Australia
Licensed Aussie Gun Dealer, 84, Accused of Trafficking Illegal Handguns
Parkes Champion-Post (NSW)
23 July 2008
An 84-year old World War Two veteran was granted bail in Dubbo Local Court last Tuesday, as he faced charges over an alleged gun-running bust in Forbes earlier this year. Appearing on 26 charges relating to possessing and selling prohibited and unregistered firearms, Norman Whybrow, well known in the Forbes community, was granted bail by Magistrate Howard Hamilton who was 'only just persuaded to grant bail'. Police raided... ( gunpolicy.org )
India
Religious, Peace Groups Hail Landslide UN Vote for Global Gun Control
Indian Catholic (New Delhi)
23 July 2008
NEW YORK -- Religious and peace groups heralded a nonbinding U.N. agreement on small arms that they said helps incremental efforts to curb the trade of illicit weapons. But disarmament advocates also said the action is part of a wider effort to curtail a serious international problem that is being fought by faith communities, such as parishes in Brazil. "The parish priest in the Rio (de Janeiro) favelas (slums) is part... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Hidden Guns Allowed at US Airports: Homeland Security Chief Surprised
Associated Press
22 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says he might pursue new gun restrictions in response to a recently enacted Georgia law that could allow people to carry concealed firearms in parts of the Atlanta airport. Apparently surprised that some airports long have allowed guns in unsecured areas, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said the new Georgia legislation represents a significant hole in national security... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Licensed US Gun Dealer, Acquitted of Fraud, Gets 2yrs for Tax Offences
Fort Mill Times (South Carolina)
22 July 2008
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky -- A man once hired by a Louisville millionaire to help him build a world-class gun collection was sentenced Tuesday to two years in prison for failing to pay taxes. Michael K. Salisbury of Alabama was cleared of fraud and several other felony charges by a federal jury in January. But he was convicted on two misdemeanors for failing to pay taxes on some of the guns that he acquired for Owsley Brown Frazier,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Most Readers Find Gun Control Outside Realm of Public Health - MedPage
MedPage Today, Web Page
22 July 2008
Gun regulation is not a public health issue, according to more than 80% of some 2,000 respondents to a MedPage Today poll. When the editors of the New England Journal of Medicine decried the recent Supreme Court decision overturning the District of Columbia's handgun law, they did so claiming the issue is a matter of public health. Now doctors in the trenches have weighed in with their own views. The responses from physicians... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Smith & Wesson Mints Special Revolver to Mark US Supreme Court Win
Boston Herald
22 July 2008
Smith & Wesson thinks the Supreme Court's recent Second Amendment ruling is a legal victory worth notching on a gun. The Springfield firearms manufacturer said yesterday it will make an engraved version of its Model 442 revolver to commemorate the historic June 26 high court decision striking down the District of Columbia's strict handgun ban. Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. said it will give a gun to each of the six plaintiffs... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Cops Often Shoot Themselves, Yet Few Receive Suicide Prevention Help
Associated Press
22 July 2008
MILWAUKEE Wisconsin -- Police Sgt. Chuck Cross pointed his department-issue .40-caliber handgun at his temple, finger on the trigger, as he sat drunk against his hallway wall. "I was about eight pounds of a trigger pull away," he said. He's unsure why he stopped. Fellow officers, called by his girlfriend, took him to a mental health center. He was charged with disorderly conduct while armed, and was fired. He says... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Atlanta's 'Guns at Airports OK' Law Goes Federal: US Congress Asked to Act
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Georgia)
21 July 2008
The chairman of the U.S. House's Homeland Security Committee wants the federal government to keep Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport a gun-free zone. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) wrote Transportation Security Administration officials Monday asking them what they will do to keep guns out of the world's busiest airport in light of a new Georgia law that allows Georgians with carry permits to tote guns into restaurants that... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Charges Dropped Against Florida Teacher Who Took Handgun to School
Orlando Sentinel (Florida)
21 July 2008
SANFORD -- A third-grade teacher arrested for taking a gun onto school property was set for trial today, but prosecutors dropped all charges. Michelle McGhee, 56, of Sanford, was arrested Dec. 12, after a secretary at Heathrow Elementary School discovered a snub-nosed .38-caliber revolver near the bus ramp. Nearby was McGhee's cell phone. McGhee admitted the gun was hers. She told authorities that she has a concealed weapons... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States, Mexico
Mexican Gunshot Victims, Wounded Police Flee to Texas for Hospital Care
KVIA-TV ABC News (Texas)
21 July 2008
EL PASO, Texas -- County Commissioners and the Hospital District's Board of Managers want to know why so many victims are crossing the border to receive treatment at Thomason Hospital. County Commissioner, Precint 2, Veronica Escobar asks, "Who else is being allowed in that may be posing a significant risk to the neighborhood, school and institutions in that particular area?" Officials plan to discuss security and cost issues Thomason... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
More Than More Laws Needed to End Gun Violence in Canada
Daily News (Nanaimo), Editorial
21 July 2008
At opposite ends of the country on the same weekend, four young men die after gunfire breaks out. The first incident was in Victoria, just 90 minutes south of here, when a 20-year-old man was fatally shot, and two men with him wounded in the early hours of Saturday. The next incident was in Toronto in the early hours of Sunday, when three men -- also in their 20s -- were found shot to death in a vehicle. Victoria may be closer than... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Nearly 700 Guns from Brooklyn Buyback will be Melted into Coathangers
NY1 TV News (News York)
21 July 2008
City officials are calling Brooklyn's gun buy-back program a success. A joint program between a group of Brooklyn pastors and the Brooklyn district attorney netted almost 700 guns. The event allowed people who owned illegal guns to drop them off at six churches in exchange for a $200 debit card, no questions asked. Twenty dollar bank cards were given for B.B. guns and air pistols. Overall, 697 illegal and functioning... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Kingdom
New UK Law 'Doesn't Seem to Change Anything' on Retribution, Gun Use
Guardian (UK)
21 July 2008
