Category: Law & Order

Best Suggestion Yet Of What’s Behind Surge In Violence

The surge in violence that started last summer has kept on and has even grown worse this year. While things were nice and quiet during the lockdown, everything kicked up during the riots, and while that particular brand of violence sort of settled down eventually, the rest didn’t. It just kept on and on, spilling over into 2021.

Now, violent crime is soaring and the usual suspects are screaming about how there’s no alternative to gun control.

Except, there is. There always is.

In fact, even if gun control worked (spoiler: it doesn’t), there would still be alternatives. To find them, you have to identify what the problem actually is, though.

A recent op-ed, however, does a better job of explaining what we’re seeing than most of what I’ve seen.

DURING the fourth weekend of May this year, America experienced a surge of gun violence. CNN reported 12 mass shootings from Friday to Sunday across eight states, from New Jersey to Illinois. In response to these violent events, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said ‘certainly there is a gun problem’ in the country. Psaki’s diagnosis is incorrect; the rise in violence is due to what Heather Mac Donald has called ‘the Ferguson effect’.

A black youth, 18-year-old Michael Brown of Ferguson, Missouri, was  shot dead by a white police officer in 2014. This shooting led to an unsubstantiated charge of racism against the officer by everyone from the press to politicians. The ‘effect’ Mac Donald is referring to is law enforcement pulling back from proactive policing (also known as ‘broken windows policing’) to avoid being labelled racists by the court of public opinion and becoming a news story themselves. Criminals took advantage of this low police presence and have been wreaking havoc all over the country.

The Ferguson effect has also played out in George Floyd’s home city of Minneapolis. Whether or not Floyd’s arresting officer should have been charged with murder or manslaughter is debatable, but accusations of racism on the part of the police at the scene lack evidence. Nonetheless, these charges were slung and broadcast all over the media and, as a result, the Twin City is seeing a homicide rate twice what it was last year.

The author makes a good point.

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The federal goobermint desperately wants some new gun control law passed.  They’re doing everything they can to get something, anything and the only thing that is stopping them – right now – is the Senate filibuster.
However, any new law will only matter if someone enforces it, and for the most part, it’s been local LE doing the lion’s share of it since there really isn’t enough fed LE to do the job. Thusly…………..

Utah sheriff’s department enacts policy defending gun rights

ARMINGTON, Utah (AP) — Davis County sheriff’s deputies and other department employees are prohibited under a new office policy from enforcing certain measures that could infringe on the right to bear arms.

The Standard-Examiner reported Sheriff Kelly Sparks says the policy is meant as a preventive measure and counterweight to any possible governmental action to interfere with gun rights in the county.

The policy took effect Tuesday, the same day county commissioners expressed support for the move.

Sparks says no specific measure or event prompted the change, and that the move is more “actionable” than declaring Second Amendment sanctuary status.

Did they fail to send in social workers?

U.S. cities that defunded their police are continuing to experience historic crime waves.

WHO COULD HAVE SEEN THIS COMING??

Cities That Pushed For Defunding The Police Reckon With Record-High Crime Rates

Liberal cities are facing a dramatic rise in violence which has forced city leaders to reevaluate their stance on defunding the police, a Sunday report says.

Here’s what has happened in a few cities that voted to slash police budgets:

  • Homicide grew by 44% in New York, which had 1,531 shootings and 462 murders in 2020.
  • Homicides also increased 36% in L.A. to 350, leading the police chief to say “a decade of progress” has been erased.
  • Minneapolis, the center of the “Defund the Police” movement, saw a 46% increase in murders.
  • Oakland, California has seen a staggering 314% increase in homicides.
  • Portland, Oregon has seen murders triple.
  • Austin, Texas has had a 26% increase in aggravated assault reports.
  • Chicago saw a 65% increase in homicides from June 2020 to February 2021, despite arrests dropping 53%.
  • Philadelphia hit a 30-year-high with homicides in 2020, with 499 people murdered.
  • Even smaller cities like Louisville, Kentucky had a record high of 173 murders and is on track to surpass that this year.

The New York Times reported that many such cities are now expanding their police budgets to try to deal with these outcomes that absolutely no one could have seen coming.

