In 2005, Kamala Harris was in favor of government confiscation of privately owned handguns.
https://cdn.thereload.com/app/uploads/2024/09/Document-_-The-Mercury-News-Archives.pdf
S.F. Voters Consider Tough Handgun Ban
By Mary Anne Ostrom, Mercury News
November 4, 2005
The city that made Dirty Harry famous, but also witnessed the assassination of a mayor and supervisor a generation ago, on Tuesday will weigh enacting the toughest handgun ban in the nation. If Proposition H passes on the ballot, San Francisco residents would not be allowed to own handguns and would
have to turn in ones already in their possession by April 1.
Although Mayor Gavin Newsom has not taken a position, several of the city’s most liberal leaders are supporting the far-reaching ban — including District Attorney Kamala Harris and four supervisors who are listed as sponsors.
Apparently, Soumitra Sarkar, MD thinks it’s wrong for a person to shoot an intruder who is trying to kidnap, rape, and murder their family.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BL5dWgrCaX4
https://www.yahoo.com/news/letters-editor-kamala-harris-disturbing-100056747.html
Letters to the Editor: Kamala Harris’ disturbing remark on shooting a home intruder
Los Angeles Times Opinion
September 26, 2024
To the editor: As a physician who has spent the last 40 years saving countless lives, I abhor guns and the damage they have wreaked on society. I was appalled to hear Vice President Kamala Harris laughing while talking about shooting an intruder during her campaign event with Oprah Winfrey.
I cannot consciously vote for someone who can laugh about taking a life, while at the same time I will not vote for her Republican opponent, a convicted criminal and pathological liar.
We the American people deserve better, though with our current deeply divided nation, I am not hopeful for the near future. I will cast my vote for the Green Party candidate Jill Stein in protest.
Soumitra Sarkar, MD, Long Beach
I agree with Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood: “Since parents, you don’t want to raise your kids, I’m going to start raising them. Every time we make an arrest, your kid’s photo is going to be put out there.”
https://x.com/SheriffChitwood/status/1835706233195479197
Florida sheriff fed up with school shooting hoaxes posts 11-year-old’s mugshot to social media
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood on Florida’s Atlantic Coast said he’s tired of the hoaxes targeting students, disrupting schools and sapping law enforcement resources
By Kate Payne
September 17, 2024
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood on Florida’s Atlantic Coast said he’s tired of the hoaxes targeting students, disrupting schools and sapping law enforcement resources
A Florida sheriff fed up with a spate of false school shooting threats is taking a new tactic to try get through to students and their parents: he’s posting the mugshot of any offender on social media.
Law enforcement officials in Florida and across the country have seen a wave of school shooting hoaxes recently, including in the wake of the deadly attack at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., which killed two students and two teachers.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood on Florida’s Atlantic Coast said he’s tired of the hoaxes targeting students, disrupting schools and sapping law enforcement resources. In social media posts Monday, Chitwood warned parents that if their kids are arrested for making these threats, he’ll make sure the public knows.
“Since parents, you don’t want to raise your kids, I’m going to start raising them,” Chitwood said. “Every time we make an arrest, your kid’s photo is going to be put out there. And if I can do it, I’m going to perp walk your kid so that everybody can see what your kid’s up to.”
Chitwood made the announcement in a video highlighting the arrest of an 11-year-boy who was taken into custody for allegedly threatening to carry out a school shooting at Creekside or Silver Sands Middle School in Volusia County. Chitwood posted the boy’s full name and mugshot to his Facebook page.
In the video, which had more than 270,000 views on Facebook as of Monday afternoon, the camera pans across a conference table covered in airsoft guns, pistols, fake ammunition, knives and swords that law enforcement officers claim the boy was “showing off” to other students.
Later, the video cuts to officers letting the boy out of a squad car and leading him handcuffed into a secure facility, dressed in a blue flannel button-down shirt, black sweatpants and slip-on sandals. The boy’s face is fully visible at multiples points in the video.
“Right this way, young man,” an officer tells the boy, his hands shackled behind his back.
The boy is led into an empty cell, with metal cuffs around his wrists and ankles, before an officer closes the door and locks him inside.
“Do you have any questions?” the officer asks as he bolts the door.
“No sir,” the boy replies.
The video prompted a stream of reactions on social media, with many residents praising Chitwood, calling on him to publicly identify the parents as well — or press charges against them.
Others questioned the sheriff’s decision, saying the 11-year-old is just a child, and that the weight of the responsibility should fall on his parents.
Under Florida law, juvenile court records are generally exempt from public release — but not if the child is charged with a felony, as in this case.
Law enforcement officials across Florida have been tracking a stream of threats in the weeks since the 2024-2025 school year began. In Broward County, home to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, officials said last week they had already arrested nine students, ages 11 to 15, for making threats since August.
“For my parents, to the kids who are getting ready for school, I’m going to say this again,” Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony said at a press conference, “nothing about this is a laughing or joking matter.”
“Parents, students, it’s not a game,” he added.
The Libertarian Party has chosen its presidential candidate
The Libertarian Party has chosen its presidential candidate:
New York City Criminal Courts Judge Abena Darkeh: “Do not bring the Second Amendment into this courtroom. It doesn’t exist here. So you can’t argue Second Amendment. This is New York.”