"New law backs 'have-a-go' heroes," the Ministry of Justice proclaimed in its press release. Much of the media followed with references to homeowners being given, for the first time, the legal right to defend their property and person with violence. A new law on that subject came into force last week -- section 76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. But does it really give the householder a new legal right? That is... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
New York Gun Owner's Weapons Seized After 'Threatening' Congresswoman
New York Post
21 July 2008
An outspoken Long Island gun owner's home was raided by Nassau County detectives, who seized two dozen weapons he lawfully owns just one day after Rep. Carolyn McCarthy's office made a 911 call about him. Freeport resident Gabriel Razzano claims he was targeted in the spring raid for his "unpopular" political beliefs. He's now filed a $5 million federal lawsuit against the Nassau PD and McCarthy, charging they joined forces... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Students Suspected of Bringing 'AK-47, Machine Gun' to California School
Mercury News (California)
21 July 2008
The male students, whose ages were not released, both were arrested on suspicion of possession of an illegal assault weapon, possession of a machine gun, bringing a firearm onto school grounds, being a minor in possession of live ammunition, being a minor with a concealed weapon, being a minor in possession of a firearm with prior conviction, a probation violation and marijuana transportation. Both have previous gun and ammunition... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Kingdom, Lithuania, Russia
UK Criminals Kill with Lithuanian Gas Guns Converted to Fire 9mm Bullets
Times (UK)
21 July 2008
James Andre Smartt-Ford, known as Dre, was standing by the steps to the ice at Streatham rink when a black-clad youth emerged from the crowd, gripping a gun. He fired two shots from close range into his victim's back. Dre fell forward dying, his blood spreading across the ice. The revolver that killed Dre had the words "Made in Russia" imprinted close to the muzzle, and was fitted with a silencer to muffle the shots. But nothing... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Nations, World
UN Small Arms Process 'Back on Track' - 134 Votes to Nil for Gun Control
Disarmament Insight (Geneva), Blog
21 July 2008
NEW YORK -- UN Member States met in New York all last week to examine, as they do every two years, how the 2001 Programme of Action to curb the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons is being implemented. A lot was at stake in this meeting. Guns are used to take the lives of about 300,000 people every year. They injure and disable about three times that number and commit millions more to living in perpetual poverty and fear. As some... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Gun Lobby Losing the Battle to Encourage Guns on College Campuses
Toledo Blade (Ohio), Column
21 July 2008
The national Rifle Association is a lobbying colossus in this country, and it doesn't like to lose a political battle. Fortunately, the NRA is losing one that makes you scratch your head and ask yourself, "what were they thinking?" What they were thinking is this: The gun lobby believes America's college campuses are dangerous places for your children to be and wants the states to enact laws that would forbid any attempts to keep... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Georgia Gun Lobby Sues to Allow Hidden Handguns at Airport, Churches
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Georgia)
20 July 2008
Their relationship started on the Internet -- like-minded people bemoaning what they considered restrictive Georgia gun laws. Attorney Ed Stone, a former police officer in Union City and Peachtree City, and five others commiserated in the chat room of a now-defunct Web site. They'd exchanged numerous e-mails about what they called illegal limits on gun ownership and "everybody trying to make up their own law," Stone said. So... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
In Open Carry Campaign, US Gun Lobbyists Wear Handguns to Idaho Zoo
Idaho Statesman (Boise)
20 July 2008
When you go to the zoo, you expect to see monkeys, ducks in a pond. You don't usually expect to see visitors with handguns. But you would have, had you visited Zoo Boise Saturday morning. About 10 members of the local chapter of OpenCarry.org, a national group that advocates for citizens' rights to openly carry handguns, met there. After a little confusion at the front desk about whether it's legal to bring an... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Swapping Guns for Cash, at Church: New Yorkers Give Up Their Weapons
New York Times
20 July 2008
There was a time, in the 1970s and '80s that handguns were so coveted on the streets of Kings County, that the borough gave rise to a law enforcement legend known as the Brooklyn Bounce. If you were to throw a gun from a window in Bay Ridge or Bushwick, so the legend went, it would be eagerly grabbed before it had a chance to bounce more than once. Over the last decade or so, violent crime has dropped in Brooklyn, as it has in the... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Alan Gura - How a Young Lawyer Saved the US Second Amendment
Wall Street Journal
19 July 2008
ALEXANDRIA, Virginia -- For decades the Second Amendment might as well have been called the Second-Class Amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court spent the late 20th century expansively interpreting the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Eighth amendments, not to mention unenumerated rights ranging from travel to sexual privacy. But not until last month did the court hold that the Second Amendment means what it says: that "the right of the people... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States, Canada
Chicago Mayor Vows to Defend Gun Ban, Urges Toronto to Pressure Ottawa
Toronto Star (Ontario)
19 July 2008
Handguns have no place in big cities, says Chicago Mayor Richard Daley. In Toronto for a Great Lakes water quality conference, Daley vowed to vigorously defend Chicago's handgun ban, in effect since 1982, against legal challenges. And he praised Toronto Mayor David Miller for lobbying Ottawa to ban handguns and to press the United States to reduce the smuggling of weapons into the city from south of the border. "I give... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Philadelphia's Moms Against Guns Raises 27 Free Billboards for Election
Philadelphia Daily News (Pennsylvania)
19 July 2008
In April, Moms Against Guns had a humble request: one affordable billboard advertising its petition for stricter gun laws. Flash forward three months, and the Philadelphia-based advocacy group now has 27 billboards citywide, with at least six more on the way. The billboards will stay up through November's elections -- just long enough, the group says, for voters to elect candidates willing to crack down on illegal guns.... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States, United Nations, World
US Position Complicates Global UN Effort to Curb Illicit Gun Trafficking
New York Times
19 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- Diplomats from the world's governments met throughout this week on agreements to cut the global illicit trade in small arms, but their work was curtailed in part by the near-boycott of the meetings by the United States. The tone of the meetings underscored the political complexities of gaining full support for international small-arms agreements from the United States. The American view has balanced recognition... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
