OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE AFFILIATED WITH THE NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION AND THE
CONSERVATION FEDERATION OF
*New Website: www.missourisportshooting.org
APRIL 2004 VOLUME
04 ISSUE
2
LICENSE TO CARRY
The Saga Continues...
By Mitchell Peters
It
was my sincere hope that I would read, write, or edit my last article on
License To Carry (LTC) shortly after the Missouri
Supreme Court (MOSC) issued their opinion in an unscheduled release on February
26th. Unfortunately for all
parties involved the MOSC decision is legally convoluted. Unfortunately for the
Editor, TMS, MSSA and all pro-gun rights parties; this issue will not be
completely settled for a long time. And so, the License To
Carry saga continues...
The
MOSC upheld the premise of LTC as constitutional; however the implementation
was deemed unconstitutional in four (4) counties. The court decided the wording
of the bill in regard to how fees are collected and applied violates the
Hancock Amendment as an unfunded state mandate. Evidence to support this
violation was provided by four and only four counties and the decision only
applies solely to those counties. The court did however open the door and
welcome law suits from all the remaining counties in the state. A few counties
decided to take permit applications and fewer still issue licenses. The vast
majority of counties chose to do nothing at all!
Further
confusion amongst all parties on both sides of the issue was expressed
concerning when the upheld portions of the law take effect. The question was
when car carry and out of state concealed carry licenses are valid. Some
parties claim they are valid the day of the decision (2-26), others fifteen
days later (3-12). Meanwhile plaintiff’s attorney’s Neuman
and Miller filed an appeal to the MOSC decision, was overruled March 30th.
More importantly to pro-gun supporters, legislation was introduced to fix the
Hancock portions of the bill. This quick fix however seems to have stalled at
the legislature, and will probably be anything but quick.
To quote pro-gun activist Tim Oliver,
“Since some counties are issuing permits the bell has been rung and it cannot
be unrung.” Still some counties may continue to
refuse to issue permits for a long time, waiting for a lawsuit, the
legislature, or the MOSC to clarify the law. On the bright side as I write this
at least ¼ of all MO counties are either taking
applications and or issuing permits, and more will follow. Conventional wisdom
would suggest the holdouts will be the cities and urban / suburban areas.
St. Louis County Police Chief, Ron Battelle and Hazelwood Police Chief Carl R. Wolf have been
especially vociferous in opposition to the law and its implementation. MSSA
Director and legal advisor, Kevin Jamison-Attorney at law, described comments
made by Battelle as asinine, inaccurate, and legally
indefensible. Attorney Sam Murphy, a Marine Corp veteran, and shooting
enthusiast remarked that Battelle’s comments were
very close to crossing the line, and were meant to intimidate and generate
fear, and thus prevent the legal carry of concealed weapons in the county. No
normal person wants to be prosecuted to prove their legal rights.
While
counties refusing to issue applications and or permits continue to delay what
will probably be an inevitability. These counties
furthermore are refusing what could be a lucrative source of revenue and are
denying law abiding citizens their right to self defense. They are also denying
business’s loss of sales for firearms, ammunition, holsters, accessories, gunsmithing, and firearms training.
Many
Missourians have circumvented
The
most common non-resident LTC permit currently available to Missourians is the
A great way to spend that $50.00 is to send it to the
License To Carry-Legal Defense Fund which is still
about $45,000.00 short of what is needed. Donations can be sent to LTC-Legal
Defense Fund, 2000 E. Broadway,
UNINTENDED
CONSEQUENCES
K. L. Jamison
Hysterical
predictions of bloodshed following a concealed carry law are refuted by the
experience of forty-five other states, and were rejected by a super-majority of
the
Under a
provision of the License to Carry law, licenses issued
by other states are recognized by
Concealed carry reform advocates have labored
for over thirteen years to establish a system requiring safety, legal training,
firearms training, a fingerprint background check, and ample fees for sheriffs.
The plaintiff lawyers want to change that. The result will be that everyone who
wants a license will get an out of state license. The plaintiffs' lawyers will
have forced a system on
Who Is Responsible For The
Hancock Problem?
By DAVID A.
LIEB, Associated Press Writer
Edited by Mitchell Peters
“I get asked this question, in some form, many times a day. Here is the
answer. The lobbyist for the
This is the complete story by David A. Lieb,
Associated Press Writer. ---The TMS
Editor
That's because the language
cited by the court as triggering an illegal, unfunded mandate was added to last
year's concealed weapons legislation at the behest of the sheriffs' lobbyist.
``I guess it's ironic,'' Jorgen Schlemeier, the lobbyist for the Missouri Sheriffs'
Association, acknowledged Wednesday when asked about the language.
