This was my Christmas present when I was 7 years old. Had a speaker in the stock that would make the sound of a shot echoing across a valley.
It was my pride and joy until summer when I left on the back deck of the car one day and it warped.
Posted on 12/22/2013 6:48:15 PM PST by Doomonyou
To the surprise of even city council members, the Petaluma Police Department dusted off a little-known law last week in an effort to educate the public on the city's regulations regarding toy guns. The move comes in the wake of the shooting death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez by a Sonoma County Sheriff's deputy, who reportedly mistook a replica airsoft gun the teen was carrying for a real AK-47 assault rifle.
The shooting sparked a handful of phone calls from concerned citizens seeking information about the laws regulating airsoft guns, which caused the Petaluma police to announce the ordinance in a press release last week.
The obscure Petaluma Municipal Code 10.56 outlaws the discharge or public display of any firearms — including airsoft and BB guns — within city limits. Firing any type of gun within Petaluma's boundaries is a misdemeanor criminal offense punishable by a $75 to $500 fine and up to six months in jail. There are exceptions to the law that cover police officer's weapons and legally licensed firearms being used in self defense.
The ordinance also makes the public display of any type of firearm or toy replica illegal, other than transporting legally owned guns within the trunk of a vehicle. Petaluma police officers have ticketed individuals for firing BB guns and airsoft rifles within city limits in the past, but Petaluma Police Sgt. Jim Stephenson said it's a rare occurrence.
“We've received a few calls from rural residents, complaining of people firing airsoft guns and pellet guns over the past few years,” he said, unable to remember how many times officers have responded to such reports in recent years. “We've cited a couple people for it, but it hasn't happened too often.”
(Excerpt) Read more at petaluma360.com ...
I don’t think the presence of an orange tip changes it one bit
I only used the guns the kid had which looked real enough to get you killed.
There are aftermarket suppliers that sell the parts needed to make them look as real as possible. In the airsoft culture no one but a 10 year old would be caught dead with neon tipped rifle. (bad pun).
Before crime scene photos were taken? No one in the family has brought it up? Immensely naive to think it did happen and no one has accused them of doing it. FWIW it was never positively identified as an Airsoft gun. Some articles say it was Airsoft some say a pellet gun and most call it a BB gun. “Real” pellet guns and BB guns are sold without orange tips.
Oops, forgot to say ‘my dad was a WWII vet.’ lol
How many times do we need to read about trigger-happy "fearful" COPS shooting whatever they fear and then getting away with it? Do you see any problems with the long string of tragedies like this?
My dad had to fight an urban war in Detroit and he actually shared some of the brutality with us kids. He was really torn up about the open warfare against fire fighters and cops. But, he acted in the most highly restrained manner possible. You can look up the stats on causalities from snipers and other perps against innocents, versus cops against perps. It was a very different world back then - when "serve and protect" really meant it...:
At a news conference, Santa Rosa police officers involved in the investigation held up Andy's pellet gun alongside a real AK-47 assault rifle.Lt. Paul Henry said that after deputies pulled in behind the boy, one shouted for him to put the gun down, then fired several shots.
"One of the deputies described that as the subject was turning toward him the barrel of the assault rifle was rising up and turning in his direction," he said. "The deputy feared for his safety, the safety of his partner and the safety of the community members in the area."
'I don't think it was fair'
Friends and family members of the boy, though, said he would have simply put the gun down if given a chance.
The replica firearm belonged to a friend, they said, and Andy liked to join others in playing games with low-power air guns. They said the deputies should have recognized they were confronting a teenager - and that the gun wasn't real.
What does that have to do with what kind of gun it was and whether it had an orange tip or not?
Look the guys left fingers are twice as big as his right fingers. Must be a lefty
“Federal law requires replica guns to have an orange tip”
That has to be on manufacturer and retail sales for new units only. There are plenty of “airsoft” stores selling 2nd hand units that look like the real deal.
Airsoft has become the generic term for electric gun shooting plastic bb.
I actually agree. You can read my other posts on this thread to understand why. My issues is with COPs not properly understanding their situation and thusly delivering unwarranted, or deadly force.
This was my Christmas present when I was 7 years old. Had a speaker in the stock that would make the sound of a shot echoing across a valley.
It was my pride and joy until summer when I left on the back deck of the car one day and it warped.
Not as much as the action and outcome. See my post Orange tip
Cops should not be opening fire on someone who is carrying a gun openly, if it was a real gun. To shoot a child who says “bang bang” at them, is ridiculous.
OK, so what difference does it make. If I carry an AK-47 over to show my neighbor am I fair game. The time between Police arrival and dead kid is seconds. Carrying a weapon in itself is not against the law.
I thought your point was that they were significantly different in size. It it wasn’t then ignore my post.
That one is enough to get you killed too.
I remember the disbelief I had the first time I went to the airsoft field.
This place was out in the sticks and we got there early when everyone was gathering into teams. Fathers and sons, Jr. high and high school kids and men dressed in cammo with face paint all loaded to the gills with “weapons” that would make a SWAT team envious.
Drop that motley crew into the middle of a liberal city and people would flee in terror.
Since your picture cuts the guns off at the bottom I can't get any perspective on size.
I could not have said it better. Thank you. End of story in my humble opinion.
There were gun-rights marches around the country. Brave souls had AK 47's draped across their back to demonstrate their 2nd amendment rights. We can debate the wisdom, but no one in the law enforcement community thought it prudent to confront them, disarm them, or shoot them.
In my hometown, we had at least a dozen pickups on any given day in "the back 40" with rife racks and loaded (real) firearms. They were only used for the purposes out fathers taught us. Now, it's like we live in an episode of the Twilight Zone where only "the State" has any legitimate right of power and all else are beholden to the few dictatorial agencies.
Airsoft AK-47 for sale:
http://www.evike.com/products/37093/
http://www.redwolfairsoft.com/redwolf/airsoft/AEG_AEP_Tokyo_Marui_AK_AUG_Series_Tokyo_Marui_AK47.htm
Here’s are some links to an airsoft forum where people are buying/selling/trading with photos.
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