United States
Will US Supreme Court Accept or Overturn the DC Gun Ban? - BBC Q&A
BBC News
18 Mar 2008
The US Supreme Court is grasping the thorny issue of Americans' right to bear arms for the first time in almost 70 years. At issue is a challenge to one of the nation's toughest gun laws -- but the justices' ruling could have far wider ramifications. What is the case before the Supreme Court? The nine justices are to hear a challenge to one of the toughest gun laws in the nation - a virtual ban on private handgun ownership in the city of Washington DC, passed in 1976. The case is being brought in the name of security guard Dick Heller, a District of Columbia resident who carries a gun at work and wants to be able to keep it at home for self-defence.... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington Ponders 'Plan B' if Supreme Court Justices Void City's Gun Ban
Washington Times
18 Mar 2008
D.C. officials said yesterday a decision by the Supreme Court to strike down the District's 32-year-old ban on handguns would force them to revamp the city's stringent gun-control statutes. "There's just this really anxiety-producing proposition on what would we have if we relaxed these laws," said D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, a Democrat. "We'd have to evaluate the court's decision, then look at what revisions in our own statutes would allow us to have the maximum restrictions on guns in the District." The nine Supreme Court justices will hear oral arguments today on whether parts of the gun laws -- including those preventing most residents... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Veteran Supreme Court Advocate Dellinger Gears Up to Defend DC Gun Ban
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
Here's how veteran Supreme Court advocate Walter E. Dellinger gets ready for a big case: Three dozen lawyers are waiting for him in a conference room, but Dellinger isn't in a hurry. In his 11th-floor office at O'Melveny & Myers, he meticulously cuts up his notes and tapes key sections into a manila folder. As he works, he grabs a black iPod, punches up "Ophelia," a 1970s rock song by the Band, and sings along: "Mama, you know we broke the rules!" "How could this not put you in a good mood?" Dellinger, 66, exclaims, then dons a patterned tie with his navy suit and troops down the hall to meet his colleagues. Taking his position at a lectern, he's ready... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Weighs Individual Gun Rights Against Community's Right to Public Safety
Agence France Presse
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The US Supreme Court will Tuesday begin weighing an individual's right to bear arms against a community's right to restrict gun ownership for public safety, an emotional issue that has long divided Americans. The conservative-leaning court's first decision on gun ownership in almost 70 years is expected to have a far reaching impact on US gun control laws, experts say. Since 1939, the high court has not ruled on the interpretation of the second amendment of the US constitution, which states: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supremes, 'Reluctant Inhabitants of Modern World,' Regress 300 Years
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
The Supreme Court justices -- presiding over a chamber without television, cameras or PDAs -- have long been reluctant inhabitants of the modern world. Yesterday, the nine robed ones traveled all the way back to 17th-century England. "You think Madison was guided by the experience and the expressions of the right in English law, including the Bill of Rights of 1689?" Justice Anthony Kennedy inquired as the high court considered a gun rights case. Verily, Your Honor. "Wasn't it the case that the banning of arms on the part of the Scottish Highlanders and of Catholics in England used the term ... 'bear arms'?" asked Justice Antonin Scalia. ... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supremes Lean to Individual Gun Rights, No Consensus on 'Reasonable'
SCOTUSBlog (Washington DC), Blog
18 Mar 2008
The Supreme Court's historic argument Tuesday on the meaning of the Constitution's Second Amendment sent out one quite clear signal: individuals may well wind up with a genuine right to have a gun for self-defense in their home. But what was not similarly clear in the hearing on District of Columbia v. Heller (07-290) was what kind of gun that would entail, and thus what kind of limitations government could put on access or use of a weapon. In an argument that ran 23 minutes beyond the allotted time, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy emerged as a fervent defender of the right of domestic self-defense. At one key point, he suggested that the one Supreme Court precedent... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Signals Conservative Voice in Historic Gun Rights Case
Agence France Presse