For Suicidal Youth, Easy Access to a Gun Can Make a Big Difference
Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St Paul), Opinion
18 July 2008
After the recent Supreme Court decision stating that gun ownership is an individual right, you'd think that those representing the gun lobby's extreme stance would finally stop attempting to raise the fear in gun owners that common-sense measures to prevent gun injury and death are really just a means to ban all guns. Steve Chapman's column in the July 15 Star Tribune about firearm suicide does not represent the facts. When it comes to suicide,... ( gunpolicy.org )
China
Gun Briefing Backfires in China: Policeman Accidentally Shoots Reporters
BBC News
18 July 2008
Three Chinese reporters attending a police briefing on the success of an anti-gun campaign were accidentally shot, media reports say. An officer picked up one of the weapons on show -- a confiscated home-made gun -- but it went off in his hand. A reporter needed surgery for injuries to his ankle, crotch and chest, after being hit by what appeared to be pebbles fired by the gun. Two others were slightly injured... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
Gun Owners Must Surrender Illegal Weapons for Destruction - Ontario Police
Flamborough Review (Ontario)
18 July 2008
The Hamilton Police Service (HPS) reminds all residents who own firearms to ensure their paperwork is in order. The HPS is making a concerted effort to encourage people with expired firearms licences and revoked registration certificates to comply with current legislation and once again be in a legal position to possess their firearms. Over the last few weeks, officers from the Firearms Section of the HPS have taken possession... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Having Toppled Washington Handgun Ban, Plaintiff Registers His Revolver
Washington Post
18 July 2008
Relishing a moment of triumph after a successful, long-running legal battle to end the District's handgun ban, Dick A. Heller strode into D.C. police headquarters yesterday with an unloaded revolver and began registering the weapon so he can keep it in his Capitol Hill home for self-defense. "It's a great day," declared Heller, 66, a hero to gun rights advocates nationwide for his role in District of Columbia v. Heller, the landmark... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Inactive Gun Dealer Makes Buying a New Gun Impossible in Washington, DC
Washington Post
18 July 2008
District residents in the market for handguns could face a long wait -- only one dealer has stepped up so far, and his license isn't active. Charles Sykes Jr. has been selling guns since 1994 to active and retired police officers and security companies out of an unmarked office in Anacostia. But right now his business, CS Exchange, is on hold because he recently changed locations on Good Hope Road SE and his permit needs to be amended.... ( gunpolicy.org )
World, United Nations
Landslide UN Vote Sets Global Gun Control Process Back on Track - IANSA
International Action Network on Small Arms / IANSA, Media release
18 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- Campaigners welcomed the resurrection of the UN small arms process today, as states strengthened their commitment to work together to curb the illicit trade in small arms. 134 states voted for the agreement of the Biennial Meeting of States on Small Arms. No state voted against it. Iran and Zimbabwe abstained. The agreement provides guidance on several key areas of small arms control, including arms brokering... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
New York Gun Laws Untouched by US High Court Decision - District Attorney
Queens Tribune (New York)
18 July 2008
The debate is over. No more arguing over the meaning of commas or engaging in semantic minutiae over the definition of militia. The June 26 Supreme Court decision to strike down the Washington D.C. handgun ban in the case of District of Columbia v. Heller clearly established the right to bear arms as an individual right guaranteed by the Constitution's Second Amendment. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Felons Now 'Have the Right' to Own Guns for Self Defence - Court Cases
Associated Press
18 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- Twice convicted of felonies, James Francis Barton Jr. faces charges of violating a federal law barring felons from owning guns after police found seven pistols, three shotguns, and five rifles at his home south of Pittsburgh. As a defense, Barton and several other defendants in federal gun cases argue that last month's Supreme Court ruling allows them to keep loaded handguns at home for self-defense. "Felons,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington's New Handgun Law Imposes America's Most Restrictive Tests
Washington Post
18 July 2008
D.C. police have begun accepting applications from residents who want to register revolvers. Some basics: The Guns - As a rule, the city will accept registration applications only for revolvers, although relatively rare types of semiautomatic handguns are permitted. Most clip-loaded semiautomatic weapons remain banned. - Residents who illegally kept revolvers in their homes during the ban will be allowed to apply... ( gunpolicy.org )
Angola
23,444 Guns Seized from Civilians, Stored by Government, Angola Tells UN
Angola Press Agency (Luanda)
17 July 2008
NEW YORK -- The Angolan government reiterated its commitment to fighting the proliferation of guns in society, thus having adopted practical and pragmatic measures aimed for the materialisation of the United Nations Action plan on this matter. Speaking at the 3rd Biennial Conference on Small Arms and Light Weapons, happening on 14-18 July at UN headquarters, New York, the Angolan delegation advocated the need to improve small arms... ( gunpolicy.org )
Pakistan
Buyback Saw 20,000 Guns Destroyed in Pakistan, Shootings Due to Politics
Daily Mail (Islamabad)
17 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- Reaffirming its determination to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, Pakistan on Wednesday called for addressing the root causes of conflicts to eliminate a major source of demand for such weapons. "Focus on conflict prevention and dispute resolution is thus a sine qua non for the attainment of the common goals of strengthening peace and security in conditions of economic... ( gunpolicy.org )
Jordan
Celebratory Gunshots, Stray Bullets Often Cause Injury, Death in Jordan
National (Abu Dhabi)
17 July 2008
AMMAN -- Bayan Tayeb turns two this month, but unlike most toddlers her age, she cannot walk, talk or see thanks to a stray bullet that struck her right eye and damaged her brain last year. She was the victim of a celebration, not a war. Bayan was sitting on her mother's lap in the front garden of their home in a suburb of the capital of Amman, when revellers at a wedding fired a gun in celebration. "I thought she was hit... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Chicago Township Votes to Alter Handgun Ban, Avoid Gun Lobby Law Suit
Daily Northwestern (Illinois)
17 July 2008
