Gun Show Policing

Tuesday, 12 January 2010 13:50 Jeff Knox The Knox Update - The Knox Update

The Knox Update

From the Firearms Coalition

Protecting Gun Shows

By Jeff Knox

(Manassas, VA, December 2, 2009) Anyone who does not hold an FFL and sells a firearm to someone he doesn’t know well is incurring a certain amount of liability. And, a bit of bad judgment could cause trouble not just for the seller, but for the rest of the gun owning community as well. There is no question that individuals have the right to buy, sell, and trade firearms between themselves without government infringement. But there are laws on the books and failing to know and follow them is just asking for trouble. A prudent trader will take into account not only the legal technicalities, but the political environment also.

Title 18, Section 922 of the U.S. Code, the 1968 Gun Control Act, covers sales and transfer of guns. The law forbids transfers between residents of different states except through an FFL in the buyer's state. Of course it is also illegal for a federally “prohibited person” – a felon, fugitive, someone dishonorably discharged from the service, etc. – to purchase a firearm from anyone, FFL dealer or not. If the seller has any indication that the prospective buyer is a “prohibited person,” selling the gun is a crime. It is also illegal for anyone to purchase a firearm on behalf of someone else – even if that someone else could legally purchase it himself – and a seller can again be held criminally responsible if they had any indication that such a “straw” transaction was taking place.

Lessons from the Dark Side

Wednesday, 30 December 2009 19:51 Jeff Knox The Knox Update - The Knox Update

The Knox Update

From the Firearms Coalition

Lessons from the Dark Side

By Jeff Knox

(Manassas, VA, December 28, 2009) Mike Bloomberg and his Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG) caused quite a stir in the gun rights community recently when they released a poll declaring that gun owners and NRA members support the group’s gun control agenda. The poll was conducted by Frank Lutz’s company “Word Doctors.” The media gleefully reported the poll as indisputable fact while NRA and others cried “Foul,” pointing out flaws in the pollster’s methodology and challenging the results.

The flaws and distortions are undoubtedly real, but it is important for rights activists to carefully examine this poll to find data we can use to help our cause. In spite of its flaws, this poll demonstrates a serious failure on the part of rights groups and supporters in efforts to educate our less activist brethren. We’re not preaching to the choir enough and not getting the right messages through to them.

NRA Bad for Iowa

Monday, 14 December 2009 04:23 Jeff Knox The Knox Update - The Knox Update

NRA Pushing Bad Bill in Iowa

*** Update: A revised proposal from NRA has surfaced which is somewhat better than the proposal discussed in this article, but which still has some serious flaws. The new proposal and NRA's description will be linked at the bottom of this article and hilights of changes will be noted parenthetically within the article at the applicable sections. ***

It's been a long time since we have had serious issues with NRA actions, but their proposed concealed carry legislation for Iowa is simply bad and we're taking exception.

Last year two state organizations, Iowa Carry and Iowa Gun Owners, banged heads with competing legislation and competing strategies. Iowa Carry was backing a “shall issue” bill which included mandatory training requirements and several other concessions. Iowa Gun Owners was pushing an Alaska-style bill which removed restrictions on concealed carry and offered an optional permit system for the sake of reciprocity.

The Alaska bill had 25 cosponsors among the 100 members of the Iowa House and failed to pass by just one vote ending in a 49 – 49 tie in the final minutes of the legislative session. (Note: This was not a straight up or down vote, but a procedural vote on whether to suspend the rules to allow the Alaska-style bill language to be amended onto a must-pass bill. It still demonstrates a surprising level of support.)