Daily small arms policy, firearm violence prevention, gun news
and gun control news from global media. Editor, Philip Alpers.
Latest Gun Policy News
Suicidal Man, Woman Rented Guns, Died at Adelaide Shooting Range
6 September 2010
Advertiser (Adelaide)
A firearms notification was issued two weeks before Julia Morris walked into a city shooting range and committed suicide, a court has heard.
Earlier that same day October 23, 2008 Ms Morris had been released from hospital after an earlier suicide attempt.
State Coroner Mark Johns is investigating the deaths of Ms Morris and Raymond Glenn Jast five months later on March 25, 2009 in another shooting suicide at the Marksman Indoor Firing Range on Franklin St,... (GunPolicy.org)
No Gun Culture, But Indonesia At Risk from Illegal Firearms, Gun Violence
6 September 2010
International Crisis Group (Brussels), Media release
JAKARTA/BRUSSELS -- The Indonesian government could reduce the circulation of illegal firearms by improving procedures for guarding and monitoring police and military armouries, conducting regular audits of gun importers and enforcing controls over the "airsoft" industry.
Illicit arms in Indonesia, the latest briefing from the International Crisis Group, examines four sources of illegal guns in Indonesia: theft or illegal purchase from the security forces, leftover... (GunPolicy.org)
Supreme Court, Gun Lobby Persuade San Francisco to Drop Firearm Ban
5 September 2010
New York Times
SAN FRANCISCO — A recent Supreme Court decision could alter what public transit riders here see in advertisements on city buses and trains and in transit shelters.
Despite a San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Agency policy prohibiting advertisements that "appear to promote the use of firearms," a gun rights group's posters have been placed in city bus shelters.
Images promoting guns, which are banned under an advertising policy of the San Francisco... (GunPolicy.org)
Coroner's Report 'Could Lead to Sweeping Changes' to NZ Gun Laws
4 September 2010
Dominion Post (Wellington)
The violent deaths of Napier gunman Jan Molenaar and the police officer he shot, sparking a 50-hour siege, could lead to sweeping changes to gun laws.
Coroner David Crerar has recommended the Government review the Arms Act – including revisiting a suggested ban on military-style semi-automatics – as part of his findings into the deaths of Molenaar and Senior Constable Len Snee last May.
He levelled criticism at the community, saying it was "a matter of enduring... (GunPolicy.org)
Licensed Canadian 'Gun Lover' Pleads Guilty to Making Machine Guns
3 September 2010
Telegram (Newfoundland)
With homemade, automatic weapons in front of him, Const. Chris Young doesn't understate the potential danger.
"These things can be devastating in the wrong hands," the RCMP officer says.
The firearms on the table include a .22-calibre rifle and an AK-M (AK-47) rifle that were turned into automatic weapons.
Also laid out are a 1911-style pistol and a German submachine-gun. Both were handcrafted.
All four weapons are the handiwork of Jason Patrick Loder, who even... (GunPolicy.org)
Dead US Gunman Demanded Discovery Channel Help Reduce Population
3 September 2010
Scotsman (Edinburgh)
A gunman police shot dead after he took hostages at Discovery Channel's headquarters said he hated the company's shows such as Kate Plus 8 because they promoted population growth.
Three hostages - two Discovery employees and a security guard - escaped unhurt after the four-hour standoff in Silver Spring, outside Washington DC.
After several hours of negotiations tactical officers moved in when authorities monitoring the man on security cameras saw him pull out a gun... (GunPolicy.org)
Offended by Tories, MPs May 'Stay Away' from Canada Gun Registry Vote
2 September 2010
Toronto Star (Ontario)
OTTAWA — Some rural and northern New Democrat MPs may stay away from the upcoming vote on the long-gun registry, a move that could save the controversial program, the Star has learned.
The about-face is driven in part by tactics the Conservative government is employing as it tries to build support for killing the registry. One Conservative MP has accused Canada's police chiefs of plotting to use the registry to seize Canadians' rifles and shotguns.
"You've got the... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Club Loses Enthusiasts, Weapons Because of Canadian Gun Registry
2 September 2010
Winnipeg Free Press (Manitoba)
Long gun registry hurting membership at Winnipeg Trap and Skeet Club
Winnipeg Trap and Skeet Club president David Mosscrop says the long gun registry has had a negative impact on recreational shooting.
The president of the Oak Bluff-based Winnipeg Trap and Skeet Club says the country's long gun registry has had a devastating impact on the club's membership.
Club president David Mosscrop said that the number of recreational gun enthusiasts who use the club has... (GunPolicy.org)
Feds Charge California Gun Shop Sold 7 Assault Rifles for Mexican Cartel
2 September 2010
KCRA-TV News (Sacramento)
SACRAMENTO, California -- A Modesto gun store owner was arrested Thursday on charges of illegal firearm sales, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento.
Salida resident Robert John Ronning, 42, owns Ronning Arms Inc.
Prosecutors said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives participated in an investigation last year that involved the purchase of methamphetamine, machine guns and assault weapons.
"It appeared that some of the firearms came... (GunPolicy.org)
Slovakia Mass Shooting May Lead to Private Machine Guns Being Banned
2 September 2010
New York Times
PRAGUE — As Slovakia held a day of mourning Thursday to honor the victims of Monday's violent rampage in the Slovak capital, Bratislava, a picture began to emerge of the killer, an unemployed loner who the police said had participated in shooting contests and may have harbored resentment against his Roma victims.
