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The GVP Report - November 27, 2012 |
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► A task force commissioned by Florida Gov. Scott to review the "Shoot First" (aka Stand Your Ground) law held its final meeting and has indicated the law is mostly fine as is. "I really didn't expect anything," said state Sen. Braynon. "It was a Republican-dominated commission and it was full of people who supported Stand Your Ground to begin with."
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► Denver Post, Gun violence can be solved with science, public health expert say. "Guns are where tobacco was in the 1950s," said Garen Wintemute of California at Davis School of Medicine. "There's a little bit of science and a great deal of reluctance to do anything with the results."
► Boulder Daily Camera, No students move following University of Colorado dorm segregation for gun owners. Since establishing a residential area for students with concealed weapons permits not a single student has asked to live there.
► Washington Post, Missouri man accused of plotting 'Twilight' attack bought guns despite being committed 3 years ago. Blaec Lammers is accused of plotting attacks at a movie theater. He was able to legally buy guns despite being committed for stalking a store clerk he said he intended to kill.
► Tell NBC to air important new documentary about gun violence in America. Contact your local NBC affiliate to make sure they air Trigger: The Ripple Effect of Gun Violence. Click here to watch a trailer of the documentary.
► Media Matters, The Hill Echoes False Republican Talking Points on UN Arms Trade Treaty. The article relied on an unverified Republican House Resolution and failed to note that the U.S. has the ability to unilaterally veto any proposed arms embargo.
► Nina E. Gonzalez, After Policeman's Death, Can Obama Finally Answer Gun Law Questions? Office Arthur Lopez, who guarded the president, was shot dead with an illegal gun. While our nations' leaders continue to refuse any meaningful discussion on guns, Americans are paying the ultimate price.
► Daniel W. Webster, Special to CNN, Give Gun Owners What They Want. 80% of gun owners favor requiring background checks in private gun sales. When states require background checks for all handgun sales and have strong regulation of licensed gun dealers, far fewer guns are diverted to criminals.
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► David Hemenway, Harvard Injury Control Research Center, Don't Ignore the Evidence: Stand Your Ground Is Bad for Florida. The best available research evidence indicates that "Shoot First" laws are dangerous, with few redeeming benefits to society.
► Christopher Evans, The Plain Dealer, How To Buy Guns, Cheap, visits an Ohio gun show to look for unlicensed private sellers. They're easy to spot. Shabby, small-time operators who haunt the shadow of the federally licensed dealers.
► Media Matters, NRA Lashes Out at "Dim Journalist" For Shattering Electoral Powerhouse Myth. Despite the fact that less than one percent of the nearly $12 million spent by the NRA on recent elections went to races where NRA-backed candidates won, the group is still claiming victory. ► Gawker.com, Gun Shop Owner Takes Out Full Page Ad in Local Paper Warning Obama Voters to Stay Away from His Store. A gun store in Pinetop, Arizona tells customers "If you voted for Barack Obama your business is not welcome here." ► Guns.com, Nine Things the NRA Wants for Their 141st Birthday. The list includes some form of national concealed-carry, more gun owners and more guns. |
► Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence honored Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and U.S. Rep. Bob Dodd at their 30th Annual Lincoln Awards Luncheon. ► Paul Soglin, mayor of Madison, Wisconsin and member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, op-ed Close loophole that caters to criminals. ► Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence new report Gun Laws Matter 2012: Understanding the Link Between Weak Laws and Gun Violence.
► The 5K Motion, a short film about girls' and women's roles in violent crime held a movie premiere in New Haven, CT. The film was produced by Stop Handgun Violence and others.