Evanston aldermen unanimously voted to amend the city's 27-year-old handgun ban last week at a special closed-door meeting in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down a similar ban in the District of Columbia. The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled that laws requiring handguns in homes to be disassembled and outfitted with trigger locks are incompatible with the gun rights accorded under the U.S. Constitution's... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Former 'Law & Order' Actor Gets Probation for Carrying Gun at LA Airport
Associated Press
17 July 2008
LOS ANGELES -- Dennis Farina may be able to carry a gun on-screen, but he won't be able to own one in California for several months. The actor's attorney pleaded no contest on Thursday to a misdemeanor charge of bringing a weapon into a secure area at Los Angeles International Airport. A court commissioner sentenced him to up to two years of probation and ordered him to pay $1,991 in fines, said Los Angeles City Attorney spokesman... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Mayor Asks Chicago Businesses to Raise $1million for City Gun Buyback
Chicago Sun-Times
17 July 2008
Mayor Daley wants to raise $1 million to buy back guns and remove them from Chicago streets, but the latest in a string of corporate fund-raisers got off to a slow start. Sources said former Board of Education President Michael Scott was asked to co-sign a wave of fund-raising letters and make fund-raising phone calls after the initial response was lukewarm from a business community that's also being called upon to bankroll Chicago's... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Plaintiff in US High Court Trial Applies for Gun Licence: Denied on First Day
Associated Press
17 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- The plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that overturned Washington's 32-year-old handgun ban was the first to arrive Thursday as the city began registering firearms. But security guard Dick Heller was turned away from police headquarters because he didn't bring his weapon as required. Thursday marked the first day that District of Columbia residents could begin registering or applying for handguns since the... ( gunpolicy.org )
Germany
Report Counts 10 Million Private Guns in Germany: National Registry Needed
Mathaba News Agency / IRNA
17 July 2008
While there are no serious estimates about illegal weapons in Germany, the dark figure is believed to be in the millions. Meanwhile, the German GdP police union has warned of an increase in the misuse of small arms by criminals. Pointing to the imminent threat of illegal weapons for police, GdP chief Konrad Freiberg has called for a nationwide arms register. Germans must be 21 years old to own a weapon, however... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Supreme Court Decision Brings 'A New Chance to Curb Gun Violence'
Washington Post, Opinion
17 July 2008
The Supreme Court decision last month overturning the District's handgun ban, though controversial, may have ended a long-standing political logjam. As a local law enforcement official, I hope this decision will allow a working coalition to transcend partisan disagreements and support strategies proven to reduce gun violence. The ruling left almost entirely intact the gun restrictions in Maryland and most other jurisdictions. Still... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington Defiantly Sticks to Its Strict Gun Ban. Don't Like It? Sue Us
Washington Post, Column
17 July 2008
Mayor Adrian Fenty and his feisty attorney general, Peter Nickles, stood on the steps of the Wilson Building this week ostensibly to announce how the District will comply with the Supreme Court's rejection of Washington's ban on handguns. But really, they were delivering very much the opposite message: With only the narrowest of exceptions, we're sticking with our gun ban. Don't like it? Sue us. "I am pretty confident that the people... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Brooklyn Pastors, NYPD Pay $200 for Each Illegal Weapon in Gun Buyback
NY1 TV News (New York)
16 July 2008
A group of Brooklyn pastors joined forces with the NYPD and the Brooklyn district attorney's office Wednesday to get guns off the streets. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes announced a one-day gun buy-back initiative for Saturday, July 19. Gun owners who possess illegal, functional guns can drop off the weapons at one of six Brooklyn churches in exchange for a $200 bank card. Hynes... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
DC Ends Strictest US Handgun Ban, Begins Strictest US Handgun Licensing
Washington Post
16 July 2008
The D.C. Council unanimously approved emergency legislation last night that ends the strictest handgun ban in the country... The emergency gun bill establishes regulations for residents to keep handguns in their homes legally, an effort to comply with last month's historic Supreme Court decision that found the city's 32-year prohibition of handguns unconstitutional. City leaders say the legislation goes as far as it can... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Do Idahoans Believe the Answer to Deranged Gun Violence is More Guns?
Boise Weekly (Idaho)
16 July 2008
A few months after Jason Hamilton killed his wife and then took two military rifles from his ample collection and opened fire on the Latah County Courthouse, killing a cop, a church caretaker and then himself, Moscow Mayor Nancy Chaney floated the idea of a gun ban. It would have only applied to city property and it was not a direct reaction to the shooting, Chaney said. The city never actually passed anything, after the Idaho attorney... ( gunpolicy.org )
Pakistan
Gun Control: Pakistan Has 20 Million Firearms
Post (Lahore), Opinion
16 July 2008
LAHORE -- Pakistan, according to anti-arms campaigners, has one of the greatest per capita rates of gun ownership in the world. Though there are no official figures, rough estimates put the total number of small arms at large in the country at more than 20 million, with about half of them illegal. NWFP alone is believed to have nearly half a million illegal small arms and light weapons. How many more wake up calls do we need until... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
New Illinois Gun Law Aims to Penalise Adults Who Supply Guns to Minors
Chicago Tribune / AP
16 July 2008
CHICAGO -- Governor Rod Blagojevich has signed a bill that puts the adult who provides a gun to a minor in the same legal hot water as the minor who uses it to commit a crime. The bill signed Wednesday means that adults who sell or give guns to minors are eligible for the same sentence as minors convicted of violent crimes -- including murder -- in which they used the weapon. Before the law was signed, the maximum sentence... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Opponents of Washington DC's Tough New Gun Law Vow Court Challenge
USA Today
16 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- The doors opened Thursday to post-handgun ban era here, with gun rights advocates vowing another legal challenge to the city's newly approved gun control law. Less than a month after the Supreme Court overturned the city's 32-year-old handgun ban -- the most restrictive in the nation -- the same litigant in the landmark case appeared at police headquarters and said he likely would wage a new fight. Dick Heller,... ( gunpolicy.org )
Ukraine
Police Bust Crime Gang Stealing Ammunition from Troubled Ukrainian Depot
BBC Monitoring Service / Kommersant-Ukraina (Kiev), Transcript
16 July 2008