Great job, America!

This happens in California; which has the laundry list of every kind of gun control law the gun-grabbers in Washingtoon want for the rest of the country. Well, we can easily conclude that the gun control laws they say will decrease whatever, won’t, so, they want gun control for another reason. Of course we know what this is: People Control, because the old line about them wanting to do things that will wind up making it worthwhile to shoot them, just might be true.

8 killed in San Jose shooting, suspect also dead

A shooting at a rail yard in San Jose, California, early Wednesday left eight people dead, not including the suspect, who was also declared deceased after taking his own life, authorities confirmed.

The suspect was identified as Samuel Cassidy, who was an employee at the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), where the incident took place, according to authorities. No motive is known for the shooting at this time.

Santa Clara County Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said several explosive devices were found inside a building at the VTA control center. A bomb squad is at the scene and there is no present danger to the community, he said.

An investigation is also underway of an arson fire at what is believed to be the nearby home of the suspect. FBI agents and the San Jose Fire Department were at the second scene. Authorities say the house caught fire before the shooting at the VTA.

In Washington, D.C., principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House will continue to stay in close contact with local officials in San Jose, before using the shooting as an opportunity to call for Congress to strengthen background checks.

“The White House is monitoring the situation, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families,” Jean-Pierre said. “We still don’t have all the details, but what is clear, as the president has said, is that we are suffering from an epidemic of gun violence in this country, both in mass shootings and in the lives that are being taken in daily gun violence that doesn’t make national headlines.”

Deputies responded to multiple 911 calls around 6:30 a.m. local time about an “an active shooter” situation unfolding at a VTA facility in the area of 100 W. Younger Ave. and San Pedro Street in San Jose. VTA Chair Gel Hendricks confirmed that the shooting took place outside in the yard, not inside the control center. He said service would be suspended after the incident.

“It’s just very difficult for everyone to be able try to wrap their heads around and understand what has happened,” Hendricks said at a news conference………

The VTA provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest in the Bay Area and home to Silicon Valley.

The shooting took place at a light rail facility that is next door to the sheriff’s department headquarters and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control center that stores trains and has a maintenance yard. It’s also located just two blocks from county buildings, the main jail and a courthouse.

Below the Radar: Illegal Alien NICS Alert Act

The National Instant Background Check System (NICS) has always been a flashpoint of contention among Second Amendment supporters. “No compromise” types viewed the push for NICS in 1993 as a sellout, while those who were of the incrementalist school of thought pointed out – justifiably – that NICS prevented a permanent waiting period.

In this light, we come to S 1261, the Illegal Alien NICS Alert Act, introduced by Senator Tom Cotton, a Second Amendment champion. This bill is a narrower version of the NICS Denial Notification Act, since it is strictly aimed at those in the country illegally. This falls under the “enforce existing laws” argument that some Second Amendment supporters have successfully wielded to halt anti-Second Amendment efforts in the past – see Project Exile.

Under 18 USC 922, illegal aliens are prohibited from possessing any type of firearm.

Regardless of your opinion on whether or not illegal immigration is a threat to the Second Amendment, this is a law that should be enforced, if for no other reason than a conviction for a federal felony charge serves as grounds for deportation. But on a more important factor, this legislation could be an opening for Second Amendment supporters in places where MS-13 runs rampant.

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Charges against woman involved in gun-waving incident during George Floyd rally are amended

A special prosecutor said Tuesday he has amended the charges against a St. Louis woman who waved a gun at racial injustice protesters last summer, and he’ll decide soon if he’ll amend charges against her husband.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey were indicted by a grand jury in October on felony charges of unlawful use of a weapon and evidence tampering. Special Prosecutor Richard Callahan said in a statement that he filed a new indictment on Monday that would give jurors the alternative of convicting Patricia McCloskey of misdemeanor harassment instead of the weapons charge. Under that alternative, the evidence tampering count would be dropped.

The move essentially gives a jury the option of convicting Patricia McCloskey of the lesser misdemeanor charge if it sees evidence of a crime that doesn’t reach the level of the felony charges.