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The right of Americans to keep and use guns, an issue that has divided the political landscape for centuries, was taken up by the Supreme Court Tuesday for the first time in nearly 70 years. Experts say the conservative-leaning court's decision, which is not anticipated until June, could have a far reaching impact on the United States' laws on the use and control of guns. Lawyers challenged the US capital's restrictions on gun ownership, which aim to clamp down on murders and street violence, saying those laws infringed on the right of citizens to use weapons at home for self-defense. The nine Supreme Court justices argued during... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Ruling 'Could Set Back Gun Control Efforts Decades'
Philadelphia Inquirer (Pennsylvania), Editorial
18 Mar 2008
The 10 busloads of Philadelphians who rode to Harrisburg yesterday to prod the Pennsylvania House into voting on a modest gun-control measure could have kept their road trip going for one more day -- by heading to Washington. That's where the real action takes place this week in the fight to stem gun violence. At center stage today is the U.S. Supreme Court, which is scheduled to hear its first Second Amendment case in decades. In taking up a challenge to the nation's strictest gun-control statute -- the District of Columbia's 1976 handgun ban -- the court will be engaging in the legal equivalent of twirling a loaded gun. The key question for... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Plunges Into Gun Ownership, American Cultural Divide
CNN
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday took up gun control, hearing arguments concerning a District of Columbia ban on handguns more than two centuries after the Second Amendment gave Americans the right to "keep and bear arms." Lawyers for both sides tried to strike a moderate tone before the court, arguing that there was an individual right to own a weapon, but that governments could impose reasonable gun-control legislation. Alan Gura, arguing against the ban on Tuesday before the court said the city "simply doesn't trust the people to protect themselves in their homes." But Walter Dellinger, a lawyer for the District of Columbia, said... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Majority Appears Ready to Rule Against DC Gun Control
USA Today
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- A Supreme Court majority appears ready to rule for the first time in the nation's history that the Second Amendment gives people an individual right to own guns. Yet that dramatic consensus, which emerged during arguments Tuesday over a Washington handgun ban, is only part of the important debate playing out at the high court. A separate set of questions revolves around the legal standard the justices might invoke to determine what gun restrictions stand. The details of their ultimate ruling -- not likely until June -- could determine the fate of a range of regulations nationwide, from a federal prohibition on machine guns to licensing requirements... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Holds Historic Gun Hearing - AFP Breaking News
Agence France Presse
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The US Supreme Court on Tuesday, for the first time in nearly 70 years, began considering the right of Americans to keep and use guns. The controversial case questions whether the capital city of Washington can maintain its ban of nearly all handguns and restrictions on shotguns in the home. The nine justices will deliberate on whether the right to "keep and bear arms," as described in the constitution, is an individual or collective right, and whether the capital's regulations are "reasonable." "What is reasonable about a total ban on possession?" asked Chief Justice John Roberts, questioning whether it is "all right to allow... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US High Court Ruling to Loosen Gun Controls 'Would Defy Common Sense'
New York Times, Editorial
18 Mar 2008
Today the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a politically charged challenge to the District of Columbia's gun control laws. The case poses a vital question: can cities impose reasonable controls on guns to protect their citizens? The court should rule that they can. The District of Columbia, which has one of the nation's highest crime rates, banned private ownership of handguns. Rifles and shotguns were permitted, if kept disassembled or under an easily removed trigger lock. It is a reasonable law, far from the ban that some anti-gun-control advocates depict. The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the law... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Gun Law Showdown to Be Decided on Conservative, Originalist Grounds
Wall Street Journal, Opinion
18 Mar 2008
Today, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case of Heller v. District of Columbia, a suit brought by several D.C. citizens contending that the ban on the possession of operable firearms inside one's home violates the Second Amendment. The Circuit Court of Appeals for D.C. agreed and held the ban to be unconstitutional. However it is decided, Heller is already historic. For the first time in recent memory, the Supreme Court will consider the original meaning of a significant passage of the Constitution unencumbered by its own prior decisions. The majority and dissenting opinions in this case will be taught in law schools for years to come. Here's a layman's... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Court Decision Against Gun Control 'Could Help Republicans in Election'
