He managed to work in (and bury) the obligatory Fudd gun photo. He just won’t tell us what he has in mind beyond that. (Glenn Youngkin/Facebook)
U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- “Scathing media fact checks have not stopped Virginia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Terry McAuliffe from employing debunked attacks against GOP opponent Glenn Youngkin,” The Washington Free Beacon reported Thursday. “The Virginia GOP has responded to McAuliffe’s ‘repeated lies’ by labeling the Democrat ‘Two-Faced Terry’…”
NRA
Subway Suspension-Shaming For Self-Defense Should Not Stand ~ VIDEO
Opinion
NRA Director(s) Joining Action in New York Case Could Bolster Intervenor Chances
Confiscating guns is ultimately what it’s all about, and dissolving NRA will make that job all the easier. An Intervenor action seeks to provide stewardship that will achieve NRA objectives by advancing member interests. (New York State Attorney General/Facebook)
U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)-
NY AG Letitia James Files a Revised & Amended Complaint Against NRA
Opinion
NRA Board of Directors
USA – -(AmmoLand.com)- We’ve warned the NRA Board.
We’ve talked with past presidents and high-level insiders. We’ve advised, pleaded, and begged them to take action to prove that the Association’s governing body is in charge of the Association, that Directors understand their fiduciary duty is to the membership and not to serve as lackeys to Wayne LaPierre and his accomplices, co-conspirators, apologists, and enablers.
We have repeatedly detailed and documented the exorbitant salaries and contractor payments, the self-dealing, cronyism, fraud, kickbacks, and abuse that has been ongoing at the top of the Association for years. We’ve consulted with legal and financial experts, reporting their analysis and advice, and we’ve urged members to lobby their NRA Directors, just as they would their members of Congress or local government, demanding accountability and transparency.
We warned that, unless the Board stepped up and took significant actions to root out any hint of corruption or malfeasance, the New York Attorney General and the courts would use the lack of action as proof that the Association is corrupt to the core, and undeserving of any sort of second chance or opportunity to reorganize.
NRA Directors chose to ignore it all as just political attacks and those negative Knoxes grinding their daddy’s old axe.
NRA Board Fails to Take Corrective Action
On Monday, August 16, the NY AG filed a 193-page Revised and Amended Complaint against the NRA and four named defendants; EVP Wayne LaPierre, Secretary John Frazer, former Treasurer Woody Phillips, and former Deputy EVP Josh Powell. You can read the document by clicking the link above or below, or going to www.FirearmsCoalition.org. Please do read it and share it, as it’s very enlightening.
Just as we had predicted, the AG’s Amended Complaint digs deeply into the testimony of NRA officials and vendors during the NRA’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy trial, including damning testimony from LaPierre himself, and a couple of hours worth of “On the advice of counsel, I wish to invoke my rights under the 5th Amendment to the US Constitution and refuse to answer that question,” from former Treasurer Woody Phillips. And just as we had predicted, the AG is now focusing heavily on the Board’s failure to take substantive action to correct problems, its failure to distance the Association from those accused of wrongdoing, and its failure to institute policies and procedures to ensure no further abuse or malfeasance can occur, as well as instituting safeguards to ensure strict compliance with those policies and procedures.
The AG’s Amended Complaint points out, not only the Board’s failure to take any of the needed actions, but also the fact that additional abuse and misspending has occurred since the problems were clearly disclosed to the Board, and many of those abuses were actually approved by the Board or by committees of the Board, after the adoption of, and in direct contradiction to, their claimed “course correction” policies.
We’ve probably passed the point of no return, and it seems unlikely that the Association can be salvaged by any action of the Board. Even if the Board were to elect a new slate of officers, including a new Executive Vice President to replace Wayne LaPierre, which they could have done at their now-canceled Houston meeting, it’s likely that the judge would see the action as too little, too late. But that’s the only rational action any Board member could take to distance themselves from the lies, corruption, and gross mismanagement that’s been going on under their noses.We had hoped NRA members would show up in droves at the Houston Annual Meeting of Members, to demand that the Board stop making excuses, and start taking substantive action to protect the Association. The decision to cancel the Houston meetings, and all of the events surrounding them, leave everything in limbo. The recently elected directors can’t be seated until the Association holds an Annual Meeting, meaning that the current Board remains in office. Election of officers can’t take place until the first Board meeting after the Annual Meeting of Members.
