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Lower Court uses Heller Decision to uphold BATFE ban on imported weapons
nationalgunrights.org ^ | 7/24/2008 | NA

Posted on 08/21/2008 1:33:43 AM PDT by neverdem

In one of the first lower court rulings since the Supreme Court handed down the weakly-worded Heller Decision, a government restriction on firearms has been upheld.

Steven Mullenix, a federal firearms licensee (FFL), was denied permission to import German WWII replica rifles by the notoriously anti-gun Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE). The BATFE used arguments from the 1968 Gun Control Act to argue that the replica BD-44 held no "sporting purpose" and therefore Mr. Mullenix could not legally import them.

In return Mullenix sued the BATFE for infringing upon his right to keep and bear arms, calling their ruling "arbitrary and capricious."

Just a few short days after the Supreme Court ruled on the Heller Case -- the supposed victory for the Second Amendment --the North Carolina Circuit Court used Justice Scalia's own words to uphold the BATFE's restriction on firearms importation.

The lower court agreed with the BATFE's findings that the firearms Mr. Mullenix wanted to import were not "generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes."

They went on to restate the Heller Decision language that the Second Amendment wasn't unlimited, and that the government has the right to restrict or ban any type of firearm, stating that the right only applies to certain types of firearms.

Clearly, the ripples of the Heller Decision will be felt for years to come. Unfortunately we can only speculate on the future unintended consequences of this weak decision.

This much we do know: the Heller Decision is far from a victory for gun owners. It is already being used successfully to infringe upon the rights of gun owners across the county.

Read the full lower court ruling in Mullenix v. BATFE here. pdf link

For all the latest Heller Decision related news, click here:

http://www.nationalgunrights.org/truthaboutheller.shtml


TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: atf; banglist; batfe; bootthebatfe; heller; secondamendment; shallnotbeinfringed; stevenmullenix; trade
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http://www.ssd-weapon.com/engl_web/produkte_en/bd44_en/bd44_en.htm

Komrad Kalashnikov doesn't look so original. The AK-47 looks like a complete ripoff, IMHO.

The source has more stories about Heller being problematic.

1 posted on 08/21/2008 1:33:44 AM PDT by neverdem
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To: neverdem
Why or when did the 2nd amendment get limited to the right to own a gun for just hunting? On could say that all handguns are not for hunting and ban all of them. This is ridiculous.
2 posted on 08/21/2008 1:54:44 AM PDT by guitarplayer1953
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To: guitarplayer1953
The 2nd is for the citizen to be able to violently overthrow the government.

It's not about hunting. It's not about crime.

3 posted on 08/21/2008 2:07:01 AM PDT by Leisler
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To: guitarplayer1953

Absurd of course. At the time the amendment was written banning hunting would been considered ludicrous on the level of gay marriage.


4 posted on 08/21/2008 2:07:38 AM PDT by Impy (Spellcheck hates Obama, you should too.)
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To: Leisler

Oh, but the violent overthrow of gummint is a crime. Ask the gummint.


5 posted on 08/21/2008 2:19:27 AM PDT by wastoute
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To: neverdem

The weeds of tyranny encroaching on the vacant lot of liberty.


6 posted on 08/21/2008 2:20:28 AM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: wardaddy; Joe Brower; Cannoneer No. 4; Criminal Number 18F; Dan from Michigan; Eaker; Jeff Head; ...
Wow (McCain camp hits hard on Ayers)

The Idiocy of Energy Independence

The Triumph of Putinism - Understanding the Russian-Georgian conflict

Harrold school district's gun policy violates law, group says Five authors wrote the story besides AP's contribution. Can this story be posted?

From time to time, I’ll ping on noteworthy articles about politics, foreign and military affairs. FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.

7 posted on 08/21/2008 2:23:04 AM PDT by neverdem (I'm praying for a Divine Intervention.)
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To: neverdem
"The plaintiff, proceeding pro se. . . ."

"The plaintiff, a cheap, egomaniacal moron. . . ."

I just love guys who butcher a case that buggers the rest of the firearms owners in a circuit. Those decisions go on to be cited in other circuits.

The BATFE needs to be attacked by professionals, not the legal equivalent of clowns.
8 posted on 08/21/2008 2:25:51 AM PDT by Goldsborough (Non Sibi)
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To: neverdem
They went on to restate the Heller Decision language that the Second Amendment wasn't unlimited

That one line is all that the courts will ever use from Heller.

"[l]ike most rights, the Second Amendment is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose."

