“blast radius”

D.C. Claims Chaos Will Ensue if Magazine Ban Disappears

Last week a three-judge panel on the D.C. Court of Appeals (which is the highest local court in the District) ruled the District of Columbia’s ban on ammunition magazines that can hold more than ten rounds violates the Second Amendment. These magazines are “arms”, the court concluded, and they are unquestionably in common use for lawful purposes, which means that they’re protected by the U.S. Constitution.

Now the District of Columbia is hoping to reverse that decision through an en banc review, and is asking the Court of Appeals to keep the ruling from taking affect while it appeals.

In its request, the District claims that the panel’s decision “has created uncertainty and chaos” and that the “blast radius of the decision is potentially massive”, arguing that the opinion also impacts “exceedingly common charges governing unlicensed and unregistered firearms.”

I think D.C.’s licensing and registration requirements are equally unsound from a constitutional perspective, but there’s nothing in the panel’s decision that impacts those statutes. The opinion released by the court deals exclusively with the District’s prohibition on commonly owned magazines, and the only uncertainty resulting from the decision is whether or not the ban is still actively being enforced.

The U.S. Attorney’s office has already declined to pursue charges against any legal gun owner caught with a “large capacity” magazine, though the D.C. Attorney General’s office has continued prosecuting possession cases.

The D.C. Court of Appeals hasn’t granted the District’s request, but the opinion will likely remain on hold while the en banc review is being considered. The court has set an expedited briefing schedule that will conclude next Wednesday, and a decision on granting or denying the en banc request could come by the end of next week.

There’s an easy way to ensure there’s no confusion over the panel’s decision: let it stand and take effect.

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CCL holder shoots intruder in South Side break-in, Chicago police say

CHICAGO (WLS) — A CCL holder shot a man who was breaking into his home on Saturday, Chicago police said. It happened at about 2:39 a.m. in the 5100-block of S. Loomis Boulevard, police said.

A 59-year-old man was breaking into a garage and was confronted by the homeowner. CPD said the homeowner, a valid CCL holder, pulled out a gun and shot at the alleged intruder.

The suspect was shot in the right calf and was taken to the University of Chicago Hospital. He is expected to be OK. Chicago police said charges are pending.

CPD Area One Detectives are leading the investigation.

Boy, 11, shoots, kills mom’s boyfriend who attacked her inside home, police say

An 11-year-old boy shot and killed his mother’s boyfriend after the man attacked her inside a Philadelphia home late Thursday night, police said.

The shooting occurred around 11:30 p.m. inside a home along the 1100 block of South Peach Street. Police said a 30-year-old man, identified as Jaimeer Jones-Walker of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, was arguing with his girlfriend inside the bedroom of her home.

Police said Jones-Walker didn’t live at the home and he double parked on the street before entering his girlfriend’s house. The woman told police that Jones-Walker attacked her during their argument.

“It was verbal and possibly turned into a physical altercation,” Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.

The woman’s 11-year-old son then grabbed a handgun and fired one shot, shooting Jones-Walker in the face, according to investigators.

Police and medics were called to the scene and found Jones-Walker unresponsive inside the second-floor bedroom. He was pronounced dead by medics at 11:59 p.m.

Both the woman and her son remained at the scene and are cooperating with the investigation, police said. Officials said the gun that was fired is legally registered to the woman.

Shyreea Blocker, a resident in the neighborhood, told NBC10 she heard the commotion that led to the shooting. She also said she would often hear the couple fighting.

“Like arguing and fighting but that’s nothing new with them,” Blocker said. “It’s a shame. It shouldn’t be like that.”

Another resident, Gilbert Blocker, told NBC10 he was concerned about the impact the shooting will have on the boy.

“The things he’s going to suffer in his heart if he has any feelings, is going to last him not just now but for the rest of his life,” he said.

Sources told NBC10 the boy is currently staying with another family member.

Expert weighs in after child accused of killing mom’s boyfriend

A Philadelphia mother says that her 11-year-old son pulled out a gun to protect her. NBC10’s Siobhan McGirl spoke with an expert about how domestic violence affects children and what resources are available.

“It’s disturbing and sad. And I feel apprehension about what is going to happen with this child, what is going to happen with his mother,” Director of Philadelphia’s Office of Domestic Violence Strategies Azucena Ugarte told NBC10. “Experiencing violence in the home has long term effects, but we know that children are resilient.”

No arrests have been made in the shooting and no charges have been filed. Police continue to investigate.

Women in South Africa take up guns and martial arts for protection against gender violence

BRONKHORSTSPRUIT, South Africa (AP) — At the command of a female instructor, a line of girls and women, some wearing pink ear protectors, shoot five rounds at a target with 9 mm pistols as they undergo firearm training at a range in the agricultural town of Bronkhorstspruit just outside South Africa’s capital, Pretoria.

The group, some as young as 13 and others up to 65, are looking for ways to protect themselves in a country where gender-based violence is such a critical problem that it was declared a national disaster by the government in November.

“Check your grip, check your line of sight,” shouts Claire van der Westhuizen, the lead female instructor at Lone Operator shooting range, as women with well-manicured nails reload for another round.

The training course is specifically designed for women and offers practice in real-world scenarios like self-defense firing while lying on their stomachs and backs.

Femicide rates in South Africa are among the highest in the world, according to U.N. Women, the United Nations agency for gender equality. A South African study in 2022 found more than 35% of South African women aged 18 and older had experienced physical or sexual violence at some point. In most cases, the perpetrator was an intimate partner.

Joining ‘a family of support’

Sunette du Toit, a working 51-year-old grandmother, was pushed to take up firearm training after surviving a home invasion by five men who tied her up and ransacked her house, she told The Associated Press.

