now-ubiquitous social media slight.”

The homicide rate in D.C. rose by 18% in 2020 compared to 2019, the study found, and about 500 identifiable people are behind 70% of the 863 incidents involving gun violence. The studies also showed that about 200 people are driving a majority of these incidents at any one point in time.

More than 90% of victims and suspects in 2019 and 2020 were male and about 96% were Black.

The study also found that another 86% of victims and suspects have been involved with the criminal justice system and the average age of victims is 31, while the average age of suspects is 27 years old.

They found that, in terms of prior arrests, “victims and suspects were remarkably similar.”

NICJR is now recommending a clear, citywide strategic plan and is working with the District and community members to create a path forward, stressing that “a small number of very high-risk individuals are identifiable; their violence is predictable and therefore it is preventable.”

The study says the strategy will require intervention for people at high risk, which “requires frequent and regular assessment of recent shootings and identification of individuals likely to retaliate based on the findings of this report.”

You can read the report online.

If Dems Wants to Do Something About ‘Rise in Anti-Asian Hate Crimes,’ They Can Start By Being Tough on Crime

Saturday marks the 80th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing an executive order that began the removal of 120,000 Japanese-Americans who were imprisoned in internment camps. DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison and DNC AAPI Caucus Chair Bel Leong-Hong issued a joint statement commemorating that day. The joint statement also closed by claiming it’s Democrats who are righting for the safety of Americans, while at the same time calling out anti-Asian hate crimes.

Such a mention may be bold, or even stupid. In many Democratic-run cities, crime has exploded. Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, as Katie reported, has dismissed a “soft on crime policies” approach as an “alternate universe.” Worse, Democratic DA’s are no help.

“Unfortunately, Japanese Americans and the AAPI community continue to face violence and discrimination because of their identities,” the joint statement acknowledged. “The rise in anti-Asian hate crimes must stop, and perpetrators must be prosecuted. Democrats have fought and will continue to fight to secure the rights, safety, and prosperity of all Americans, including those facing injustice and discrimination, in order to ensure a better and brighter future for our nation,” it closed with.

The version of the statement shared on Twitter did not mention such a modern-day application, curiously enough.

If Democrats truly feel that “perpetrators must be prosecuted,” then they can start in their own cities, with their own DAs.

A recent and tragic case in point is with Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, who only just recently has been reversing course on his super soft on crime approach over backlash, as Landon has covered. According to the New York Post, which I’ve mentioned in my own articles, there have been whispers of a recall effort against Bragg, who only just took office at the beginning of this year.

Among many changes, Bragg initially made, as Spencer highlighted, was the lack of prison time except for crimes of homicide and some other of the most violent offenses. Bragg also had the audacity to claim “I don’t understand the pushback” when people expressed concerns.

These changes from Bragg’s office haven’t been enough, though.

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But I heard that “Good Guys with Guns™” don’t exist!

Armed Good Samaritans Provided Cover Fire, Rescue Wounded Deputies

Peaceful Valley, WA – The sheriff released more details about what led up to the shooting of two Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) deputies on Thursday and thanked the armed good Samaritans who came to the wounded heroes’ aid and kept them safe until backup arrived.

The Bellingham Police Department (BPD) said the incident began at about 3 p.m. on Feb. 10 when a homeowner started burning a trash pile outside their home and the smoke bothered a neighbor, 60-year-old Joel B. Young, KGMI reported.

Police said Young became enraged and went outside and yelled at the neighbor burning trash, claiming that smoked had blown through the windows into his home, the Bellingham Herald reported.

The neighbor responded with an expletive, according to police. Young had been drinking and he became enraged, KGMI reported. So he grabbed his shotgun and went outside and fired birdshot into the air near the neighbor who was burning trash, according to police. Then he went back inside his home and had another beer.

A neighbor called 911 and reported that Young was outside firing his 12-guage shotgun into the air, the Bellingham Herald reported. Two Whatcom County sheriff’s deputies responded to the address near Peaceful Valley and State Route 247 in the Maple Falls area, KGMI reported.

Deputies arrived on the scene at about 4:30 p.m. and when Young heard them announce themselves, he went outside yelling and waving a gun, the Bellingham Herald reported. “Sheriff’s Office — drop the gun!” the deputies ordered Young. Young ignored the deputies’ commands and opened fire on them instead, the Bellingham Herald reported.

One deputy was shot in the head and fell to the ground. The second deputy put himself between Young and the wounded deputy and returned fire, the Bellingham Herald reported. Young opened fire on the second deputy and shot him, too. Then he retreated to a position of cover nearby.