So Carolyn Meadows remains as President, Charles Cotton remains as 1st Vice President, Willes Lee remains as 2nd Vice President, and Wayne LaPierre remains as Executive Vice President and CEO.
The NRA Bylaws have long required that an Annual Meeting of Members be held every year prior to November 30. But at some point during the past year, the Board voted to amend the Bylaws to qualify that requirement with an exception for “acts of God,” such as a hurricane or a pandemic. That new bylaw gives the Board plenty of room to delay or even completely forego a Members’ Meeting this year. I expect though, that they will hold some sort of abbreviated meeting, similar to the one they held last year in Tucson, where Board members and their wives almost outnumbered Voting Members in attendance. Their hope would be to avoid a large turnout of angry members demanding change.
A shake-up in Houston was probably wishful thinking, and even if we could have pulled it off, it’s unlikely that it would have changed what’s coming. At this point, with or without major changes in the leadership structure and management of the Association, knowledgeable observers say it’s a better than even-money bet that the Association will be in receivership within a few months, with criminal charges filed against some staff and key Board members.
Nonetheless, I plan to be at the Members’ Meeting, whenever and wherever it eventually is held, trying to convince the Board to do what they should have done years ago. If members still had the legal authority to take substantive actions at the Members’ Meeting, as they did in Cincinnati in 1977, that’s what we would be trying to do. But the membership has been neutered over the intervening years, almost always with orchestrated votes by the members themselves. Today, members at an Annual Meeting have no real power, beyond creating a record and having a stage from which to possibly influence Directors.
The NRA is way more than just a rights advocacy organization. No other organization has the infrastructure and experience to take over the myriad of things the NRA does. Rebuilding the NRA will take years. Building something comparable from scratch, or even from an existing organization, would take decades, if possible at all. The New York court could turn out to be the Association’s last hope if the judge installs a good trustee to reorganize the Association with guidance from a Members’ Committee.
There’s no telling what the NRA “leadership” will do next. Whatever they do, we’ll let you know. If they do announce a new date, time, and place for a Members’ Meeting, I hope to see you there. You are the Gun Lobby, not the NRA, but the NRA has been the most powerful tool in our fight for rights, so I’m not going to let it go without a fight.
NY AG Letitia James Files a Revised & Amended Complaint Against NRA August 16th, 2021
About Jeff Knox:
Jeff Knox is a second-generation political activist and director of The Firearms Coalition. His father Neal Knox led many of the early gun rights battles for your right to keep and bear arms. Read Neal Knox – The Gun Rights War.
The Firearms Coalition is a loose-knit coalition of individual Second Amendment activists, clubs, and civil rights organizations. Founded by Neal Knox in 1984, the organization provides support to grassroots activists in the form of education, analysis of current issues, and a historical perspective of the gun rights movement. The Firearms Coalition has offices in Buckeye, Arizona, and Manassas, VA. Visit: www.FirearmsCoalition.org.
Texas ‘Permitless Carry’ Effective Sept. 1, Without NRA Meetings
Permitless carry becomes law in Texas Sept. 1, but NRA won’t be in Houston to celebrate. (Dave Workman)
U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- When Texans start carrying sidearms in public Sept. 1—thanks to passage of Senate Bill 1927 earlier this year—they won’t be able to celebrate the fact as part of the would-have-been festivities in Houston over the Labor Day weekend when the National Rifle Association was to gather for its landmark 150th-anniversary members’ meetings and exhibits. NRA canceled the event, citing concerns over COVID-19.
According to Houston Public Media, “permitless carry remains controversial.” Even some firearms instructors opposed it, while Republican state lawmakers “were largely united in support of the bill,” the story said. Gyl Switzer, executive director of Texas Gun Sense, told Houston Public Media, “I think it will mean more handguns in public. And data show us time after time after time that guns don’t make us safer.”
Switzer may have to walk that back a bit in the wake of an incident in San Antonio last week in which an unidentified armed citizen intervened in what could have been a violent attack on top of a tragedy. A female bicyclist was struck by a car and killed when she reportedly ignored a red light. The driver of the car was taking his children to school, according to KSAT news. The woman’s boyfriend, riding behind her, reportedly pulled a machete on the driver, but a second motorist drew his sidearm “in an effort to diffuse the situation,” according to Fox News.