The Ukrainian police have busted a criminal group which was stealing redundant arms and scrap metal from the troubled Novobohdanivka arms depot in Zaporizhzhya Region, a business daily has reported. The following is the text of the report by Yakiv Noskov entitled "Police's high class performance" published by the Ukrainian edition of the Russian business daily newspaper Kommersant on 15 July: It became known yesterday that on 11... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
School Shooter Killed 6 in Illinois: Here's the Real Story [Part 1 of 3]
Esquire (USA)
16 July 2008
By the end, there is no night or day. No sleep. Just time, waiting. He sits on the end of his bed in a broken-down Travelodge. Smokes a Newport. Stale smell of old cigarettes, of all the lives that have passed through this room. Across his lap, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun, the barrel sawed off. His hands on it, one on the stock, one on the barrel. He can't sit still, though. Always fidgeting. Waiting. He's been in this... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
School Shooter Killed 6 in Illinois: Here's the Real Story [Part 2 of 3]
Esquire (USA)
16 July 2008
[Continued from Part 1] The following February, Thresholds, the agency that runs Mary Hill, decides to transition Steve out of the residential program into an SRO, a single-room occupancy. He has his own room now in a broke-down building, and they all share a bathroom. This is an even worse neighborhood. "His first night in the SRO was rough," says Jessica. "I remember him telling me about how he heard gunshots and someone was pounding... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
School Shooter Killed 6 in Illinois: Here's the Real Story [Part 3 of 3]
Esquire (USA)
16 July 2008
[Continued from Part 2] Halloween 2007. Steve stands in his bedroom dressed all in black, with white gloves. He takes the Jigsaw mask down from his bookcase, carefully holds it to his left side, face turned toward him, a puppet, a piece of himself, his alter ego. White face, red-target cheeks, the sadistic killer-narrator from Saw. He and Jessica aren't going anywhere tonight. She's busy with work, and there's no love after... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Surveillance Videos Provide Glimpse of Kentucky Workplace Mass Shooting
Associated Press
16 July 2008
HENDERSON, Kentucky -- Newly released surveillance videos provide a glimpse of a shooting at a western Kentucky plastics plant that left five people and the gunman dead last month. Police in Henderson released the videos to The Associated Press on Tuesday. Wesley N. Higdon, 25, shot and killed five workers and himself June 25 after arguing with his supervisor about not wearing safety goggles and using his cell phone on... ( gunpolicy.org )
Switzerland
Switzerland Named As One of the Most Transparent Exporters of Guns
SwissInfo
16 July 2008
The diversion of small arms and light weapons is a major source of firearms for criminals and insurgents around the world, says an international report. However, Switzerland was named one of the most transparent small arms exporters in the latest Small Arms Survey, published annually by the Geneva-based Graduate Institute of International Studies (GIIS). "The score for Switzerland on transparency has improved dramatically,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Texas Man Tied Gun to Helium Balloons, Killed Himself in Elaborate Hoax
Dallas Morning News (Texas)
16 July 2008
Thomas Hickman drove through New Mexico, police say, until his Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo ran out of gas. Then the 55-year-old North Richland Hills man walked into a field, tied helium balloons to a gun, covered his mouth with duct tape, and shot himself in the back of the head, according to New Mexico State Police. That determination is a far leap from what authorities first suspected when Mr. Hickman's body was discovered March... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Florida Gun Lobby Snarls at Big Companies for Defying 'Guns at Work' Law
Miami Herald (Florida)
15 July 2008
TALLAHASSEE -- Georgia-Pacific has declared that its Palatka toilet- and tissue-paper plant isn't bound by a controversial employee gun-rights law, citing a Homeland Security exemption because the company handles barge-loads of explosive fuel. The company's decision -- following Disney World's recent announcement that it's exempt because of its federal explosives permit -- has enraged the National Rifle Association and spotlighted... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Nations, World
Global Gun Trade Aids, Abets Rise of Child Soldiers, Say UN Experts
Hindu (India) / PTI
15 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- The large scale trade in small arms is a major factor behind the growing worldwide phenomenon of child soldiers, top UN officials said on wednesday. "It is argued by many that it is the proliferation of small arms contributing to their ready availability in the period 1970 2000, which has led to the phenomenon of child soldiers as we know it today," the United Nations envoy on children and armed conflict, Radhika... ( gunpolicy.org )
Iraq, Afghanistan, World, Bosnia, Serbia
Iraq, Afghan Wars, Exports from Bosnia, Serbia Hurt Bid to Destroy Guns
Zee News (India)
15 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are undermining efforts to destroy surplus weapons by creating new markets for countries to sell their unwanted firearms, according to a survey published here. Although the world is witnessing "the largest systematic destruction of military small arms and light weapons since the end of World War II," countries that would normally have destroyed their surplus weapons are now being... ( gunpolicy.org )
Papua New Guinea
PNG Police Chief Issues 'Shoot to Kill' Order, Urges Critics Not to Overreact
Post-Courier (Port Moresby)
15 July 2008
Police Commissioner Gari Baki made a call yesterday for the public and human rights advocates to not misinterpret his directions for police to shoot and kill criminals caught wearing police uniforms. "I do not want to be drawn into a media debate but the relentless sentiments and criticisms in the media has prompted me to clear the air on this issue," Mr Baki said. "By using police uniforms to carry out their evil acts... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Nations, World
Report: Preventable Diversion of Guns Fuels Crime, Insurgency, Death
Xinhua
15 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- The diversion of small arms and light weapons is a major source of firearms for criminals and insurgents around the world, according to a new survey issued Monday. In its 2008 edition of an annual report, the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey said that diverted arms shipments -- in which arms are redirected to unauthorized end users -- can range from small packages of components for civilian firearms to hundred-ton... ( gunpolicy.org )
World, United Nations
Strong Link Between Child Soldiers and Global Gun Trade, Say UN Experts
United Nations (New York), Media release
15 July 2008
NEW YORK -- The trade in small arms is a major factor behind the worldwide phenomenon of child soldiers, according to United Nations experts who gathered today in New York to discuss the impact of the weapons trade on society. "It is argued by many that it is the proliferation of small arms that has actually contributed to this rise -- the ready availability of small arms in the period 1970 -- 2000 led to the rise and the phenomenon... ( gunpolicy.org )