Amateur Gunsmith Told by N.Y. Judge the Second Amendment ‘Doesn’t Exist’ in Her Courtroom Gets 10 Years in Prison
Dexter Taylor came face-to-face with a judge who said the Second Amendment ‘doesn’t exist’ in her courtroom.
By Matthew Rice
May 13, 2024
A Brooklyn man has been sentenced to ten years in state prison for legally purchasing gun parts and assembling weapons in his home, his lawyer tells the Sun. Dexter Taylor began assembling firearms as a hobby during the pandemic.
“This defendant allegedly acquired a massive arsenal of homemade ghost guns that are as real and dangerous as traditional firearms,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said when Taylor was arrested in 2022. In total, Taylor had built 13 firearms in his home and had in his possession at the time of his arrest several magazines, as well as casing, bullets, and gunpowder.
“It was excessive,” Taylor’s lawyer, Vinoo Varghese, tells the Sun of his client’s ten year sentence. Taylor was found guilty by a jury on April 22 on multiple charges, including second-degree criminal possession of a loaded weapon, four counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, five counts of criminal possession of a firearm, and second-degree criminal possession of five or more firearms, among other things.
“The D.A. asked for ten years,” Mr. Varghese said. Of the judge, he added: “She could have sentenced him to three-and-a-half.”
The jurist in the case, Judge Abena Darkeh, famously said during Taylor’s trial that his lawyers could not make arguments based on his Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Mr. Varghese told RedState that Judge Darkeh said at one point: “Do not bring the Second Amendment into this courtroom. It doesn’t exist here. So you can’t argue Second Amendment. This is New York.”
Taylor began assembling the firearms in his spare time as a hobby. He is professionally a software engineer and previously was a member in good standing at the Westside Rifle and Pistol Range in Manhattan, according to a fundraising page for Taylor’s legal defense fund that has raised nearly $175,000.
In an interview with RedState, Taylor said he was not amassing weapons as the prosecution alleged. Rather, he is a hobbyist who was fascinated by the intricate workings of firearms.
“I found out that you can actually legally buy a receiver and you can machine that receiver to completion, and you buy your parts and you put them together and you’ve got a pistol or a rifle,” he said.
“And once I saw that I was hooked,” he added. “I was like, ‘This is the coolest thing ever. This is the most cool thing you could possibly do in your machine shop.’”
Genesse Ivonne Moreno was a serial criminal who should have already been in prison, instead of being allowed to commit the Lakewood Church shooting. Why did the soft on crime people allow Moreno to walk free, instead of keeping her locked up?
Genesse Ivonne Moreno was a serial criminal who should have already been in prison, instead of being allowed to commit the Lakewood Church shooting.
Why did the soft on crime people allow Moreno to walk free, instead of keeping her locked up?
Instead of passing new laws, why not enforce the laws that are already on the books?
This incident was completely predicable and preventable. They should have locked her up for pointing guns at children. Why didn’t they? Why are some people so soft on crime?
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/us-news/lakewood-church-shooter-would-aim-32120379
Lakewood Church shooter would aim guns at kids as police ‘ignored’ neighbour outcries
February 14, 2024
The megachurch shooter who left a 7-year-old boy in critical condition had previously aimed guns at children – as police “ignored” neighbours’ outcries.
… questions are being asked of police after five women who lived near the shooter in Conroe, Texas, 50 miles north of the Houston megachurch, said the shooter tormented the neighbourhood over the last four years.
“Four years I’ve been through hell. I have reported this, reported this, reported this, and it’s gone on deaf ears,” next-door neighbour Jill told Fox 26 Houston. “I’ve had psychological officers up here. Since they won’t answer their door, they won’t do anything: ‘Until she hurts you, there’s nothing we can do.’ So, everybody keeps saying on all these big news stations, ‘If you see something, say something.’ That’s bulls—. Because I’ve been through it. I’ve talked to everybody. I’ve probably called every one of your news stations trying to get someone to take this on.”
“No one would do anything. Nobody would call me back. And yet everyone’s still on these stations saying, ‘See something, say something.’ Nobody should have died. Nobody should have been hurt. This should have been handled years ago. And here we are again,” Jill added.
“I knew it was only a matter of time before she did something,” said another neighbour, Linda Giutta. “We did something, we said something.”
Walli Carranza, Moreno’s former mother-in-law, said in court filings that she long tried to alert authorities about the danger her ex-daughter-in-law posed but that authorities failed to take action.
Moreno’s rap sheet included charges for forging an £80 bill, a 2009 assault conviction for kicking a detention officer — which resulted in a 180-day county jail sentence — and a 2022 misdemeanour count for unlawfully carrying a weapon.
In a guilty plea to the 2022 misdemeanour count in nearby Fort Bend County, Moreno surrendered a pistol and a rifle that was found during a traffic stop. The weapons were destroyed as part of the plea agreement.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/neighbors-lakewood-church-shooter-detail-165422261.html
Neighbors of Lakewood Church shooter detail years of ‘hell,’ police inaction: ‘Only a matter of time’
February 13, 2024
The neighbors of the shooter who opened fire at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church before being fatally shot by police detailed years of harassment and threats their small, two-street community faced from her, saying law enforcement and elected officials failed to adequately respond to their near-constant outcry.