Police said that was when good Samaritans armed with their own weapons stepped forward and fired multiple shots in the direction of Young to provide cover for and protect the wounded deputies, the Bellingham Herald reported. The good Samaritans told KING that they were military veterans and they weren’t going to sit still and watch law enforcement officers be murdered so they took their children inside their homes and came back out with their own guns.

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No-knock warrants and the Second Amendment

The police shooting death of 22-year old Amir Locke, a legal gun owner and concealed carry holder killed during the execution of a no-knock warrant in Minneapolis last week, has prompted protests and a renewed debate about the use of no-knock warrants.

One of those critical of the practice; Bryan Strawser, chairman of the MN Gun Owners Caucus, who joins today’s Bearing Arms’ Cam & Co to talk about the Locke case and the dangers presented by no-knock warrants to both legal gun owners and law enforcement.

The 2A group was quick to criticize the incident on social media after the story broke last Friday, and Strawser says he and other members got plenty of flack from folks accusing them of “go[ing] full BLM and Antifa” for the organization’s initial statement, which read as follows:

While many facts remain unknown at this time, information indicates that Amir Locke was a law-abiding citizen who was lawfully in possession of a firearm when he was shot and killed by Minneapolis Police on the morning of February 2nd.

“As seen in the body-worn camera video released by Minneapolis Police, Mr. Locke appears to be sleeping on the couch during the execution of a no-knock warrant, “ stated Bryan Strawser, Chair, Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus.

“He is awoken with a confusing array of commands coming from multiple officers who are pointing lights and firearms at him.”

“Mr. Locke did what many of us might do in the same confusing circumstances, he reached for a legal means of self-defense while he sought to understand what was happening, “ added Rob Doar, Senior VP, Governmental Affairs.

Mr. Locke was not a suspect in the crime for which the warrant was issued and was not named at all in the search warrant.

“The tragic circumstances of Mr. Locke’s death were completely avoidable, “ stated Doar. “It’s yet another example where a no-knock warrant has resulted in the death of an innocent person.

In this case, as in others, the public should expect and receive full transparency and accountability from law enforcement agencies that serve and protect our local communities.”

“Amir Locke, a lawful gun owner, should still be alive, “ added Strawser. “Black men, like all citizens, have a right to keep and bear arms. Black men, like all citizens, have the right to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable search and seizure.”

The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus expects a transparent and independent investigation into the circumstances of this tragic incident.

Interestingly, Strawser says that as far as he can tell, not one of the criticisms or pieces of hate mail that the group’s received since last Friday has come from a current or former member or anyone who’s ever contributed money to the organization’s 2A efforts. That suggests to me that concern over no-knock warrants isn’t limited to “woke” gun owners or those on the left, but is something that many conservative gun owners may be uneasy with as well.

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“Safe streets worker” (replacing police) gunned down in Baltimore.

During the course of the madness that promoted “defunding” or abolishing the police, there was an emphasis placed on replacing police in some circumstances with “community safety” workers who would supposedly act as unarmed “violence interrupters” and reduce the number of lethal use of force incidents by police officers. In Baltimore, Maryland’s violent gang territories, an existing organization known as the “Safe Streets Program” gained a lot of attention and municipal support in this effort. The goal of the program is to deploy former gang members (or “former”) into areas controlled by the gangs to negotiate nonviolent resolutions to conflicts. Unfortunately, as we’ve seen with other proposed “violence interruption” programs in major cities, sending someone with a clipboard out to resolve a beef between gang members isn’t always effective. That was sadly this case this week when one of Baltimore’s Safe Streets workers was shot to death along with several other people on the East side of Charm City. (Baltimore Sun)

A quadruple shooting in East Baltimore on Wednesday night left three people dead, including a Safe Streets worker, and one person injured, police said. Three others were injured in separate shootings in West and South Baltimore.

At about 7:25 p.m., Eastern District patrol officers responded to a ShotSpotter alert in the 2400 block of E. Monument St. Once there, officers located four men suffering from apparent gunshot wounds.

A 28-year-old man was pronounced dead on the scene. Medics transported three other victims to area hospitals, where a 24-year-old man and another man were also pronounced dead.

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It appears that West -By God- Virginia has a Second Amendment Protection Act law not unlike Missouri and a few other states.

AG offers guidance on handling gun law conflicts

CHARLESTON — A state law passed early in 2021 regarding federal gun laws now has related policy guidelines.

House Bill 2694 stipulates that state gun laws will trump federal gun laws and no West Virginia law enforcement agency on any level “shall participate in enforcement efforts focused on federal gun control measures when those laws conflict with state laws regarding firearms.”

“The right to keep and bear arms is enshrined in the Constitution,” Attorney General Morrisey said Thursday when announcing the guidelines. “Yet, there is a deep concern on the part of many Americans that the federal government will try to encroach on our Constitutional rights through presidential executive orders or through acts of Congress. The publication of this guidance will help our state’s law enforcement understand what they can and cannot do in this respect under West Virginia statute.”

