Free Republic

“The sure foundations of the state are laid in knowledge, not in ignorance; and every sneer at education, at culture, at book learning, which is the recorded wisdom of the experience of mankind, is the demagogue's sneer at intelligent liberty, inviting national degeneracy and ruin.”~George William Curtis, Author, Social Reformer (1824-1896) Governor John Lynch vetoed Senate Bill 88 yesterday, once again affirming allegiance to yet another unelected, unaccountable constituency: The New Hampshire Police Chiefs Association. Despite thirty-one states adopting "stand your ground" laws and eliminating such duties to retreat, Lynch takes his counsel from those who think of themselves as...

CONCORD – Gov. John Lynch vetoed four bills Wednesday including one to expand a resident’s right to defend himself in public using deadly force (SB 88). “SB 88 would unleash the potential for increasing deadly violence in our communities,” Lynch wrote in his veto message. “It would allow the use of deadly force on street corners, in shopping malls, public parks and in retail stores. Drug dealers and other felons who brandish weapons will be further emboldened to use their weapons, while prosecution of those criminals will be made more difficult because of this bill’s expansion of the right to...

Gov. John Lynch has a chance to make sure that no other Granite Stater winds up in the position in which Moultonborough farmer Ward Bird famously found himself. Bird had an angry encounter with a female stranger on his own property. He said he drew an unloaded pistol, but never pointed it at her. She said he pointed it toward her. He was convicted of felony criminal threatening and sentenced to three years in prison, the mandatory sentence for that crime. Legislators have fixed that flaw in the law, and others. The changes are contained in Senate Bill 88, which...

For gun rights supporters like Rich Banks of Mountain Top, a new state law to widen the right to use deadly force in self-defense "allows good people to protect themselves." Critics say the expansion of the "Castle Doctrine" was unnecessary, that Pennsylvanians already had the right to protect themselves if their life was in jeopardy and the law could cause more violent confrontations. Last week, Gov. Tom Corbett approved the expansion of the Castle Doctrine, which allows citizens to use deadly force against an attacker at any place where they have a legal right to be. It also limits civil...

North Carolina --(Ammoland.com)- “The idea of a concealed-carry in an Applebee’s bothered people…” - Republican Speaker Thom Tillis, after restaurant carry language was removed from gun legislation which passed. [Analysis] With HB 650 signed by the Governor and scheduled to become law on December 1, congratulations are due to all who responded to GRNC alerts by calling and e-mailing the NC General Assembly. Thanks are also due volunteers of the Legislative Action Team for many hours spent at the legislature, our Director and Co-Director of Communications for dozens of alerts, often sent with little notice, to our Webmaster for alerts...

In 2007, a suburban Houston, Texas, resident named Joe Horn spotted a couple of burglars at his neighbor’s home. He called 911 and asked a dispatcher if he should stop them with his shotgun. The dispatcher told him to sit tight. “Ain’t no property worth shooting somebody over, OK?” the dispatcher said, according to published reports of the 911 call. That wasn’t OK with Horn, who noted that the “laws had been changed” in Texas, and that he had a right to protect himself. “I’m gonna kill ’em,” he told the dispatcher. And he did, with three shotgun blasts to...

In my first state House session, I fought for jobs, education, lower taxes, less spending, public health and safety, and other conservative issues; I also fought for Second Amendment rights for law-abiding citizens and I was a primary sponsor of the main Second Amendment bill. Citizens with conceal carry permits should not be convicted if they place a carry-out order and forget to remove the firearm before picking up the food at a restaurant that serves alcohol. It is illegal for conceal carry permit holders to use drugs or alcohol while carrying. People, in general, should not be allowed to...

Wisconsin --(Ammoland.com)- All but one state has granted some form of concealed carry and a growing number of states have returned to full Constitutional freedom in the right of uninfringed Constitutional Carry. Yet there is another movement sweeping across our land that should also cause great rejoicing. At this time, 38 states have some level of Castle Doctrine self-defense law. While some are more comprehensive than others, all are of significant benefit. Self-Defense From Frivolous Prosecution If you’re not familiar with the Castle Doctrine right of Self-Defense, a very basic description provides immunity from prosecution for an act of self-defense...

Pennsylvania lawyers are mulling over the implications of a bill signed into law by Governor Tom Corbett. The "Castle Doctrine" bill expands a person's right to use deadly force to certain places outside their home, and no longer requires people to retreat as a way to avoid a lethal confrontation. Attorney Fortunato Perri Jr. is satisfied with the change in the law. "I always thought that jurors struggled with the concept that someone has a duty to retreat if possible to do safely," said Perri. "I mean that's an awfully confusing aspect of the previous statute." Perri says the expanded...

