“... to be honest … [VCDL has] been really successful in preventing our legislators from passing any meaningful [gun-control] legislation on this issue [universal background checks].”
Stephanie Soechtig, Director "Under the Gun" Newsbusters.com – June 2, 2016
“VCDL, which prides itself on being more radical than the National Rifle Association (NRA) with stickers that say 'guns save lives,' supports allowing guns on school grounds, on college campuses, in libraries and government facilities and in bars. They oppose closing the gun show loophole and universal background checks.”
State Senator Mark Herring (currently the Virginia Attorney General) August 2, 2013
“... the Virginia Citizens Defense League, the commonwealth’s dominant gun lobby.”
Roanoke Times Metro Columnist Dan Casey - Jan 6, 2013
“The law was a victory for the Virginia Citizens Defense League, a gun-rights organization that makes the NRA look moderate.”
Eleanor Clift – Politics Daily – July 5, 2010
“[VCDL] campaigns for the right of gun owners to tote firepower in all kinds of places … including outdoor festivals and college campuses.”
The Daily Press – Oct 20, 2007
“Virginia Citizens Defense League . . . is on a mission to root out every nugget of gun control it can detect in Virginia. It has been behind campaigns to make sure concealed weapons are allowed in local government buildings, even civic centers, and fought to open up state and local parks to concealed weapons.”
The Daily Press – Nov 27, 2006
“They’re pretty effective, I have to give them credit.”
Jim Sollo, Chairman of Virginians Against Handgun Violence
Virginian Pilot – Nov 11, 2002
VCDL Lobby Day: Monday, January 21, 2019, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Lobby Day 2019 will be held, as always, on Martin Luther King's Birthday, which falls on Monday, January 21, in 2019. It will run from 8 am to 12 noon. We will be lobbying in teams from around 8:00 am until 10:45 am, at which time everyone will head to the Bell Tower for our annual Lobby Day Rally, which starts at 11 am sharp.
More details will be provided here and on VA-ALERT as Lobby Day draws nearer.
BUSES
We are going to have buses for Lobby Day again this year!
NOTE: We are using two NEW bus lines this year that were recommended to us (Abbot and Martz). The old bus line (U.S. Coachways) did a poor job for the last two years and we will not be using them again.
PICK UP/DROP OFF LOCATIONS, RSVP INFO
We have buses picking up in Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Roanoke, Lynchburg, Virginia Beach, and Hampton for Lobby Day this year. If you wish to take one of the buses, EMs Tess Ailshire and Leyla Myers will take your RSVP at email address: bus@vcdl.org. If for some reason you can't send an email to that address, send your reservation to president@vcdl.org.
IMPORTANT: Include in the email:
1) which location you will be using (Roanoke, Lynchburg, Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Virginia Beach, or Hampton) 2) the number of people in your party, and 3) your cellphone number
OPTIONAL CONTRIBUTION
We REQUEST a $30 contribution to help offset the cost of the buses (about $1,500 each). However, it is more important that we have plenty of people at Lobby Day, so if you can't make a full contribution or can't contribute at all, that is not a problem. Anyone wishing to contribute more, we'll gratefully accept that, too. Proof of a contribution is NOT required to get on the bus.
SCHEDULES
NOTE: All buses will arrive at Lobby Day at 8 a.m. and will leave at 2 p.m. These are large buses with restrooms.
Schedules for Monday, January 21, 2019:
ROANOKE - ABBOTT BUS LINES
Pick up and drop off location: I-81 Exit 140 Park- and-Ride Pick up time: 4:30 a.m. Return time: 5:00 p.m.
LYNCHBURG - ABBOTT BUS LINES
Pick up and drop off location: Walmart at 3900 Wards Road Pick up time: 5:15 a.m. Return time: 4:15 p.m.
FAIRFAX - FRANK MARTZ COACH COMPANY
Pick up and drop off location: 12000 Government Center Pkwy Park-and-Ride Pick up time: 5:45 a.m. Return time: 3:50 p.m.
FREDERICKSBURG - FRANK MARTZ COACH COMPANY
Pick up and drop off location: 627 Warrenton Road (Rt. 17) Commuter Lot Pick up time: 6:35 a.m. Return time: 3:00 p.m.
VIRGINIA BEACH - FRANK MARTZ COACH COMPANY
Pick up, drop off location: HRT Silverleaf Park-and-Ride, 4300 Commuter Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23462 Pick up time: 5:30 a.m. Return time: 4:15 p.m.
HAMPTON - FRANK MARTZ COACH COMPANY
Pick up, drop off location: Hampton Coliseum, 1000 Coliseum Drive (pass lights on Coliseum Drive, make first right into parking lot) Pick up time: 6:15 a.m. Return time: 3:30 p.m.
—
To keep things simple for our bus coordinators, we are not accepting the bus contributions on the bus.
You can make contributions ahead of time on VCDL's website or you can mail a check. Contributions for buses should be made to VCDL and NOT the VCDL-PAC.
Click here to contribute online or to get details on mailing the contribution. In the comments indicate the contribution is for the bus:
Our list of speakers will be updated periodically, so check back from time to time. Speakers currently lined up:
Keynote speaker: Mark Robinson is a gun-rights activist whose powerful and passionate address of the Greensboro, NC City Council earlier this year went viral. He asked City Council when they were going to do something for the majority of citizens, like him, who are law-abiding, and stop blaming and punishing good people every time a criminal misuses a firearm. Here is a link to the video. If you haven't seen it, it well worth your time to do so!