Financial Times (UK)
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The US Supreme Court appears ready to rule that Americans have a constitutional right to keep a gun in their home for self-defence, a ruling that could help Republicans in the upcoming presidential election. Hearing the most important gun rights case in nearly 70 years, the justices on Tuesday spent 98 minutes engrossed in a lively debate about British and American legal traditions relating to the right to bear arms, especially in self-defence. By the end of Tuesday's session, it appeared clear that a majority of the court would rule that the US constitution protects the right of individual Americans to "keep and bear arms" -- but that... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Administration Splits as High Court Nears Landmark Gun Control Ruling
Reuters
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Supreme Court considers on Tuesday a landmark legal battle over gun rights, taking up for the first time in nearly 70 years whether Americans have the right to keep and bear arms. The court's ruling, expected by the end of June, could have a far-reaching impact on gun control laws in the United States, estimated to have the world's highest civilian gun ownership rate, and could become an issue in the November election. At issue is whether to strike down or uphold one of the nation's strictest gun control laws -- a Washington, D.C., ban on private possession of handguns and a requirement that any rifles or shotguns kept at home... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Supreme Court Reviews D.C. Handgun Ban - AP Breaking News Update
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court has heard arguments about the meaning of the Second Amendment and the Districts of Columbia's ban on handguns. A majority appears to support the view that the amendment protects an individual's right to own guns, rather than somehow linking right to service in a state militia. But it is less clear what that means for the District's 32-year-old ban on handguns, perhaps the strictest gun control law in the nation. "Does that make it unreasonable for a city with a very high crime rate ... to say no handguns here?" Justice Stephen Breyer said. On the other side, Chief Justice John Roberts asked at one point:... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Supreme Court Justices Seem to Agree on Americans' Right to Own Guns
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- Americans have a right to own guns, Supreme Court justices declared Tuesday in a historic and lively debate that could lead to the most significant interpretation of the Second Amendment since its ratification two centuries ago. Governments have a right to regulate those firearms, a majority of justices seemed to agree. But there was less apparent agreement on the case they were arguing: whether Washington's ban on handguns goes too far. The justices dug deeply into arguments on one of the Constitution's most hotly debated provisions as demonstrators shouted slogans outside. Guns are an American right, argued one side. "Guns kill," responded... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
'Stubborn, Foolish' Canadian Gun Lobbyist Loses Case, Gets 18 Mths Jail
CKDR Radio (Ontario)
18 Mar 2008
Former Dryden-area Gunsmith Bruce Montague has been sentenced to a total of 18-months in prison after being found guilty on a variety of firearms related offences. Justice John Wright had some harsh words for Montague this morning as he delivered his sentence. The judge described Montague as stubborn and tenacious to a fault who acted foolishly by making automatic weapons. The toughest sentence was for converting semi-automatic guns into automatic weapons. Justice Wright said he wanted to send a message that such activities are "verboten". Montague was also handed sentences ranging from 6-months to a year for the various charges... ( gunpolicy.org )
India
Sterilised Indian Men Rewarded with 'Symbol of Manliness - a Gun Licence'
Agence France Presse
18 Mar 2008
NEW DELHI -- A bandit-infested region of India is trying to persuade men to undergo sterilisation by offering to fast-track their gun licence applications, an official said on Tuesday. Officials in central Madhya Pradesh state's Shivpuri district decided to adopt the policy -- already tried out by some neighbouring states -- to increase the low vascectomy rate. "I came to know that it had to do with their perceived notion of manliness," said Manish Shrivastav, administrative chief of Shivpuri district, part of the Indian Chambal region, which is famed for its lawlessness and bandits. "I then decided to match it with a bigger symbol of manliness... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Reactions to US Supreme Court Gun Ban Arguments - Selected Quotes
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