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The reason I post this is that I really wonder why it took so long for the prosecutor to take this in front of a Grand Jury, not a question on the particulars of the case, of which I have no more information than what’s in the article.
It seems to me, that if a prosecutor takes this long to do his job, the problem isn’t the investigation of the facts of the case, it’s the prosecutor not liking the fact he had such a weak, or non-existent case that he couldn’t even convince a Grand Jury that there was just enough evidence to show ‘probable cause’. Which is all it takes for a Grand Jury to send a case to court.

Grand jury declines to indict man in Thanksgiving Day shooting death

JACKSON COUNTY, Ky. WTVQ) – A 45-year-old McKee resident has been released from jail after more than five months after a grand jury declined to indict him in connection with a shooting death on Thanksgiving Day 2020.

According to the Jackson County Detention Center and Commonwealth Attorney Gary Gregory’s office, the grand jury returned a ‘no true bill’ against Clint Cox and he was released from jail May 5.

A ‘no true bill’ means the grand jury did not find enough evidence to support a criminal indictment on murder or some related charge.

Gregory was out of his office Thursday but an assistant prosecutor said he didn’t hear the grand jury presentation in the case but usually a ‘no true bill’ in such a case meant some evidence of self defense.

Kentucky State Police Det. Rob Morris could not be reached for comment Thursday about the evidence.

Cox originally was arrested and charged with murder on Nov. 26 after he fatally shot 21-year-old Justin Burkhart during an argument outside a home on Highway 421 in the McKee community. He had been in jail since then until his release earlier this month.

ORIGINAL STORY POSTED NOV. 27, 2020

MCKEE, Ky. (WTVQ) – A Thanksgiving Day argument left one man dead and another in jail in Jackson County, according to Kentucky State Police.

Investigators say 21-year old Justin Burkhart, of McKee, got into an altercation outside a home on US Highway 421 with 45-year old Clint Cox, also of McKee.

KSP says Cox grabbed a gun and shot Burkhart to death. Investigators say it happened just after 2:00 p.m. They did not say what the argument was about.

State Police say Cox was arrested and charged with murder. He was taken to the Jackson County Detention Center.

Burkhart’s body is being taken to the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Louisville for an autopsy, according to KSP.

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by KSP Post 7 Detective Rob Morris. He was assisted at the scene by KSP personnel, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Jackson County Coroner’s Office, Jackson County EMS and the McKee Fire Department.

Stillwater high schoolers stage ‘Back the Blue’ walkout

A group of Stillwater Area High school students walked out of class Thursday morning to show support for police officers.

Students were encouraged to wear blue and bring thin blue line flags. A group of counter-protesters also showed up.

The “Back the Blue” rally lasted about 20 minutes before everyone went back to class.

‘Police’ were often termed ‘Peace Officers‘. It indicated they would keep the peace (stop blood feuds and riots) by presenting complainants and offenders before a  ‘Justice of the Peace‘ where, as far as possible, impartial, fair handed justice would be dealt out.
Police aren’t really there to protect the people, but to protect criminals from vigilante justice dealt out on the street.

Go ahead and defund the police, but get ready for vigilante justice
Those who are calling to end or radically alter the way this country is policed don’t have a good grasp of American history.

There was a time when vast swaths of this country were not policed, or were extremely under-policed.

In the late 19th Century, just three Deputy U.S. Marshals — Bill Tilghman, Chris Madsen, and Heck Thomas — were responsible for patrolling what would later become the State of Oklahoma. Their exploits are legendary.

For most Americans living outside of the large eastern metropolitan areas at that time, justice simply didn’t exist unless they meted it out themselves.

The first American police department wasn’t established until 1844 in New York City.

Boston and Philadelphia didn’t follow suit until a decade later.

These early departments were modeled upon the British police — the forerunner of the London Metropolitan Police was formed in 1789 — but they did not have detectives and were more concerned with preventing civil disorder and deterring thievery through visible patrol than investigating and solving crime.

In the West things were different.

Law and order were late in coming.

As a result, groups of citizens would band together to combat a specific threat — usually cattle rustling, horse thievery or a murder spree.