The
Missouri Supreme Court last week upheld the Legislature's right to legalize
concealed guns but said the law imposed new duties on sheriffs without covering
their full costs. The court found the law therefore violated the so-called
Hancock Amendment to the Missouri Constitution. As such, the court said four
counties that presented trial evidence about costs did not have to implement
the law. But the court essentially laid out a roadmap for similar cost
challenges to be raised in
At issue in the Supreme
Court's ruling is a provision requiring sheriffs to charge applicants for
concealed gun permits a nonrefundable processing fee of up to $100. The law
directs the money to local accounts that can only be used for law enforcement
equipment and training. Sheriffs therefore cannot use the money to pay for the
required fingerprint and background checks, or for the personnel needed to
handle the applications, the court said. Yet the language limiting the money to
being spent on law enforcement equipment and training was not in the original
bill filed last year by Rep Larry Crawford, R-California. He said it was added
at the request of Schlemeier.
Schlemeier said, “His fear was that county officials would try
to tap into the fund for roads or other uses, or that some people would use the
money for pay raises or new patrol cars. The intent was to limit only the use
of any extra money not needed for background checks or processing costs. I
didn't contemplate the Supreme Court would read it quite the way they did.”
Crawford recalled that the
sheriffs wanted to have the potential to make money on the concealed weapons
applications, and to keep what they made. ``They said, `We need money for
equipment and training. I said, conceal-carry would be
more than happy to donate any overage to that, Said Crawford.” To try to comply
with the court's ruling, Crawford is sponsoring legislation this year that
would allow the funds to be spent on any costs reasonably associated with
processing the permits. His bill is awaiting a House committee hearing, the
first step in the legislative process.
LTC-LDF
Status Report 3/24/04
By Tim Oliver
I received the Invoice for
Legal Fees & Services owed Sandberg, Phoenix and von Gontard,
through February 29, 2004 earlier this week.
Here are the currently owed
fees broken down by date and amount invoiced.
October 31, 2004 $30,849.85
November 30, 2004 $25,157.88
December 31, 2004 $13,553.20
January 31, 2004 $23,962.47
February 29, 2004 $
6586.95
-----------
Total $100,110.35
Total LDF Contributions To Date
Total Paid To Sandberg,
Cash on hand in the Bank:
$294.00
PayPal account amount in transfer
not yet in the Bank: $48.25
Total on hand once PayPal Donations clear: $344.25
Current Balance Due
Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard after all payments
to date: $46,110.35
NOTE: This does not include
any funds collected for the Gun Rights Victory Raffle, (GRVR). No money has yet
been transferred to the LDF from the Gun Rights Victory Raffle which ends June
19, 2004.
Donations to the LDF have
slowed down in the last 30 days. I have
received several emails from people who said they were sending money to the Gun
Rights Victory Raffle instead of the LDF.
(Due to money sent to the GRVR, including the chance to win some nice
guns and Training). I can't say I blame them for that decision.
During the first week of
our legal battle (10/11/03) I asked Peter to provide an estimate of the
expected cost to fight this through a Hearing at the Missouri Supreme Court. (MOSC). The amount he estimated on day 3 of the LTC lawsuit
was $75K. This figure was based on having two Hearings at the Trial Court
(Judge Ohmer's Ct.) with Briefs to the Trial Court,
two rounds of Briefs to the MOSC and a Hearing at the MOSC. The Legal Team
ended up making 5 trips to the Trial Court. The result being, Judge Ohmer's Ruling that the LTC Law was unconstitutional *Only* on Article I section 23, and that the Hancock issues
created no constitutional problems, and also that the Plaintiff's $250K Bond
would remain at risk. For a day by day account, see; http:/www.learntocarry.com/news/lawsuit/timeline.shtml
As my friend John Ross once
said, "Never Underestimate the Mendacity of Your Political Enemies" (see Ross In
Range, http:/www.john-ross.net./battle.htm).
The Plaintiff's, (after missing the time deadline for filing) Cross Appealed at
the MOSC on *all* the issues in which Judge Ohmer had
Ruled against them. So, instead of preparing Briefs on only one issue, we had
to Brief and be prepared to argue ALL the original issues again! Even thought we were working in coordinated
effort with the AG's Office, the NRA's counsel, Michael Minton and Stephen
Halbrook, (who prepared the NRA
Amicus Curie Brief), this still took considerable time to research, write
briefs with cites, and prepare to argue, further causing the original estimate
to be substantially low.
The battle is not yet
over! We have filed a Motion to keep
the Bond in place and filed a Motion to make Recovery against that Bond. We
needed to see that the Plaintiff's Bond is not released, so that parties harmed
by the permanent injunction are allowed to make claims against that Bond. When
the Plaintiffs filed a Motion for Rehearing on
While the Judgment of the
court was less than the clean victory we wanted, we won on four out of five
issues. Applications are being taken in more than 20 counties. Four or five
counties have already Issued Permits! This is a bell that cannot be unrung! While we are
short of final victory on the Hancock issue, and we are still after the
Plaintiff's Bond money, Missourian's *are* legally carrying concealed
weapons! This is HUGE! While your county
may not yet be accepting applications and issuing permits, most will be coming
on line in the next 30-45 days. It is my prediction that 80% of the counties
will be up and running in that time frame. The more sheriffs Issue, the more
will Issue.