It was not explained why the boyfriend was carrying a machete while riding a bicycle, but the armed citizen’s presence apparently prevented a bloody confrontation.
There are some interesting reader reactions to the KSAT report on the accident. One reader, identified as “Matthew 28:5-6” observed, “There could have been 2 dead bodies. Looks like a good guy with the gun prevented another death. Still very sad the lady lost her life because she disregarded the traffic light. And for those of you who are gun critics, that could have been your husband or brother, who got to go home because someone had the courage to intervene and defend a 3rd party. Not to mention there were children in the vehicle, who were also in danger. Cheers to the unknown hero.”
There are concerns about the absence of required training for people who choose to carry without a permit. As noted by Houston Public Media, the class required for obtaining a license to carry covers basic gun laws and “conflict resolution.” There is also material on safe gun storage and applicants must demonstrate “basic shooting proficiency.”
It is ironic, then, that the new law kicks in just days before the now-canceled NRA gathering was to have begun in Houston. NRA was involved in getting the legislation through the Texas Legislature in Austin. With all of the association’s problems of late, the new permitless carry law could have been something to celebrate.
Earlier this month, the Texas Tribune posted the results of a poll it did along with the University of Texas that shows 59 percent of the state’s voters oppose permitless carry, while 56 percent of Republicans support it. Eighty-five percent of Democrats and 54 percent of Independents oppose the idea.
But some observations by Ray Hunt, executive director of the Houston Police Officers’ Union, acknowledged to the Texas Tribune that concerns about the open carry law adopted in 2016 never materialized. As reported by the newspaper, “Law enforcement heavily condemned 2016’s ‘open carry’ law that permits Texans to openly carry handguns in public as long as they have a permit. Many said they didn’t end up seeing noticeable effects after it passed.”
Hunt told the newspaper something else. “We were completely opposed to ‘license to carry’ when it happened, and we said all of the same arguments that we’re saying now,” Hunt reportedly recalled. “And nothing happened, so we’re hoping that we’re overreacting. We’re just concerned because anytime there’s more guns, there’s a problem.”
While Hunt has acknowledged this, the gun prohibition lobby never seems to reach that point. Instead, anti-gunners just want more gun control laws.
Yet in Texas, as everywhere else, more restrictive gun control laws do not seem to prevent criminals from getting firearms and committing violent crimes. They just make it tougher for law-abiding citizens to exercise rights enumerated and protected by the Constitution.
RELATED:
About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms, and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
NRA ‘Restructuring’ and Billing Documents Show Need for Honest Stewardship
Things didn’t quite break as planned and now New York stands ready to do some breaking of its own. (NRA/Facebook)
U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- “The [New York State] Attorney General has filed an amended complaint, 187 pages long,” the NRA in Danger blog reported Tuesday. “The original complaint was brutal, this is beyond that. Staff and some directors are looting the corporation for millions or tens of millions.”
The New York complaint confirms AG Letitia James is out to destroy the National Rifle Association by taking no prisoners and salting the earth. While others have suggested ways around her demands for total NRA annihilation, only one effort has moved beyond the talking stage and filed to be recognized in the legal decision-making, led by members who have filed an intervenor motion.
Regular AmmoLand News readers may recall the idea for members to try and stop the dissolution of the Association via an intervenor lawsuit first reported in August of last year. In June we reported the intervenor motion had been filed in the case with Life Members Frank Tait and Mario Aguirre taking point on behalf of the membership, and earlier this month this column relayed information about the related reply memorandum seeking the judge to grant the intervention, a decision anticipated in early September.
The exhibits embedded below have been extracted from the trial exhibits submitted at Chapter 11 (bankruptcy) motion to dismiss hearing. These are all public documents, legally downloaded from the federal PACER court record system and provided to me by a source close to the case, along with some relevant observations, opinions, and speculations.
The exhibit includes the January 15 “resolution” to authorize Chapter 11 reorganization and retain counsel, citing as authority the Board’s January 7 vote to give Wayne LaPierre the power to “exercise corporate authority … including … to reorganize or restructure the affairs of the Association.”
There’s a Jan. 15, 2021 email from NRA director Duane Liptak to John Frazer (General Counsel) regarding Frazer’s announcement that day of the Chapter 11 filing:
“Am I to assume that no one thought this worthy of discussion when the board was assembled 8 days ago?”
