Supes ban sales of .50-caliber rifles

CONTRA COSTA TIMES ^ | Wed, Mar. 24, 2004 | Peter Felsenfeld

[B4Ranch]

	Posted on Wed, Mar. 24, 2004
	Supes ban sales of .50-caliber rifles By Peter Felsenfeld CONTRA COSTA TIMES Contra Costa supervisors deflected volleys from Second Amendment advocates Tuesday and prohibited the sale of a weapon they say could transform a refinery into a fiery chemical weapon. The board voted 4-0 to ban firearms dealers from distributing powerful .50-caliber rifles in the county's unincorporated areas. Supervisor Millie Greenberg of Danville was absent. "I believe it's our responsibility in terms of health, safety and welfare to move ahead with this ordinance," said Supervisor Gayle Uilkema of Lafayette, who sponsored the measure along with John Gioia of Richmond. The ban will go into effect 30 days after a scheduled second reading April 6. It will apply to just two gun retailers, neither of which sell the weapon. However, the board plans to magnify the ordinance's impact by imploring cities throughout the county to adopt similar measures. Supervisors took their action in the shadow of a probable lawsuit. The California Rifle and Pistol Association on Monday faxed each supervisor part of a complaint the association intends to file. The board defeated a lawsuit filed by developers and cities when it constricted the urban limit line in 2000, Gioia said. Supervisors didn't back down then, he said, and they shouldn't now. "We stood firm, we did what we thought was best in the in the public interest, and we won," he said. About 20 gun advocates blasted the supervisors for passing a meaningless ordinance that they said violates their Second Amendment rights. The legislation hurts gun owners, but does nothing to combat terrorism, said Al Di Prima, a Concord resident. "After 9/11, we didn't ban airplanes or tall buildings because we were afraid of terrorism," he said. "After the Oklahoma City bombing we didn't ban Chevy vans and fertilizer." Bill Tharp, a San Ramon resident and NRA member, called the restrictions a "ridiculous waste of time and money," especially with Contra Costa facing a possible $82.4 million shortfall next year. "This county is running in the red," he said. "We have serious, serious budget problems. The supervisors need to be spending time balancing the budget, not passing gun control laws." Countering claims of fiscal irresponsibility, Juliet Leftwich, managing attorney for the nonprofit Legal Community Against Violence, offered to help the board find pro bono legal help to defend against gun lobbyists. To highlight the weapon's destructive power, supervisors showed a Marine training video of a .50-caliber rifle blowing holes in a 31/2-inch-thick manhole cover and a stack of 8-inch thick cinder blocks. The gun rights advocates cried foul, saying the film demonstrated a military assault rifle and armor-piercing bullets, both already illegal under state and federal law. "That Marine film was about as disingenuous as you can get to us," said Pittsburg resident Darryl Phillips. A smaller group of gun control advocates praised the supervisors' action. "This is an extremely dangerous weapon we don't want in our community," said Andres Soto, board member of the Violence Policy Prevention Center. Assemblyman Paul Koretz, D-West Hollywood, has introduced a state ban on selling .50-caliber rifles. The Senate Public Safety Committee is reviewing the bill.

---

© 2004 Contra Costa Times and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.contracostatimes.com

[Richard-SIA]

Unless it has been repealed Kalifornia has a state law that forbids counties or cities from passing local gun control laws that are more restrictive than those adopted by the state.

I know it is not always enforced, but if it is still on the books getting this nonsense tossed should be easy!

[Sabretooth]

The gun rights advocates cried foul, saying the film demonstrated a military assault rifle and armor-piercing bullets, both already illegal under state and federal law.

Uhhh, Im afraid neither the rifle or the ammo used it that video are illegal under federal law. Ive seen the video and its a barret M82 firing the raufoss round. Ive seen both for sale legaly.

[Tallguy]

Sheesh! Don't anybody tell these clowns about the time some Japanese radicals tried to blowup an airport tank farm with a radio-controlled aircraft/bomb! They'll be banning that next.

[Dan from Michigan]

Contra Costa County. Not suprised one bit.

[Badray]

Bump from the rooftop.

