Virginia Politics on Gun Laws

copied from Richmond Times Dispatch:

House panel votes to end gun-a-month law
BOB BROWN/TIMES-DISPATCH

Andrew Goddard, father of Virginia Tech shooting survivor Colin Goddard, opposed the move to end the one-gun-a-month law. House panel votes to end gun-a-month law.Vote came after emotional testimony in which the sponsor said the ban was no longer needed and the father of a Virginia Tech shooting survivor said only gunrunners need to buy more than one weapon a month.

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The House Committee on Militia Police and Public Safety voted 15-6 today to eliminate Virginia’s one-gun-a-month limit on the purchase of handguns.

The vote came after emotional testimony in which the sponsor, Del. L. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Prince William, said the ban was no longer needed.

Andrew Goddard, father of Virginia Tech shooting survivor Colin Goddard, argued that only gunrunners need to buy more than one handgun a month.

The vote was largely along party lines. Two Democrats voted with the Republican majority. The measure now goes to the full House of Delegates.

The one-gun-a-month law, which passed in 1993, was a key initiative of then-Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, a Democrat.

Last year both candidates for governor, Democrat R. Creigh Deeds and Republican Bob McDonnell, said they would sign bills to repeal the law.

Wilder cited Deeds’ pledge to repeal the law as one reason why he declined to endorse the Democratic nominee.

“In my conversations with the people across the state, I have not encountered anyone who has listed as their priority the need for them to have more handguns,“ Wilder said in declining to back Deeds.

McDonnell defeated Deeds for attorney general in 2005 and for governor in 2009. The NRA endorsed Deeds in 2005, but switched to McDonnell last year.

Deeds, as a member of the House of Delegates, voted against the one-gun-a-month bill, while McDonnell, as a member of the House, voted for it.

McDonnell now says he has changed his mind and would sign a bill to repeal the measure.

Since the 1993 legislation, there have been “tremendous advances” in instant background checks and in the law on straw purchases, McDonnell said last August during an online chat at the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

_________________
Bill Marx, Sr.
"FREE STATE BAIL BONDS"
"FREE STATE INVESTIGATIONS"
DCJS: 99-176979
Cell: 434-294-0222

"Endeavor to Persevere" "Lone Watie"

"Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that , comes from bad judgment" "Will Rogers"

MO gun laws are among the best in the country. In the worst times, the Clinton years, we had a three day wait on handguns. And we had to go to the sheriff before purchase and get a permit. Now that is all gone.

My mother in law recently moved here from Illinois, one of the worst states for gun laws. She got her CCW permit recently. She was over here yesterday. About 3pm, she told me of a CCW pistol she wanted. I called my buddy that owns a small shop and he had one at a great price. We took off and went up there. At 330, she was the proud owner of her first gun, a box of ammo and a holster. Armed and ready. She couldnt believe, other than the fed call, that it was as easy as buying a gallon of milk. Pretty kewl.

Another one of those crappy gun law states is ours, WI. We have the three day waiting period and no CCW. We elect a new governor this year. Nobody likes our present one. One of the candidates is for CCW and possibly commercial bail. It sure would be nice to get both. You have no idea how many subjects with warrants flee from MN to WI.

I feel your pain. MO borders KY and IL. WI is just a state further. TX, which is just as bad anymore, is not far. We are surrounded by safe havens.

UPDATE: 2/15/2010; copied and pasted from Richmond Times Dispatch:
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The Republican-dominated House of Delegates advanced a slew of Second Amendment-related bills today.

They ranged from a bill that would repeal the one-gun-a-month limit on handgun purchases, to shielding applicants for concealed weapon permits, to protecting some Virginia-made guns and ammunition from potential federal regulation.

In all, about a dozen gun bills cleared a preliminary hurdle in the House yesterday and are up for a final vote Tuesday.

Del. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Prince William, sponsor of House bill 49, argued that the rationale for the state's one-gun-a-month law, enacted in 1993 under then-Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, has been "neutered" because of technological advances.

Handguns are subject to the national instant check system to verify that the purchaser is not prohibited from buying a firearm, Lingamfelter said. And, he added, some people like to buy one gun for personal protection and another for target practice.

"In reality, one gun a month does not stop crime," Lingamfelter said. "Criminals who are inclined to break the law don't obey this one."

But Del. Joseph D. Morrissey, D-Henrico, countered that people can now buy up to 12 guns a year. He raised concerns that with a repeal of the law, the state could be the source of gun purchases for across-state sales.

He asked Lingamfelter if he could "really state that a citizen of the commonwealth is legitimately inconvenienced by not being able to buy more than one handgun a month?"

The House also gave initial approval to House Bill 854, which would shield from liability people who defend against intruders in their home.

House Bill 69, which declares that firearms and ammunition made in Virginia and retained here would not be not subject to federal regulation cleared the initial hurdle in the House. So did a measure introduced by Del. Lee Ware, R-Powhatan, that would shield from public view applications for concealed handgun permits without written consent of the applicant.

Do not forget the dinner Wednesday nite for the Preservation of Bail in Virginia... please come support this needed effort and get a chance to meet some of the better looking bondsmen in Virginia (yep, I'll be there!)

Maggiano's Little Italy
Short Pump Town Center
11800 West Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23233

When: February 17, 2010 at 07:00 PM

_________________
Bill Marx, Sr.
"FREE STATE BAIL BONDS"
"FREE STATE INVESTIGATIONS"
DCJS: 99-176979
Cell: 434-294-0222

"Endeavor to Persevere" "Lone Watie"

"Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that , comes from bad judgment" "Will Rogers"

YEY for Virginia! We have the Castle Doctrine here and it covers our property as well as our vehicles should we be traveling. So beware you car jackers

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Do not consider anything for your interest which makes you break your word, quit your modesty, or inclines you to any practice which will not bear the light, or look the world in the face .... Marcus Antonius

I AM Some Folks "KARMA" and A MODERATOR @ FRN

I love the Castle Doctrine. Ours covers your domicile (wherever your sleeping that night) and your car. We are working on getting it ammended to "anywhere you legally are". No reason you shouldnt be able to shoot some SOB trying to jack you on the sidewalk. I dont think we have a duty to retreat anywhere, in the eyes of god. But sometimes the eyes of the law arent quite as forgiving.