It seems equally valid to ask if any of the Board members who voted to give LaPierre such power wanted plausible deniability for themselves. In any case, per March 28 Board Meeting minutes, included in the embedded exhibit below, we learn:
“During Executive Session a Resolution authorizing and ratifying Chapter 11 reorganization was adopted by a vote of 44 in favor, one opposed, and three abstentions.”
The Executive Session information is blacked out, but much can still be gleaned from what is left. From a fly-on-the-wall perspective, it’s fascinating watching Director Phillip Journey, who has called for the court to assign an independent examiner to investigate corruption allegations, be repeatedly called “out of order” when he tried to speak. It’s also telling that other Board members did not stand up and demand he be heard.
The minutes are followed by a series of monthly “invoices for services rendered” by the Brewer law firm.
“Here are a few of the more interesting exhibits that go to conflicts of interest and the rubberstamp board: Copies of all Brewer Bills from Dec. ’18 to Jan. ’21, unredacted,” my source advises. “Unbelievable – note there is no detail in these – just single line entries. All approved by Wayne LaPierre and other NRA execs subject to his direction.
“Nobody pays bills like this with no detail,” he maintains. “No law firm sends bills like this with no detail. I haven’t found anything so far to indicate there was ever more detail — I think if there was there would have been an exhibit showing it or a motion objecting to more detail on grounds of privilege.
Craig Spray, NRA’s CFO and Treasurer at the time, made his concerns clear:
“You know as well as I do that these are not approvals. There is no ‘Wayne said’ approvals at the NRA. All of you are core to our controls process and frankly I am disappointed in all of you … I cannot emphasize enough what a break down this is.”
Then a curious thing happened. Per Law & Crime:
“On Jan. 29th this year, LaPierre sent the NRA’s staff and board a letter claiming that Spray resigned ‘due to health concerns.’ Referring to Spray’s prior testimony undermining that narrative, Fuchs quoted him telling the court: “The day of your departure was ‘certainly not the date you would have chosen”?
“‘Correct,’ Spray responded.”
What testimony he could add to an intervenor effort is a question of interest.
Then there’s a series of memos from short-timer President Oliver North, First Vice President Richard Childress, and Second Vice President Carolyn Meadows, calling for an “independent review” of the Brewer billings. North ultimately stepped down, Childress resigned, and Meadows took over as president and as an ardent LaPierre defender.
“What’s missing from all this, and I didn’t find in any of the exhibits, is a copy of Brewer’s original engagement letter that the North/Childress memo/letter mentions,” my source observes.
A desperate Wayne LaPierre knows he can’t fall off the tiger he is riding, and Letitia James is fixated on burning down the house. It’s clear at this point that a successful intervenor action with effective controls and a trustee/receiver representing member interests consistent with Association Bylaws is the best of three forced choices.
Now it’s up to the judge.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating/defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament. He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” is a regularly featured contributor to Firearms News, and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.
2021 NRA Annual Meeting of Members CANCELED
NRA Annual Meeting Cancelled: COVID-19 Fears
Fairfax, VA – -(Ammoland.com)- Due to concern over the safety of our NRA family and community, we regret to inform you that we have decided to cancel the 2021 Annual Meeting & Exhibits. This cancellation applies to all events and meetings that were scheduled in Houston. We will provide future notification regarding a rescheduled date for the Annual Meeting of Members.
We make this difficult decision after analyzing relevant data regarding COVID-19 in Harris County, Texas.
We also consulted with medical professionals, local officials, major sponsors & exhibitors, and many NRA members before arriving at this decision. The NRA Annual Meeting welcomes tens of thousands of people and involves many events, meetings, and social gatherings. Among the highlights of our annual meeting is acres of exhibit space featuring the latest and greatest firearms, the display of countless accessories, and the offering of adventures and group gatherings that many travel hundreds, and some even thousands, of miles to experience. We realize that it would prove difficult, if not impossible, to offer the full guest experience that our NRA members deserve.
The NRA’s top priority is ensuring the health and well-being of our members, staff, sponsors, and supporters. We are mindful that NRA Annual Meeting patrons will return home to family, friends, and co-workers from all over the country, so any impacts from the virus could have broader implications. Those are among the reasons why we decided to cancel our 2021 event.