[spodefly]

How soon before they come for these:

[Axenolith]

What a bunch of rubes... Now I have to try to figure out how to round up enough dough to get one by then... ;-)

[blackie]

Kalifornia is becoming almost unlivable for gun owners ~ I left in '90 ~ didn't want to give up my Ruger Mini-14 Bullpup with its 90 rd drum mag. :):)

[cyborg]

New York is the worst I think. The permit fees are outrageous.

[7.62 x 51mm]

I'll be taking delivery of my AR-50 BMG later this spring, in a barter trade with my local armorer, for phase 3 of his residence landscaping. Phase 2 netted me an AR-10 with a Leupold scope, plus cash. His wife has expensive tastes.

He has a pristine 1921 Thompson, Colt-built, .45cal with 50-rnd drum mag, valued at $50,000 which I'd love to work a deal on. Of course, the Class 3 stamp is no biggie, as I have one for my AR-15s short barrel and silencer. Another 4-5mos wait would be worth it to own that Tommy Gun.

< /drooling all over the keyboard >

[mvpel]

Countering claims of fiscal irresponsibility, Juliet Leftwich, managing attorney for the nonprofit Legal Community Against Violence, offered to help the board find pro bono legal help to defend against gun lobbyists.

The LCAV is the organization that is conspiring with county and city leadership to drive through local ordinances that restrict the rights of gun owners. They are also behind the Alameda County gun show ban currently being fought by the Nordykes and their attorney, Don Kilmer, and numerous other efforts.

Their strategy is to create a crazy-quilt patchwork of gun laws across the state, one county or city at a time. Statewide preemption is their worst nightmare, which is why it's important that the California RKBA petition get on the ballot and get passed.

[Il Duce]

Don't know about where you can find the shirt, but you can order the hat (and other nifty stuff) here:

http://www.lifelibertyetc.com/product.aspx?pid=21

[TexasCowboy]

From my e-mail yesterday:

"America’s Most Radical Antigun Group Teams up with Barbara Streisand to Attack FCI!

Dear fellow firearms rights enthusiasts,

We here at FCI knew that our long string of victories was not making our enemies happy. But little did we realize how angry and desperate they were until the Violence Policy Center (VPC) launched a massive attack on FCI, funded in part by a grant from Barbara Streisand. You may know VPC as the radical group behind the website banhadngunsnow.com and authors of the book, "Every Handgun is Pointed at You."

Thanks to the hard work of FCI and supporters like you, our opposition has been thoroughly beaten every time they have sought to use lies and distortion to call for a ban on the fifty caliber target rifle. They have failed to pass such a ban in legislatures controlled by anti-gun politicians. Now they are so desperate that they have had to invent a “report” to respond to FCI’s obliteration of their baseless claims.

The VPC-Streisand report is as much of a joke as the cheap Pinocchio puppet imitation pictured on its cover, but you can bet their anti-gun allies in politics will use it to continue the assault on your freedoms. VPC allies in California will likely be using the report today in Contra Costa County, where as we mentioned last week, a local ban on the .50 bmg is being debated. The vote on banning the .50bmg in a San Francisco suburb is purely window dressing, as no .50bmg has ever been used to kill anyone in Contra Costa County, the State of California or the entire United States of America[emphasis mine]. Antigun forces are merely starting a small brush fire they hope to whip up into an inferno of support for their gun ban. The County may vote today on this ridiculous proposal, visit http://nramemberscouncils.com/legs.shtml for more info on the vote.

VPC continues its age old tradition of exploiting out of context quotes from people related to the shooting sports in order to spread irrational fear about this sporting rifle. But despite their lies, they cannot contest the fact that the .50bmg rifle has an unprecedented safety record in America. It has been used safely and responsibly for sporting competition for nearly 20 years. In that time there has not been a single incident where a .50bmg target rifle was used by a criminal or terrorist to kill anyone in America[emphasis mine].

FCI will continue to take on the fight for freedom everywhere VPC and their anti-gun allies appear. Our enemies know this and VPC even admitted that we’ll be taking them on in future battles in the latest VPC press release.

FCI cannot count on grants of tens of thousands of dollars from celebrities like Barbara Streisand or billionaires like George Soros to fund its fight for freedom. Our work is supported by countless supporters like you, giving $20 or more to help FCI keep the fifty caliber target rifle legal.