World, United Nations
UN: Global Proliferation of Guns Fuels Violence, Crime and Insurgency
Voice of America
15 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- The United Nations says in its annual survey that global arms proliferation is fueling violence, crime and insurgency. VOA's United Nations correspondent Margaret Besheer has the story by intern Maha Saad. The program director of the small arms survey, Keith Krause, says approximately 650,000 civilian firearms move from lawful to illegal possession every year. This is known as diversion of small arms, such as pistols,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Universal Studios Latest to Claim Exemption from Florida 'Guns at Work' Law
Fox 35 News (Orlando)
15 July 2008
ORANGE COUNTY, Florida -- First it was Disney. Now the controversy over the state law that allows people to bring guns to work is going Universal. Universal Studios says it too is exempt from the new gun law, signed into law July 1st. Legislators who signed the bill say they did so because employers provide few safeguards against random workplace violence, so workers should be allowed to have weapons nearby for protection.... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington DC Approves New Gun Laws Prompted by High Court Ruling
Associated Press
15 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- The District of Columbia Council approved new firearms legislation Tuesday that will allow residents to begin applying for handgun permits this week. The council's unanimous vote comes as officials try to comply with last month's U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down the city's 32-year-old ban on handguns. The emergency legislation will allow handguns to be kept in the home if they are used only for self-defense... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington DC Imposes 'Strictest Controls Possible' in Revised Gun Law
Washington Post
15 July 2008
Within weeks, District residents could legally keep handguns in their homes under emergency legislation that goes to the D.C. Council today, as officials try to comply with the Supreme Court ruling rejecting the city's handgun ban. But District officials said yesterday that they are braced for the possibility of more legal wrangling as they try to respect the high court while maintaining the strictest controls possible. Residents... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Washington DC's Strict New Gun Regulations 'Reasonable and Necessary'
Washington Post, Editorial
15 July 2008
There was both a triumphal and defeatist cast to the news conference that D.C. officials held yesterday to unveil new firearms legislation. The agreement by the District's sometimes-fractured political leadership on a course of action was worthy of celebration. But it was hard to stomach the need to promulgate rules allowing ownership of handguns -- something the city had forbidden for decades until the Supreme Court's recent decision. Nonetheless,... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Nations, World
Annual Report Launched at UN: Global Gun Theft, Trafficking, Gun Violence
United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI), New York, Media release
14 July 2008
As delegates gathered in New York to consider the implementation of the Programme of Action on the illicit trafficking in small arms and light weapons, the Small Arms Survey 2008: Risks and Resilience, was launched at a Headquarters press conference this morning. The book is the eighth annual review of global small arms issues, which is produced by a team of researchers based in Geneva, Switzerland, and a worldwide network of local... ( gunpolicy.org )
United Nations, World, Iraq, Colombia, Afghanistan
Civilians Alone 'Lose' 650,000 Guns Each Year, Says Study Released at UN
Reuters
14 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- Every year hundreds of thousands of small arms go missing and many wind up in the hands of insurgents in countries like Iraq, Colombia and Afghanistan, a new survey published on Monday said. The annual report issued by the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey said that as many as 650,000 civilian-owned weapons go missing. This figure excludes the considerable amount of weapons that are diverted -- usually meaning stolen... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
DC Votes to Retain Stringent Gun Control Despite Supreme Court Ruling
Associated Press
14 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- The District of Columbia Council planned to vote Tuesday on emergency legislation to allow handguns if they are used only for self-defense in the home and carry fewer than 12 rounds of ammunition. The legislation announced Monday comes as officials scramble to comply with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month striking down the city's 32-year-old ban. The proposal, which maintains some of the city's strict... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Disney Firing Sets Stage for Gun Rights v Property Rights Battle in Florida
South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), Editorial
14 July 2008
Walt Disney World probably put itself in the legal cross hairs of America's gun lobby this week when theme park officials fired a security guard who sought the law's protection but violated company policy in doing so. Bringing a gun to work is perfectly legal, thanks to the pliant Florida Legislature that approved a law allowing concealed weapons permit holders to pack heat as long as they leave their guns locked in their vehicles.... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Easily Bought Assault Weapons Kill More Americans, Cops Than Ever Before
Mother Jones (USA) / Jul-Aug Issue
14 July 2008
In a warehouse on the outskirts of the rural Shenandoah Valley town of Fishersville, Virginia, it didn't take long to spot what I was looking for. There were plenty of guns lined up neatly on display tables, everything from Civil War-style muskets to handguns to hunting rifles, but I was in the market for something with a bit more firepower. At a table near the entrance, I found it: a Chinese-made MAK-90 semiautomatic rifle, a variation... ( gunpolicy.org )
Ireland
Fewer Than 20% of Gun Crimes in Irish Republic Result in a Conviction
Irish Times
14 July 2008
Fewer than one in five gun crimes results in a conviction, new figures released by the Department of Justice have revealed. The conviction rates are low because the identities of many of those suspected to be involved in particular gun crimes are never established. In other cases, where the suspects' identities are known, witnesses are often too frightened to give evidence against those responsible. The new Department of... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Florida's 'Take Your Guns to Work' Law Crosses Line of Common Sense
USA Today, Column
14 July 2008
Edwin Sotomayor is the crash-test dummy in an upcoming legal collision between the National Rifle Association and Disney World. The 36-year-old was fired last week from his job as an unarmed security guard at the Orlando theme park after he took his .45-caliber handgun to work, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Under a new Florida law, people in the Sunshine State can carry their "legally owned firearms" to work as long as they leave... ( gunpolicy.org )
