Posted on 12/18/2011 6:43:24 AM PST by marktwain
Mark Meckler, who co-founded the Tea Party Patriots group, was arrested early yesterday morning at New York's LaGuardia airport for illegal possession of a weapon. The Huffington Post quotes his attorney:
"While in temporary transit through the state of New York in possession of an unloaded, lawful firearm that was locked in a [Transportation Security Administration]-approved safe, he legally declared his possession of the firearm in his checked baggage at the ticket counter as required by law and in a manner approved by TSA and the airline, yet was arrested by port authority for said possession," Stapleton said.
Unloaded, in a locked safe, approved by the TSA, and he declared his possession of the gun--not exactly hallmarks of nefarious intent. Still, in New York, that's not good enough, as the Associated Press explains:
Meckler, 49, declared the weapon, as required, authorities said. He's licensed to carry the gun in Grass Valley, Calif., where he lives, but that license isn't valid in New York, which has strict rules on carrying concealed weapons, they said.
Such "strict rules," in fact, that an unloaded gun in a locked safe is considered a "concealed weapon."
The degree of legal jeopardy Meckler faces is a bit unclear. The Huffington Post story seems to indicate it's not too serious:
Meckler was still being held Thursday night. He was charged with second-degree possession of a weapon.
A law enforcement source said such cases generally result in a fine, and not jail time.
Well, "not too serious," is of course relative--he was, after all, still in jail last night, after having been arrested before dawn. He will also almost certainly lose the gun--which, by the way, he carries because he has received death threats--forever.
(Excerpt) Read more at examiner.com ...
I will bet you he was on a watch list and they were waiting for him.
See the first quote on my FR profile page. It speaks directly to your comments.
Wrong. Some of us merely have permission to do some things
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
Our rights do not come from government, but from God and also from our nature as rational beings. Such rights are inalienable, regardless of who might claim otherwise. As for the right recognized (not created, mind you) above, it will surely be enforced by millions who are prepared to do so.
Three of those states were not that way only 12 years ago.
In respect to guns, we are winning. It is everything else that is dubious.
Still, Guns are a major indicator of cultural movement, and with them, we are winning.
The same type of person who loses their mind and freaks out in the presence of a firearm invariably are the kind who grovel before anyone in possession of a fancy looking shiny brass badge backed by a black leather badge holder.
Sounds like a dream case for GOA, JPFO, and the NRA. I’d love to see bloomturd bitc* slapped again over the firearms issue.
The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws. Who wants a nation of law-abiding citizens? What’s there in that for anyone?
But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced or objectively interpreted – and you create a nation of law-breakers – and then you cash in on guilt. Now that’s the system, Mr. Reardon, that’s the game, and once you understand it, you’ll be much easier to deal with." (’Atlas Shrugged’ 1957)
Ayn Rand was prescient in many ways.
People would think so, but I have come to see that the case must be *ripe* in the terminology of the US Supreme Court. I do not see the NYC laws as *ripe* quite yet.
The problem is that we do not know exactly his travel schedule, and he may not want to make it fully known. The Federal law only protects him if he were in *transit* which is not precisely defined, but which gives the NYC authorities potential leverage.
If this was a *test case*, I hope they are well prepared.
If it was not, then I pray that he and his lawyer can extract him with the minimum pain possible.
I would consider a 15 year penalty for ignorance of a complex law involving Constitutional freedoms, where there was no evil intent and no one was hurt, to be a cruel and unusual punishment, but a great many lawyers would not agree with me.
Perhaps I am not the one who is confused. A moratorium on flights to and from NY should create the appropriate crisis. It shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours for a federal judge to place a stay on the moratorium. However, it’s not like Kalefornia has any untaxed economy left to protect. I didn’t see anybody get excited about Obama’s pukes (OWS) closing the ports on the coast.
It’s amazing how a little political crisis can help the government to focus. Either the interstate commerce clause and full faith and credit apply or they don’t. Both of those issues are state, not individual issues. The state has a responsibility to it’s citizens and the Supreme Court has an obligation to rule on those disputes. The left so loves to extend the commerce clause when the issue is a leftard idea.
Then again, Kalefornia is overpopulated with jackasses.
Another possibility is the fact that we have had too many peaceful revolutions. Say what you want about revolutions, this sort of thing would never have happened during the time of the Founding Fathers.
Foxnews and other fair minded media need to put this guys picture alongside Holder’s and tell the story of each. One definitely should be in prison, but it ain’t the guy in the airport.
Did Meckler stay anywhere in New York at all, or was he only traveling through?
If he as much as stayed overnight in a New York motel, he could be in trouble.
The lunatics are in charge of the asylum.
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