CA Court: No right to carry concealed guns in public
by Spocko
..a federal appeals court said Thursday people do not have a right to carry concealed weapons in public under the 2nd Amendment.
An 11-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said law enforcement officials can require applicants for a concealed weapons permit to show they are in immediate danger or have another good reason for a permit beyond self-defense. -- AP Mercury News
I'm sure this ruling will bring out gun carrying commenters from around the country to demand to know, "What part of SHALL NOT INFRINGE don't these people understand!" Followed by how happy they are they don't live in California. (I'm happy you don't live here too.)
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Walk for Gun Safety at Golden Gate Bridge
#WearOrange Moms Demand Action - CA
photo by Spocko
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One of the arguments that pro-guns everywhere people made was that when there were "permissive standards" for carrying a gun, it didn't lead to more crime.
"..there was no evidence that crime went up in counties such as Fresno and Sacramento that had more permissive "good cause" standards. -- Paul Clement, an attorney for the residents.
I've seen this argument before, it's crap. It can mean several things: "Lots of under qualified people started carrying and there were no problems --if we measured crime rates as a whole. " Or "Under-qualified people carried guns in these places, if they hadn't, crime rates would have been higher. They tell us they stopped crimes."
The state points to why allowing just about anyone to carry guns in public is a bad idea because it, "threatens law enforcement officials and endangers the public."
The Supreme Court has ruled that individuals have a right to possess a weapon in their home. Thursday’s ruling centers on the next frontier in the gun-control debate.
“Probably the most important battleground of the Second Amendment has been whether there is a right to carry guns outside the home, and if there is, to what extent can states and localities regulate that right,” said Jonathan E. Lowy, the director of the Legal Action Project at the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
The gun lobby has been trying to turn the entire country into their home, starting with extending castle laws in places like Florida. In some states legislators have abdicated their duty to protect the public.
With the removal of any standards the "Good Guy with a Gun" becomes based on faith. Faith that people will expend time and energy to be trained and educated. That they have good intentions, and aren't incompetent when it comes to using a "tool" that can kill multiple people in a second.
The stories that the NRA wants to tell are all the ones where having a gun outside the home heroically saved the day. But while waiting for this day that may never come, what happens?
We know about accidents with guns in homes, what about accidents with guns out in public? How should they be treated? Just because they are no longer criminal offences, doesn't mean they can't be civil offences.
It's time to start looking what removing standards for conceal carrying guns have meant in gun accidents--outside the home.