Our Legal Team fought a brilliant fight. They fought on my
promise to raise the money to pay their fee. Donating to the Legal Defense Fund
is no longer a donation with an uncertain outcome. It is paying the price for a
right restored. Please donate to help pay the debt for this great victory. We
owe it to the Legal Team that brought it about. All funds, that's
right, 100% of donations to the LTC-LDF go to pay the Legal Team's fees and
cost. No money is spent on administering the Fund or expenses or even stamps to
send the checks to Sandberg,
WANTED
JUNIOR SHOOTERS
2004 MSSA-NRA
Junior Smallbore Rifle Camp
By John Leinberger
This year’s MSSA-NRA Junior
3-Position Smallbore
Rifle Camp will be held
John Leinberger
@ 573-943-6632
How
To Buy CMP Rifles
By Kent Finlay
Mitch
Peters told me that several MSSA members called him in the last few months
wanting information on how to buy CMP rifles. He suggested that I take a moment
to write an article for those folks interested in purchasing firearms from the
CMP.
Firearms
currently available include M1917 “Enfields”, several
M-1 Garands variants, 1903 / 1903A3
·
You must provide a copy of
a
·
You must provide proof of
age. Usually proof of citizenship also provides proof of age. In those cases
where it may not, a driver’s license is
sufficient.
·
You must provide a copy of
your current
membership card or other proof of membership (If your club does
not issue cards), in a CMP affiliated club. This requirement cannot be waived.
A listing of affiliated clubs is available at www.odcmp.com/Clubs/List.htm.
MSSA membership at only $15 is about the least expensive option. Note: Club
membership is NOT required for instructional publications or videos or CMP memorabilia.
·
You must provide proof of
participation in a marksmanship related activity or otherwise show familiarity
with the safe handling of firearms and range procedures. Your marksmanship
related activity does not have to be with highpower
rifles; it can be with smallbore rifles, pistols, air
guns or shotguns. Proof of marksmanship participation can be provided by
documenting any of the following:
·
Current or past military
service (DD-214).
·
Current or past law
enforcement service
·
Participation in a rifle,
pistol, air gun or shotgun competition (provide copy of results bulletin).
·
Completion of a
marksmanship clinic that included live fire training (provide a copy of the
certificate of completion or a statement from the instructor).
·
Distinguished, Instructor,
or Coach status.
·
Concealed Carry License.
·
Firearms Owner
Identification Card.
·
FFL or C & R license.
·
Completion of a Hunter Safety
Course that included live fire training.
·
Certification from range or
club official or law enforcement officer witnessing shooting activity. A form
for use in completing and certifying your range firing can be downloaded from
the CMP web site at http:/www.odcmp.com/forms/marksmanship.pdf
No proof required if over
age 60.
NOTE:
Proof of marksmanship activity is not required for purchase of ammunition,
parts, publications or memorabilia.
The
information you supply on your application will be submitted by the CMP to the
FBI National Instant Criminal Check System (NICS) to verify you are not prohibited
by Federal, State or Local law from acquiring or possessing a rifle. Your
signature on the Purchaser Certification portion of the purchase application
authorizes the CMP to initiate the NICS check and authorizes the FBI to inform
CMP of the result. IMPORTANT: If
your State or locality requires you to first obtain a license, permit, or
Firearms Owner ID card in order to possess or receive a rifle, you must enclose
a photocopy of said item for your purchase.
Order
forms and other required documents may be downloaded from http:/www.odcmp.com/Forms/1orderform.pdf
Orders
received without notarized signature will not be processed.
For
a catalog or more detailed information please call or write the Civilian
Marksmanship Program at:
CMP,
Tel:
256-835-8455 / Fax: 256-835-3527
SPECIAL APPEAL
FOR DONATIONS
By E. Lee Koester, MSSA Treasurer
At the December
MSSA meeting the directors voted to donate generously to help with the legal
fees that have accrued with the fight for License To
Carry. Even though the MO Supreme Court has upheld this legislation, it appears
that there will be more legal battles to fight. In order to replenish funds
that MSSA has spent and to be prepared for future needs, MSSA is making this
special appeal. We are asking that you donate as generously as your means
allow. Thank you in advance.
For a limited
time, you can receive the following awards for your donations to MSSA.
$10.00-receive one MSSA decal
(specify inside or outside)
$25.00-receive above and either MSSA brassard or Personal Firearms
Record Book (please specify, if no choice, MSSA will choose.
$50.00-receive all specified above and 2001 NRA Convention
commemorative T-shirt (sizes XXL, XL, and a few M are available in black or
gray, please specify size and color choice)
$100.00-receive all specified above and MSSA logo cap (specify
black or tan)
$300.00-receive all specified above and MSSA golf shirt (sizes XXL,
XL, and a few M are available in black or gray, please specify)
$500.00-receive all specified above and a 1 year renewal or gift
membership, specify to whom the gift would be given)
$1000.00-receive all specified above and an additional 4 year
renewal or gift membership
*** Shirts may
be limited in supply-Substitution of items will be of the same of greater
value.
Send all donations to:
MSSA,