Some quotes about arguments before the Supreme Court on the District of Columbia's gun ban: "As mayor of the District of Columbia, more guns anywhere in the District of Columbia is going to lead to more crime. And that is why we stand so steadfastly against any repeal of our handgun ban." -- Mayor Adrian Fenty. "This morning the Supreme Court heard arguments about whether or not the Second Amendment actually means anything. Is it some sort of a relic of the past that has no operative force today? Does it guarantee a right to follow military orders, or does it do what most Americans understand it does, guarantees an individual right of American citizens... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Q&A on the US Supreme Court's Gun Control Case, Heard Tuesday
Miami Herald / McClatchy Newspapers
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- Supreme Court justices fired off numerous Second Amendment questions Tuesday morning as they considered the most important gun-control case in decades. But you needn't dress in black robes to have questions about the case, called District of Columbia v. Heller. Here are some of them: Question - Who is Heller, and what does he want? Answer - Dick Anthony Heller is a 66-year-old Army veteran and security guard at a federal building several blocks from the Supreme Court building. Because of the District of Columbia's ban on handguns, Heller says, he must keep his personal firearms stored outside the District. He feels unsafe as a... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Moderate US Pro-Gun Group Plans to Draw Hunters, Shooters from NRA
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
The National Rifle Association always seems to have a target painted on its back. As one of Washington's most powerful and controversial interest groups, it is constantly dodging potshots from one group or another. Enter another group. The American Hunters and Shooters Association is the latest organization to try to dethrone the NRA as chief spokesman for people who care about guns. The association positions itself as an NRA alternative, a group that likes guns and those who shoot them but believes the NRA is too absolutist, especially when it comes to opposing almost any curb on the right to bear arms. "The NRA is extreme," says Ray Schoenke,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Main Gun Lobby Lawyer in DC Case Doesn't Own, or Even Care for Guns
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- Robert Levy has never owned a handgun and has no burning desire to own one now. He hasn't been a Washington resident since he was a teen in the 1950s. But for six years, the wealthy attorney has carefully plotted a legal challenge to Washington's strict ban on handgun ownership, a case now before the Supreme Court. The Florida resident helped hand-pick the plaintiffs involved and is paying the legal fees himself. Why all the effort? Levy says he is driven to defend constitutional rights he believes are being trampled by the District of Columbia's strict ban on private ownership of handguns. "I believe in the written Constitution... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Landmark Gun Control Case Re-opens Right/Left Split in US Supreme Court
Globe & Mail (Toronto)
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The opening shots in a gun law case that may pepper this year's presidential race were fired yesterday when the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments about whether the constitutional right to bear arms means Americans can keep handguns at home. In an unusually long oral argument session, several of the nine justices seemed to hint at their differing positions on the meaning of the Second Amendment to the Constitution, which enshrines the right to bear arms. "What is reasonable about a total ban on possession?" asked Chief Justice John Roberts, an appointee of President George W. Bush. Justice Stephen Breyer, one of the four judges... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
In His First Supreme Court Case, Young Lawyer Hopes to Gut DC Gun Law
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
Even for a lawyer with decades of experience and a résumé of eminent achievements, an opportunity to help shape constitutional history might never come along. Then there's Alan Gura, 37, Class of '95 at Georgetown University Law Center. For him, the chance has just arrived. When the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments today in District of Columbia v. Heller, a case that could lead to a landmark ruling on the Second Amendment, Gura will address the justices for the first time in his career. He'll ask them to uphold a lower appellate ruling that struck down the District's handgun ban, one of the nation's toughest gun control laws, which was passed... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Historic US Court Case Opens Major Fault Line in American Political Culture
Christian Science Monitor
