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On March 8th, AG Jeff Sessions ordered all 94 federal prosecutors to prioritize violent crime, using the statutory tools at their disposal.  The first two offenses listed by the Attorney General were 18 U.S.C section 922 (firearms offenses including possession and straw purchasing) and 18 U.S.C. section 924(c) (possession of a firearm during and in relation to a violent crime or drug trafficking offense). The United States Attorney's Offices were urged to identify and target the criminals responsible for violent crime in their districts, and to coordinate with the state and local counterparts.  It appears to be having some...

Sessions Promises to ‘Properly Enforce’ Current Gun Laws, Endorses NRA-Backed Project Exile Stephen Gutowski January 10, 2017 Sen. Jeff Sessions (R., Ala.) said Tuesday he would prosecute gun crimes that fall under federal jurisdiction during his confirmation hearing for attorney general. Sessions’ views on gun crime prosecutions were made clear during an exchange between him and Sen. John Cornyn (R., Texas). Cornyn framed the question in terms of violence against police and gun violence against minority communities. He specifically focused on gun crimes committed by felons who were already prohibited from possessing firearms. “We ought to hold our police and...

The Richmond Police Department is trying an innovative approach to reduce violent crime.  Because the policy targets people who are not allowed to own guns, it might have positive effects.  David Kennedy has shown that most murders are committed by a very small group of violent individuals, usually associated with gangs and/or drug trafficking.  Identifying and focusing on those individuals has been shown to drastically reduce the murder rate.  One of the methods used to do this is to encourage people to turn in violent felons who illegally possess firearms.  Richmond Virginia has decided to run with this idea....

The failed paradigm that has been followed for 44 years in the United States has been to attempt, unsuccessfully, to prevent crime by not allowing prohibited groups from buying firearms. Obviously, this approach has not worked. It is a failed paradigm because its focus is on the 99 percent of people who do not need to be controlled, instead of the 1 percent who do. The 1 percent can always find a way to obtain firearms illegally. The Supreme court has ruled that in the United States, you have a right to a loaded, unlocked handgun that is in common...

After listening carefully to the two policemen, the judge had a problem: He did not believe them. The officers, who had stopped a man in the Bronx and found a .22-caliber pistol in his fanny pack, testified that they had several reasons to search him: He was loitering, sweating nervously and had a bulge under his jacket. But the judge, John E. Sprizzo of United States District Court in Manhattan, concluded that the police had simply reached into the pack without cause, found the gun, then “tailored” testimony to justify the illegal search. “You can’t have open season on searches,”...

Expected increase based on data from new federal Project Exile program in Baltimore If the current trend continues through the end of the year, federal authorities in Baltimore believe that they will prosecute at least one-third more gun cases than they did last year in the city. The projected increase comes from an analysis of the first four months of Baltimore's new Project Exile program, which shows additional state gun cases as well. Under the program, federal prosecutors have agreed to take more gun cases in the city and use the threat of federal indictment to cajole other defendants into...

11250 Waples Mill Road    ·Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683www.NRAILA.org NRA Urges Tim Kaine to Stop Misleading Virginia Voters Thursday, June 16, 2005  Fairfax, VA - In a brazen attempt to mislead Virginia voters, Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Tim Kaine deliberately misused comments made by former NRA President Charlton Heston.  Kaine’s campaign advertisement implies that Mr. Heston lauded Kaine for reduced crime in Richmond.  In reality, Heston was praising Project Exile, a program implemented prior to Kaine becoming Mayor of Richmond.  Chris W. Cox, chairman of the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) stated, “It is shameful and dishonest to manipulate comments...

NRA Urges Tim Kaine to Stop Misleading Virginia Voters Fairfax, VA - In a brazen attempt to mislead Virginia voters, Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Tim Kaine deliberately misused comments made by former NRA President Charlton Heston. Kaine's campaign advertisement implies that Mr. Heston lauded Kaine for reduced crime in Richmond. In reality, Heston was praising Project Exile, a program implemented prior to Kaine becoming Mayor of Richmond. Chris W. Cox, chairman of the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) stated, "It is shameful and dishonest to manipulate comments in an attempt to mislead voters during this gubernatorial campaign. We would...