Ghana
Global Study Says Civilians Lost 650,000 Guns - About One in 10 Owned
International Herald Tribune / AP
14 July 2008
UNITED NATIONS -- One of every 1,000 civilian-owned guns in the world is lost or stolen and can wind up in the hands of militants in nations like Iraq and Afghanistan, a Swiss institute says in a new survey Monday. Most of the lost guns flow to nations that "rarely engage in some of the most basic verification procedures," said Jurg Streuli, a Swiss diplomat and representative to the U.N. Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland.... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Guns Should Be Allowed in Busiest US Airport, Says Georgia Governor
Associated Press
14 July 2008
ATLANTA -- Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue said Monday that guns should be allowed in public areas of the nation's busiest airport. And he suggested his own wife might want to pack a firearm for long walks between the parking lot and the terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International. "If my wife wanted to carry a gun, if she was going from the parking lot, walking from one of those far parking lots to pick up a grandchild... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Judge Rules Supreme Court Gun Decision Has ' No Impact' on NY State Law
Post-Standard (New York)
14 July 2008
The recent historic handgun ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court should have no impact on gun control and licensing provisions in New York state, a local judge has concluded. Onondaga County Judge William Walsh ruled the June 26 Supreme Court ruling striking down the District of Columbia's strict handgun ban has no effect on the rights of individual states to establish their own firearm laws. Walsh made that finding in a written... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Most New Orleans Crime Guns Were Stolen from Legal Gun Owners - Police
New Orleans City Business (Louisiana)
14 July 2008
When Deputy Chief James Scott started with the New Orleans Police Department 36 years ago, the criminal weapon of choice was the Saturday Night Special, a cheap, low-quality handgun that packed little punch and wasn't capable of doing much damage. Three decades later, Scott admits to being terrified at some of the weapons police discover on the streets of New Orleans such as the "street sweeper," a modified shotgun capable of shooting... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
North Carolina's 'Ludicrous Gun Argument' Allows Mentally Ill to Stay Armed
Salisbury Post (North Carolina), Opinion
14 July 2008
RALEIGH -- It was among the more ludicrous arguments made on the Senate floor in a while. Sen. Doug Berger, a Franklin County Democrat, was speaking in favor of an amendment by the Senate's other Berger, minority leader Phil, that would water down a bill designed to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill. Doug Berger's argument: What about someone who had just lost a spouse, who was now depressed, so depressed in... ( gunpolicy.org )
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea Tells UN of 'Radical Action Plan' to Curb Illegal Guns
Pacific Magazine
14 July 2008
PORT MORESBY -- Papua New Guinea Internal Security Minister Sani Rambi will announce an executable plan to deal with illegal guns when he returns from a four-day international forum on gun control in New York. Rambi told Pacific Magazine said his delegation is comprised of PNG Police Commissioner Gari Baki and other government officials. They left Port Moresby yesterday morning to attend the Biennial Meeting of States on Small Arms... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States, Afghanistan, Albania
Pentagon's Afghan Army Ammo Sale Fraud Takes Political Twist in Congress
Los Angeles Times
14 July 2008
WASHINGTON -- A top-priority federal investigation of military procurement fraud in Afghanistan has been forced to shift direction because of a congressional panel's allegation that a senior U.S. diplomat sought to cover up the scheme. The accusation against the ambassador appears to be unraveling, however, and prosecutors are scrambling to assess the effects on a case involving what is considered to be one of the most serious procurement... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Police 'On Edge' After Minnesota Gun Dealer Loses 30 Handguns to Thieves
Fox News (Minnesota)
14 July 2008
MINNETONKA -- A Minnetonka gun shop on Excelsior and Co. Rd. 4 was burglarized early Monday morning and dozens of weapons are now missing. Burglars stole several different kinds of handguns, and police are now on edge. Police say the burglars knew what they were doing and exactly what they wanted. They hit the Glen Lake Gun Shop around dawn, hours before employees arrived, and disarmed the store's sophisticated security... ( gunpolicy.org )
Africa, United Nations, World
Rap Star, Ex-Child Soldier Urges UN to Curb Guns, 'The Real WMDs'
International Action Network on Small Arms (London), Media release
14 July 2008
Emmanuel Jal, former child soldier and international rap star, will address the United Nations on Tuesday to urge them to regulate the gun trade. Emmanuel is an involuntary expert in gun violence. He was born in war-torn Sudan, and forced to fight at the age of six or seven with the rebel army in the civil war. Put into battle as a child soldier, he was made to shoot with an AK-47 that was taller than he was. He fought for five... ( gunpolicy.org )
Tanzania
Success of Gun Amnesty 'Good News Indeed' for Arusha, Tanzania
Citizen (Dar es Salaam), Editorial
14 July 2008
Police in Arusha Region say they have recovered over 20 illegally owned firearms in the past fortnight, and this is good news indeed for a region that is grappling with high crime rates. It is worth noting that most of the guns were handed in by village leaders after they were surrendered by people who had been possessing them illegally. The recovery of the firearms should go a long way in reducing armed robberies and other forms... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
A New Jersey Street Decays, Guns Proliferate, but One Holdout Fights On
New York Times
13 July 2008
TRENTON, New Jersey -- The view from the freshly whitewashed porch of the brick row house where the Clark family has lived for the last 49 years is of precisely the kind of broken city street the United States Supreme Court had in mind when it was weighing arguments recently about the right of Americans to own guns. "Those three there are empty," said Dion Clark, 44, pointing out the decrepit abandoned houses on Walnut Avenue that... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Claims That Guns Raise Suicide Risk in US Don't Stand Up Well to Scrutiny
Chicago Tribune, Opinion
13 July 2008
Americans often buy guns for self-defense, a purpose that now has Supreme Court validation. But according to advocates of gun control, those purchasers overlook the people who pose the greatest threat: themselves. Anyone who acquires a firearm, we are told, is inviting a bloody death by suicide. So says Matthew Miller, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health. "If you bought a gun today, I could tell you the risk of suicide... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Gun Control in America Is Probably a Lost Cause: 'Country Is Nuts on Guns'
News-Leader (Missouri), Opinion
13 July 2008
