Virginia – -(AmmoLand.com)- Virginia Senator Dick Black has been working with Virginia Citizens Defense League (EM Hal Macklin and me ) in drafting a bill that allows local government employees to be able to carry concealed at work if they have a Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP).
The bill is now complete and ready to be introduced shortly! Senator Black’s bill, if it had been law earlier this year, would have definitely saved lives during the Virginia Beach massacre. And that’s if the massacre was even attempted in the first place, with the murderer knowing that there were lots of armed employees in Building #2.
Senator Black has always been a strong believer in our right to keep and bear arms. Even though he has decided to retire, he’s not pulling any punches, even now, in fighting to protect innocent life in Virginia.
We owe him a debt of gratitude, not only for his service in the military, but for his work to protect our right to self-defense over the years. He will be missed and whomever takes his place has some seriously large shoes to fill.
Other pro-self-defense bills are on their way, as well. Watch for alerts on bills as they hit. Do any associated action items in the alerts as soon as you can!
Recap of the VCDL meetings in Fredericksburg and Virginia Beach on Tuesday
More than 45 people showed up at the VCDL Fredericksburg meeting and more than 60 at the Virginia Beach meeting (standing room only). Patricia Webb ran the Fredericksburg meeting (thanks, Pat!) and I ran the Virginia Beach meeting. We compared notes and found both had similarly engaged members, asking important questions to the legislators that spoke at each meeting.
Virginia Beach
Senator Bill DeSteph and Delegate Glenn Davis both spoke and fielded a host of questions from attendees. Around 1/3 of those attending were not yet VCDL members and many told me they are now joining after attending the meeting and seeing what VCDL is all about.
At one point Senator DeSteph asked some questions about suppressors that apparently normally stump people. Not our members! He was impressed with just how knowledgeable everyone was at the meeting.
Senator DeSteph said that what has been written about the latency time for police to get into the Virginia Beach Government Building #2 is wrong. He went over the time line with us. Bottom line was that the locked doors did not keep the police from getting to the murderer – he was not behind them when the police got there. Once the shooting was over, the police breached all locked doors as they look for victims or any accomplices.
DeSteph and Davis both said that a large turnout at the General Assembly next week, as well as at the polls in November, is critical. They also stressed that personal letters or emails that explain how a bill will affect the writer are best. I said that if someone wants to customize the VCDL pre-written email text to make it more personal, to put the personal text AT THE BEGINNING OF THE EMAIL and not at the end.
Pat covers many of the other topics that we discussed in Virginia Beach in her writeup, below. I’ll not repeat them here. I’ll highlight in red some of the common themes.
Thanks to Board member Gary Moeller and EM Brendon Mooney for helping with arrangements and thanks to everyone who attended! Thanks as well to Senator DeSteph and Delegate Davis for speaking to the group and answering questions.
Fredericksburg
Pat Webb’s meeting recap:
We started out with Mark Cole addressing the audience. He spoke of the challenges ahead in this special session and reminded everyone of the tenuous balance of power. He stressed that we must make every effort to block bad bills in committee because if they get to the floor and we have just one no-show or one person who usually votes with us that flips, we could see some of these bad bills pass. And if they do, Northam will surely sign them into law.
We also reminded people that when they are communicating with legislators that DO vote the right way, please be sure to acknowledge that. A little thanks goes a long way. Everyone likes a pat on the back, and those in the GA are no different. Del. Cole answered many questions, and we thank him for taking the time to attend the meeting.
Candidate Paul Milde had a work-related emergency that he had to deal with, but he sent a representative from his campaign who also spoke with our group. He told us that Mr. Milde is 100% ready to stand up for our rights, and believes wholeheartedly in the right to keep and bear arms, and not just for “sporting” purposes.
We then moved on to the topic of the Special Session and our plans for July 9th. We looked at maps showing parking, our staging area, how teams will form and where to hook up with others for car-pooling. (If you are on Facebook there is an event page for the Special Session Lobby Day) Another question that has been popping up with some regularity is handicap parking. Those with placards or handicap tags may park in metered spaces for up to 4 hours without feeding the meter.
Strategy was discussed, as well as the fact that every one of the Senators and Delegates, and also the Governor, Lt. Governor and Commonwealth Attorney swore an oath to uphold both the Virginia and United States Constitution. While some contend that the militia means the US Military, the evidence shows that this is not the case. The militia is the common man. Historical evidence supports this and the courts have increasingly been referring to the original intent in the context of when the US Constitution was written.