Morrisey said enforcement of federal firearms laws is a federal responsibility, not the responsibility of West Virginia law enforcement agencies when federal gun laws are in conflict with state Code.

For example, he said, a West Virginia state or local law enforcement agency, department or officer “may not assist federal authorities in executing an arrest warrant just for violation of federal gun laws when the person to be arrested may lawfully possess such firearms, firearms accessories or ammunition under state law.”

The new law also provides that no member of state or local law enforcement may be required to act in a law enforcement capacity to enforce a federal statute, executive order, agency order, rule or regulation determined by the West Virginia Attorney General to infringe upon citizens’ Second Amendment rights, Morrisey said.

Law enforcement officers are also protected and cannot be terminated or decertified for refusing to enforce a “federal statute, executive order, agency order, rule or regulation determined by the West Virginia Attorney General to infringe upon citizens’ Second Amendment rights.”

“This guidance from the Attorney General on HB 2694 will help protect West Virginia from new federal gun control schemes, and ensure our law enforcement officers are immune from retaliation for defending the Second Amendment rights of all West Virginians,” Kevin Patrick, vice president of the West Virginia Citizens Defense League, said in the announcement.

West Virginia Sheriffs Association Executive Director Rodney Miller said the move is fully supported.

“Law enforcement across West Virginia wholeheartedly supports the Second Amendment and lawful possession of firearms by our citizens and are happy to have joined the Legislature, the Attorney General and concerned gun groups in this effort to ensure that responsible firearm ownership is defended without question,” he said. “We, as citizens of this state, are concerned with overreach that could deny all of us the ability to lawfully possess firearms and utilize them as proud Mountaineers have always done responsibly.”

The policy guidance is posted on the Attorney General’s website (https://bit.ly/3zagUlE) and is being sent to state and local law enforcement agencies.

Washington State ~~Democrats~~ demoncraps! Push Bill Reducing Penalties for Drive-By Shootings

Washington state Reps. Tarra Simmons (D) and David Hackney (D) are pushing legislation to remove drive-by shootings from the list of crimes that elevate first degree to murder to a higher degree of murder carrying a mandatory life sentence.

FOX News reports that “drive-by shootings were added to the list of aggravating factors for murder charges in 1995.” At the time, drive-by shootings were one of a number of crimes that would elevate charges and Simmons and Hackney are now working to remove such shootings from the list.

The 1995 language that Simmons and Hackney want to specifically strike from the aggravating factors list says: “The murder was committed during the course of or as a result of a shooting where the discharge of the firearm… is either from a motor vehicle or from the immediate area of a motor vehicle that was used to transport the shooter or the firearm.”

Simmons says she believes the language surrounding drive-by shootings “was targeted at gangs that were predominantly young and Black.”

She added, “I believe in a society that believes in the power of redemption. Murder is murder no matter where the bullet comes from but locking young people up and throwing away the key is not the answer.”

Simmons points to Kimonti Carter as a example of why she wants to remove drive-by shootings from the aggravating factors list. Carter was convicted in a drive-by shooting that left two people dead in 1997. He received a 777-year sentence and Simmons said, “If he had been standing outside of the vehicle at the time, he would’ve faced 240-320 months in prison. Instead, he was sentenced to life in prison with no opportunity for parole because of this law.”

770 KTTH points out that Simmons and Hackney’s pushed to strike drive-by shootings from the aggravating factors list is posited as a pursuit of “racial equity in the criminal legal system.”

On July 22, 2021, KIRO 7 noted a surge of gun violence in Seattle and quoted Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diazwas saying, “We’ve seen more than a 100% increase in drive-by shootings this year alone.”

As Biden’s Border Crisis Rages, Armed Texans Arrive to Round Up Illegal Aliens

A new Texas law is attracting armed groups with body armor, long guns and high tech drones to the border.

Some local officials are welcoming them, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The new law allows migrants to be arrested for trespassing. The armed groups intend to find the illegals and deliver them to law enforcement officials for arrest.

The Kinney County sheriff has been working with these groups for months. Former Border Patrol Agent Brad Coe has been on the lookout for help in deterring illegal immigration. “The whole premise is if [migrants] know they’ll be arrested, they’ll go somewhere else,” Coe said.

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What you subsidize, you get more of……….
And to paraphrase Mencken, you’re apt to get it good and hard.

Brutal, brazen crimes shake L.A., leaving city at a crossroads.

rews of burglars publicly smashing their way into Los Angeles’ most exclusive stores. Robbers following their victims, including a star of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and a BET host, to their residences. And this week, the fatal shooting of 81-year-old Jacqueline Avant, an admired philanthropist and wife of music legend Clarence Avant, in her Beverly Hills home.

