virginia citizens defense league
Defending Your Right to Defend Yourself
va-alert
Published 1/26/2026
- VCDL Statement on the Killing of CHP Holder in Minnesota and Unacceptable Comments by Patel and Noem
- Second Amendment Sanctuary Update
- More People to Thank for a Successful Lobby Day
- SCOTUS Scolds Hawaii for 'Relegating' the 2A as a Second-Class Right
- How an Anti-Police Bill in the General Assembly Might Save Gun Rights
- Suggestions on Which Candidates for the NRA Board of Directors to Support
- What to Say and Not to Say After a Self-Defense Shooting
- Delegate Helmer Talks About His AWB Bill
- ROFL! OK, Now WHO Did This? :-)
1. VCDL STATEMENT ON THE KILLING OF CHP HOLDER IN MINNESOTA AND UNACCEPTABLE COMMENTS BY PATEL AND NOEM
VCDL is calling for a complete and INDEPENDENT investigation of the shooting of a CHP holder, Alex Pretti, in Minnesota and the result released to the public. We do not want an agency investigating itself, as that does not give a lot of credence to the outcome.
There are a lot of videos of the event captured by citizens and some of it appears to be very damning of the CBP officers involved in the shooting. One video shows Pretti facing downward with nothing in his hands as he is shot in the back. Various videos show an officer taking Pretti’s gun out of his holster and walking away with it just before Pretti is shot.
One video captures the events leading up to the shooting. The video showed that Pretti was not attacking CBP officers but was merely standing between them and a woman they had violently thrown to the ground, while Pretti recorded the officers on his phone. (I hope Pretti’s video is released.)
The various videos directly contradict the rush-to-judgement statements given by:
- Assistant United States Attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, who said, “If you approach law enforcement with a gun, there is a high likelihood they will be legally justified in shooting you.” [Oh, baloney. Gun owners, me included, approach officers while openly carrying or concealed carrying all the time. We have a right to approach officers while legally armed. And Officers don’t panic when we do so. I guess Essayli’s education didn’t cover the Constitution.]
- DHS Director, Kristi Noem said:
- “…an individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun. The officers attempted to disarm the suspect, but the armed suspect violently resisted. Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots.” [Director Noem, who I thought more highly of, should not have made such a definitive statement before she knew the facts. Pretti only had a cellphone in his hands when he came into contact with CBD agents. His handgun was concealed, so CBD clearly weren’t trying to disarm him when they started wrestling with him. CBD didn’t yell, “GUN!” until they had him on the ground and the gun had already been removed from his holster.]
- "I don't know of any peaceful protesters that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign.” [More disappointment from Noem. VCDL had 50,000 armed people show up in 2020 and at least 80 to 100 show up in 2026 to protest gun control in Richmond. EVERYONE was peaceful. And this is the same across the country at rallies and protests where law-abiding citizens are armed.]
- DHS claimed initially that Pretti was armed with the intent to “massacre law enforcement.” [Where, exactly, did DHS come up with evidence to even remotely justify that claim? The fact the Pretti had a legally owned and legally carried firearm and an extra magazine? Almost everyone carries a spare magazine! Noem needs to educate her staff on making responsible statements based on facts, not conjecture or prejudice.]
- FBI Director Kash Patel said, “No one who wants to be peaceful shows up at a protest with a firearm that is loaded with two full magazines. That is not a peaceful protest, and you do not get to touch law enforcement. You do that anywhere; this FBI is going to be leading the charge to arrest those.” [More jumping to conclusions without looking at the evidence. Video shows it was CBD that “touched” Pretti, not the other way around.]
DHS also said that Pretti approached Border Patrol agents while armed with a handgun and "violently resisted" when they attempted to disarm him, leading to the shooting. The problem with that statement is that Petti’s gun was apparently concealed, so CBD had no idea he was armed. They discovered the gun after they had him on the ground, beating him to a pulp. An officer removed the gun from Pretti’s holster, and walked away with it just before someone yelled, “GUN!” and Pretti was shot. If they were trying to disarm him, why didn’t CBP yell, “GUN!” when they started to wrestle with him and not wait until after his holstered gun was removed from him? Immediately after the shooting another video show CBD officers noticing that Pretti didn’t have a gun at all, then finally figured out that the other CBD officer had taken it off Pretti before the shooting.