Moments ago, in a private ceremony in his office, Governor Tom Corbett signed House Bill 40 into law, significantly expanding the self-defense rights of the law-abiding citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As this column recently reported, despite media characterization of the bill as simply an expansion of ‘Castle Doctrine’, this bill also contains a limited ‘Stand Your Ground’ provision as well as a long anticipated legal presumption of reasonableness in certain cases of self defense. Citizens of Pennsylvania should take the time to thank Governor Corbett for signing this important piece of public safety legislation.

A local lawmaker wants to allow Ohio gun owners to carry guns in colleges, churches, day care centers and government buildings. The bill would also eliminate the requirement for gun owners to carry their permit along with a firearm. This legislation, if passed, would expand on the bill that passed last week allowing guns in bars and restaurants serving alcohol as long as the gun owner isn’t drinking. State Rep. John Adams, R-Sidney, is proposing House Bill 256 for the third time and believes it could pass this session with the House back in Republican control. Previously, the bill never...

A bill expanding gun owners’ rights passed the state Senate Monday, bringing to a close the first, and perhaps final, chapter in a long battle that pitted Second Amendment proponents against gun-control advocates and some law-enforcement officials. HB 40, an expansion of the so-called “Castle Doctrine,” which had already passed the state House, sailed through the Senate with an overwhelming 45-5 majority. The five senators who voted against the bill were all from Philadelphia: They were Larry Farnese, (D-1st), Vincent Hughes, (D-7th), Shirley Kitchen, (D-3rd), Christine Tartaglione, (D-2nd) and LeAnna Washington, (D-4th). Northeast Philly’s Mike Stack and Sen. Anthony Williams...

CONCORD, N.H.—New Hampshire lawmakers are voting this week whether to allow people to use deadly force anyplace they have a right to be.

The North Carolina State House passed HB 650 which amends various firearms laws and includes the Castle Doctrine on the 2nd Reading. There is no report of the actual vote totals yet on the North Carolina General Assembly website or if it was even a roll-call vote. The bill will now go for its 3rd and final Reading before it is sent to the State Senate. Unfortunately, the bill did not pass unscathed. There were three amendments to the bill that were considered and passed before the bill passed its 2nd Reading. Amendment 1 was sponsored by Rep. Mark Hilton...

HARRISBURG — When Florida lawmakers in 2005 made their state one of the first to significantly expand its citizens' self-defense rights, they hoped doing so would deter criminals and ultimately reduce violent crime. What they got instead was two years worth of increasing gun violence. By mid-2007, the incidence of murders, armed robberies and assaults had increased statewide by 42 percent, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement website. While few lawmakers, police or prosecutors argue that the expansion of self-defense rights played a direct role in that increase, those figures have caused some observers to question whether expanding...

The gun rights group, The Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance, is taking aim at Republicans in the Minnesota Senate for not taking up a bill that would change when it's legal for a person to shoot someone in self defense. The Minnesota House already passed the bill and supporters were lobbying the Senate to pass it as well. The Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance sent out an action alert today that says the Senate has decided to not take up the bill this session. In a strongly worded e-mail, the group suggests that Senate Republicans "made a deliberate, political decision...

One local politician has her controversial agenda locked and loaded at the Minnesota Legislature. District 10 Senator and conservative Republican Gretchen Hoffman has sponsored a bill that would put into law a version of what is known as the “Castle Doctrine,” or “Stand Your Ground.” This defines the right of homeowners to not only shoot an intruder in self defense, but the right to shoot them if they believe “in good faith” the situation could lead to bodily harm. The bill would also extend those rights to other places outside of the home, such as vehicles, SUV’s, yards or tents....

ST. PAUL, Minn. - A proposal expanding the right to use deadly force in self-defense continues its advance through the Republican-controlled Legislature. The gun bill from GOP Rep. Tony Cornish goes before a House judiciary panel Wednesday after passing a public safety committee last week. The legislation would grant the right to defend oneself using deadly force in an expanded definition of home, including a garage, car, deck, tent, boat, overnight accommodation or other dwelling. The person wouldn't have to retreat from a threatening situation first.

Two important pro-gun bills need your immediate attention. As we reported last week, House File 1467 passed in the House Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee by a 10 to 7 vote. HB 1467, which is sponsored by state Representative Tony Cornish (R-24B), is now before the House Judiciary Committee and will be voted on during its hearing at 8:15 a.m. this Wednesday, May 4. The Senate companion bill sponsored by state Senator Gretchen Hoffman (R-10), Senate File 1357 Senate File 1357, is expected to be considered by the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee as early...

The top prosecutor in Dakota County doesn't like it. Neither do St. Paul police or Minnesota police organizations. Not to mention gun-control groups. But Republicans, backed by gun-rights groups, apparently do. And so, a bill that would give Minnesotans more flexibility in using deadly force to defend themselves and their properties cleared its first legislative hurdle Thursday. The Republican-controlled House Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee voted 10-7 to send the measure to another committee. "It's a common-sense bill,'' said its chief sponsor, state Rep. Tony Cornish, R-Good Thunder. The measure would expand state laws on use...