We would like to thank our members, attendees, exhibitors, and staff for their understanding and support. We are grateful for the many contributions of the George R. Brown Convention Center, state and local officials, community organizers, area hotels, and countless event venues across Houston. We receive enormous support from Houston and the State of Texas – and we hope to return to the Bayou City for a full annual meeting experience.
The NRA looks forward to a Celebration of Freedom in Louisville in May 2022. In the meantime, we will support many other NRA local events and smaller gatherings – in a manner that is protective of our members and celebrates our Second Amendment freedom.
We wish continued health and safety to our entire NRA family.
About NRA-ILA:
Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the “lobbying” arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess, and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Visit: www.nra.org
Cimarron Welcomes the NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits to the Great State of Texas
Cimarron Firearms Welcomes 150th NRA Meeting and Exhibits to Houston, Texas
Fredericksburg, Texas (Ammoland.com) – Cimarron Firearms, recognized as the leader in quality and authenticity in Old West replica firearms, will be exhibiting at the 150th NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits, Sept. 3 – 5, 2021 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas. Cimarron Firearms will be camping out at booth 2547 and showcasing the guns that are part of the lore of the American West.
Attendees to the NRA show will be able to see Cimarron’s newest models including the 1887 Lever Action Terminator® 12ga. Shotgun. The original was carried by Arizona Sheriff John Slaughter and helped establish the repeating shotgun platform. The new Lonesome Dove .44 Walkers will also make their first public showing. Designed to honor the fictional characters from Larry McMurtry’s blockbuster Pulitzer Prize-winning “Lonesome Dove” series, McCrae and Call, two former Texas Rangers, take one last, lifetime affirming cattle drive through Texas into the frontiers where they meet outlaws, heroes, Native Americans, settlers, and ladies of the night.
“Cimarron’s DNA is purely Texan. We started our first retail business, Bigfoot, right here in Houston, so this NRA show is like a homecoming for us at Cimarron Firearms,” Mike Harvey, founder and CEO of Cimarron Firearms, explained. “We are proud to show the public the finest replicas of the guns that won the West.”
For more information on Cimarron Firearms and accessories, visit www.cimarron-firearms.com.
About Cimarron Firearms:
Cimarron is the leader in quality and authenticity in replica firearms. For the past 30 years, Cimarron has worked continuously to perfect the authentic detail, fit, finish, and function of our line of frontier firearms. There is no other firearm that is near equal in value, strength, reliability, and authentic detail as is the line from Cimarron Firearms Co.
‘Fudd for Chipman’ Democrat Ploy to Manipulate Low-Information Gun Owners
This is the guy who will “unite” gun owners? In which reality?(NSSF)
U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- “Guest view: David Chipman can unite us on Second Amendment issues,” an August 5 testimonial appearing in, among other outlets, the Montana Standard, declares. The author is Dave Stalling, a self-described “past president of the Montana Wildlife Federation, … gun owner, former Force Recon Marine and avid hunter who lives in Missoula.”
The only surprise is that such a piece hasn’t appeared earlier. Gun owners have long been subjected to sudden appearances of Democrat citizen disarmament enablers trying to pass themselves off as fellow “tribe” members when there is a political goal to be attained. In the last presidential election, two groups tried to make their mark, “Sportsmen and Sportswomen for Biden — a coalition of more than 50 prominent hunters and anglers from across the country, who have come together to endorse Joe Biden for President of the United States,” and the Giffords’-bankrolled Gun Owners for Safety.
Yeah, they’re Fudds for Biden. If you’re inclined to take offense at that word, hold on a second: It’s not a pejorative for all hunters and sport shooters – just the ones who throw their fellow gun owners under the bus and support citizen disarmament edicts that don’t impact their hobbies. But a Fudd is what Stalling proves himself to be, particularly when he accuses Donald Trump Jr. of lying when he says Montana Sen. Jon Tester is not “staunchly pro-Second Amendment.” He’s not.
Tester’s a prime example of a self-serving opportunist who recognized that he had to vote “pro-gun” in order to be elected in that state, and was allowed to get away with it by Democrat Party leadership because it served their purposes to have him advance the rest of the agenda. Revealingly, Tester showed his true nature when he voted to keep Post Offices “gun-free zones.” The last straw for NRA was Tester’s Supreme Court confirmation votes (for Kagan and Sotomayor, against Gorsuch and Kavanaugh) when they downgraded his one-time “A” to a “D.”