Moreno… had a lengthy criminal record
Chicago scraps gunshot detection system accused of racial bias
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/feb/14/chicago-shotspotter-contract
Chicago scraps gunshot detection system accused of racial bias
February 14, 2024
Community groups say ShotSpotter system sends police to Black and Latino neighborhoods for unnecessary and hostile encounters
Chicago will not renew its ShotSpotter contract and plans to stop using the controversial gunshot detection system later this year, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office announced on Tuesday.
The system, which relies on an artificial intelligence algorithm and network of microphones to identify gunshots, has been criticized for inaccuracy, racial bias and law enforcement misuse. An Associated Press investigation of the technology detailed how police and prosecutors used ShotSpotter data as evidence in charging a Chicago grandfather with murder before a judge dismissed the case due to insufficient evidence.
Chicago’s contract with SoundThinking, a public safety technology company that says its ShotSpotter tool is used in roughly 150 cities, expires on Friday. The city plans to wind down use of ShotSpotter technology by late September, according to city officials. Since 2018, the city has spent $49m on ShotSpotter.
Johnson, a first-term mayor, campaigned on a promise to end the use of ShotSpotter, putting him at odds with police leaders who have praised the system.
They argue that crime rates – not residents’ race – determine where the technology is deployed.
“Technology is where policing is going as a whole. If we’re not utilizing technology, then we fall behind in crime fighting,” Superintendent Larry Snelling of Chicago police told the AP in an October interview. “There are always going to be issues. Nothing is 100% and nothing’s going to be perfect.”
If you want to be out in a crowded public place with lots of people, and you don’t want to get shot and killed in a public mass shooting, one of the safest places you could be is a gun show.
I’ve read so, so, so many news articles about mass shootings where at least several people were shot and killed. They seem to happen almost everywhere. Schools. Restaurants. Movie theaters.
The one crowded, public place where there never seems to be a mass public shooting where at least several people are shot and killed, is a gun show.
Vermont was recently rated as the safest state. And Vermont lets anyone carry a gun, even without a permit.
Vermont was recently rated as the safest state:
Source: https://studyfinds.org/safest-states-usa/
And Vermont lets anyone carry a gun, even without a permit.
Chicago let a serial armed robber out on just $500 bail. Anyone who’s not an idiot can guess what he did after he got out. Don’t let them use this as an excuse to ban law abiding people from owning guns.
https://cwbchicago.com/2023/11/chicago-loop-robbery-pretrial-release-court-news.html
Prosecutors: Man with 7 pending cases robbed Loop sporting goods store
November 2, 2023
CHICAGO – Officials say an 18-year-old Chicago man robbed a sporting goods store in the Loop while he was on pretrial release with seven cases pending. Jaquan Bush managed to pick up yet another felony case after he allegedly committed the robbery in September, but before police arrested him for it last week, officials said.
During a detention hearing in the robbery case last week, prosecutors and Judge Kelly McCarthy noted that Bush was on bond for an adult charge of possessing a stolen motor vehicle plus six juvenile cases when he walked into Champs, 112 South State, on September 17.
He grabbed a Nike jacket from a display and bolted for the door, prosecutors said. A store manager recognized him from a previous theft and intervened, taking the jacket back before he got away.
Bush pulled out a knife, “lunged” at the manager, snatched the jacket from her hands, and ran away, according to prosecutors.
Police were still investigating the robbery the next day when Bush got arrested for allegedly possessing a firearm near his South Side home. Cops responding to a ShotSpotter gunfire alert and reports of a person shot said they saw Bush walking down a street with one side of his hoodie weighted down.
The officers chased him into his back yard, where he ditched the gun under the porch, police said. Once he was cuffed, Bush’s family members surrounded the cops, who called for backup because they were “outnumber[ed] and the crowd [was] being irate.” He is not accused of firing the weapon.
Judge Mary Marubio ordered him to be detained for violating pretrial release conditions in still another case that he had pending at the time of the gun incident.
In that matter, Chicago police said he bailed out of a stolen Kia Optima when officers saw him parking it in the 8900 block of South Jeffery on June 30. Prosecutors said he didn’t put the car into park before trying to run away, and it crashed into another vehicle.
CPD officers said the Kia’s steering column was stripped and a USB cord was on the driver’s floorboard. For well over a year, so-called “Kia boys” have been exploiting a design flaw in some Kia models that allows the vehicles to be operated by using a USB plug as the key.
Bush posted a $500 bail deposit to go home after court on July 1. During the hearing, prosecutors did not tell Judge Ankur Srivastava about the six juvenile cases that prosecutors now say are pending. Details about the juvenile cases are not available in public court records.
In Maine, 18 or more people were murdered because the government refused to lock up a person who had threatened to commit a mass shooting. Don’t let them use this an excuse to ban law abiding people from owning guns.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/26/us/maine-shooting-suspect-invs/index.html
Here’s what we know about the suspect in the Maine mass shooting
By John Miller, Curt Devine, Casey Tolan, Isabelle Chapman and Allison Gordon
October 26, 2023
CNN – The suspect in the Maine mass shooting started making statements about hearing voices and wanting to hurt fellow soldiers while serving at a military base this summer, and spent a few weeks in a hospital, law enforcement officials told CNN.