We’ll see what the investigation reveals, but if this turns out to be either murder, or at least manslaughter, the officers involved should be arrested and tried in a court of law.
-
Some coverage:
I’m not a big fan of CNN, but they did a really good job covering this event with video showing things from beginning to end:
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/25/us/alex-pretti-shooting-minneapolis-videos-witnesses-invs
-
Opinion: FBI Director Kash Patel needs to review the Second Amendment
https://thegunwriter.substack.com/p/fbi-director-kash-patel-needs-to
-
Gun rights groups clash after man DHS says was armed fatally shot by CBP in Minneapolis
-
Several Gun-Rights Groups Call for Investigation into ICE Killing of CCW Permittee
2. Second Amendment Sanctuary Update
Culpeper County
The Culpeper County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to reaffirm their resolution to protect the 2A rights of its citizens on Tuesday, February 3 between 10am and noon. The meeting will be held at:
302 N. Main Street
Culpeper, VA 22701
It would be great if there were people in the audience in support of that reaffirmation.
Fluvanna County
Member Nicholas W. is planning to address the Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors on Wednesday, February 4th. He is hoping other gun owners will attend the meeting with him and push the Board to reaffirm the County’s status as a 2A Sanctuary. The meeting will start at 5pm and will be held at:
72 Main Street
Palmyra, VA 22963
Prince George County
The Prince George County Board of Supervisors cancelled their January 27 regular meeting due to weather. The 2A Sanctuary vote should come in February.
3. More People to Thank for a Successful Lobby Day
Anytime one thanks the people who make a large event possible, it is almost impossible to remember to mention everyone.
Not mentioned earlier, but every bit as important to Lobby Day’s success:
- Lobby Day team leaders and team members
- Those who either donated seats on the bus or those who had to cancel their seat, but did not ask for a refund
4. SCOTUS Scolds Hawaii for 'Relegating' the 2A as a Second-Class Right
SCOTUS Scolds Hawaii For ‘Relegating’ Americans’ Second Amendment Rights To ‘Second-Class Status’
5. How and Anti-Police Bill in the General Assembly Might Save Gun Rights
The Commonwealth Attorney for Spotsylvania County posted this on his Facebook account:
Ryan Mehaffey for Spotsylvania
The General Assembly has inadvertently made it impossible for any government official to enforce its proposed gun control legislation.
The General Assembly is currently advancing new legislation that many believe is an unconstitutional infringement on their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. (HB217 - Assault Weapon Ban)
Also, the General Assembly is currently advancing legislation that would create a right for citizens to sue government officials for infringement of any constitutional right. (HB1314 - Qualified Immunity)
In their misguided haste to create a way to sue police, the General Assembly inadvertently raised the specter of police, prosecutors or even judges (any government official acting under color of law) being civilly sued for infringing on Virginian’s Second Amendment rights by enforcing new gun control legislation. That makes it impossible for new gun control legislation to be enforced.
The U.S. Supreme court is poised to rule on the constitutionality of assault weapons bans, and it seems inevitable that many bans will be found to be unconstitutional. Even before a ruling, there will be nothing to prevent citizens from suing any government official that enforces gun control legislation. Even if the Qualified Immunity bill fails in the General Assembly this year, there is no assurance it will not be enacted in the near future and retroactively applied. The threat of suit alone is enough to prevent any prudent government official from enforcing any new restrictions on the Second Amendment.
6. Suggestions on Which Candidates for the NRA Board of Directors to Support
This article discusses who the author, Jeff Knox, believes would be good candidates to support for the NRA Board of Directors:
https://www.ammoland.com/2026/01/2026-nra-board-member-update-elections-board-meeting-more/
7. What to Say and Not to Say After a Self-Defense Shooting
8. Delegate Helmer Talks About His AWB Bill
Delegate Dan Helmer likes to remind everyone that he served in the military where one assumes he was fighting to defend and support the Constitution, as that was the oath he took. He has taken the same oath each time he has been elected as a delegate.
However, regardless of the oath he swore to, his goal is to destroy our Constitutional protections, not support and defend them. So, I guess he thought that oath wasn’t worth the paper it was written on. His moral compass seems to be broken.
It is strongly suggested you tightly duct tape your head, so it doesn’t explode as Delegate Helmer explains his “assault weapon” ban bill in this video. You’ve been warned:
9. ROFL! OK, Now WHO Did This? ;-)