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The Second Amendment guarantees a constitutional right to "keep and bear arms." What that means exactly has been a source of intense debate that stretches back to America's founding. Some legal scholars believe the amendment protects a right to keep and bear only those firearms that are necessary for ongoing service in a state militia. Other equally distinguished scholars hold the view that the amendment guarantees individual Americans the right to possess and use firearms, even when the guns are not related to service in a militia. The US Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments Tuesday in a potential landmark case that could settle... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Guns Out of Control: Contrasting Views from Past Issues of The Atlantic
Atlantic (USA)
18 Mar 2008
More than two hundred years after James Madison drafted the Bill of Rights, Americans have yet to agree on the meaning of the awkwardly constructed Second Amendment: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. This week, the Supreme Court is weighing in on the issue for the first time since 1939 by taking up the constitutionality of Washington, D.C.'s longtime ban on private handgun ownership. The District's law, which is among the strictest in the nation, prohibits residents from keeping handguns in their homes and requires that licensed firearms be kept unloaded, disassembled,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Gun Enthusiasts, Others Join Crush to Hear Arguments in US High Court
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The District of Columbia is asking the Supreme Court to preserve the capital's ban on handguns in a major case over the meaning of the Second Amendment's "right to keep and bear arms." A Washington resident who wants to keep handguns at home for protection is challenging the 32-year-old ban as a violation of his constitutional rights. A federal appeals court in Washington agreed that the city cannot ban handguns. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Tuesday morning in perhaps the most closely watched case of the term. It drew 68 briefs from outside groups, most opposed to the ban, and people began lining up Sunday for a chance... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Disaster Looms if 'Right-wing-heavy' US Supreme Court Swerves on Guns
Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh), Editorial
18 Mar 2008
The words are deceptively simple: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." But what does the Second Amendment really mean? Today the U.S. Supreme Court, which has not ruled on this core Second Amendment question since 1939, will hear arguments in a case from Washington, D.C. The justices' decision, expected in June, may be clarifying. It may also be disastrous if a reasonable balance is not struck. For all the legal precedents, the debate on the meaning of the Second Amendment has been continuous in recent years and it is framed by totally opposing... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Dick Heller, the Sole Plaintiff in US High Court Case to Overturn DC Gun Ban
Baltimore Sun (Maryland)
18 Mar 2008
For years, Dick Heller lived across the street from a crime-ridden public housing project where the top drug dealer marked the close of business every morning at 2 o'clock by emptying his 9 mm pistol into the air. Tucked in bed below the windowsill of his brick rowhouse in Southeast Washington, Heller tried to assure himself that the brick walls would protect him as he slept. Still, the bullet mark to the right of his front door and the bullet hole in the first-floor window were reminders that eroded his peace of mind. "If those people decide you've been whispering to the police and at 2 a.m. decide to come kick in your door, you don't have any chance,"... ( gunpolicy.org )
Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, China
Demand for Guns Soars in Lebanon - Detailed Survey of Availability, Costs
Al-Hayat (London) / BBC Worldwide Monitoring, Transcript
18 Mar 2008
BEIRUT -- The Lebanese are talking these days about the phenomenon of the spread of weapons and the increasing trade in them. Many say this is a prelude to the ignition of rounds of warfare with the looming shadows of the sharp political and sectarian split seen on the Lebanese arena. Al-Hayat prepared a report on this phenomenon. It met weapons merchants, political activists, and civilians who revealed that the weapons market in Lebanon suffers a crunch however because of the scarcity in munitions, even though demand for weapons has multiplied in districts which witnessed disturbances of late. In his office on the main road separating the areas of Al-Shayyah... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Council Seeks Mandatory Jail Time for Illegal Gun Carrying Near LA Schools
Los Angeles Times
18 Mar 2008
Suzette Gutierrez knows Aragon Avenue Elementary. It's where she first went to school in the 1980s, where she served as a teachers assistant two decades later and where she now sends her two girls. Until recently, Gutierrez, 28, would never have thought about moving. But now she's not so sure. A recent rash of high-profile shootings has her Cypress Park neighborhood on edge and local officials scrambling to ensure that residents feel safe. "The concept is fear. We haven't felt like this in a long time ... But how are you supposed to answer when your 6-year-old daughter asks if it's safe to go to school?" Gutierrez said. "I'm embarrassed about... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Conservative US Justices Toss Barrage of Skeptical Questions at Gun Ban