“As a gun owner, former ATF special agent, and internationally recognized gun safety expert, David Chipman is hardly ‘anti-Second Amendment,’” Stalling continues. “As a Montana citizen, gun owner, former Force Recon Marine, and hunter, I fully support Chipman’s nomination, and urge my fellow Montanans to do the same.”
“Hardly”? And “recognized” by who? As for being a gun owner, so is Dianne Feinstein – who was reported to have a concealed carry permit that you or I couldn’t get to save our lives –literally. What does that prove? With all the evidence of his personal penchant for infringements that’s been amassed to the contrary (just enter the search term “Chipman” in the AmmoLand search bar), you wonder what more the guy has to do.
As for Stalling being a Montana citizen, that doesn’t qualify the correctness of his opinions. Mentioning he is a “former Force Recon Marine” to make himself appear authoritative on the Second Amendment is a logical fallacy, equivalent to pediatricians presuming their medical degrees confer all the credentialing they need in order to prescribe that gun owners lock up their safety. And as every real personal arms advocate knows, it ain’t about duck hunting.
The curious thing about his being past president of the Montana Wildlife Federation: They’re putting a lot of energy into confirming Tracy Stone-Manning to lead the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Campaigning for someone who was closely involved with eco-terrorist tree spikers might make the whole MSF nominee supporting process suspect.
That certainly raises a different flag than the one Stalling’s waving. Then again, his assertions bring nothing to mind so much as Sir Wilfrid’s cross-examination of Frau Helm in the classic movie Witness for the Prosecution (if you haven’t seen it, go ahead and take two minutes and watch it).
That he fools no one who understands the issue is not the point. Stalling’s not trying to persuade or change the minds of anyone who knows what they’re talking about on the Second Amendment. What he’s doing is following a strategy similar to the efforts of a new organization passing itself off as a “reasonable” alternative to more confrontational gun-grabbers, 97percent.org. And they’re counting on “40% of the 2020 spike in new gun owners were women, and 90% of gun owners do not view guns as part of their identity.”
In other words, take the new gun owners who don’t understand the issue and apathetic, uninvolved gun owners who haven’t been paying attention, and make sure they stay low-information and don’t get spooked by the truth. It’s a similar tactic to characterizing disarmament edicts as “commonsense gun safety.” Who could be against that?
It’s up to gun owners who believe in the Second Amendment to use our influence to counter the deception. There’s a lot of new gun owners out there and it would be both a shame and a waste to not do what we can to show them where they’re being misdirected, and the tricks the snake oil salesmen employ to get them to swallow political poison.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating/defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament. He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” is a regularly featured contributor to Firearms News, and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.
Gun Control and the Elastic Meaning of “Transfer”- Colorado Court Moves the Needle
Gun Control and the Elastic Meaning of “Transfer”- Colorado Court Moves the Needle, iStock-884190572
U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- One of the laws championed by the gun-grabbing crowd is the so-called universal background check, in which private sales of firearms are subjected to a criminal background check, fees, and paperwork. What gun control advocates fail to make clear, though, is that their concept of “sale” extends to firearm “transfers,” being gifts, loans and any other transaction, regardless of how temporary, where possession but not ownership of the firearm changes.
A failed background check initiative in Maine adopted a definition of “transfer” that meant “to sell, furnish, give, lend, deliver or otherwise provide with or without consideration.” The Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility (WAGR), which drafted the law in Washington State, defined a “transfer” as the “intended delivery of a firearm to another person without consideration of payment or promise of payment including, but not limited to, gifts and loans.” The proponents of the Maine law misleadingly packaged the initiative as one that applied “to private sales.” WAGR likewise maintained that “simply handing someone your gun … is not a transfer” under their language, and scoffed that concerns about the law applying to temporary transfers between law-abiding gun owners were farfetched fear-mongering over “invented scenarios.” After the WAGR-drafted law was passed, it became obvious that opponents were correct and it did apply to “simply handing someone” a gun, as instructors and students in hunter safety classes for the state’s fish and wildlife department quickly learned.