It was pointed out that our General Assembly is responsible for naming the Judges for Virginia courts. So, as you can see, the upcoming election…and EVERY election…is more important than simply who decides on which legislation passes or fails. In addition, there will be some redistricting next session, and those decisions are also made by the General Assembly. When these lines are drawn it can radically impact the balance of power.
So our take-away was that, while the July 9th Lobby Day is vitally important, it is only a first step. We must all be more active. Volunteer for campaigns. Write letters to editors. Attend committee meetings if you can. Be active in our LOCAL government functions as well as at the state level. This is how you have an impact.
One final topic that we discussed is education. Knowledge is power. Sharing the love of the shooting sports and educating people that, when handled properly, firearms are safe and useful tools will do much to further our rights. We, as a community, must address the safety aspect and do what we can to prevent accidental injury. That can only be done by educating others on safe handling practices. Start with your own children. Get involved in 4-H shooting clubs or youth programs at your local range. Be an ambassador of good will. The dividends are immeasurable.
I am grateful to everyone who attended last night, and would like to offer special thanks to Sam Houchins for setting up the meeting, and to the folks who set up the room and cleaned up afterwards. The meeting was a huge success, thanks to the efforts of many volunteers.
About Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL):
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.
For more information, visit: www.vcdl.org.
Prosecute every politician and bureaucrat as an accessory who implemented these “shoot here zones”.
@Mike J, What would be the underlying charge? In other words accessory to what? How about we just go back to the Constitution? Why are politicians, bureaucrats, and judges getting away with ignoring the Constitution? Notice in the very first sentence of the article the word “allows” rears its ugly head. There is no allows in the Second Amendment.
“Accessory to Murder.”
@gk, Michael J’s politician or bureaucrat would have to pass or implement a so called ” Gun Free Zone” in order to aid, attempt to aid, or agree to aid in a specific murder. Please see Robinson on Criminal Law Defenses, p379 Complicity et. seq.
Wasn’t arguing the merits, just clearing up Michael’s position…however, Michael did include “politicians and bureaucrats who IMPLEMENT.” Maybe read again Bill?
Oh so you speak for him, now? How does he feel about that? I think that you are trying to maneuver out of a poorly considered interjection, that does not even rise to the level of speciousness.
Hey dumb ass, you’re wrong again…PERIOD! Shut up and move on!
Quit allowing your Bullfrog Keyboard to overload your tadpole mind, or pay attention to what others wrote before being dumb.
BTW here’s the link to that case that wasn’t ripe as you put it.filed a year and a half ago, dumb ass
https://ktla.com/2018/04/26/nra-olympic-shooter-sue-california-over-its-restrictions-on-ammunition-sales/
Get Rid Of the “GUN FREE ZONE” All Citizens who have Passed a CC course and Background Check should be Allowed to carry Anywhere, Period.
@Tad P, There is no “ass allowed by CC issuers” in the Second Amendment.
Damn spell check. It should be, There is no “as allowed by CC issuers” in the Second Amendment. My apologies for any uncontrollable laughter that my spell check may have caused.
Who is going to protect the common citizens from the armed government employees? Isn’t THAT what the Second Amendment WAS all about? Government is not the solution, it IS the problem. Arming more government employees, while disarming the common citizen, only widens the gulf and deepens the problem. Having the government control guns is like unto Hitler controlling the weapons used by the allies. The very purpose of the Second Amendment is to protect our unalienable Right to the tools of defense against a tyrannical government. If that tyrannical government is allowed to control our tools of defense, what defense… Read more »
Amen, Brother Patriot!
the accountants, managers, functionaries, managers, number crunchers, etc, that work in THAT building are like us, they hold down service jobs, mke things heppen. THESE are not the portion of government employees against which we need to be able to defend.
The edicts, restrictions, mandates, etc that ooze downstream from people like the guvnor Northam, the congressscritters that will try and respond to this massacre by taking away MORE guns, and those armed and deployed as law enforcement are most often the ones who will move against us to impose tyranny.
Is anyone else have concerns about firearms not being allowed even in parking lots of post offices. This even while secured in vehicles, licensed to carry or not. License plate checks can reveal carry permits. Another fast track to our sub-class of prohibited persons that is becoming larger by the hour.