No gun-toting felon bent on committing a crime is likely to be suddenly dissuaded by a marketing slogan on a billboard or radio ad. So there may be that silly side to local implementation of the national Project Safe Neighborhoods program. But cracking down on criminals who use firearms is serious and sound law enforcement policy. The campaign grew out of Richmond, Va., and its Project Exile, encouraged by gun-rights groups, among others. Richmond's gun-related homicides fell markedly under the program. Meanwhile, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has nearly tripled its prosecution of gun crimes since 1997,...

Project Exile By JOSH DAVIDSBURG (SALISBURY, MD -- WMDT) 1/8/2004 With a brand new set of advertisements Wicomico County's Project Exile is reaching the public. The agency is receiving $140,000 from the government for the tough-on-guns initiative. Part of the money will be used to pay for a media blitz. Assistance State's Attorney Andrew MacDonald says the money will go to spreading the word, but they've already started the program. "We don't need money to aggressively prosecute gun crimes. We always aggressively prosecuted gun crimes," says MacDonald. Project exile is a program started this summer that targets gun crimes....

<p>In an interview with The Washington Times on Friday, a spokesman for Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich denied that the administration has decided not to ask the General Assembly to approve a state version of a Project Exile — a program, modeled after a highly successful anti-crime initiative begun in Richmond,Va., which would impose stricter sentences on criminals using guns in the commission of a crime. Henry Fawell, a spokesman for Mr. Ehrlich, said the governor may propose a package of "exile-like" legislation when the legislature returns in January.</p>

ANNAPOLIS -- Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. will not reintroduce Project Exile legislation next year, a decision that comes as the governor finds himself under increasingly heavy fire from both sides of the gun debate. With this week's one-year anniversary of the sniper attacks providing momentum for a bill banning assault style weapons similar to the one used in the attacks, the highly emotional gun debate is promising to re-emerge in next year's General Assembly session. Ehrlich (R) is showing clear signs that he wants to remain above the fray by pulling the plug on a Project Exile bill. But...

Bull's EyefulThe sordid legal saga of Katica Crippen, Second Amendment pinup girl.BY DAVID HOLTHOUSE   Katica Crippen wore an electronic monitoring device -- and nothing else -- when she posed for this photo, which landed her back in prison. He had the camera, the studio and the guns. She had the tribal tattoos, the icy blue eyes and the desire. They met on the Internet in May 2000 in a chat room for Colorado singles. They volleyed flirtatious notes. She told him her name was Katica, pronounced "Kah-tee-kah." It's Hungarian, she said. She was 34 then, and she was hot...

He had the camera, the studio and the guns. She had the tribal tattoos, the icy blue eyes and the desire. They met on the Internet in May 2000 in a chat room for Colorado singles. They volleyed flirtatious notes. She told him her name was Katica, pronounced "Kah-tee-kah." It's Hungarian, she said. She was 34 then, and she was hot -- if you like biker chicks, which he did. She sent him pictures. She was 5'8", 125 pounds. She came across in her e-mails as tough, yet vulnerable. She let him know she was fresh out of prison, where...

On February 14, Denver mayor Wellington Webb made Tom Strickland his valentine. At a press conference at Civic Center Park, Webb presented the former U.S. attorney turned Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate with a glittering endorsement. In praising his many efforts as Colorado's chief federal prosecutor, the mayor paid special attention to Strickland's role in implementing Project Exile, a program in which previously convicted felons caught with firearms are marked for harsh federal prosecution. "Tom was sworn in the day after the terrible tragedy at Columbine, and he vowed to target gun violence and make our neighborhoods safer," Webb...