The elastic concept of “transfer” was stretched even further in a Colorado criminal case, People v. Johnson, No. 18CA1212, 2021 COA 102 (Colo. Ct. App. July 29, 2021).
A state law on straw purchasing, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-12-111(1), provides that “[a]ny person who knowingly purchases or otherwise obtains a firearm on behalf of or for transfer to a person who the transferor knows or reasonably should know is ineligible to possess a firearm” commits a felony.
Sylvia Johnson was charged with violating the law after she purchased and stored a firearm in an apartment she shared with her common-law husband, Jaron Trujillo. Johnson was not herself under a firearm disability, but Trujillo was a convicted felon, and subject to a protection order that both barred him from Johnson’s apartment and – as Johnson knew – prohibited him from possessing firearms.
Johnson purchased the gun after she went to a pawnbroker with Trujillo to look for jewelry and a gun for herself. Her evidence was that she bought the gun to protect her children and her “whole family,” including Trujillo. She paid for the gun, and testified that she was not acting as a straw purchaser or middleman for Trujillo and had never given the gun to him. She did, however, keep it in a closet in the apartment where she lived with Trujillo. The evidence on how Trujillo knew where the gun was kept was inconsistent: Johnson said she told him, while Trujillo testified he guessed its location.
Sixteen days after Johnson bought the gun, a manager at the apartment building called police after seeing Trujillo on the premises in violation of the protection order. Officers located Trujillo outside the apartment with Johnson’s gun in his pocket. Trujillo admitted he took the gun while Johnson was at work and away from the apartment. There was no indication that Trujillo had previously accessed or taken the gun, or that Johnson was even aware that he had taken it.
The Colorado Court of Appeals found Johnson guilty of violating Section 18-12-111(1), concluding that she “knowingly purchased the firearm for the purpose of ‘transferring’ it to Trujillo.”
The “purpose” element was apparently satisfied because the court determined Johnson purchased the gun “with the knowledge that Trujillo… would access it to protect himself.” The law Johnson was charged with violating does not include a definition of “transfer,” so the court referred to the state’s universal background check law. “Transfer” in that context includes temporary transfers without a change in ownership or title, and without an exception for “temporary transfers of a firearm in the form of shared use.” According to the court, it necessarily followed that “the General Assembly gave ‘transfer’ a broad definition for purposes of the prohibition against the ‘transfer’ of firearms by ‘straw purchasers,’” a prohibition found in an unrelated and separate law.
Although there is no indication in the decision that Johnson had given Trujillo permission to access the gun – and she expressly denied ever having given the gun to him – the court determined that a “transfer” had indeed occurred. Johnson had “shared possession of the firearm” with Trujillo, and the two of them had “‘transferred’ the firearm by conveying, moving, and shifting it between themselves. Thus, a ‘transfer’ of the firearm occurred when Trujillo picked it up from the closet, where Johnson had left it.” Essentially, a “transfer” had occurred because Trujillo had access to the gun by virtue of the fact that they shared a roof.
In hindsight, Sylvia Johnson was unwise in sharing her home with her common-law spouse. Her lapse in judgment means she now faces up to six years in prison and a potential fine of up to $500,000, and her felony conviction means she joins Trujillo as a person barred from possessing or purchasing a firearm.
For others in the gun-owning community, the court’s interpretation of “transfer” raises real questions and concerns. If, as the court appears to say, a “transfer” occurs by passively allowing others to access places where a firearm is kept and another person takes possession of the gun, regardless of the custodian’s knowledge or consent, the requirement for an actual positive act of “simply handing someone your gun” is eliminated. Building a case of a “transfer” based on passive access potentially has wider repercussions.
The court’s ruling is based on the Colorado straw purchase law but “borrowed” from the law on private transfers and background checks. Will future courts “circle back” by using the new interpretation from this straw purchase case when dealing with violations of the background check law? That law prohibits “transfers or attempts to transfer possession of a firearm” unless the person first complies with the mandatory background check requirements using a licensed dealer, and as the Johnson court indicated, that law has no exception for temporary transfers of a firearm in the home where shared possession based on access is presumed.
This may be a case of alarmist thinking – and we hope it is – but as the past has shown, it’s not unlikely that predicted gun control scenarios summarily dismissed as outlandish later materialize into reality.
About NRA-ILA:
Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the “lobbying” arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess, and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Visit: www.nra.org