Posted on 11/09/2005 8:09:47 PM PST by aberaussie
I am sorry I don't have the original article, but it has been removed from the WFTV web site. They did a big expose this week on the proliferation of concealed carry permit holders in Central Florda. On their web site they had links to excel files containing lists of permit holders by county including names, addresses, birth dates and permit numbers. Of course, that is all a matter of public record, but they made it easy to access and, from what I have been told by those who heard their promos on the TV and radio, they told people to go to their web site to find out which of their neighbors might be carrying. Here is the e-mail I sent to the station:
I would like to know for what purpose your station put links to the CCW permit lists on your website. Were you interested in letting criminals know where they could go to steal guns?
I hope you will be as quick to expose criminals' names and addresses as you are to "out" those law-abiding citizens who just want to be able to protect themselves legally.
And here is the reply I received:
Ms. Aberaussie, thank you for taking the time to share your opinion with us. We take your concerns very seriously, and we understand that you strongly disagree with the station's decision to publish state records identifying concealed weapon permit holders in Central Florida.
While we very much respect your viewpoint, we believe that our story regarding concealed weapon permits, as well as the identities of those who have elected to obtain those permits, is newsworthy and of legitimate concern to the public. The Florida legislature has deemed that the identity of permit holders, including their names, addresses, dates of birth and permit numbers, is public information. While the legislature has determined that law abiding citizens have the right to carry a concealed weapon, it also has determined that their fellow citizens have a right to know who has been granted such a permit.
However, to the extent that you have any continuing concerns about the publication on the station's website of the state's list of permit holders, you should be reassured by the fact that this information is no longer available on the website as a result of the station's normal process of removing dated materials. We hope this will ease any concerns you may have.
Again, we thank you for taking the time to contact us. Please know that we hear you, and we understand your concerns. Hopefully, we can move forward from here with mutual respect and a better understanding of each other's viewpoint on this matter.
Naughtin, Linda (CBI-Orlando TV) [Linda.Naughtin@wftv.com]
Now, I have trouble believing that they removed the links as part of their regular updating process. I checked the site several times during the day on Tuesday, and about mid-afternoon the links to the lists disappeared, but the article was still there. I do know that one person I know who was calling WFTV and Tallahasee regarding the article and the links was told that both the station and the Department of Licensing were flooded with calls.
Women, like myself, that had to terminate a pregnancy to avoid hemmoraging (sp?) to death due to an ectopic pregnancy, surely would be exempted from obtaining an abortion permit (due to time constraints in an emergency surgery) and subsequently getting branded as a murderer in the local paper.
You can see how this could be a really touchy subject for those few women that really don't have a choice in the matter.
Melas, save me some time and just post your address and home purchase price so I don't have to go through the trouble of digging it up and posting it myself.
or the woman who has an abusive ex boyfriend who has repeatedly made threats against her, and who still has to go through all the training and waiting periods everyone else does to buy a gun / get a ccw license.
Hmm. Orange County Property Appraisers office lists a William S Hoffman who lives in Bay Hill. Niiiiiice! Home has a tax assessed value of around $400k. He must live in the bad part of Bay Hill.
Actually, that is just to get the permit to carry. Anyone in FL (who is not a felon, I think) can go buy a gun and take it right home with them. It is legal to have it in the car, at home, and at one's place of business. I would say that most people in FL who have guns don't have CCW permits.
Oh. And I see that Ms Naugtin lives in a much smaller place off of SR436. About 1100sqft with a taxable value of $33k!
I'd say Billy boy needs to give Linda a raise.
" Excluding weekends and legal holidays, there is a three-day waiting period to purchase a handgun from a retail establishment. Exempt from the waiting period are concealed weapons permit holders and those trading in another handgun."
http://www.nraila.org/GunLaws/StateLaws.aspx?ST=FL
That would be him. I just Googled "William S. Hoffman" and "WFTV" and got multiple verifications.
I believe that in some states, the voter registration list is "public info", and should be. I believe that driver license and auto registration should be public info, if it is not already. When you buy a gun, the Federales know, and that is the list that bothers me.
Your Social Security number is a public record, but it is a crime to publish them without the consent of the person who is issued that number. The issue came up during some classes I was taking at university. Due to complaints professors and TA's were prohibited from publicly posting grades next to Social Security numbers. College transcripts are public records just as service records are public records, but that doesn't mean anyone who wants to can access them. There is a certain prominent politician who has refused to sign a form 180 that would release all of his military records. Until he signs it, it would be a crime to release them.
This statement is internally contradictory. Either service records are public records or they are not. Apparently, since John F'ing Kerry can prevent the release or his Senatorially Doctored, revised and edited service records, they are not, and cannot be considered "public". Can't go both ways.
Whether public or private, for a public entity such as the MSM to place this information on their site and tell the public to go there to find out if their neighbors are armed, certainly seems to be a little over the top to me.
If there is a site operated by the state in complaince with the law that is not advertised, that seems quite a bit different to me.
Agreed
My email to the radio station:
I am concerned that you chose to publish a list of us, the licensed gun permit owners on your website.
While I am aware the information is a matter of public record, you do more than just sensationalize the subject by making this listing available.
I personally have a concern with my name being more widely available in that now my home may be a more likely target for thieves looking for a weapon. Your station's actions have merely provided a way for more illegal weapons getting into the hands of criminals.
Your station's actions have also made it more likely that there will be more shootings as thieves attempt to break into the homes of gun owners and find themselves being shot for their efforts.
In summary, you have done more to add to criminal behavior than to educate anyone.
Regards,
Vermonter
Public information. My newspaper prints a list of newly granted permits daily I believe.
He has a separate CCW permit besides his badge, but the presence of the badge may make the point moot.
I would assume many LEOs have CCW permits. I little known fact here in Florida is that LEOs have to endure the three-day wait for the purchase of a handgun just like us peons - unless they have a CCW.
A charge of malicious intent would stir things up. Gotta challenge those people and grasp for straws like the left does when they are trumping up their side of things. The anti gun factions are notorious about how they promote their agenda.
The whole intent is to cause them incomvenience and discomfort and let them know there is opposition. If left unchallenged, they may try other forms of intimidation.
After all, they are causing potential inconvenience and discomfort to legal gun owners. Give the anti gunners a taste of their own medication.
I like that. Nice job.
Not just no, but hell no. When you adopt the tactics of the left, you become the left.
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