That's the only part the courts will focus on. Nothing else said in it will matter. They will keep chipping away at which weapons and and for what purpose thay are permitted. Mark my word.

9 posted on 08/21/2008 2:26:22 AM PDT by FreedomCalls ("Frank Shoemaker would call this noise")
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To: Leisler
Then how did it get reduced to hunting? If guns can only be imported on the basis of their ability to be used for hunting then that is the first step of being able to take handguns since they are not for hunting.
10 posted on 08/21/2008 2:52:10 AM PDT by guitarplayer1953
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To: neverdem
The lower court agreed with the BATFE's findings that the firearms Mr. Mullenix wanted to import were not "generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes."

Uh, since the Olympics themselves have shooting competitions that don't involve killing something, isn't shooting itself a sport?

11 posted on 08/21/2008 2:59:53 AM PDT by LRS (NO DRILLING; NO PEACE!)
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To: neverdem

Call them what they are: BAT FEces.


12 posted on 08/21/2008 3:03:18 AM PDT by Happy Rain ("Yeltsin was the comedy relief between two evil bastards.")
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To: neverdem
Dang BATFE; looks like a really good quality version of the MP-44 and I'd like to have owned one.

The only down side is that it would be a semiauto and the ammo is really expensive when you can find it...

13 posted on 08/21/2008 3:25:16 AM PDT by Chinstrap61a
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To: neverdem
The lower court agreed with the BATFE's findings that the firearms Mr. Mullenix wanted to import were not "generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes."

The 2nd isnt about "sport"

14 posted on 08/21/2008 3:29:08 AM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of the Masses Could Be Farts)
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To: neverdem

Has everyone read the book “Unintended Consequences”?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1888118040/ref=sib_dp_pt#reader-link

For those that haven’t, it’s part history and part fiction. In it, members of the “gun culture” start taking out BATF members and activist judges, then posting in the classifieds ads pointing out how easy it was, and that BATF members should quit their jobs or suffer the same fate.

They left in droves, and eventually, things started to get better.

Now I would NEVER advocate someone break the law, but wouldn’t it be interesting if the revolution was fought guerilla style like that?


15 posted on 08/21/2008 4:32:04 AM PDT by Weya (Barack Hussein Obama hates the United States of America. No question about it.)
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To: FreedomCalls
They will keep chipping away at which weapons and and for what purpose thay are permitted.

When everybody was celebrating Heller, I was urging caution, telling everyone that we did not win anything significant. Future courts could limit our 'right' to be exercised only in the home as everywhere else will be deemed off-limits and anything other than handguns too dangerous.

While Lucas is a lib, remember the words of Yoda admonishing Obi-Wan when Obi-Wan called their battle against the droids a 'victory'?

Yoda said: "Victory, you say? Master Obi-Wan.....not victory. The shroud of the Dark Side has fallen. Begun the Clone War has."

So it is with the Second Amendment. We won a single battle by a 5-4 vote. The war could easily be lost.

16 posted on 08/21/2008 5:10:57 AM PDT by Erik Latranyi (Too many conservatives urge retreat when the war of politics doesn't go their way.)
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To: neverdem

Activist local judges will always rule against liberty. Always have, always will. It doesn’t have any effect on us unless this were appealed and upheld. But you can bet that SCOTUS doesn’t take crappy pro se cases.

This would be news only if the court had ruled the other way.


17 posted on 08/21/2008 7:00:11 AM PDT by Atlas Sneezed (Guns don't kill people, criminals and the governments that create them do.)
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To: Weya

I suggest everyone read the book “Term Limits” by Vince Flynn.


18 posted on 08/21/2008 7:41:54 AM PDT by B4Ranch ("Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you"--John Steinbeck)
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To: guitarplayer1953
that is the first step of being able to take handguns since they are not for hunting.

not for hunting? tell that to this deer. .44mag, 70 yards.
19 posted on 08/21/2008 7:48:55 AM PDT by absolootezer0 ( Detroit: we're so bad, even our mayor is a criminal)
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To: harpseal; TexasCowboy; nunya bidness; AAABEST; Travis McGee; Squantos; Shooter 2.5; wku man; SLB; ..
First I've heard of this.

Click the Gadsden flag for pro-gun resources!

For the FreeRepublic "banglist", please click HERE .

20 posted on 08/21/2008 7:51:38 AM PDT by Joe Brower (Sheep have three speeds: "graze", "stampede" and "cower".)
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