I had given the speech and was taking questions from the audience (always easier than giving a speech). A man asked me if I had any ideas about how to achieve a rational system of gun control in this country. My answer surprised me. "No," I told him. "I've given up on gun control. That battle is over. We've lost. I no longer think it's an achievable goal and if I were a politician I wouldn't lose an election over it." ... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Hundreds Gather in Chicago Gun Death Protest, Families Mourn in Private
Chicago Tribune
13 July 2008
South Side pastor Larry Trotter stood on a street corner Sunday and sang soulfully for all swept up in Chicago's street violence: "Trouble in my way, I have to cry sometimes." Hundreds joined him to protest the gun violence that has plagued parts of the Southeast Side, and the melodic call and response briefly overpowered the sputter and hum of traffic at 79th Street and Yates Avenue. But in two other parts of the city,... ( gunpolicy.org )
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea, Commonwealth Discuss Global Gun Trade Treaty
ABC Radio Australia (Pacific shortwave)
13 July 2008
The build up of small and light weapons in Papua New Guinea's autonomous island of Bougainville has raised some concerns for the national government. Pacnews reports... PNG Justice Minister Dr Allan Marat raised the issue with his Commonwealth colleagues during a meeting in Edinburgh. Dr Marat says he discussed the possibility of an arms trade treaty between Commonwealth nations. He said there was a heavy proliferation... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Stray Bullet Pierces Bedroom Wall, Kills Cleveland Man Inside His House
Cleveland Plain Dealer (Ohio)
13 July 2008
Carlos Rodriguez was just about to slip into bed when a bullet meant for someone else tore through his bedroom wall and struck him in the chest. Another gunbattle on Cleveland streets. Another Clevelander killed. Most homicide victims are targets of the crimes. But the past three weeks have been particularly deadly for Clevelanders minding their own business. On June 27, 75-year-old Daniel Lewis was sitting... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Supreme Court Ruling 'Has No Effect' on Existing Illinois Campus Gun Ban
News-Gazette (Illinois)
13 July 2008
Bring a gun to the Illini Union, a dorm, or elsewhere on the University of Illinois campus and you'll be slapped with a class A misdemeanor. University policy, student code, not to mention state law, bars handguns, rifles and weapons like knives from campus. But after the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling last month on gun ownership, which overturned a Washington, D.C., handgun ban, questions have been raised about the implications... ( gunpolicy.org )
Pakistan
Wedding Party Celebratory Shooting Kills Another Passerby in Karachi
International News (Karachi)
13 July 2008
KARACHI -- Two people were killed by stray bullets in separate incidents reported on Saturday in the Gizri and Baghdadi police limits. On Friday night, 35-year-old Mohammed Ashraf was passing through a lane near his house. A wedding ceremony was underway in the lane in the Gizri police limits. A stray bullet shot in the air hit Ashraf, and proved fatal. The police said that the deceased had been working as a cook for the past 15... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
Licensed Quebec Gun Owner Killed Police Officer, Acquitted: No Appeal
Montreal Gazette (Quebec)
12 July 2008
The Crown has decided not to appeal the jury verdict that acquitted Brossard resident Basil Parasiris of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Laval police officer Daniel Tessier. The branch of the provincial Justice Department that handles prosecutions had until Monday to decide whether to appeal the verdict, delivered at a trial in Longueuil on June 13. Instead, it issued a short news release yesterday stating... ( gunpolicy.org )
Philippines
Stray Bullet Kills Housewife Working in Kitchen in Philippines
Philippine Daily Inquirer
12 July 2008
MANILA, Philippines -- A 58-year-old woman was killed by a stray bullet while working in the kitchen of her house in Quezon City. Haydie Padilla of Evangelista Street, Barangay (village) Payatas A, succumbed to a bullet wound in the back while undergoing treatment at East Avenue Medical Center. Police Officer 3 Randy Bantillo of the Quezon City Police District Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (QCPD-CIDU) said Padilla... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
Texas Students Lobby For, Against Carrying Hidden Handguns on Campus
Houston Chronicle (Texas) / AP
12 July 2008
BLANCO, Texas -- College students in Texas are pushing for legislation that grants the right to bear arms on campus in the wake of last year's massacre at Virginia Tech. Currently, Utah is the only state that specifically allows the carrying of concealed weapons at public universities. A 2003 Colorado law allowed universities to adopt their own policies, and Colorado State decided not to ban licensees from carrying weapons into... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Movement Lobbies for Students, Staff to Carry More Guns on Campus
Houston Chronicle (Texas) / AP
12 July 2008
BLANCO, Texas -- Cameron Schober, a 22-year-old Texas State University student, aimed his semi-automatic pistol at the outline of a man's torso just as a gust of wind blew down the target. "Everybody hold up!" hollered instructor Mike Cox. As six other shooters lowered their weapons, Schober scrambled to brace the cardboard target at a makeshift range on a deserted Hill Country ranch. Schober and fellow student Bill Downs... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
US Soldier, Prison Guard Face 3yrs Jail for Smuggling Guns into Canada
London Free Press (Ontario)
12 July 2008
An Ohio soldier and a California prison guard charged with bringing guns into Canada would face tougher jail terms if convicted under a new federal gun law. Changes that took effect May 1 call for mandatory three-year jail terms for offences including possession of prohibited firearms with ammunition. The former minimum penalty was one year. The men were separately charged over the past week, the first Americans... ( gunpolicy.org )
United States
US Woman Shot Herself Trying to Kill Mice with .44 Magnum: No Charges
Santa Rosa Press-Democrat (California)
12 July 2008
A Potter Valley woman who wounded herself while attempting to kill mice with a .44 Magnum revolver won't face criminal charges, authorities said Thursday. The Mendocino County District Attorney's Office had been considering whether to charge Debra Due, 43, with negligent discharge of a firearm. "There's insufficient criminal intent," Chief Deputy District Attorney Jill Ravitch said Thursday. "Sometimes incredibly stupid... ( gunpolicy.org )
Canada
Vancouver Police Seize Machine Guns, Arrest Drug Gang 'Armourer'
Vancouver Sun (British Columbia)
12 July 2008
A young man arrested last year with a Vancouver condo full of explosives, land mines and machine guns was a major supplier to the United Nations gang, according to just-released court documents. Jong Ca John Lee, 27, is now serving five years after pleading guilty to a series of gun charges. But documents filed at his bail hearing show that police believe he was a major source of high-powered assault rifles, grenades and... ( gunpolicy.org )
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