Yup. The Post Office is no different than a bank or safeway. WHY is it that I can carry everywhere else I go, but the instant my wheels cross the sidewalk and into THEIR parking lot, I turn into a murderous rampaging monster, and when I leave again, I revert to normal? The eedjits that thought that one up were, well, eedjits. iI guess that one will take some sort of a massacre happening in the front end of the post office… instead of the back rooms. When that empoloyee “went postal” and shot at his co-workers in the working… Read more »
Hmm, isn’t that nice of them, they’re “drafting a bill that allows local government employees to be able to carry concealed at work if they have a Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP)” Never should have been a GFZ in the first place.
Great point!
If the current statistics are accurate, there should be no such thing as a ‘gun free zone’. Shootings always seem to occur there but no violence is averted there. Give it up gun grabbers, it ain’t working, stop trying to sell the public on that fallacy.
No thanks. Government employees should not be allowed the use of arms. Citizens should be armed, not government employees.
Chris, civilian government employees are still citizens, just like you. There is a big difference between “allowing” civilian government employees to be armed for self-defense – as the rest of the citizens are, and having armed government employees, such as the military and police, that have the state-sanctioned authority to shoot people. Allowing for self-defense will not make those employees tyrannical, just as it does not make you tyrannical.
Good point as sell….
Chris,
When your paranoia gets to the point that you think citizens employed by city and county level government should be stripped of their 2nd Amendment Rights it’s time for meds.
@CM, Citizens should be armed, not government employees. For that to be true, only non-citizens can be government employees.
@ Wild Bill, come on now. don’t you realize this is only the first step in gaining freedom for us all? Most all states have “no guns in government buildings”. Citizens cannot carry in state or federal buildings. These government people are just like you and I, licensed and trained. Most of these comments are from people who cannot or do not comprehend what they read. Go back and read it again, they are not permitting any Tom Dick and Mary to carry. Only those that are licensed so it ain’t “government employees” and not civilians. From your previous posts… Read more »
in my state I can legally carry in any state or local level government facility with the exception of law enforcement and courts, both of which MUST have careful securoty screening on an individual basis, AND provide temporary secure storage for my weapon whilst I am inside, in a TRULY GUN FREE zone. No one can sneak a weapon into the courthouse. City hall, county commissioners, building department, roads, treasurers, assesors, county clerk, driver and car licensing, even the legislature and governor’s areas. As it should be.
@ Bill N.
I think you are misinterpreting W. Bills statement. He is saying that government employees are citizens just like we are and if there was a law restricting government employees from carrying a gun, then government employees would have to be non citizens.
@Bill N and Tcat, Based on Chris Mallory’s two givens, the logical conclusion of his argument is only non-citizens can be government employees. I did not make the rules of logic. I only follow them. I am not expressing an opinion nor my thoughts on the matter.
@Bill N and Tcat, It is nearly classic syllogism structure. And I note with some amusement that it leads to an end that none of us would want. So if it were my presentation of that side of the issue, I believe that I would find another way to express it.
Queue the snowflake hoplophobes who think allowing legal firearms in the workplace will make them more dangerous. We all know the problem is the person behind the trigger, not the tool they use. Gun free zones attract gunmen like flies to honey, but that’s what they want.
My personal belief is any government office what bans firearms should have armed guards, metal detectors and controlled entrances and exits. I also believe any private business that bans guns should be liable for any damage, injury or death caused by a firearm.
@Jeff P, Many of the gun-phobes are terrified of any kind of firearm. No amount of logical discussion or education can cure their fears. Common thought among them is that once a human being has access to a firearm, they instantly become a killing machine with no regard for humanity. This illogical fear is fed by our politicians and educators. Most of the terrorists who commit murder in gun free zones, have planned their deed for days in advance, and look for the targets that will give them the least resistance. We live in a sad day.
since ten percent of the adults in my state have our Mother May I Cards, that means that in any public setting somewhere close to one in ten adults is likely to be armed. If the gun=phobes were correct, there would be thousands of shootings daily aross the land. Remember the panicked whinge that was going about as one state after another dopted SHALL ISSUE or UNREGULATED carry? There were those wailing about blood in the streets, shootouts at traffic lights and car parks, massacres in restaurants and grocery stores.. but guess what? They were wroing, and always will be.… Read more »
Today we celebrate our 1776 declaration to be free of tyranny. Complaining to your buddies about how our rights are being buried by the enemies of freedom changes nothing! Show up in Richmond on July 9th and become the visible face of American liberty!
I would love to be there, but out of the country!