Posted on 02/01/2003 12:29:47 AM PST by Super Mak90kid
Mayor, chief seek gun restrictions BY AARONS ANDERFORD / Lincoln Journal Star and NATE JENKINS
If Lincoln's mayor and police chief get their way, more criminals could be arrested for carrying guns, and others could find it harder to sell potentially stolen goods.
Mayor Don Wesely and Police Chief Tom Casady offered three potential ordinances Thursday. They plan to bring the proposals to the City Council in March.
The proposals will ask the council to enact the following changes:
• Prohibit people convicted of theft or a theft-related crimes twice over the last 10 years from selling or trading property to pawn brokers and dealers of secondhand jewelry.
• Make it illegal to keep firearms in parked, unattended vehicles for more than 24 hours.
• Outlaw firearms possession for people convicted of any of 19 charges the mayor and chief selected as "serious, violent or potentially violent misdemeanors."
Police say they found a positive reaction to the first proposal when Casady met Jan. 17 with pawn shop owners and managers.
Jeremy Cosier, manager of Capitol City Pawn &Jewelry, 2541 N. 11th St., said owners initially worried what would be required of them. Those fears were allayed.
"What it's going to try to do is weed out a bad element," Cosier said. "Pawn shops get that bad image, but we're more than happy to cooperate with police and get those types of folks out of the shops."
State law requires pawn shops to provide police information about items they purchase and the people who sold them.
If the proposal were to pass, police would be able to cross-reference lists of who's selling what with lists of known criminals and arrest those who sell items to pawn shops or dealers of secondhand jewelry.
Pawn brokers would not be given a "hot" list of names to avoid, officials said, but would be required to avoid buying from people they knew were convicted twice of such crimes.
No one interviewed Thursday expressed angst about the 24-hour proposal for keeping handguns out of unattended cars.
Investigators brought the ordinance idea to Casady after several victims of larcenies from autos reported firearms stolen.
The firearms-possession ban is modeled on restrictions Omaha uses to keep people convicted of violent misdemeanors from getting gun permits.
Omaha's ordinance also denies gun registration to anyone with a record of drug use or of dangerous mental disorders.
Lincoln's proposal would not address the mental health or substance abuse questions, because both are addressed in state law, Casady said.
But the language of the proposals could ignite legal challenges if written too broadly, said Tim Butz, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska.
Butz worried most about the inclusion of "obstructing government operations" among misdemeanors that could eliminate someone's right to bear arms.
Political demonstrators, particularly at war times, are cited for such crimes, he said.
"What the mayor and the chief are talking about could be completely constitutional if done right, and it could be flagrantly unconstitutional if not,"he said.
City Council members, some of whom first learned of the proposals Thursday, said they need more information and discussion before they'll take concrete positions.
Framing the gun-possession debate will be questions of fairness -- specifically fairness to those convicted of the targeted crimes, council members said.
Councilwoman Annette McRoy said she doesn't yet know enough to say "yea or nay" but added that the ordinances "sound good."
Councilwoman Coleen Seng, a candidate for mayor, said she trusts Casady's judgment.
Councilman Ken Svoboda said public reaction could be a major factor in his decision.
"I'm for anything that takes firearms out of the hands of a potential or convicted criminal," said Svoboda. "But there's a fine line" between public protection and infringing on an individual's rights.
Reach Aaron Sanderford at 473-7225 or asanderford@journalstar.com Reach Nate Jenkins at 473-7223 or njenkins@journalstar.com.
Just an off-the-wall thought? How about a recall petition? Even if it doesn't have a prayer, it will surely scare the beJesus out of them, and get their attention...
Keep the week end of June 7 & 8 open.
That is the date of the 2003 Annual NE Shooting Sports Association's Annual meeting.
The location of this year's meeting is Lincoln, NE
I also found this here. I'm not certain if this is intended as a preemption law or not.
STATE CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISION "All persons. . . have certain . . . rights, among these are . . . the right to keep and bear arms for security or defense of self, family, home, and others, and for lawful common defense, hunting, recreational use, and all other lawful purposes, and such rights shall not be denied or infringed by the state or any subdivision thereof." (Article 1, Section 1).
But the language of the proposals could ignite legal challenges if written too broadly, said Tim Butz, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska. Butz worried most about the inclusion of "obstructing government operations" among misdemeanors that could eliminate someone's right to bear arms. Political demonstrators, particularly at war times, are cited for such crimes, he said.Seriously, if you can get a juggernaught like the ACLU on board for good instead of evil (or, more often, just plain silly), that'd be HUGE!
It's not really a Polish joke. Let me explain.
I am a big fan of Mystery Science Theater 3000, the show that shows bad movies with silhouettes of viewers making wisecracks about bad acting, writing, effects, and cinematography. The tagline is a reference to the MST3K episode in which the characters -- including "Tom Servo," a puppet of a robot made from a candy machine -- watched a movie called "Horror of Party Beach." In one scene, there were some nubile young women who were stranded in a wooded area when their car broke down. To the best of my memory, they were going to a store to find help and/or a phone, but the store was closed. One of the actresses in the shot was partially obscuring a sign in the store window that said, "LOOK! POLISH SAUSAGE, 19c a LB" so that all you could read was "LOOK POLISH."
now let's discuss the easy openings for abuse set out here that will undoubted come up soon after passage:
2. CCW permits do not seem to be exempted
4. and 5. Fireworks, maybe even ammunition (reloading equipment?)
8. Christmas presents, taking your child hunting, Swiss Army knife,
9. "Resisting arrest" is entirely up to the arresting officer... and attempted resisting arrest must be fun to define... maybe struggling with tight handcuffs?
16. most divorces now feature protection orders... and many demand that the subject get rid of all their firearms. Refuse? Lose your right to own them, too.
19. any felony (or attempt) includes several volumes of laws that are not listed here, and the modern trend is to include an ever-increasing amount of laws under the felony umbrella, "to deter crime"...
and let us not forget how easy it is to amend this ordinance to include so many more reasons to deprive a citizen of their 2A rights.
bang!
When they smelled beer, they gave me a test that nobody could pass.
Walk the white line toe-to-heel. Follow this light without moving your head.
When I told them I was carrying a firearm, they got seriess. They asked me why I had a baseball bat in the back seat!
Well, I had a license to to carry in MA... but not in CT.
MA police chief took my license... CT took my 9mm.
Game over... cops don't want armed, decent civilians. They want a docile, flock of sheep.
There's the problem, sir. It is not a matter of these people being socially repellent, it's a matter of changing the law from prohibiting gun ownership and possession on the basis of a person having committed a felony to having committed a misdemeanor. This is something under the governance of the legislature, not a city council.
I've got no use for gun control, but you have to like that one.
That's because Nebraska does not allow concealed carry of firearms. There have been several attempts to get legislation passed allowing them, but all have failed to date. When I first moved here, I rented a house from a guy who was a State Patrol officer. When we were getting the keys and giving him our first month's rent, I showed him my CC Permit from Colorado and asked him who should I see in Nebraska to get one. He got a real funny look on his face and made it very clear that I should not carry concealed in NE, since they do not allow it for any circumstances (at least for civilians).
I heard on the radio that there was going to be another attempt this next session to introduce a Concealed Carry Permit law, but we'll have to see how far that gets.
What other bsaic civil rights would you deprive somebody of for tresspassing, jaywalking, fornicating, or any of the myriad things which are technically illegal in one jurisdiction or another in America?
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