Sebastian has reports on one plea deal and another that may be pending on the recent arrests for possession of firearms in New York City.
First, a plea deal has been struck for the Tea Party leader arrested at LaGuardia Airport when trying to check a firearm. He pled to disorderly conduct and had to forfeit his Glock 27. An updated link to the story can also be found here.
The second involves registered nurse and medical student Meredith Graves. According to what Sebastian is reporting, a plea deal to a similar charge may be in the works.
Read both and push your Senator to support HR 822 which would have, at the least, exempted Meredith Graves from this madness.
If you look, you will notice a new feature in the blog sidebar. Just above the blog archives is a widget that features a direct feed from the Professional Outdoor Media Association.
This feed will feature news and video from the both the 2012 SHOT Show next week and the 2012 Archery Trade Association show this week.
A 68-year old Greenville, SC woman who used a walker was told to back up by an armed man at her door who was attempting to enter her house. Armed herself, she replied, according to her neighbor, “I am not going to back up but I will kill you.”
You just don’t mess with little, old ladies in the Upstate!
Soldiers’ Angels has sent hundreds of thousands of care packages to our deployed soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen. They have provided over 6,000 voice-activated laptops to seriously wounded servicemen and women. And this is just the beginning. They – and our servicemen and women – deserve our help. so please be generous.
The Rules:
How to Earn a Ticket:
1. Every five dollars you donate directly to Soldiers’ Angels nets you one numbered ticket.
2. Every five dollars you spend in their Dollar Days or Amazon shops (where the products are shipped directly to them) gets you one ticket.
3. Every five dollars you spend in the Angels’ Store for any product that is shipped to “ANY Hero”, “ANY Wounded Soldier”, or “A SPECIFIC Soldier” earns you one ticket.
4. DO NOT SEND ME MONEY. All money and goods should go directly to Soldiers’ Angels.
5. DO SEND ME THE RECEIPT. Anonymize it however you like, and use the actual receipt or a screencap, but email from an address I can reach you back at. Send the receipt/proof to “linoge (at) wallsofthecity (dot) net”.
6. Specify how many of your tickets you want in the “holster”, “belt”, and “general” pools.
7. Within 24 hours, you should receive an email from me indicating your ticket numbers. If you do not, feel free to email me again or comment here.
How We Will Do the Drawing:
1. The drawing will occur in decreasing fair market value (in other words, most-expensive item first, according to MSRP).
2. You can only win once.
3. When you send me your receipt, please indicate how many tickets you want put in each pool.
4. A single drawing will take place for each prize (currently 29), not each pool.
5. At 1800 EST on 12JAN12, with Better Half watching over my shoulder, I will hit up Random.org and generate however many numbers I need. I will email the winners that day.
Iain Harrison of Crimson Trace just announced their lineup of events for those like JayG lucky enough to go to the SHOT Show this year.
Crimson Trace Announces All-Star Lineup for SHOT 2012
(Wilsonville, OR) Building on the success of 2011, the industry-leading laser company has a packed Las Vegas schedule to launch an even bigger 2012. Kicking off the week with a bang, Crimson Trace will host a reunion of the cast of Top Shot, History channel’s hit shooting show. Competitors from all three previous seasons will be at the CTC booth at 4.30 on Tuesday to sign autographs, meet with fans and introduce the cast of Season 4. Shot Show attendees are invited to stop by booth #16731 and say hello to their favorite heroes and villains, as well as get an exclusive preview of the new season.
On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 2pm, fans of the #1 shooting show on The Outdoor Channel, Shooting Gallery, can meet broadcaster and host Michael Bane as he streams content live from SHOT, covering everything that’s new & newsworthy from this year’s show. Michael loves interacting with fans and shooting enthusiasts – plan to drop by and be a part of his show. Thursday sees a packed schedule, with Tom Gresham’s popular Gun Talk radio show broadcasting live from the Crimson Trace booth between 10 and 1pm, before handing the stage back to Michael Bane.