These extrajudicial citizen groups were called regulators, although today they would certainly be called vigilantes.

In Western towns without a police force, businesses would fund some of these vigilance groups to protect their property at night when the shop owners slept.

Nationally at this time, state governments granted authority to local businesses to create their own police forces — such as the Coal and Iron Police of Pennsylvania — which were accountable solely to the local CEO.

These “police departments,” which were routinely used as strike-breakers, further eroded public confidence in law and order, and were little more than vigilantes themselves.

Then, as now, when civil society broke down, Americans chose to arm themselves.

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Ducey signs ‘Second Amendment sanctuary’ bill

Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill Tuesday evening that makes Arizona a “Second Amendment sanctuary” and bars law enforcement agencies in the Grand Canyon State from enforcing federal gun control measures, ignoring a last-minute plea from gun control groups urging him to veto it. 

“We want him to know that his constituents don’t agree with this,” Sophia Carrillo, a volunteer with gun safety group Moms Demand Action said to Arizona Mirror Tuesday morning after the group delivered nearly 2,500 signatures urging him to veto the bill. 

Moms Demand Action collected 2,485 signatures which they delivered to Ducey’s office Tuesdaymorning in the hopes that it will persuade the governor to veto House Bill 2111. 

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Leo Biasiucci, R-Lake Havasu, makes it illegal for local governments, the state and employees to enforce or cooperate with any federal law, act, treaty, rule or regulation that is “inconsistent with any law of this state regarding the regulation of firearms.” 

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Mea Culpa: Oregon’s Largest Newspaper Admits Defunding Police Was A Terrible Idea As Homicides Skyrocket

Oregon’s largest newspaper, The Oregonian, has published a mea culpa over their previous endorsement of defunding the police, after 266 shootings and 25 homicides in the first quarter of 2021. In fact, in a Monday article from the paper’s editorial board, they heaped praise on the city’s gun violence reduction team and defended the mayor’s recent proposal to restart the ‘canceled’ unit after a spate of violence ensued.

“While we supported the move at the time, we – and all Portlanders ­– should recognize what has also been lost. The gun violence reduction team responded to every shooting, identifying incidents that were connected and helping disrupt potential retaliatory action. Officers had established relationships with many of those considered high-risk for being involved in gun-violence, connecting people with resources in the community as well as communicating with them about ongoing disputes to keep violence down. And as part of their work, they took dozens of guns off the street.”

The paper then slams the city council for ignoring the “reality of the threat” that removing cops from enforcement jobs has had on the city, saying that a proposal by commissioners to hand $3.5 million to unspecified community groups reflects a “startling lack of seriousness, if not outright naivete,” which “fails to show the urgency or understanding of the scope of this crisis.”

“The council’s three newest commissioners told Mayor Ted Wheeler that they oppose the $2 million proposal to revive the gun-violence unit that he developed with members of the Interfaith Peace & Action Collaborative…”

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The True Story Behind Tom Threepersons and His Holster

While little is known about Tom Threepersons, the larger-than-life exploits of the Native American lawman reveal him to have been a jack-of-all trades, but master of armed conflict.

It isn’t big enough to deserve the title of “library” so I can’t logically call it one, but there are sure a lot of books in that back room. Ever since I settled in one place, I have given free rein to my quiet thirst for all kinds of books about guns, gun equipment and gun people. A purge is inevitable, but it pains me to think of such a thing. I need them all. There’s always another pressing research project (with another pressing deadline) just over the horizon.

For the matter at hand, after a detailed search of my accumulation of material, as well as that of the local library and the encyclopedic internet—I’m stumped. I am unable to find anything meaty, solid, substantial or documented about a particular Western personality. I don’t doubt his existence—I just want the whole story. If a couple of tales are true, this frontier character had exploits that could have kept a phalanx of lurid, dime-store novelists hard at work for many suns.

His name was Tom Threepersons. Right out front, you have to understand that there were two of them and both were of Native American heritage and both were avid rodeo competitors. The one who was also known for gun work spelled his surname Threepersons, while the rodeo star made it Three Persons. A Native American of Cherokee descent, our Tom was born in 1889 in the Indian Territories and grew up there and on Montana’s border with Canada.