But a relative of the suspect and two former colleagues in the Army Reserve told CNN they weren’t aware of him having any longstanding history of mental health issues – although one former colleague remembered him as a skilled marksman and outdoorsman who was among the best shooters in his unit.
Robert R. Card II, who police are searching for in connection with the fatal shooting of at least 18 people in Lewiston, Maine, made his troubling statements while he was at the Camp Smith training facility in New York, the law enforcement officials said. His command referred him to a military hospital, and he spent a few weeks under evaluation, they said.
In July, Army Reserve officials reported Card for “behaving erratically,” and he was transported to the nearby Keller Army Community Hospital at the United States Military Academy for “medical evaluation,” a National Guard spokesman told CNN.
“Out of concern for his safety, the unit requested that law enforcement be contacted,” said the spokesperson, Col. Richard Goldenberg. New York State Police responded and transported Card to the hospital, he said.
Card then spent a few weeks under evaluation at the hospital, the law enforcement officials said.
The 40-year-old Card also threatened to shoot up a National Guard base in Maine, law enforcement officials previously told CNN.
Card’s sister-in-law, Katie O’Neill, said in a brief conversation with CNN Thursday that Card does not have a long history of mental health struggles.
“This is something that was an acute episode. This is not who he is,” O’Neill said. “He is not someone who has had mental health issues for his lifetime or anything like that.”
Except for an arrest in 2007 for an alleged driving under the influence charge, the suspect is not known to ATF or in FBI holdings, according to law enforcement sources. He legally possesses multiple weapons and owns a home on hundreds of acres of land in Maine, the sources said.
Card is a petroleum supply specialist in the Army Reserve and first enlisted in 2002, according to records provided by the Army on Thursday. He has no combat deployments, according to the records.
Clifford Steeves of Massachusetts told CNN he knew Card when they served in the Army Reserve together, starting in the early 2000s until about a decade ago. He said he never witnessed any concerning behavior from Card.
“He was a very nice guy – very quiet. He never overused his authority or was mean or rude to other soldiers,” Steeves said. “It’s really upsetting.”
Steeves said the two served together around the country at different points, including in Wisconsin, Georgia and New York. He said he felt as though he “grew up” with Card because they entered the Army as young men and trained together.
Steeves said that while “aggressive leadership was very prominent” in the Army, Card stuck out for being a “rational, understanding person” who “led through respect rather than fear.”
Steeves said Card never saw combat but had extensive training, including firearms training and land navigation, “so he would be very comfortable in the woods.” He described Card as an “outdoors type of guy” and a skilled marksman who was one of the best shooters in his unit.
Another former Army Reserve member who served with Card also described him as a “nice guy” who “never had an issue with anybody.” The servicemember, who asked to speak anonymously due to the sensitivity of the situation, did not recall Card showing any kind of violent behavior.
Card studied engineering technology at the University of Maine between 2001 and 2004 but did not graduate, Eric Gordon, a university spokesperson, told CNN.
Public records show addresses for Card in Bowdoin, Maine, a town near Lewiston. Card appears to have been a member of a local horseshoe-throwing club in the nearby town of Lisbon, Maine, according to a local news story and a Facebook photo that showed him wearing a t-shirt with the club’s logo.
An account on the social media platform X with Card’s name and a photo that appears to be him, which has been taken offline, had a history of liking right-wing and Republican political content.
When WNBA player Brittney Griner was released from Russian detention after a prisoner exchange for a convicted arms dealer, the account posted what appeared to be its only tweet. Responding to a CNBC story about the topic, the account wrote: “Mass murderer for a wnba player great job keep up the good work,” in an apparent jab at President Joe Biden.
The account liked a tweet earlier this year from right-wing author and filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza arguing against an assault weapons ban, as well as other tweets from political figures like Donald Trump Jr. and Tucker Carlson.
“Philadelphia cheesesteak shop hires armed agents to protect customers outside… Customers are thrilled… and they formed a line around the building.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRL32CEyMH8
https://6abc.com/jims-west-steaks-armed-agents-cheesesteak-shop-philadelphia/13788360/
Philadelphia cheesesteak shop hires armed agents to protect customers outside
The armed agents will be there during business hours Thursday through Sunday.
By Briana Smith
September 15, 2023
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Customers are thrilled the original Jim’s West Steaks & Hoagies in West Philadelphia is back in business, and they formed a line around the building.
“I’m so excited,” said Nitah Dunham from West Philadelphia. “The food has always been good.”
“In my opinion, it’s the best cheesesteak in town,” said William King from West Philadelphia.
But now, customers can expect to see armed agents out front.
“The violence has spiked,” said Co-owner Cortez Johnson. “It goes up and down. You want people to feel safe and be safe. So when they come out and eat, they don’t have to worry about no type of harm.”
“Our lines are down the block, so while you’re standing here in line, connecting with other people you may not know, we have security right here just to keep you guys safe,” said Saul Landers, the CFO of Jim’s West.
The owners hope the presence of armed agents prevents crimes.
“It’s not just myself,” said Kevon Darden, who owns Presidential Protection Services. “It’s usually other agents who are sworn and certified by the state of Pennsylvania to do security work when they’re off duty. All of us are former military, police, and law enforcement background.”
The armed agents will be there during business hours Thursday through Sunday.