After two years of rising violent crime in Los Angeles, these incidents have sparked a national conversation and led to local concern about both the crimes themselves and where the outrage over the violence will lead.

“The fact that this has happened, her being shot and killed in her own home, after giving, sharing, and caring for 81 years has shaken the laws of the Universe,” declared Oprah Winfrey, expressing her grief over Avant’s killing to her 43 million Twitter followers. “The world is upside down.”

While overall city crime rates remain far below records set during the notorious gang wars of the 1990s, violent crime has jumped sharply in L.A., as it has in other cities. Much of the violence has occurred in poor communities and among vulnerable populations, such as the homeless, and receives little attention.

However, since the start of the pandemic and more rapidly in recent months, crime has crept up in wealthier enclaves and thrust its way to the center of public discourse in L.A. — against a backdrop of COVID-19 angst, evolving political perceptions of what role police and prosecutors should play in society and, now, a holiday season upon which brick-and-mortar retailers are relying to stay afloat.

Some wonder if this could be a turning point for California, which for decades has been at the center of the movement for criminal justice reform, rolling back tough sentencing laws and reducing prison populations.

Polls in 2020 showed that California voters largely support many of these measures, and both San Francisco and Los Angeles have elected district attorneys with strong reform agendas. However, those concerned about crime and those who believe liberal policies have contributed to its rise have grown more vocal.

It is a discourse defined by glaring differences of opinion and, at times, a yawning disconnect between the perception of local crime and the reality on the ground.

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Governor Parson can be as ‘open to adjustments’ as he wants, but that counts for little as the legislature passes changes to laws, not him.

Police Propose Changes To Missouri’s 2A Preservation Act

Even before Missouri’s Second Amendment Preservation Act took effect, there were a lot of grumbles from some law enforcement in the state who felt that the new law was going to set them up to be sued if they cooperated with federal agents in taking down criminal suspects who might be armed with a gun. SAPA, as it’s commonly called, not only prohibits state and local law enforcement from cooperating with the feds in enforcing any unconstitutional gun control laws, but provides an avenue by which officers can be individually sued for doing so.

Since SAPA took effect back in September, a handful of agencies have suspended all cooperation with federal authorities for fear of running afoul of the law. The law was also the subject of litigation by the city of St. Louis and a couple of counties, but a judge rejected a request to block the law from taking force. And while I don’t believe that the law as written should stop police from working with their federal counterparts, and plenty of agencies continue to do so, the Missouri Police Chiefs Association is now officially asking lawmakers to make some changes.

In the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Star, the MPCA proposes specifying that the law would only apply to new federal gun restrictions approved after this past August, and that it doesn’t apply to suspects whom police encounter committing a crime.

It also proposes clarifying which weapons-related federal crimes local police are allowed to help enforce. The current law allows them to help enforce gun restrictions that are similar to those in Missouri law, as long as those charges are “merely ancillary” to another criminal charge — wording that police groups have called vague.

“It is our desire to protect the rights of ALL Missourians while protecting officers from frivolous civil litigation related to the continued joint endeavors with our federal partners,” the association wrote. “We look forward to working with you and your fellow lawmakers to address some clarifications in the law and eliminate those unintended consequences without derailing the intent of SAPA.”

MPCA director Robert Shockey, who is Arnold police chief, declined to be interviewed about the requests.

I haven’t seen a copy of the letter, so I can only base my opinion off of the report by the Kansas City Star, but the first two requests don’t seem to be unreasonable. I do have some concerns about the MPCA wanting to “clarify” which gun-related federal crimes can be enforced by law enforcement, though. First, if SAPA is only going to apply to federal gun laws that were passed after August of 2021, then there’s no need to clarify anything. Beyond that, though, does the phrase “merely ancillary” really need clarification? If an agency is cooperating with, say, a federal drug task force and a gun is discovered in the course of that drug investigation, then the gun charge is an ancillary one. If the feds are going after someone specifically for violating a new federal gun control law or regulation that isn’t mirrored in Missouri state law, local police can’t help. It’s really not that complicated.

Even if some of these complaints by police are overstated, I expect that they’re finding some receptive ears among lawmakers. SAPA original sponsor Rep. Jared Taylor has said he’s not in favor of any changes, but Gov. Mike Parson has indicated that he’s open to “adjustments” if necessary.

I don’t think there’s any chance of the law being repealed outright, but whether or not the changes would make the law better or merely water it down is going to be the topic of much debate in Jefferson City in the months ahead, and I wouldn’t be shocked to see at least some minor revisions agreed to next session.