Jennifer Bennett survived the Washington, DC Navy Yard massacre in 2013. The fact that she survived her attempted murder by an insane co-worker is, in itself, a miracle. She went through many surgeries and a lot of physical therapy. She believes God left her here for a purpose and she will be talking about survival, resiliency, and overcoming adversity. To learn more about Jennifer, here is a link to an in-depth story from the Washington Post.
Senator Dick Black has introduced some extremely significant legislation over the years for Virginia gun owners. As a freshman Delegate in 1998, he introduced the first bill to repeal the onerous restaurant-carry ban (finally repealed in 2010). In 2003, Delegate Dick Black had a huge victory when his bill to expand Virginia's firearms preemption protections was signed into law. Among his many other accomplishments, he has also introduced Constitutional Concealed Carry and in 2002 got an Attorney General's opinion stating that Virginia State Parks did not have the authority to ban concealed handgun permit holders from carrying concealed there.
Delegate Dave LaRock has been a strong supporter fo the right to keep and bear arms during his time in the General Assembly. In 2018 he introduced a bill to repeal the "good and sufficient" reason church gun-ban. He has also introduced bills to do things like required that chief law enforcement officers sign off on National Firearms Act Form 4s and removed the requirement for a second form of ID when purchasing a firearm.
"Red Flag" Laws Are a Serious Threat to Our Liberty - Spread the Word NOW!
Red Flag laws, also called Gun Violence Restraining Orders and Extreme Risk Protection Orders, aregun-confiscation laws disguised as “gun-violence prevention” laws that are being pushed hard at both the state and federal levels. VCDL expects to be fighting Red Flag bills in the Virginia General Assembly in 2019.
Red Flag laws are really unconstitutional "prior restraint" laws that violate our basic civil rights. What's particularly alarming is that to take away a person's Second Amendment rights, such laws violate the protections found in the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution! And all of that based on an unnamed person's secret allegation that someone else "might" do something dangerous to themselves or others in the future. Laws are only supposed to authorize the State to apprehend and punish those who have committed an illegal act, not those who might, based on unsubstantiated allegations.
The person accused of being "dangerous" has no notice there is a problem until the police show up, pre-dawn, with guns drawn and confiscate the accused's firearms. The accused is not given due process to defend himself or herself in court from the accusation for weeks or months after the confiscation. It is up to the accused to prove that he or she is not dangerous! Until such proof is provided to the Court's satisfaction, the guns are not returned. This could drag on for months, years, or indefinitely!
If a person is "too dangerous" to own a gun, then why is that person left walking around with the rest of us?Can’t that "dangerous" person still commit suicide or harm others if they have the opportunity? The answer to both questions is that Red Flag laws are about confiscating guns, not saving lives.
In Maryland, which recently enacted such a law, two-thirds of the requests for confiscation were deemed frivolous. In other words, most of the requests that were denied were from people wanting to "get even" with someone else by making their lives miserable! But how many frivolous requests got through anyhow?
Under a 140-year-old law (18.2-283), a person cannot carry a weapon into a place of worship during a service without a "good and sufficient reason" (there is no legal definition of that term). 18.2-283 restricts and complicates the ability of a place of worship to have a comprehensive security plan.
Click here for more information and to send emails to your legislators and the Governor in support of repealing 18.2-283.
The 2019 Legislative Session
2019 is around the corner and, with it, the 2019 Legislative Session.
As always, VCDL will be taking the lead in protecting the rights of gun owners at the General Assembly.
You can keep track of the bills affecting gun owners, and how you can help with each, using our 2019 Legislative Tracking Tool, which will be available soon.
VCDL Sues Katie Couric For Defamation in Federal Court!
VCDL sued Katie Couric and other responsible parties for the film “Under the Gun” for defamation in Federal District Court in Richmond, Virginia on September 13, 2016.
As has been widely reported in the media, the "documentary" contains manipulated footage that makes it look like some VCDL Executive members were totally stumped by a question on background checks, when in reality, they immediately began responding.
Q: What is the status of the lawsuit?
Our appeal has been argued in front of a three-judge panel with the Federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. We are appealing a ruling by a federal judge that dismissed our claim because in his opinion we didn't answer Couric's question, and thus the judge felt Couric was free to change our answers to anything she wished without causing harm to us! That would have set a horrible precedent and we simply could not let it stand.
Q: Why did the VCDL file this lawsuit?
It’s the only way to hold Couric and her people accountable.
Couric has publicly admitted that the film was misleading and misrepresented VCDL, but the filmmakers refuse to fix it or to stop promoting and distributing it.
Q: What does VCDL hope to accomplish with the lawsuit?
Hold the filmmakers accountable for misleading audiences and misrepresenting the organization.
Compensate VCDL and VCDL members who were harmed by the film.
Set the record straight.
Advance our mission to defend your right to defend yourself.
Q: How is VCDL paying for the lawsuit and the appeal?
Spread the Word on the Dangers of 'Universal Background Checks'
Do You Know the Dangers of
“Universal Background Checks”?
Some people are now pushing for “Universal Background Checks” (UBCs), where all gun transfers, even private gifts between friends & family, must go through a gun dealer. While UBCs may sound harmless at first glance, they are NOT.
To be able to enforce UBCs, the government will have to implement a gun registration scheme, followed by “compliance inspections” in your home to verify that you registered all your guns and that you still have them. Even non-gun owners could be required to register as such, and be subject to home inspections for verification, too.
It becomes easy to confiscate your guns since the government will know exactly which guns you own. And you’d better have all those registered guns, and no others, when the government knocks on your door!