Other business owners hired armed guards too, including the Karco Gas Station in North Philadelphia.
“If you want to secure your business and you want to make sure everyone is safe, you have to spend that extra money,” said Landers.
Some customers say they support the enhanced security.
“Safety and good food is always a plus,” said Dunham.
“If it deters it (crime), I can’t complain,” said Mario Maiale from West Philadelphia. “I’m not a big fan of guns, but I get it.”
Others think it’s not necessary outside of Jim’s West and say it’s an alarming sight.
“Now North Philly, where that gas station is, where the guy is out there with a machine gun, I can understand that,” said King. “Here, it’s a little overkill. Even if you have an armed guard, okay. But, walking around with a machine gun, it’s not family-friendly.”
“I’m here to protect you,” said Darden. “I’m not here to cause any trouble or be that guy with a rifle.”
Famous rapper’s lawyer blasts Hunter Biden’s sweetheart deal after his client received prison for same crime
https://www.theblaze.com/news/kodak-black-lawyer-hunter-biden-plea-deal
Famous rapper’s lawyer blasts Hunter Biden’s sweetheart deal after his client received prison for same crime
By Chris Enloe
June 21, 2023
The lawyer for a prominent rapper is speaking out over Hunter Biden’s sweetheart plea deal that allows him to avoid prison for illegally possessing a firearm.
In 2019, rapper Kodak Black pleaded guilty to providing false information on a federal form when purchasing multiple firearms.
Black pleaded guilty to violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(6), using false statements to obtain a firearm. Biden was charged with violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) and 18 U.S.C. § 924(a)(2). The latter statute says that anyone who who “knowingly violates” several subsections of 18 U.S.C. § 922, including (a)(6), can be imprisoned for up to 10 years.
Thus in the eyes of the law, Black and Biden committed the same crime. They both provided false information on federal forms to acquire firearms despite being legally disqualified from making those purchases.
Yet Black was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for his crime. Biden, on the other hand, was given pre-trial diversion and the opportunity to expunge the charge from his record after 24 months.
Attorney Bradford Cohen, who represents Black, called out the glaring disparity in outcomes.
“There’s no such thing as not getting jail time on a gun charge, on any kind of gun charge,” Cohen told Fox News. “I’ve never seen anyone where this offense was charged and they didn’t get some sort of prison sentence. And in fact, most of the time in federal court, you very rarely see people get anything but a prison sentence.”
Cohen cited the college admissions scandal as evidence that federal authorities rarely let offenders off without spending time behind bars.
“So, in this Felicity Huffman case, to give the woman two weeks in prison, you know that you actually have to surrender yourself going for two weeks, change her clothes out to all this stuff, for literally 14 days. And this guy gets absolutely nothing? I’ve just never seen it happen,” Cohen said.
“A federal crime is supposed to be a federal crime,” he explained. “And federal crimes are supposed to be very serious federal crimes, and that’s why you look at prison sentences.”
Earlier in the day, Cohen suggested Biden’s plea deal showed there are two tiers of justice in America.
Cohen wrote on Instagram, “2 tiers of justice? Kodak was charged for the same crime. Got over 3 years. Mr. Biden will not serve a day. Feels right? Do FBI agents and federal authorities take cases personally?”
Rapper Lil Wayne similarly faced significant prison time — up to 10 years — after he pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a firearm, charged under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), the same subsection as Biden.
Wayne, however, never spent time in prison for the crime because Donald Trump pardoned him. Trump also commuted Black’s sentence before leaving office.
To be fair, Black and Wayne were repeat offenders with prior criminal histories. Biden, by contrast, does not, which mitigates potential criminal penalties. But to Cohen’s point, it’s jarring that federal prosecutors would let the gun crime slip away altogether.
Negligent killer in San Marcos, Texas, gets only 90 days in prison. I think he should get 30 years.
https://www.fox7austin.com/news/texas-state-student-shot-killed-through-wall-while-sleeping
Texas State student shot, killed through wall while sleeping; convicted shooter receives 90 days sentence
By Meredith Aldis
May 8, 2023
SAN MARCOS, Texas – A family is fighting for a Hays County judge to review the sentencing for the man who killed their son. Texas State student Austin Salyer was negligently shot by his neighbor through a wall.
Austin Salyer was a junior at Texas State University. He was studying criminal justice and military science. He had just signed a contract with the Army in September 2021.
“Austin texted me at 8:53 p.m. and said, ‘I’m going to bed,’ you know, ‘good night, sweet dreams. I love you.’ And I said, ‘ok, I love you too.’ And then I waited about three minutes and I said, ‘keep making us proud’ and that was the last text I got from him,” Bonnie Salyer, Austin’s mom, said.
His mom said he was supposed to be up at 4:30 a.m. the next morning for his first road march with his new platoon. At around 6 a.m., Bonnie checked Austin’s location.
“I saw that his phone was still inside his apartment, and I thought, ‘oh my gosh, he overslept.’ And so I started calling him, I started pinging him,” Bonnie Salyer said.
An hour and a half later, she still hadn’t heard from him.
“I thought maybe he just was in a hurry, he left his phone, which I knew in my heart that wasn’t true because nobody leaves their phone behind, right, it’s become part of our, literally part of our bodies. And so about 7:30 I kind of started to panic, panic started to set in,” Bonnie Salyer said.