“I was not in a position to defend myself at that point,” du Toit said. “I had to do this (firearm training) for myself to gain my confidence back to be able to move in public, and even in my own house, without feeling vulnerable.”

She called the women’s firearm training group “a family of support.”

Firearms in South Africa are heavily regulated. Anyone who wants to own a gun for self-defense must be over 21 and pass proficiency tests and background checks.

Various self-defense trainings for women are popping up throughout the country.

Trump Says He Won’t Sign Any New Legislation Until the SAVE Act Is Passed

President Donald Trump has signaled that the SAVE America Act is now the single greatest legislative priority ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. He announced Sunday morning on Truth Social that he would not be signing any other bills until the Senate forces the election integrity bill through the gridlock of the silent filibuster.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has said that he is completely fine with shutting the Senate down, and that Democrats pass the bill to secure American elections under end circumstances. Polling numbers have shown that Democrats are wildly opposed to the will of even their own voters, as a new poll has shown that half of Democrat voters support voter ID measures. The poll showed that nearly 70 percent of independents want these common sense measures as well.

The bill is such a high priority for Republicans that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton indicated that he would be willing to suspend his campaign against Sen. John Cornyn if GOP leadership would end the silent filibuster to pass the SAVE Act.

Wyoming’s Second Amendment Preservation Act Passes Despite Law Enforcement Opposition

While the current threat to our gun rights from the federal government is minimal, it was just a couple of years ago when we had to worry about all sorts of things. President Autopen was a big fan of gun control, and if he’d gotten his way, we’d just be left with nothing but double-barreled shotguns to shoot at bad guys through the door.

As a result, some pro-gun states started looking at ways to protect the gun rights of the people who live there. Missouri led the charge, and while that law ran into some judicial issues, the sentiment remains.

Wyoming, however, just passed a law that is essentially the same thing, but with a couple of tweaks, and law enforcement isn’t thrilled with this.

After a lively debate on the Wyoming House floor Thursday, a bill aimed at keeping federal agents from seizing Wyoming residents’ guns passed its final vote.

Having previously passed the Senate, Senate File 101, the Second Amendment Protection Act (SAPA), passed the House on third reading by a vote 40 to 21.

It must pass concurrence with both chambers before heading to Gov. Mark Gordon’s desk. Gordon vetoed a similar bill during the 2025 legislative session.

If it becomes law, SAPA will forbid Wyoming law enforcement officers from assisting federal agents in seizing residents’ firearms, ammunition or firearms accessories.

It would also allow residents whose guns have been unjustly seized to seek civil damages.

‘Sword Of Damocles’

Law enforcement officials say SAPA would undermine their joint operations with federal agents on drug busts, tracking illegal immigrants and similar cases.

During debate leading up to the vote on Thursday, dissenting lawmakers reiterated law enforcement’s concerns.

Rep. Art Washut, R-Casper, a retired peace officer, said the bill rests on a false premise.

“A false premise that the only way we can keep our Wyoming peace officers from violating your constitutional rights and your next-door neighbor’s constitutional rights is to hang the sword of Damocles over their heads with a $50,000 civil judgment on it,” he said.

Now, I get some of why law enforcement organizations dislike this bill. One argument against it is that an officer could well be sued for an action that was, at the time he carried it out, presumed to be constitutional, only for it to be ruled later as unconstitutional. That’s a fair concern, in my book, though I also think that maybe people need to understand that any gun control law should be presumed as unconstitutional until proven otherwise, but that’s just me.

However, Rep. Washut has a lot more faith in some of his former colleagues than I do.

I’m not anti-cop. I was raised by a police officer and around police officers. I know that most are good people who are trying to do a difficult job in a very difficult time.

But I also know that a lot of them are also likely to just keep their heads down and do what they’re told in way too many instances. That’s just human nature, and to think that every police officer in the state will do otherwise is naive, at best.

Others argued that this is a bill trying to solve an issue that simply doesn’t exist.

My response is that it may not exist at the moment, but it will exist sooner or later unless we’re very careful.

Of course, those who say this isn’t solving a real issue are the very same people who support making this a very real issue, so take that as you will.

The 2nd Amendment is uniquely American. It was the work of the Founding Fathers – men who had to fight for their freedom from tyranny, and who intended for the means of that fight to never be taken away from American citizens.–Brian Miller

Senate President Responds To Criticism Of Bill Killed ‘In The Dark’

Senate President Randy Smith, R-Preston, responded Friday to criticism from the chamber floor about the lack of action on legislation loosely referred to as “the machine gun bill.”

Senate Bill 1071 would have created the state’s Office of Public Defense, to require the West Virginia State Police to sell machine guns to qualified citizens of the state. There was no fiscal note attached to the bill and it stipulated that the state police would have to take on this responsibility with no additional staff. The bill was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, but never made it to the chamber floor.

Sen. Laura Chapman, R-Ohio, was openly angered.

“It was killed without transparency and without consensus,” Chapman said Tuesday on the Senate floor. “The decision was made in the dark, despite the fact that this bill had overwhelming support by this body. This is exactly why the public doesn’t trust politicians.” 

Smith said in a statement Friday that he alone decided not to take the bill up and said he did so without reservation. He called it a “poorly drafted piece of legislation” that was unlikely to pass the House of Delegates and would face numerous legal challenges if it did.

“With an issue as critical as the protection of our Second Amendment rights, we must ensure the legislation we pass will survive legal challenge. This would not have,” Smith said.

“My record with the NRA (National Rifle Association) and WVCDL (West Virginia Citizens Defense League) is unquestioned, and West Virginians unquestionably trust the judgment of these groups on Second Amendment issues. And, further, I trust them,” he added.

He said the behavior of an out-of-state group behind the bill had been disappointing but welcomed the Gun Owners of America to consider legislation next year – preferably earlier in the session.