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Yeah, that Background Check System didn’t stop these people from purchasing handguns for a felon

Feds say ‘straw buyer’ purchased 39 handguns for a felon since July, paid more than $25,000 cash to firearms dealers

Law enforcement agents call people who buy guns for those who aren’t legally able to do so — like minors or felons — straw buyers.

A new federal indictment suggests a Milwaukee man might qualify as a super straw buyer.

Court records indicate that over about three months last fall, Keenan D. Hughes, 33, purchased 39 handguns from 15 Wisconsin stores, paying more than $25,000 cash, on behalf of Marvin Powell, 41, of Milwaukee, a repeat felon who can’t legally possess, much less purchase, firearms.

According to the charges, Hughes lied on federal forms he filled out at various Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) stores, saying he intended the weapons for himself. He would buy one, two or three guns at a time at stores big and small from Brookfield to Janesville, Germantown to Waupun.

Using the filled-out form, FFLs are required to do background checks on the buyer. Because Hughes has no felony convictions or other prohibition on gun ownership, he was cleared each time.

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I say again: I am not ‘anti-cop’. I am, however, anti-stoopid cop.

UPDATE: Illicit Deadly No-Knock Houston Raid of Innocent Couple ~ VIDEO

U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg held a press conference on the 25th of January, 2021, to release details about new indictments from a grand jury in the ongoing investigation of the illicit no-knock raid which occurred on the 28th of January, 2019, in Houston, Texas, on Harding Street. A gunfight occurred when the plainclothes officers burst in and shot the couple’s dog.

See video below of press conference by Harris County DA Kim Ogg, 25 January 2021.

Dennis Tuttle and his wife, Rhogena Nicholas were killed in the raid.

The coverup of what happened to lead to the raid, and what happened in the raid fell apart partly because the lead instigator of the raid, officer Gerald Goines, was wounded in the neck and unable to talk.

The presentation by DA Ogg starts at about 05:09 into the video. Questions asked of DA Ogg are difficult to hear in the video.

The grand jury, on 25 January, indicted a 2nd officer for murder, and five more officers for organized criminal activity.

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Pro-gun sheriff refuses to meet with anti-gun group

Hoffman recently sent a letter to Sarasota’s Brady Bunch chapter refusing their request for a meeting — and then he told them why.

Enjoy!

Dear Mr. McLain and Ms. Rescigno,

Thank you for your recent request to meet. I am very familiar with the bradyunited.org 12- point platform and I have fundamental differences regarding nearly every objective of Brady.  I am a member of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, the 2nd Amendment Foundation, in addition to being a Life Member of the NRA.  I have been a law enforcement officer in this state for over 32 years, eight years of which were as an Assistant State Attorney, and I am satisfied that the laws on the books in Florida sufficiently protect this community from gun violence.

In Sarasota County we have worked diligently over the past decade prosecuting part one crimes, including gun crimes.  We have reduced part 1 crimes by 52% since 2009.  This reduction represents the largest part 1 crime reduction in the state of Florida for law enforcement agencies serving populations of 100,000 or more.

We made these strides without infringing on our citizen’s constitutional right to keep and bear arms, more succinctly stated, we went after criminals, not lawful gun owners.  “Gun safety” is often cloaked in language that essentially bans certain guns, ammunition or magazine capacities while criticizing award winning programs like Eddie Eagle.  Calling certain firearms “weapons of war” and “assault weapons” while limiting how many rounds a citizen can carry for self-protection or creating gun registries is a non-starter for me.

I represent many citizens in this county who have businesses related to the firearms industry and who protect their family and property with firearms your organization seeks to ban. I cannot support that.

Thank you for reaching out but I will respectfully decline your offer.

Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman

Kurt A. Hoffman
Sheriff
FBI National Academy Graduate 2014
6010 Cattleridge Blvd. Sarasota, Florida 34232

U.S. Citizenship Act Next On Biden Agenda

[Thursday], Joe Biden signed into law the 1.9 trillion dollar slush fund being billed as a Covid relief package. Next on his agenda is the U.S. Citizenship Act. Biden broke the border. His next legislation isn’t going to do anything to fix it.