At around 11:15 a.m., Bonnie texted one of Austin’s friends.
“I can’t get a hold of Austin, and I’d like to know if you can please go knock on his door, see if you can wake him up. He was all on it. He was like, oh, yeah, I’ll go scare him,” Bonnie Salyer said.
Instead, the friend saw Fire and EMS on the fifth floor, the floor Austin Salyer stayed on.
“A police officer called and said, you know, what’s your son’s full name? What’s his date of birth? And then he said, I’m sorry to tell you over the phone, but we found your son deceased in his apartment this morning,” Bonnie Salyer said.
Austin was shot through the wall while he was lying in bed.
“It just terrifies us to think how long he might have laid their suffering with his neighbor next door and not getting any help for him,” Rodney Salyer, Austin’s father, said.
Gabriel Brown, Austin’s neighbor, claimed at around midnight, he accidentally fired his gun while modifying it and talking on the phone with his father. He turned himself in but wasn’t arrested. Brown was indicted on criminally negligent homicide. His bond was set at $3,000.
“As a victim, you’re so handcuffed and disadvantaged compared to what the criminal has available to them for loopholes. They get to control things, they get to hire whatever, defense attorney they want, whereas the victim is stuck with whatever judge, whatever prosecutor, whatever. You don’t have any control over that at all. They don’t have to provide any information back to you, but anything you provide has to be provided to them. It is so lopsided against the victim to be able to get any kind of justice,” Rodney Salyer said.
The Salyers weren’t happy with the charges being presented.
“Everything gets diluted. You have to start up here just so by the time everything’s diluted, there’s some sort of punishment. In our case, they’re starting down at the bottom. They’re literally starting at the lowest felony that they could possibly start with,” Rodney Salyer said.
Brown pleaded guilty to criminal negligent homicide. He was originally sentenced to 180 days in jail, and he’d report to jail for 18 days during Austin’s birthday and another 18 days on the date of the shooting for five years. Not even a month later, the sentence was changed to 90 days.
“We were like, how can that be? We weren’t involved, nobody’s told us anything about this. Well, the change to 90 days is this, the document was correctly typed up with 18 days. Someone scratched it out and wrote in nine. No, no initials. No, nothing,” Rodney Salyer said. “If we didn’t follow up with him, it would have just gone behind the scenes.”
The Salyers said they asked for a hearing to review the sentencing change, but it was denied.
While Brown spends 90 days in jail, the Salyers are left with just memories.
The ban on guns at the Allen, Texas outlet mall is 100% about virtue signalling, and has nothing to do with actually preventing mass shootings
By Daniel Alman (aka Dan from Squirrel Hill)
May 7, 2023
Allen Premium Outlets: “Code of conduct… No weapons.”
Source: https://www.simon.com/legal/code-of-conduct
That’s the official policy of the shopping center in Allen, Texas, where a mass shooter named Mauricio Garcia recently killed 8 people.
The shooter was killed by a police officer.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Allen,_Texas_outlet_mall_shooting
By comparison, last year at the Greenwood Park Mall in Greenwood, Indiana, a would-be mass shooter named Jonathan Sapirman was shot and killed by a law abiding gun owner named Elisjsha Dicken.
We will never know how many lives Dicken saved.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwood_Park_Mall_shooting
If I had to choose between both of these horrible situations, I would choose the less horrible of the two. I would choose the situation where a law abiding gun owner saved some unknown number of lives.
Of course the ideal situation would be that bad guys would obey a policy that bans guns. But bad guys don’t obey policies that ban guns.
Therefore, I believe that the ban on weapons at the Texas shopping center is 100% about virtue signalling, and has nothing to do with actually preventing mass shootings.
Applebee’s diner stops knife-wielding attacker after worker slashed in face, NY cops say
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article271240282.html
Applebee’s diner stops knife-wielding attacker after worker slashed in face, NY cops say
By Julia Marnin
January 16, 2023
A man dining at Applebee’s watched another man grab a steak knife and start swinging the weapon — so he leapt into action, authorities in New York say.
After the knife-wielding attacker slashed one worker in the face while fighting several staff members, the man eating dinner pulled out a handgun at the New Hartford restaurant the evening of Jan. 14, a police news release said.
The diner, with his gun drawn, ordered Esteban F. Padron, 28, to drop the knife and get on the ground, according to police.
Padron listened to the commands and stayed on the ground until New Hartford police officers arrived at the Applebee’s to arrest him after being called to the restaurant around 6:45 p.m., they said.
Padron is facing charges including second-degree attempted assault, two counts of third-degree assault and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, according to the release.
Police said the incident unfolded when Padron walked into the Applebee’s that evening and workers asked him to leave because he previously acted “disorderly” at the same location and was similarly ordered to leave, according to authorities.
While being escorted out by staff, Padron ran behind the bar and grabbed the steak knife before fighting the workers, police said. In addition to the worker who was cut in the face, another Applebee’s employee received a non-life threatening injury as a result of the attack, according to police. The diner who stopped the attack had a license for the firearm, the release said. Padron was taken to a nearby hospital for a mental health investigation, according to police. Authorities said the investigation continues and additional charges could be filed. New Hartford is about 100 miles northwest of Albany.