Make no mistake, while we may have a winning track record so far, the opposition is pulling out all the stops to attack FCI and infringe on your freedoms. They’ve got a long list of rich liberals to fund their attacks on freedom. Their efforts are underway today in Contra Costa County, California and they will soon be fighting for a statewide ban in California as well. They are working to ban our rifles in New York and Illinois as well.

FCI is committed to the fight, and we’ll continue to bring real world experts on firearms, ballistics and homeland security to counter their lies and distortions. Our opposition can produce a “study” whose research includes quoting from their previous “studies” or using out of context remarks from firearms publications. This shoddy work wouldn’t be acceptable in a high school social studies class, but it is all accepted as the irrefutable truth by the liberal media and anti-gun politicians.

Today FCI faces a dangerous and cornered enemy. Desperate from losses and flush with cash, they will say and do anything to infringe on America’s liberty. We will continue to take the battle to them in state legislatures and the media, but we need your help. More than a contribution, FCI needs you to spread the word about our efforts. Every one of you likely knows at least two other fellow Americans who share your beliefs about firearms and freedom. FCI needs you to forward this email to those two friends and urge them to get involved. Ask them personally to sign up for our email alert list, to read up about the fight to save the fifty and if they can, to make a contribution to support our efforts. They can visit our website at http://www.fiftycal.org/fcie-mailalertsi.html. Most importantly, we need to recruit more activists to the fight – so please take the time to forward this on to a friend, let them know its important!

Yours in Freedom,

Mike Marks
Chairman
Fifty Caliber Institute"

Fifty calibers are baby friendly:

[longun45]

California has been unlivable for firearm owners for quite some time. Some of the firearm owners are a little slower to catch on than others. The communist atmosphere that has taken over the larger population areas is unlivable. I cannot move to California because of the insane laws there.

Contra Costa county supervisors have just proven themselves to be ANTI-American, Anti Bill of Rights, and worthy of becoming a Recall targets. They are about as smart as a bunch of rocks in a dark box. I guess nobody in Contra Costa was willing to run.


I hope their communist handlers are very proud of them, and give them a nice pat on their pointy little heads.

[Bluntpoint]

Ya know, you can take an eye out with one of those.

Think of all the blind kids that might have happened if that Daisy was used at Columbine?

[blackie]

Move out here. :):):)

[mvpel]

I hope that next December 11, someone makes sure that the County Supervisors observe the provisions of Senate Concurrent Resolution 82, enacted in 1998:

http://www.jpfo.org/victory.htm

---

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That December 15, 1998, and every December 15 thereafter, be declared Bill of Rights Day in California; and be it further

Resolved, That all governmental bodies in California are encouraged to observe the annual Bill of Rights Day in a manner that brings to mind the meaning and importance of each of the 10 provisions contained therein; and be it further

Resolved, That on Bill of Rights Day, the Bill of Rights should be read in all public schools and in all government meetings and courtrooms convening that day; and be it further

Resolved, That on the first legislative session day following Bill of Rights Day, the Bill of Rights shall be read aloud, in its entirety, in both houses of the Legislature.

[templar]

To highlight the weapon's destructive power, supervisors showed a Marine training video of a .50-caliber rifle blowing holes in a 31/2-inch-thick manhole cover and a stack of 8-inch thick cinder blocks.

I'm no expert on manhole covers, but I've seen a few off of the hole. In fact, I've removed a couple myself for assorted purposes. I've never seen one 3 1/2 inches thick: the ones I've seen have been thicker at the rim than in the middle and usually less than 2 inches at the rim. Anyone know of any manhole covers that are a solid disk 3 1/2 inches thick?

BTW, manhole covers are cast iron and it isn't very hard to blow a hole in cast iron. I've got a 300 WinMag that would probably do it at close range ( I know it'll go clear through an old engine block).

[Travis McGee]

Outstanding!

[TC Rider]

Has anyone checked to see if the ban is on all .50 cal rifles? Did they ban the muzzleloaders as well? What about Shotgun slugs? Will the hunters wake up and find out their 12 ga shotguns are banned.