During the 2020 Presidential Campaign, Biden promised to reverse the cruel Trump Administration program of “ripping children from their parents’ arms” and putting them “in cages”. On December 16, the New York Post reported:

Well, that didn’t take long. A border crisis is brewing before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.

Migrant caravans are forming in Honduras, where residents were hit with a pair of devastating hurricanes last month, adding to the economic hardship caused by COVID-19. Faced with ruin, many Hondurans have ­decided to defy local travel bans and head north.

On his first full day in office, Biden ended Trump’s stay in Mexico policy. Three months later, there is a crisis at the border. Thank you very much, Mr. Biden. The Border Patrol personnel is overwhelmed:

The Department of Homeland Security documents show that more than 3,400 children were in custody as of earlier this week and that the number of children being referred to Health and Human Services is growing almost three times faster than social workers are able to find appropriate homes for the children.

Many children can’t even get transferred to more hospitable shelters that can have bunk beds, video games, classrooms, medical facilities and ball fields because those are already at 94% capacity. That backlog explains why kids are staying on average 107 hours in the sprawling and sometimes jail-like Border Patrol facilities — longer than the 72 hours allowed by law.

And, that doesn’t even speak of the drug smuggling:

Mexican President Lopez-Obrador is not well-pleased with Biden:

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Texas Gov. Announces “Operation Lone Star” to Secure Border Against Human and Drug Smuggling in Response to Biden’s Open Border Policies

Governor Greg Abbott (R) on Saturday announced Texas launched “Operation Lone Star” to respond to the Biden Administration’s failure to secure the border.

Joe Biden’s open border policies have created a migrant crisis at the US-Mexico border.

Need for national concealed carry reciprocity at all-time high

Across the nation, local gun stores are continuing to feel the effects of skyrocketing demand and limited supplies for firearms. One store in Columbus, Ohio, says their stock could be wiped out in the next few weeks. And if people are lucky enough to purchase a firearm right off the shelf, reports of ammunition shortages will be everyone’s next hurdle. Across Texas, gun store owners are seeing how the surge in firearm sales throughout 2020 has affected the availability of both firearms and ammunition.

Last year’s drastic increase in gun sales and background checks may have been linked in part to Americans’ fears surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and growing unrest across the nation, but it’s also clear there has been a growing national awakening among Americans who want to defend themselves and their families. Along with growing gun sales and more people exercising the right to self-defense, there has been increased demand for firearm safety and training courses. The U.S. Concealed Carry Association (USCCA) has experienced exponential growth in education and training over the last year. In 2020 over 2,000 new instructors joined our ranks of 7,000 instructors across the country. It’s clear that as Americans’ interest in owning a firearm grows, so does their understanding that training and education is a necessary part of being a responsible gun owner.

Today, with the pandemic still on our front doorstep and a new administration underway that many fear will impose more strict gun laws, people are finding it increasingly necessary to responsibly protect themselves. In fact, January marked the highest overall number of firearm-related background checks ever recorded in our nation’s history.

With millions of new gun owners in the U.S. and 21 million gun sales last year alone – including a higher rate of women and minorities – it’s more important than ever that these responsibly-armed Americans are supported rather than criminalized. That is why our elected officials today need to work together to solidify national reciprocity for concealed carry permits to finally relieve law-abiding gun owners from the burdensome patchwork of state laws governing concealed carry.

Take, for example, a family from Indiana who’s traveling to visit relatives in Missouri, carrying with them a concealed firearm for safety. If this family travels the most direct and common-sense route – through Illinois – they are suddenly breaking the law and potentially facing criminal charges if stopped. Unless this family detours hours down through Kentucky to avoid crossing through Illinois – which doesn’t have reciprocity with any of its surrounding states – they’re breaking the law. Scenarios like this, coupled with antiquated concealed carry laws, force people to choose between traveling much longer distances to reach their destination or leaving themselves unprotected… ultimately, forfeiting their natural born right to self-defense.