If Democrats are against gun crimes, why did they put John Fetterman into the U.S. Senate instead of into prison?
According to this article from NBC News, in 2013, John Fetterman pointed a gun an an unarmed, innocent, law abiding black man.
If Democrats are against gun crimes, why did they put John Fetterman into the U.S. Senate instead of into prison?
Republican group launches new anti-Fetterman ads
The ads, airing in Pennsylvania, highlight a 2013 incident in which Democrat John Fetterman pulled a gun on an unarmed Black man.
By Alexandra Marquez
October 4, 2022
The Republican Jewish Coalition Victory Fund is out with two new ads in Pennsylvania’s Senate race targeting Democratic nominee John Fetterman over a 2013 incident where he pulled a firearm on an unarmed Black jogger.
The ads feature two Black voters discussing the incident.
“My message to Black voters: do your homework about John Fetterman,” one woman says in the first ad.
“He didn’t even apologize and now he wants our vote?” she adds.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3UetczhGlU
The ad is a reminder of a 2013 incident that occurred when Fetterman was mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania. After hearing shots fired outside of his home, Fetterman used his shotgun to stop an unarmed man and detain him until police arrived.
Police found the man to be unarmed and wearing running clothes and headphones.
The incident has caused a wedge between some Black Democrats in Pennsylvania and Fetterman. It’s been brought up in other ads attacking Fetterman earlier this year, too.
In the second RJC ad, another Black voter tells viewers, “Now this guy’s running for Senate — you can’t make that s— up.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx0iJeH0-xQ
In a statement, the Fetterman campaign’s communication director told NBC News, “There’s a reason all these attack ads never say what Dr. Oz would do about crime — because he doesn’t have a clue. They’re using fear and lies because they don’t have any real solutions.”
“Dr. Oz doesn’t know the first thing about crime, or what it takes to keep a community safe,” the statement said.
In a video released by the campaign in April, Fetterman himself addressed the incident, saying, “There was an episode over eight years ago, where I was outside with my young son who was four-years old at the time. And I heard this crushing burst of gunfire coming from a corridor that was the scene of dozens of shootings.”
“I immediately made a series of split second decisions: get my son to safety, call 9-1-1,” Fetterman adds. “And then I saw an individual dressed entirely in black, in a face mask, who was running from that scene in the direction of our elementary school … I realized that I could never forgive myself if I didn’t do anything and something terrible would’ve happened. So, I made that decision at that point to intervene.”
RJC is spending over $1.5 million on this ad campaign, a press release from the group said. The ads will air in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
The same day that RJC’s ad campaign was released, Future Forward PAC, an anti-Oz, pro-Fetterman group, also launched two ads blasting Oz for peddling unverified medical claims on the TV show he hosted for years before running for Senate.
“This is the lightweight Mehmet Oz, the guy who made a career promising miracle cures that turned out to be bogus,” a narrator in one FF PAC ad says.
“This is John Fetterman,” the narrator says later, adding, “the guy who will cut taxes for working people, slash healthcare costs and fight for a woman’s right to choose. Now, with everything going on in the world, who do you want in your corner?”
A Chicago auto parts store manager shot and killed a would-be robber Saturday after the suspect flashed a gun, according to police.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/armed-store-manager-turns-tables-174835873.html
A Chicago auto parts store manager shot and killed a would-be robber Saturday after the suspect flashed a gun, according to police.
By Haley Chi-Sing
April 2, 2023
A man between 30 and 40 years old reportedly entered an O’Reilly Auto Parts store in Calumet Heights, took out a firearm and demanded money from the register, police said.
The store manager, whose name has not yet been disclosed, pulled out his own firearm and fired shots at the robber. Police said the manager is a valid FOID cardholder.
The would-be robber was transported to the University of Chicago Hospital in critical condition and later died from his injuries, police said.
Multiple bullet holes riddled the vestibule, along with shattered glass out front of the building. A gun was also seen near the entrance to the shop. Detectives were later seen taking photos out front of the auto parts store.
Police have not yet publicly identified the deceased man.
The incident comes as many Chicago residents have become concealed carry holders.
A Fox News Digital analysis based on local media reports going back to 2020 found at least 44 incidents where individuals with a gun – who had concealed carry permits or an FOID, an Illinois identification card used for gun possession and purchase – have thwarted an attack or other crime.
Woman shoots, kills man who tried to rob her SW Houston food truck, HPD says
Video description: Houston police said a 23-year-old man was shot and killed when he tried to rob a food truck on South Main on Tuesday afternoon.
In Denver, the family of a dead 12-year-old armed robber named Elias Armstrong is upset that the victim defended himself. I think the family of Elias Armstrong should have done a better job of raising him.
Family of 12-year-old shot, killed in stolen vehicle speaks out against vehicle owner
By Rob Low
February 23, 2023
DENVER (KDVR) — The family of Elias Armstrong is furious the man who killed the 12-year-old boy won’t face criminal charges.
The boy was found shot to death in a stolen vehicle in the 2900 block of West 10th Avenue on the night of Sunday, Feb. 5.
The vehicle owner, using a phone app, had tracked his stolen vehicle from the 8300 block of East Northfield Boulevard to the area of West 12th Avenue and Decatur Street, where he shot Elias Armstrong.