Lastly, Crimson Trace stages its biggest event ever on Thursday afternoon at 4pm to celebrate 17 years of industry-leading innovation by giving away 17 units of their newest product launch: the Rail Master™. The first universal fit product from Crimson Trace delivers the quality, confidence and innovation expected from the leader in the laser industry and will go home free to 17 lucky winners. In addition, Crimson Trace is giving away a spectacular grand prize that’s made up from other innovative and industry leading companies from the great Pacific Northwest : Danner, Gerber, Leatherman, Leupold, Nosler and Crimson Trace have contributed over $3000 worth of gear. In order to enter the drawing for these unprecedented prizes, show attendees need only turn up and register at 4pm.
”Crimson Trace first came to SHOT in 1994 as a small company with a big, innovative idea we thought would help some folks and maybe catch on. Seventeen years later, we’re still small company and still focused on innovation, said Kent Thomas, Director of Marketing for Crimson Trace. “We’ve planned a huge celebration and want to celebrate with everyone who have made Crimson Trace who we are today – a difference maker in the industry and the leader of laser sighting solutions.
In another of their excellent short training videos, Mark Thomas of the National Shooting Sports Foundation discusses a Type 1 or failure to feed malfunction with Gunsite Academy instructor Bob Whaley. They show the immediate action drill for the AR-15.
Ruger sponsored this video of a beginner’s guide to IDPA. Shooting an IDPA match or two is on my list of things that I’d like to do this year.
Another great resource is the PowerFactor Show which is available as both video and audio podcasts. It was started by Pacific NW shooters Steve Sopfi and Rick Brenneman. They have added Caleb Giddings to their lineup as a co-host. It is part of the Gun Rights Radio Network and the videos are available on iTunes, Zune, and YouTube.
Bill Adams, president of the Canton Police Patrolmen’s Association, the union that represents Patrolman Daniel Harless, confirmed that city Safety Director Thomas Ream ruled that Harless is no longer a member of the city’s police force.
Ream issued a three-page ruling dated Tuesday.
“It is quite clear that (Harless’) actions represented a pattern of behavior where inappropriate verbal abuse and threats of death or great bodily harm of the various complainants occurred,” Ream wrote.
“This escalating pattern of potentially dangerous behavior cannot be justified or excused and clearly illustrates the seriousness of the departmental infractions.”
The story goes on to say that Harless would appeal his dismissal and that he has had undiagnosed PTSD for the last 8 years after an incident where his finger was bitten severely by a suspect.
The Canton Police Patrolmen’s Association, the union representing Harless, has asked for an extension of his hearing due to the PTSD. While not explicitly stated, the story implies that they are standing foursquare behind him in his appeal and many other officers have donated sick leave to Harless while he was on suspension prior to his termination.
Tolerance of bad actors like Harless entrusted with the public’s safety by police unions and fellow officers diminishes the public’s respect for all officers. Rather than propping him up, they should be pushing to get someone so obviously unstable off the force and into treatment (if really needed). Officers like Harless need to be out of law enforcement for everyone’s good. As Thirdpower notes about Harless’s PTSD:
He threatens a citizen w/ death and the union is still acting the apologist for him. Sad. If his PTSD is this severe, he is a threat to himself and others and should be institutionalized thereby making him a prohibited person.
I am reminded of the Honor Code at West Point which states “A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.” The point of that Code is that you are just as guilty of lying, cheating, or stealing if you know about it and do nothing. Likewise, in this case, tolerating someone who abuses their authority is just as bad as abusing that authority yourself.
UPDATE:Sebastian at Shall Not Be Questioned speculates that the City of Canton terminated Harless to protect themselves against a potential lawsuit.
I wish I could say this is a case of a town doing the right thing, but I suspect the primary reason is that Daniel Harless was a walking potential 1983 suit just waiting to happen, and I would point out that 1983 allows one to sue all the way up the chain of command.
I stumbled across this really interesting video of a reunion of both Union and Confederate veterans from the Battle of Gettysburg. The reunion was the 75th reunion in 1938. The most touching part is when they were going to re-enact Pickett’s Charge and the Union vets ended up surging towards the Conferates and hugging them.
With the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor just past, it is a reminder of the sacrifices that all veterans have made for this country over the years.
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