63-year-old Salvatore Perrone, of Staten Island, New York was arrested and charged with systematically killing three shopkeepers as they worked alone in their clothing stores in Brooklyn. The first killing took place July 6th. Police found a duffel bag at Perrone's girlfriend's home that contained a Ruger 10-22 carbine sawed-off rifle that ballistic tests have linked to all the homicides. Police have no motive for the shootings. There were similarities in the deaths and the locations of the shops form an equilateral triangle with addresses that contain the number eight. According to the NYPD commissioner, "I think it's reasonable to assume that he was going to continue doing this, and, by arresting him, we saved lives." |
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Florida "Shoot First" Task Force Has Little to Conclude
Florida "Shoot First" Task Force Has Little to Conclude
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
The White Elephant in the Room to Ignore
The White Elephant in the Room to Ignore
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The GVP Report - November 13, 2012 |
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► 43-year-old Raulie Casteel, a stay-at-home dad from Wixom, Michigan has been arrested and charged in 24 shootings along or near I-96. Complete coverage can be found at MLive.
► Tampa Bay Times, Florida Law Inspires Confusion Over Whether 'Straw-Buyer' of Weapon Can Be Charged. Law enforcement want to charge the straw buyer of a gun used in a double murder but are blocked by ambiguity in the state law. . ► A report from the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics reveals that about 1.4 million guns were stolen during household burglaries from 2005 through 2010. Click here for full report.
► KTVU reports on a California Department of Justice effort to crack down on gun owners who are forbidden to own firearms. About 19,374 people in California have lost their rights to own guns but more than 2,700 of these individuals in the Bay Area alone still own guns.
► Reuters, Chicago's Cook County OKs Gun Tax to Defray Costs of Violence. The county approved a $25 tax on each firearm sold to help pay healthcare costs from gun violence. Estimates are that 70 percent of the people who are shot are not insured.
► The Atlantic, The Deer Paradox: It's never been easier to shoot a buck. So why are hunters spending billions on high-tech gear? There are more deer in the U.S. and fewer hunters. Hunters are now using technology that rivals military combat in its sophistication.
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► Media Matters, Media Ignores Call for Gun Violence Prevention at Loughner Sentencing Hearing. ABC. CBS and USA Today all failed to mention Mark Kelly's call for strong gun violence prevention laws at Loughner's hearing.
► Milwaukee, Wisconsin Journal Sentinel editorial It's Time to Close Loophole in Wisconsin's Gun Laws. The paper supports requiring a background check for everyone buying a gun, including through private sales and notes "had such a law been in place, it might have kept a gun out of the hands of Radcliffe Haughton and saved the lives of three women."
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►The Hill, NRA Shoots Blanks This Election, reports that the NRA spent almost $11 million for or against individual candidates in the general elections, but got less than a 1 percent return on its investment. ► Louisiana voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to strength gun rights. As Jarvis DeBerry of the Times-Picayune puts it, Constitutional Amendment No. 2 codifies an unholy worship of guns, making a state where nobody - and he does mean nobody - can be legally stopped from carrying a hidden gun. ► Alabama Republicans in Hoover, Alabama held an election night party at a gun range. The shooting range was available for two hours. There was also a band and an appearance by Miss Alabama. |
► Philadelphia Citypaper, A Long-Shot Win for Gun Policy Activists,details CeasefirePA's successful last minute efforts to pass a bill that increases penalties for straw purchasing.
► The Contra Costa Chapter of the Brady Campaign is seeking to ban home gun sales in Pleasant Hill, CA. The city is holding a workshop to discuss the matter.
► Violence Policy Center released its October update on Concealed Carry Killers, detailing at least 484 people, including 14 police officers, killed in non-self defense incidents by citizens with concealed weapons permits.
► The Commonwealth Club of California hosted The Mind, Madness and Gun Violence. Panelists included Carol Kingsley from the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Click here to listen to the discussion.
42-year-old Lawrence Jones wasn't "quite himself" when he showed up for work at a Fresno, CA chicken packaging plant. About three hours into his shift he pulled out a .357 derringer handgun and started methodically shooting his co-workers. According to police, "He walked around them in order to get very close to the intended targets, place the gun very close and fire a round." Jones killed 2 co-workers, ages 34 and 32, both shot in the head. Two others were injured, one shot in the throat the other in the back. Jones placed the gun to the head of a fifth worker and pulled the trigger but the gun was out of ammunition. Jones then went outside, reloaded the gun, and killed himself. |