Americans shouldn’t have to risk becoming criminals simply for crossing states lines while carrying their lawfully-owned firearm. That’s why it’s crucial that Rep. Richard Hudson’s (R-N.C.) recently introduced Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2021 (H.R. 38) becomes law – so that responsible citizens can exercise their right to self-defense while they are traveling or temporarily living away from home. This is especially important at a time when more Americans are opting out of air travel and choosing to drive long distances, often across multiple states, with their children and other loved ones.

It is clear that today, Americans greatly value their natural-born right to self-defense and their ability to carry a firearm. We’ve seen this ourselves at the USCCA with skyrocketing demand in firearms-related training and education. Now, Congress must act by making it possible for any law-abiding gun owner – anytime, anywhere – to travel freely with their firearm without the risk of breaking the law when traveling. Millions of responsible, law-abiding Americans are counting on the National Concealed Reciprocity Act, and it’s time to move it forward.

New Prosecutor In McCloskey Gun Case Says He’ll Start With “Blank Slate”

Even though St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner was ousted as the prosecutor overseeing the case against Mark and Patricia McCloskey last year, the couple still faces charges of unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with evidence. Now, a former U.S. Attorney has been appointed as a special prosecutor to oversee the case, and he’s promising to take a new look at all of the evidence in question.

[Richard] Callahan said Wednesday from his Jefferson City home that he’s no stranger to prosecuting politically charged cases and will approach this one no differently. He said he stepped down last week from his post as a senior judge in Cole County to accept the special appointment.

“I am going to approach it the same way I’ve done anything in the last 49 years — start with a blank slate, follow the evidence and see where it takes me,” said Callahan, who is 73.

It’s good that Callahan says he’ll approach the case with an open mind, because there’s been a great deal of criticism leveled against Gardner for her decision to prosecute the couple to begin with. The McCloskeys were on their own property when hundreds of protesters entered their private community and marched towards the home of St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson last June.

Nine individuals were initially charged with misdemeanor trespassing violations , but attorneys for the city dropped the cases last fall after trustees for the private Portland Place neighborhood said they didn’t want to pursue prosecution. Joel Schwartz, the McCloskeys’ attorney, said at the time that the city’s decision wouldn’t impact his clients’ defense, which is centered around the state’s Castle Doctrine.

Missouri’s Castle Doctrine law allows people to use deadly force to defend their property, and that’s what the McCloskeys were doing, he said.

“It’s is abundantly clear the crime of trespassing was committed in this case, making the McCloskeys actions perfectly legal,” he said. “Just because the city counselor decided not to charge them changes nothing.”

I’m curious to see if Callahan proceeds with the case after reviewing all of the evidence, or if he drops all of the charges against the McCloskeys. I’m also really looking forward to hopefully learning more about the evidence tampering charge that Patricia McCloskey faces, given that it was Kim Gardner’s own office that fiddled with the firearm and restored it to working condition. The McCloskeys maintain that the gun had been disabled before it was used as a piece of evidence in a trial that they were involved in, and that they never fixed the gun so it could fire again.

I’ve thought the case against the McCloskeys was a weak one from the start, but we’ll have to wait to see what the special prosecutor concludes. Given the fact that Gov. Mike Parson has already said that he’ll pardon the couple if they are convicted, Callahan could save tax payers a lot money and the McCloskeys a lot of grief if he were to conclude that the original charges filed by Kim Gardner weren’t justified.

Of course in doing so Callahan would kick off a whole new controversy, and Gardner would almost certainly complain that, while she was kicked off the case because she used the McCloskeys’ arrest as a fundraising tool, any decision to drop the charges against the pair would be just as political in nature. Of course, she’ll be able to do that anyway if the couple were convicted and Parson does end up issuing a pardon.

The Left will complain about the McCloskeys no matter how this case ends up, because there’s zero chance that they’ll actually do any time or end up with a criminal record. Callahan could drop the charges, the McCloskeys could win their case at trial, or they could get a gubernatorial pardon. Given the fact that none of the trespassers are facing any charges either, the quickest route to justice, in my opinion, would be for the new special prosecutor to conclude that the McCloskeys shouldn’t be prosecuted at all.