Free Republic

Around June of 2023 Gianna Novello decided to give shooting a shot. The native of north Jersey wasn’t looking to become the next Lara Croft, or dive too deep into the world of becoming a shootist, it was just something she committed to wanting to try. Novello went through some basic steps with her boyfriend on how to handle a firearm, then made it to the range. Novello’s story starts with her being uninitiated in firearms, to five months later owning three handguns, and having a valid New Jersey permit to carry. That’s a remarkable story. Coming from N.J., her...

We all know that female participation in gun ownership and shooting sports is up. Female gun owners are also lining up for their carry permits as well. The gun industry knows that women are the next big thing for their business. It’s no longer an activity or a right exercised solely by white men, which if often an anti-gun talking point to denigrate the Bill of Rights. In fact, it’s made the gun control movement’s work in the stripping of our Second Amendment rights all the more difficult. They will put forth statistics about how a firearm in the home makes it less safe,...

Claiming New Jersey’s gun permit laws are derived from slavery and motivated by racism, a man denied a license is set to have his case reviewed by the nation’s high court next month. Marc Stephens, representing himself, argues he has a Constitutional right under the Second and Fourteenth amendments to keep and bear arms at home and in public, which the state of New Jersey has denied him even though he has had multiple death threats. His petition is set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in its Feb. 17 conference but has been winding its way...

The New York City scandal of bribes being paid to obtain highly desired and irrationally restricted gun permits is something that few find unusual, exceptional or unlikely.  The entire practice of the unconstitutional gun permit scheme was conceived in corruption and has always been administered as a way of benefiting elites and corrupt officials.  People without connections or money lose their Constitutional rights.  From ap.org: The New York investigation caught Alex “Shaya” Lichtenstein, a volunteer safety patrol member in his Orthodox Jewish neighborhood, on tape bragging that he had obtained at least 150 licenses for people to carry guns...

BERN TWP., Pa. - The rush is on for gun permits in Berks County. "We actually had to turn people away a couple of times last month. We can only process so many because the Pennsylvania issue check system gets bogged down and it takes longer and longer to get a response back," Berks County Sheriff Eric Weaknecht said Tuesday. The sheriff said his office usually issues about 600 permits each month, but in December, it gave out more than 1,700, the result of President Barack Obama promising executive action in an effort to combat gun violence. "I think a...

It is long established law that United States residents who are not U.S. citizens enjoy the same Constitutional protections as U.S. citizens, with minor exceptions, under the equal protections clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.  Several recent cases have reaffirmed that precedent.    Voting is specifically limited to Citizens in the Constitution.   A permanent resident of Hawaii, Andrew Namiki Roberts, is suing the Honolulu Police Department for denying him the right to own a handgun for self defense.   From the staradvertiser.com: Honolulu resident Andrew Namiki Roberts, who was born in England, was given a permit to acquire rifles and...

On Saturday evening, a man wearing a mask walked into a South Side Chicago bodega, pulled out a gun and announced a robbery. As the robber pointed his gun at the store’s employees, however, a customer pulled out his own gun. The robber's gun, it turns out, was fake. The customer's was not. Now the robbery suspect is dead, gunned down by the concealed-weapon-toting customer. The case is the latest in a string of incidents across the country in which bystanders have pulled out their concealed weapons and used them against suspected criminals. Some cases have drawn heavy scrutiny, such...

Two principals in widely separated states tried to use police against parents with gun permits.   Both principals ended up on the losing side, when the parents refused to fold, and took them to court.  In the most recent case, the principal at Stratton Elementary School in Massachusetts contacted police after the father showed the principal his gun permit.   The father had come to talk to the principal about a drawing the son had made.  From whdh.com: The principal said the boy had drawn a phallic symbol, but 40-year-old Robert Goodwin said his son had actually drawn a gun similar...

Pete Alexander celebrated the news that a federal court in California had thrown out this state’s strict requirements for obtaining a concealed-handgun permit — among the toughest in the nation — by calling the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to apply for a permit he had long wanted. “I’m a gun enthusiast,” said Mr. Alexander, a construction contractor who lives in Fullerton. “Crime is encroaching on our neighborhood, and I don’t feel as safe as I used to. This is adding to the police force.” Mr. Alexander turned out to be the beginning of a flood. In the two months since...

It has been long argued by freedom-loving Americans that anti-gun groups from around the nation actively strive for civilian disarmament that disproportionately effects the law-abiding, and a recent statement from the Moms Demand Action group provides evidence that this argument is pretty accurate. On November 1st, Moms Demand Action (the gift that keeps on giving the whole year) posted an official statement about the shooting at Los Angeles International Airport. Of course, the statement calls on Congress to enact more laws to supposedly “fix” the problem of gun crime and implement a full ban on so-called “assault weapons” for civilians,...

Leave it to Barack Obama to come into his inaugural weekend with a bang, and not just on guns. He’s made it clear that he intends more spending, more regulation, more radical appointees and less national defense in his second term. Since he just fired a load of executive orders on gun control like shotgun pellets at a duck hunt, I think it’s time to ask a few questions about this part of his agenda. The first one’s for the president. Why did you have children prominently displayed at your press conference? Were you implying that anyone who opposes your...

Although a similar bill failed not long ago, A Florida Republican and a North Carolina Congressman are gearing up for another try. Here's Florida Representative Sterns announcement. “The right to self defense is unquestionable and the right to carry a firearm is recognized in our Constitution,” said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL). “Today, 48 states have laws permitting concealed carry of a firearm in some circumstances, and this legislation would allow any person with a valid state-issued concealed firearm carry permit or license to carry a concealed handgun in any other state.” Stearns, joined by Rep. Health Shuler (D-NC), offered H.R....

A recent post by marktwain about an open-carry experience of his got me thinking. Some states are open-carry, some are concealed carry. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? Which method would you prefer in your state, and why?

INDIANAPOLIS -- A bill that would prohibit public access to gun permit information is gaining support in the Legislature. Indiana law currently allows anyone to access a list of those with gun permits, which can be purchased from Indiana State Police for about $30, said State Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington. Welch has authored a bill to keep the information private after she said she received complaints from constituents...

Issued Concealed Carry Permit EVENT Name Occupation Birth Death Known for

WILKES-BARRE - A Sugarloaf Township man's 7-year battle to regain his right to carry a concealed weapon suffered a major setback Monday when the state's Commonwealth Court reversed a ruling that granted him the permit. The decision is the latest in a long, complex legal battle Michael S. Pecora has waged with the Pennsylvania State Police and the Luzerne County Sheriff's Office. Pecora had held a concealed weapons permit for about 35 years, but the sheriff's office denied him renewal in 1996 after a state police records check showed Pecora pleaded no contest in 1978 to federal income tax evasion....

My phone started ringing almost as soon as the ad appeared in The News-Sentinel on Wednesday promoting today's story on gun permits in Allen County. Several gun permit holders called to protest our plan to post online the list of gun permit holders, which is a public record. They expressed concern that the list would provide burglars who want to steal guns with a road map to their homes. Or they said the information would make it easier for stalkers to find their victims, who may have obtained a gun for protection. Or they said posting the list would weaken...

Childhood is its own country, and for some it's a brutal place to live. At 18, Matthew Lovett of Oaklyn, N.J., is described in news accounts as a peculiar loner, a tall, stooped kid who stood out because he didn't dress or act like his peers and hung out solely with younger kids. Obsessed with certain movies and computer games, Matthew reportedly tried to protect his younger brother, James - born with a disfiguring cleft palate and retaining a speech impediment after multiple corrective surgeries - from the teasing and humiliation his physical condition invited. He's described by former high...