AmmoLand.com

By Philip Van Cleave

Virginia Citizens Defense League

Covington VA --(Ammoland.com)- Wednesday, January 25 2012, 1/2 hour after the Senate adjourns, the Senate Courts of Justice is going to hear a bunch of gun bills and I will be there to speak on them.

If you can make it to the committee hearing to show support (and put on a “Guns Save Lives” sticker), that would be great!

The committee meets in Senate Room B on the ground floor of the General Assembly Building.

• SB 4, Senator Stuart, Castle Doctrine (VCDL is neutral)
• SB 64, Senator Stanley, Castle Doctrine (VCDL is neutral)
• SB 67, Senator Stanley, removes option for localities to fingerprint first time CHP applicants (VCDL Strongly Supports)
• SB 224, Senator Herring, makes it easier to disarm someone for LIFE who is convicted of MISDEMEANOR domestic violence (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
• SB 323, Senator Carrico, repeals One Handgun a Month (VCDL Strongly Supports)
• SB 379, Senator McEachin, makes private firearm sales illegal (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
• SB 429, Senator Ruff, streamlines the Virginia form used for purchasing firearms (VCDL Strongly Supports)
• SB 554, Senator Favola, disarms someone with an emergency protection order without due process (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
• SB 563, Senator Ruff, cleans up some minor issues in the concealed weapon code (VCDL Strongly Supports)
• SB 612, Senator Black, moves long gun to the federal NICS system from the Virginia Instant Check system to improve the amount of time needed to run background checks (VCDL Strongly Supports)
• SB 648, Senator McEachin, adds yet another penalty to a gun owner who is in possession of a gun while intoxicated (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
• SB 670, Senator Garrett, removes option for localities to fingerprint first time CHP applicants (VCDL Strongly Supports)

URGENT ACTION ITEMS!

Here are a bunch of automatic emails that you need to send ASAP in support of key bills that are on the move.  Click on the link below each bill to send a message (that you can customize if you wish) to your Senator or Delegate, as appropriate.  The system figures out who your legislator is based on your address and zip code.

SENATE BILLS
SB 67 and SB 670, Senators Stanley and Garrett, removes option for localities to fingerprint first time CHP applicants:
http://tinyurl.com/8xxq5pk

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SB 324, Senator Carrico, state-agency preemption that makes gun laws across the Commonwealth consistent, a concept supported by Attorney General Cuccinelli:
http://tinyurl.com/6rprvr5

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SB 224, Senator Herring, makes it easier to disarm someone for LIFE who is convicted of MISDEMEANOR domestic violence (VCDL Strongly Opposes):
http://tinyurl.com/7259e3c

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SB 323, Senator Carrico, repeals One Handgun a Month:

http://tinyurl.com/7zwj3t8

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SB 379, SB 554, and SB 648, Senators McEachin and Favola, makes private gun sales illegal, disarms person with emergency protection order in residence of victim, and makes open carry while intoxicated yet another crime, respectively:
http://tinyurl.com/73g8snv

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SB 612, Senator Black, requires that background checks for long guns be done by the federal NICS instead of the Virginia Instant Check System.  This helps fix the extremely slow firearms background checks that gun owners in Virginia have been experiencing for the last several years:
http://tinyurl.com/8yyppbd

HOUSE BILL
Let’s let our Delegates know that we want to protect shooting ranges.  Click on the link below to send a message to your Delegate about supporting HB 1114:
http://tinyurl.com/89z4bke

About:
Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right. Visit: www.vcdl.org

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Virginia Citizens Defense League

Covington VA --(Ammoland.com)- ACTION ITEM: We need to act on the following bills:

SB 245, Senator Obenshain’s bill that provides that nothing in the Emergency Services and Disaster Law shall be interpreted to limit or prohibit the possession, carrying, transportation, sale, or transfer of firearms, is going to be heard in the Senate General Laws and Technology Committee on Monday, January 23, 45 minutes after the Senate adjourns.

To send an email to YOUR Senator automatically, click on the link below: http://tinyurl.com/7gnhykx

HB 139, Delegate Cole’s Constitutional Carry bill – allows concealed carry without a permit in most places. Permits will continue to be available.

To send an email to YOUR Delegate automatically, click on the link below:

http://tinyurl.com/7c9ptfj

NEW BILLS – ANTI-FREEDOM

• HB 1179, Delegate McClellan, makes it a crime if the theft or loss of a firearm isn’t reported within 48 hours of when the victim notices his gun is stolen. As if the victim hasn’t been punished enough by having his gun lost or stolen, the State would pile on by charging him with a crime!
• HB 1226, Delegate Torian, gives public universities and colleges the power to ban firearms, including those carried by Concealed Handgun Permit holders. This will only encourage more attacks like Virginia Tech experienced in 2007. We need to allow those with permits to be able to defend themselves, not make them more helpless.
• HB 1257, Delegate Sickles, creates a new crime for someone openly carrying a handgun in a public place who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. It is already a crime to be in a public place while intoxicated. This is just another attempt to give gun owners “special treatment.”
• SB 648, Senator McEachin, creates a new crime for someone openly carrying a handgun in a public place who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. It is already a crime to be in a public place while intoxicated. This is just another attempt to give gun owners “special treatment.”
• HB 1275, Delegate Kory, requires that a training course for a concealed handgun permit be a handgun course. Safety training for long guns is applicable to handguns, too. Also, hunter safety training is acceptable and that usually involves long guns. The training requirement should be kept broad.

NEW BILLS – PRO-FREEDOM

• SB 563, Senator Ruff, a cleanup bill that makes some technical and minor changes to the concealed carry code. Drafted by VCDL.
• SB 612, Senator Black, long guns background checks are to run through the federal NICS system, bypassing the Virginia State Police. Handguns checks continue to be run through the State Police. There are a series of bills to take away background check from the State Police due to recent dismal performance caused by understaffing.
• HB 1223, Delegate Hope, allows concealed carry with a permit and **open carry without a permit** at GAB, but no other weapons as defined in the concealed carry laws (nun-chucks, switchblades, etc.)

CASTLE DOCTRINE UPDATE
On Wednesday evening a subcommittee of the House Courts of Justice heard Delegate Habeeb’s HB 14, a Castle Doctrine bill that provides civil immunity (but not criminal) if someone unlawfully enters another’s dwelling and makes an overt act towards a person lawfully in that dwelling. The bill was modified to make the Commonwealth Attorneys happy – it made it clear that the civil immunity would not become part of the jury’s instructions and that it would clarify that it would have no bearing on criminal aspects of the case.

The bill was passed by for now as the subcommittee lost its quorum when one member had to go to testify on a bill in another committee.

HB 14 (and three other Castle Doctrine bills: HB 47, HB 48, HB 925) will be heard on Monday in the Criminal subcommittee of the House Courts of Justice 1/2 hour after the House adjourns. VCDL continues to stand NEUTRAL on the Castle Doctrine bills.

For VCDL’s analysis of Castle Doctrine in Virginia, see: http://tiny.cc/b6snt

For a listing of all gun bills and VCDL’s position on them, see our legislative tracking tools at: http://www.vcdl.org/static/2012leg.html

About:
Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right. Visit: www.vcdl.org

Filed under: Gun Rights News by Ammoland No Comments »