The 12-year-old then drove the vehicle a few blocks away, where he died from at least two gunshots.
“I think that if he would have just let the police approach the car and he sat back and waited till they got there, that my son would be alive right now. Since he took the law in his own hands, my son is dead because of him, and nothing is going to happen to him but a pat on the hand,” said an emotional Thomas Armstrong, the father of Elias.
Boy’s family shown video of shooting
The Denver District Attorney’s Office announced last week that the truck owner would not face criminal charges because it determined there wasn’t sufficient evidence to charge the man with a crime.
“I just couldn’t believe it,” said Armstrong, who said the man was rewarded for vigilante justice.
The Armstrong family told the Problem Solvers that prosecutors obtained surveillance video and shared it with them to explain the decision not to charge the vehicle owner.
Thomas Armstrong said the footage shows a single bullet was fired from the back of the truck first, before the truck owner allegedly unloaded 15 shots into the vehicle, as one of the three boys inside the vehicle fired back twice.
“And the video, it showed the man with his hand on his gun, running towards them with a real fast speed … you heard one shot, then you just heard him let off 15 rounds into the car,” Thomas Armstrong said.
“The man, when he first pulled up to the car, he’s seen the little boy this tall is standing by his car, running and jumping into the car. He’s seen it was a little boy before any gunplay,” he added.
Thomas Armstrong said investigators told him there were two others boys with his son, both 16 years old, who were also shot but were able to run away.
Armstrong insisted his son was unarmed and that it was one of the two 16-year-olds who must have fired a gun toward the driver, because he said his son was in the front driver seat with his hands on the steering wheel. The shot, Armstrong said, came from the back seat, where the two 16-year-olds were sitting.
FOX31 has not been able to confirm those details.
Other teens under investigation
A Denver Police spokesperson told FOX31 that because detectives have an ongoing investigation involving juveniles, they would not comment or confirm what the Armstrong family told the Problem Solvers.
“I know the car had insurance on it, you know, there’s insurance on his car, but there’s no insurance on my brother’s life to get him back,” said Alicia Henderson, the 29-year-old sister of Elias Armstrong.
Henderson said the vehicle owner should have listened to Denver 911 dispatchers and waited for police to handle the situation instead of taking matters into his own hands.
“So the fact that this man was running up with the gun, showing them that he was very angry, he was going to shoot at them, in my eyes, they (the boys) were defending themselves,” Henderson said.
She is not just upset with the vehicle owner. She said the two teens who were with Elias have refused to talk with investigators.
“And for you guys to leave him there like that, and not even speak on his behalf, it will eat you up for the rest of your life. You’ll never sleep a day without thinking about that. You know, it’s going to hurt you real bad. And I just pray that you guys come forward, because ultimately your story plays a big part of this,” Henderson said.
Thomas Armstrong said his son had overcome a lot of adversity in life, including a liver transplant when he was just 6 months old.
“Elias’s death, it breaks my heart. I just can’t think about him so much, because there’s no coming back and I can’t replace him, and I just pray that he made it to heaven.”
Vehicle owner’s name has not been released
The vehicle owner has not been identified, and it’s unlikely that he will be since he does not face criminal charges.
That angers the Armstrong family, who say they want to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the man but are being stymied by prosecutors and police who refuse to release the man’s name.
Denver District Attorney Beth McCann released the following statement to FOX31:
“My heart goes out to Elias Armstrong’s family in this time of terrible and overwhelming grief. I met with members of his family last week along with the DPD detective and members of my office to explain why a criminal case could not be brought based on the facts. The DA’s Office can only file charges when guilt can be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. In this instance, we cannot file charges because of self-defense issues which were present at the time.”
– Denver District Attorney Beth McCann
Alicia Henderson has created a GoFundMe page to help cover her brother’s funeral expenses.
Visitation is on Friday, Feb. 24 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Pipkin Braswell Chapel Of Peace at 6601 E. Colfax Ave. in Denver.
Video from Houston restaurant: Armed customer kills armed robber
After the shooting, the customer discovered that the robber’s gun was fake. But the customer didn’t know that when he killed the robber. And the robber had pointed his fake gun at customers’ heads. So I’m glad the customer killed the robber. I hope this sends a message to anyone else who is considering committing armed robbery in Texas.
The robber was an idiot to try this in Texas. What did he think was going to happen in Texas? This is not San Francisco or New York City or Chicago, where armed robbery is tolerated and goes unpunished. It’s Texas.
This is the censored version of the video from NBC News. The description says, “On Thursday night, a masked man pointed a gun and demanded money from the patrons inside Ranchito #4 Taqueria. A customer attempted to stop him, pulling out a gun of his own and opening fire, shooting the suspect multiple times. After the robber was killed, the shooter retrieved the stolen cash to return to the other customers when he discovered the gun the suspect used was fake. The question now is whether the shooter will face any legal action for his deadly intervention.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4xNs0HwQ7c
This is the uncensored version of the video. The description says, “Houston Police want to speak this man, but he’s not charged with a crime. HPD says a gunman was robbing people at a taqueria on S. Gessner last night. During the robbery, this man shot and killed the suspect… collected the money, gave it back to the robbery victims, and left.”
Dan from Squirrel Hill's Blog 