Indiana

Ban on assault weapons. Provides that the manufacture, importation, sale, or possession of ammunition for a machine gun, an automatic weapon, or a semiautomatic weapon is a Class C felony. Creates enhanced criminal penalties for a person who commits certain drug offenses while in possession of an automatic or a semiautomatic weapon.

Let's see.... bans ammunition. Period. Sneaky. Very sneaky.

State Senators J. Murray Clark (R) and Johnny Nugent (R) have introduced legislation that is going to make life much easier for many Indianans. Right now, if you were to go hunting, camping, or snowmobiling using an off-road vehicle, state law requires you to transport your firearm and ammunition in separate locked containers. In other words, the law prevents you from having your gun ready for self-defense. This is a blatant violation of an individual's Second Amendment rights, and it hampers the ability of citizens to defend themselves and others. But Senator Clark and Senator Nugent have introduced SB 384 to change that. This bill would permit a person to transport a loaded and unlocked firearm while operating an off-road vehicle or snowmobile. (Essentially, the bill does this by deleting the existing lock-up-your-safety provision in the law.)

A drug store manager who fired two shots at an armed robber has been terminated by CVS Pharmacy officials, who said his actions put his co-worker's life in danger.

Mike DeAngelis, spokesman for CVS Pharmacy in Rhode Island, said Mike Hart was fired for exercising poor judgment.

"We certainly understand the difficult situation he's going through, but we investigated it and decided he exercised poor judgment in discharging a firearm at a fleeing suspect, needlessly putting people's lives at risk," DeAngelis said.

The account from the person who was actually there is substantially different. Regardless, it's just another indication of how hostile certain elements in our culture are to the concept of self-defense.

In a victory for the Madison Center for Free Speech, a United State District Court on Monday declared that the First Amendment was violated by an Indiana law that prohibited the printing or distribution of a list of candidates expressing support for the candidates without their prior written consent. Federal Judge John Tinder found that requiring candidate consent caused a candidate's supporters to "lose the independent quality of their speech, as any slate they publish is now understood as having been licensed by the primary candidate in question," and also "deprives a candidate of the freedom to retain any neutrality or ambiguity with respect to his would-be supporters."

Safety pins, pencils and even self-induced vomiting can be defensive tactics for women who are attacked. Richard Bliley, chief of the Walkerton Police Department, tells women about in his lecture on self defense that "if someone is trying to force you to go with them, it may discourage them if you stick your fingers down your throat and throw up all over yourself."

It would be even more discouraging if you had a gun with which to defend yourself. Statistically, all other courses of action including cooperation are more likely to result in injury.

A suspect in a fatal shooting Jan. 3 will not be charged with a crime because evidence suggests he acted in self-defense, the Vigo County prosecutor said Wednesday. Suspect Andrew Totten, 39, apparently was struck in the head with a 32-ounce beer bottle before pulling a handgun out from under a mattress before the shooting, Prosecutor Bob Wright said. Niel Walker, 32, died in Union Hospital of a gunshot wound to the abdomen as a result of the incident in a home in the 300 block of South 13 1/2 Street. Some witnesses have suggested Walker began the fight and that he and Totten struggled over the gun before it fired, Wright said.

From Alphapatriot comes this report of a man whose family claimed he was threatening suicide (presumably because he has been battling a life-threatening illness).  The response from the police?  Invade his home, forcibly put him into a psychiatric hospital for "evaluation", confiscate all his firearms, and destroy his reloading supplies because the police don't know how to store them properly.  The man's firearms and ammunition are being "held until prosecutors and the county attorney can determine whether Wilkinson is stable enough to have them back".

I have some questions for the government officials involved in this case:

1. What happened to "innocent until proven guilty"?
2. What happened to "due process of law"?
3. What happened to "nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation"?  Oh, never mind, Kelo v New London happened to that one.

Oh, and for anyone who was ever inclined to trust either the police or the press, I suggest you read these two accounts about the seizure.  They ran in the same paper, on successive days:

• Authorities Seize Weapons Cache From Home
• Family: Removal Of Weapons Not Necessary

From the first account:

Authorities seized several assault rifles, submachine guns, ammunition and explosives from a former Army soldier's property and said they believed he was a threat to the community.  They also found extremist literature, including a book written and signed by Randy Weaver, who gained fame after waging the Ruby Ridge standoff against federal authorities in 1992, the sheriff said. The weapons seizure at Jack Wilkerson's home was likely the largest in Delaware County history, Sheriff George Sheridan said.  Police recovered an estimated $30,000 worth of guns, 2,000 pounds of ammunition and 436 pounds of explosives.  "We're talking mortar shells, artillery rounds, tank rounds and projectiles," Sheridan said.

For some reason, those "assault rifles, submachine guns, mortar shells, artillery rounds, tank rounds, and projects" are all missing from the followup story.  Either they never existed or the police found out they were perfectly legal to own. 

The sheriff's department bomb squad spent four hours blowing up the explosives at a shooting range Sunday but saved the ammunition in case it would be necessary for future investigations or court proceedings, Sheridan said.

The police bomb squad "spent four hours blowing up the explosives", doing something that gun enthusiasts pay good money and travel long distances to do. 

The "explosives" consisted of gunpower, used in reloading ammunition (something many active shooters do to reduce their costs).  They were removed because the local cops didn't think it was safe to store them near space heaters; never mind that space heaters generally aren't operated during the summer and that the man had been reloading for years without incident.

The man has not been charged with anything.  He was "despondent" because he might have had cancer.  Seems like a good reason to be despondent to me, and frankly, it's none of our business whether he prefers to commit suicide rather than face a long, drawn out battle with cancer.  One of his family members asked police to "check on him", and I bet that family member regrets making that request.

The "extremist literature" allegation is frankly embarassing, as literature presents no legal basis for any action or charges under the First Amendment.  Besides, the "extremist" author, Randy Weaver (see Ruby Ridge), had federal agents kill his wife and son in front of his eyes while investigating him on baseless, trumped-up charges as part of an intimidation campaign.

Smart money says that the police saved the ammunition not "in case it would be necessary for future investigations or court proceedings", but rather because they might have to give it back when they find out it's perfectly legal.

Remember, folks, the police are NOT your friend.  Do not ask them to "check on" your friends or family, even if you are sincerely concerned -- perhaps especially if you are sincerely concerned!  The family that did so in this case has made things substantially worse for the person they were purportedly concerned about.

UPDATE: FreedomSight has more, including the law most likely used in this case.