Reuters
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. capital's strict gun control law faced a barrage of skeptical questions on Tuesday from the U.S. Supreme Court's conservatives. A majority of the nine-member high court seemed to support the view that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protected an individual right to keep and bear arms, rather than a right tied to service in a state militia. The individual right position was advocated by opponents of the Washington, D.C., law, one of the strictest in the nation. The arguments marked the first time the Supreme Court has taken up the Second Amendment's meaning in nearly 70 years. The court's ruling, expected... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
Canadian Gun Lobby Martyr Faces Sentence on 26 Firearm Related Crimes
Kenora Daily Miner and News (Ontario)
18 Mar 2008
Bruce Montague returned to a Kenora courtroom Monday for a sentencing hearing following 26 firearms related convictions in December. The charges against Montague, and his wife Donna, date back to 2004, following his arrest at a Dryden gun show. After police twice searched his Eton-Rugby home, Montague was charged with more than 50 firearms offences. His wife faced three charges. On Monday, the defence and the Crown argued their case for sentencing before Justice John Wright, from Thunder Bay, who is left to consider their submissions, along with a pre-sentence report and references from community members familiar with the Dryden family. Crown... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Bush Administration Pushes for Compromise to Protect US Gun Control Law
Detroit Free Press (Michigan) / McClatchy Newspapers
18 Mar 2008
WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush and his political base enter a three-sided showdown today when the Supreme Court considers the District of Columbia's handgun ban -- a case that will shape how cities and states regulate guns in the future. The case is likely to yield the most important firearms ruling in generations and could undermine other gun-control laws nationwide if the court takes an expansive view of the right to bear arms. An extraordinary 66 friend-of-the-court briefs have been filed, citing everyone from King James II to Western author Louis L'Amour. Justices have extended the customary hour-long oral argument by 15 minutes. And... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Both Sides Sleep Outside US Supreme Court, Vying for Seats in Gun Hearing
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
Outside the Supreme Court building yesterday, awaiting arguments this morning in a potentially landmark gun-rights case, the court of public opinion was already in session, the citizen-justices presiding in portable lawn chairs, robed against the chill in heavy blankets and winter coats. Does the Second Amendment guarantee individuals the right to own guns? Or does it confer only a collective right that allows states to form armed militias? By last night, more than 60 people from across the country filled the entire block of First Street NE, some camped out since Sunday, eager for seats in the court when attorneys debate the issue, beginning at 10 a.m. Although... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Among Scattershot Arguments in DC Gun Ban Case, Which Hit the Mark?
Washington Post
18 Mar 2008
Grammar, history, intent, the District's unique role in the Constitution and crime in contemporary society could all play major parts in today's historic U.S. Supreme Court session on Washington's handgun ban. You might need a scorecard to keep tabs on the 75 minutes of argument. First question: Will the lawyers and justices get hung up on the grammar question that has divided gun rights supporters and opponents for decades -- what is the true meaning of the preamble to the Second Amendment, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State"? If this becomes a linguistics seminar, the focus will be on what those words imply about... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
4 Killed in Mass Shooting at California Workplace, One Man Arrested
Associated Press
18 Mar 2008
SANTA MARIA, California -- Four men were shot to death in a junk yard Tuesday near California's central coast in what police called "a case of workplace violence." A suspect was taken into custody. The shooting at Black Road Auto was reported about 4 p.m., and all four victims were dead by the time police and medics arrived, Police Chief Danny Macagni told the Santa Maria Times. The victims, whose names were not immediately released, were shot at close range, Macagni said. One victim was found outside the junk yard, and three were found inside. The gun used in the shooting was found at the scene. "This is a case of workplace violence,"... ( gunpolicy.org )
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