Unintended Consequences?

Click on blue link for full article

There are all kinds of gun laws on the books and the people that passed them universally claim that they will only be applied to criminals to make society safer.  Well, good citizen beware, because that is not always the case as there are many instances of otherwise law-abiding citizens being prosecuted for simply exercising a right protected by not only the US Constitution but also by the Constitutions of the vast majority of the states.

Check out the stories linked below and decide for yourself if these laws simply make us safer or give prosecutors the tools to harass the citizenry allowing them to push forward an anti-gun agenda.

If you come across a story that you think deserves to be listed here, please contact the and pass it on.

Deliveryman who shot 2 is charged
Prosecutors say shootings justified, but gun concealed.

The complaint says the suspect admitted trying to rob Vegas, who prosecutors then determined was justified in the shooting. But because Vegas' gun had been on "the front passenger seat beside the pizzas," it met the definition of a concealed weapon.

Teacher pleads guilty to having gun on school grounds

Virginia law at the time of Fudd's arrest made having a loaded handgun in a car on school property illegal. On July 1, it became legal in Virginia for someone with a concealed handgun permit to have a loaded gun on school property, so long as it is away from public view.

Justice misfires over gun

An Alton woman embroiled in a divorce case spent more than four hours in jail for contempt of court after she refused a Madison County's judge's order to return a handgun to her ex-husband, a convicted felon.

Anti-gun judge illegally confiscates CHL-holder's firearm

The case of a young CHL-holder whose has been abused not only by the terrible vehicle carry provisions in Ohio law, but by the system responsible for enforcing it.
 

Laws should not force zero tolerance for common sense

Zero-tolerance policies mock the legacy of Anglo-American jurisprudence. As Roscoe Pound, a preeminent legal scholar of the early 20th century, explained, "Criminal law is based upon a theory of punishing the vicious will. It postulates a free agent confronted with a choice between doing right and doing wrong and choosing freely to do wrong."

Common sense should temper zero-tolerance

The Michigan Department of Corrections can ease some potential problems by using common sense when enforcing the rules, which hand out stiff prison time for parolees caught with guns, or even for hanging around people who have them legally.

Therapist Loses License for Shooting Memo

Until this incident, this man could have played a key role in depriving you of your gun rights for life.  The problem with restricting inherent rights is that someone has to make that decision, but who decides if they are qualified to do so?  And who decides if that person is qualified to verify your qualifications?  And on it goes! - Ed

South Africa - Gun Law Deprives SA Citizens Of Basic Rights

...exposing the new stringent Firearms Control Act for what it is:  a complicated solution to a non-existent problem that will cause me to break the law overnight.
 

Maine tough on gun law violators

[Tax] money has been used to hire a full-time prosecutor, who exclusively handles gun cases... [It would seem that gun owners are prosecuted much more vigorously than other criminals, regardless of the non-violent nature of their crimes. - Ed]

Sometimes the victim is the taxpayer

Improper gun charge costs DuPage County $50,000

Police seize legal gunowner
911 caller 'alarmed' by citizen [openly] carrying weapon

NY - Jeweler's handgun permit reviewed

Albert Hannoush, 29, of Colonie, was arrested by Guilderland police a few hours after the incident and charged with a felony count of reckless endangerment.

IL - Gun shop raided

Agents obtained a federal search warrant for Stutts' store after learning a gun he sold was used in a crime. According to an ATF affidavit, Stutts sold a handgun to a Chicago Heights man who later brandished that pistol during a fight in Harvey.

TX - Neighbors Help Woman, 84, Caught With Pistol In Purse

Sherman spent Tuesday afternoon behind bars after she showed up at City Hall with a weapon in her purse.

OK - Police: Principal Arrested For Packing Heat

According to authorities, Dr. Linda Toure called police after school officials received complaints about Ford allegedly carrying a gun with her to school grounds.

MI - Fake guns are getting people in real trouble

Airsoft pistols have become a legal quandary in Washtenaw County, where prosecutors have deemed them as firearms under state law and are criminally charging people caught carrying them.

IN - Guns found in car at school
Woman says weapons are estranged husband's