The battle for open carry
From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram...
More than a month before the legislative session starts Jan. 13, gun-rights supporters are asking state lawmakers to pass an "open carry" law to let Texans stop covering up the guns they carry and wear them openly.
They are putting their message on billboards, on banners on cabs and in radio ads, asking others to sign on to the cause.
"We are targeting Texas," said Mike Stollenwerk, co-founder of www.opencarry.org, a champion of the growing nationwide effort. "Texas is probably the most pro-gun state, but doesn’t have open-carry laws.
"As Texans realize how restrictive their rights are . . . there will be an awakening. Get ready for a showdown in Austin come January."
Oklahoma, unfortunately, also doesn't allow open carry. That's a law we need to change. In Pennsylvania a woman is tackling the problem single handedly...
Meleanie Hain's concealed weapons permit was revoked Sept. 20 by Lebanon County Sheriff Michael DeLeo, who maintained she showed poor judgment wearing her gun to her daughter's soccer game Sept. 11. The permit was reinstated Oct. 14 by Lebanon County Judge Robert Eby.
Judge Eby asked her to conceal the gun when she goes to soccer games. but Hain said she planned to continue to display the gun, asserting her right under the Second Amendment.
The lawsuit filed in U.S. Middle District Court on behalf of Hain and her husband, Scott Hain, names DeLeo, his office and Lebanon County. It claims the sheriff's action violated her First, Second, Fourth, Fifth and 14th Amendment rights....
The suit seeks reimbursement of attorneys' fees and costs and lost wages, since Hain's baby-sitting business has suffered, Weisberg said. She also seeks compensation for emotional distress, punitive and statutory damages, and mandatory education for the sheriff's department on Second Amendment issues.
Personally, I think she should drop the "emotional distress" part since it seems someone prone to "emotional distress" may not be the best poster child for allowing people to carry guns.
Posted by Danny Carlton at December 3, 2008 6:33 AM