Free Republic

LOCKHART — Michael Cargill’s commands cut through the air sharply as his license-to-carry students train to shoot at Lone Star Gun Range in Lockhart.“One shot. One shot.”The students load one bullet into their handguns, some brought from home, others rented from Cargill’s gun shop, Central Texas Gun Works. He reminds them to make sure their right thumb is atop their left on the gun, to keep their stances wide and to lean forward.“Fire! Fire! Fire!”If their stances are uneven, if their thumbs are not aligned, Cargill pauses to adjust each student’s positioning. This is the purpose of Cargill’s license-to-carry class:...

In Massachusetts, the Attorney General’s office has issued guidance as to how agencies in the state may comply with the United States Constitution’s Second Amendment as ruled in the NYSR&PA v. Bruen decision. From the Massachusetts AG Guidance: The Supreme Court made clear in Bruen that States may, consistent with the Second Amendment, require licenses to carry firearms in public. Bruen, slip op. 4-6 & 6 n.2; id. (Kavanaugh, J., concurring) (“the Court’s decision does not prohibit States from imposing licensing requirements for carrying a handgun for self-defense”).The AG office issues this further executive summary:It remains unlawful to carry a...

On 19 September, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the Wisconsin Constitutional Carry bill with a 3-2 vote. The vote was along party lines.Republican Senators Wanggaard, Testin, and Stroebel voted to bring Wisconsin statutes in line with the Wisconsin Constitution. Long time anti-Second Amendment Senators Risser and Taylor, Democrats, voted against the reform. Risser is from Madison. Taylor is from Milwaukee.From wrn.com:A bill that would allow Wisconsin residents to carry concealed weapons without a permit has advanced out of a state Senate committee.The legislation makes a number of changes to the state’s concealed carry law, which include allowing anyone who...

After the attack on the campus of Ohio State University, where an Islamic refugee attacked people with a knife and then with a truck, a new push has emerged for a bill that would allow concealed-carry permit holders to carry a gun on college campuses in the state of Ohio. “The idea of a lot of people walking around campus with firearms is just terrifying to me,” said Angelina Vega. Vega is a third-year law student at Ohio State and gave her opinion on what she calls “controversial” legislation during Wednesday’s Senate hearing. Vega was a former police officer at...

Another business discovers the advantages of welcoming the gun culture and supporting the Constitution.  In Minnesota, a gas station has found a way to disuade robbers by welcoming people with guns. From kstp.com: After getting robbed twice over the last three months, the owner of a Shell gas station in Sauk Rapids wanted to get more customers during the evening, hoping it would improve safety. Last week, station owner Frank Schwagel offered a 10-cent-per-gallon discount for law enforcement or people with proof of permit to carry after 7 p.m. each day. Much research has shown, over and over again,...

In Alabama, Governor Robert Bentley signed HB98, which provides for retired veterans who qualify, to obtain free pistol permits.  The bill was popular with the legislature, passing nearly unanimously. HB98 passed the House 93 to 4 with 3 abstentions. It passed the Senate 30 to 2 with no abstentions on 3 May, 2016, and was signed into law by Governor Bently on 13 May, 2016. The bill applies to retired military veterans who are non-disability retirees from the Army, Navy, Coast Guard or Marines, or any reserve component thereof. From the HB98(pdf): 24  (b) Any retired military veteran who...

More details have been released about the moments leading up to an armed robbery in St. Paul that left the 16-year-old suspect dead. Four teens have been charged in connection to the incident: 16-year-old Donte Edward Foster of Woodbury, 17-year-old Malcolm James Devion Golden of St. Paul, 16-year-old Kendell Anthony Lewis of St. Paul and 16-year-old Nautica Delshaun Cox of St. Paul. The alleged crimes started at 4:40 a.m. Friday, July 31, after a man reported that his silver sedan had been stolen from an alley behind his house. Two loaded guns were inside the vehicle, the victim reported. Ten...

Although I am a long-time member of the NRA, and I support that organization, I do not believe that the NRA is doing an adequate job of protecting the constitutional rights of American citizens. Many states and some localities are passing laws that severely restrict “effective” gun ownership and use, and local laws have become so varied and complex as to take away our right to protect ourselves. One area that is particularly troublesome and makes Second Amendment rights almost moot in a modern and mobile America is in the transport of a legal handgun while traveling. For example, a...

I would like to respond to two news articles that I have collected over the last two years about Ohio's concealed carry laws. The first article I have is from December 24, 2000, in which the following was printed in the bottom of the editor's column, that if Gov. Taft didn't oppose the "Concealed-Carry" Law, that it would be a "gift to violent criminals" and he shouldn't abandon his opposition for any reason. It also included the mention that law enforcement agencies have opposed "Concealed-Carry" for good reason. The second is to respond to a letter to the editor from...