The killing spree, in which six members of a Roma family were killed — including a 12-year-old boy — has shaken Slovakia, a small and predominantly... (GunPolicy.org)
Thailand,North Korea,Iran,New Zealand
NZ Woman Linked to North Korea-Iran Arms Trafficking, Guilty Plea Tipped
2 September 2010
New Zealand Press Association
A director of a New Zealand firm allegedly linked to arms traffickers reappeared in court today.
Lu Zhang, 28, is accused of 75 offences of making false statements in company registration forms after she declared her office address was her residence in 75 companies she registered.
She was charged after a plane loads of weapons, including rockets and grenades, from North Korea bound for Iran was seized in Bangkok last year.
The Russian-made aircraft was allegedly... (GunPolicy.org)
Biggest Factor in New York Gender Death Gap? Far and Away: Guns
2 September 2010
New York Times
The city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene had some discouraging words this week for XY-chromosome New Yorkers. Not only do men in this city, on average, live shorter lives than women do — that's true almost everywhere in the world — but the gender gap in life expectancy is also wider here than in the United States as a whole.
Based on 2008 figures, the most recent, newborn American girls can expect to live to 81, boys to 76. The comparable numbers in the... (GunPolicy.org)
Premier Dismisses Loss of 186 Victoria Police Guns as 'Accounting Error'
1 September 2010
Herald Sun (Melbourne)
Premier John Brumby has been slammed for trying to excuse police failure to account for 186 guns as "an accounting error".
The Opposition yesterday called for an independent inquiry into why Victoria Police does not know what happened to the weapons.
The call came after the Herald Sun revealed the firearms -- including shotguns, semi-automatics and revolvers -- could not be found to match them with records.
Opposition leader Ted Baillieu said Victoria Police's track... (GunPolicy.org)
Yapping Gun-freedom Brigade, Canada Gun Registry Enemies Very Loud
1 September 2010
Toronto Star (Ontario), Column
oh for a quiet life, Jack Layton thinks as he shuffles about asking his members to please vote to support the national long-gun registry because if they don't, he'll be remembered as the guy who finished it off.
All he has to do is tell them how to vote. He's the boss, and besides, it's hardly a matter of conscience.
But he's worried that he'll anger voters who've been suckered into the Conservative mindset that registering your gun is a failure of manhood.
But why... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun-toting Gun Registry Skeptic Recants: In-family Gun Deaths in Canada
1 September 2010
Toronto Star (Ontario), Column
Anyone skeptical about the value of the gun registry should read the long-delayed RCMP report reluctantly released this week by Stephen Harper's federal government.
Jack Layton in particular should make his New Democratic MPs read it — particularly those who plan to provide the Conservatives with enough votes to kill the registry when the issue comes to a vote next month.
I own rifles and admit that, until now, I hadn't been entirely convinced the registry was... (GunPolicy.org)
Shot West Bank Settler Had Licence Revoked, So Israel Eases Gun Control
1 September 2010
YNet News (Tel Aviv)
After learning that one of settlers killed in Tuesday's deadly shooting attack had his gun license revoked, interior minister determines West Bank Jews will be given permits without police authorization. 'We won't allow deaths as a result of bureaucracy,' he says
In the aftermath of Tuesday's deadly shooting attack near Hebron, Interior Minister Eli Yishai has instructed Population and Immigration Administration head Amnon Ben-Ami to ease restrictions on the purchase... (GunPolicy.org)
Slovak Rampage Gunman Killed 7 with Assault Rifle He Owned Legally
1 September 2010
Agence France Presse
A gunman who killed seven people and wounded at least 13 in a rampage in Bratislava was in legal possession of the assault rifle he used, police said Tuesday.
The gunman, who killed himself after the Monday shooting spree, was a 48-year-old man from Devinska Nova Ves, the outskirts of the Slovak capital where the shooting took place, police said in a statement.
"The police found an SA Vz.58 assault rifle. He also had two handguns and several full magazines. The man... (GunPolicy.org)
US Reconsiders, Bans Import of a Million Military Rifles from South Korea
1 September 2010
Fox News (USA)
The South Korean government, in an effort to raise money for its military, wants to sell nearly a million antique M1 rifles that were used by U.S. soldiers in the Korean War to gun collectors in America.
The Obama administration approved the sale of the American-made rifles last year. But it reversed course and banned the sale in March – a decision that went largely unnoticed at the time but that is now sparking opposition from gun rights advocates.
A State... (GunPolicy.org)
California Lawmakers Reject Open-carry Gun Ban, Long Gun Registration
1 September 2010
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, California — California lawmakers have rejected a bill that would have made it illegal to carry unloaded guns in public.
The Senate narrowly approved the measure Tuesday, the last day of the regular legislative session, on a 21-16 vote. But it failed in the Assembly.
The bill would have made it a misdemeanor to openly carry a handgun in a public place. Current California law permits carrying a rifle or a handgun in a holster if it is not... (GunPolicy.org)
Lobbyists Fail in First Attempt to Exempt US States from Federal Gun Law
1 September 2010
Associated Press
HELENA, Montana — A group of states seeking freedom from federal gun laws were dealt a blow Wednesday when a federal magistrate recommended dismissal of a lawsuit launched by gun rights advocates who argue Congress has overstepped its bounds with gun control.
The magistrate sided with the U.S. Department of Justice, which says courts have already decided that Congress can set standards on such items as guns through its power to regulate interstate commerce. The... (GunPolicy.org)
