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Approved: m1garand

Approved: m1garand

Wayne Stephens has alerted VCDL to a scheme being hatched by the Culpeper Board of Supervisors. We need to act to put a stop to their proposed shenanigans.

Chris Graham, a reporter with the Augusta Free Press, wrote an extensive article on a problem that some VCDL members had with the Staunton police while openly carrying in a restaurant. I knew of the incident from the time it happened, but did not bring it up on VA-ALERT because at least one VCDL member was contemplating taking legal action at the time.

I forgot to squeeze this in my update:For those who live in Loudoun, here is your chance to meet your representatives to the General Assembly and bend their ears on getting rid of the restaurant ban, fixing preemption once and for all, improving recognition/reciprocity, etc. Remind them that there is NO gun show loophole and that according to the US Department of Justice, gun shows provided only .7 of 1 percent of guns used in crimes anyway.Let's make sure that their is no doubt in their minds that guns are going to be a hot topic again this year with their constituents!The Town meeting is this Thursday, January 8th, at 7 PM.Here is more information on the town meeting:http://www.timescommunity.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=10733406&BRD=2553&PAG=461&dept_id=506040&rfi=6Thanks to EM Melinda Meador for the above link and EM Pete Clark for bringing the meeting to my attention.

OK - the worst of the gun control bills that is still alive, Senator Stolle's SB660 which bans ALL carry in airport terminals, has finally been assigned to a committee.

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Not yet a VCDL member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is a corrected email to Culpeper BoS. It should have said to oppose any ordinance that INCREASES (not decreases) acreage necessary to shoot on. I have also dropped the specific acreage as there is no one answer for every location and it is better to not get into that kind of morass. As long as a person can safely shoot on his property, that is the main thing. Sorry for the mistake:supervisors@culpepercounty.govSuggested email:Subject: Oppose changes to shooting range/hunting ordinancesDear Culpeper Board of Supervisors member,Please oppose changes to the County's ordinances that would increase the amount of land necessary for a person to discharge a firearm. One of the great freedoms in America is the right for someone in a rural area to be able to shoot responsibly on their own land.Please oppose changes to the County's hunting ordinances. A gun that has a muzzle energy of a .22 caliber rimfire is only usable against small animals, such as squirrels and rabbits. In fact, by state law, a deer cannot be hunted in Virginia with a .22 caliber firearm at all! Shotgun slugs provide a quick and humane way to hunt deer and should not be banned.It is critical that we preserve our American rights and heritage. I ask that you oppose these unnecessary anti-gun/anti-hunting measures.Please let me know what you are going to do.Sincerely,[YOUR NAME][YOUR ADDRESS]

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Not yet a VCDL member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Not yet a VCDL member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------- VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Over the last year or so the media has been up in arms about two cases where someone claimed self-defense after they shot a thief.  In each case, the citizen was able to convince the prosecutor that he has in fear for his life when he shot because the suspect lunged, possibly towards a weapon.  Those two cases were both in the Tidewater area.  One case involved a store owner standing outside his business trying to stop a burglar inside the business and the other a retired police officer stopping the theft of a dog kennel from his yard.Remember that under Virginia law you are NOT allowed to use **deadly** force to protect **property.**  However, if you are trying to stop the theft without the use of deadly force and you suddenly find yourself in a position where you could be grievously hurt or killed, then can you can respond with deadly force.It is generally a **very bad** idea to shoot at a fleeing criminal.The Richmond Commonwealth Attorney takes a much harder line on self-defense and prosecuted a man, Eric Driver, last year for shooting a thief who had broken into his girlfriend's car.  Driver, too, claimed  that the thief lunged, but to no avail.   Driver's charges were downgraded to voluntary manslaughter at trial and he did not serve any time - both of which shocked the prosecutor.Here is the Richmond Commonwealth Attorney's reaction to the retired police officer not being charged in Suffolk:http://tinyurl.com/4rxmh3vThe story about the store owner shooting a burglar in Suffolk:http://tinyurl.com/nsrwnsEric Driver incident in Richmond (video gone, but story is still available):http://www.wtvr.com/eric-driver-verdict,0,6408393.story

-------------------------------Hunting on Sunday bill to be heard on MondayFor those of you interested in allowing hunting on Sundays, Senator Petersen's SB 850 will be heard Monday morning at 9 AM in Senate Room B by the Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee.  You can send a message to your Senator to support the bill by clicking here:http://tinyurl.com/47tbbku

One pro-gun bill died today, one was delayed until next year, a few moved on to the next level, and all anti-gun bills that were heard were killed.

Today 3 bills progressed:

**NOTE:** VCDL will determine by noon Wednesday if the membership meeting in Annandale on Wednesday night is going to canceled. An alert will go out to indicate the status of the meeting at that time.

The Militia, Police, and Public Safety Subcommittee #1 meeting that was scheduled for tonight (Thursday, January 20th) has been POSTPONED until next Thursday.  More bills will be added to that subcommittee by then and you will be advised what bills will be heard next week.-A correction to yesterday's update:SB 1396 should have been SB 1395:SB 1395 - Senator McKeachin - a ban on consuming alcohol while open carrying in a restaurant and puts in a penalty for being intoxicated if you are open carrying.  Law enforcement, security guards, and military personnel in the performance of their duties are exempted - VCDL Strongly Opposes this bill-Also a correction to a bill's description  (five days changed to ten days):B 1856 - Delegate Anderson - clarifies that the Circuit Court Clerk is to replace a lost or stolen permit within TEN days of getting a notarized statement of the loss for a fee of $5 - VCDL Strongly Supports this bill

I reviewed my notes from my contact at the Governor's Office and I think somebody had the status of carry in State Parks and State Forests reversed.I called Dave Summer, the law enforcement manager with the State Parks, this morning and he confirmed that as of yesterday open carry Is perfectly legal in Virginia's State Parks!  We have been able to carry concealed in Virginia State Parks for years, but never openly before.Governor McDonnell ordered Parks to makes this change and VCDL thanks him for doing so.State Forests will be coming along.  I am waiting for Ron Jenkins, Assistant State Forester, to get back will me about the exact status of carry in Forests.  I will advise you once I hear back.Meanwhile, EM Mike Stollenwerk has an article on all this:Washington DC Gun Rights Examiner:  http://tinyurl.com/4ah8vk6Va. Gov. Bob McDonnell moves to enforce universal right to open carry[SNIP]Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) President Philip Van Cleave applauds the governor's actions, but says more needs to be done. "The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and other agencies have promulgated all kinds of obscure open carry bans around the state affecting certain Wildlife Management Areas, all National Forest land" and elsewhere, says Mr. Van Cleave, "and that's why VCDL is backing Senator [Jill Holtzman] Vogel's bill" to preempt state agencies from banning gun carry anywhere in the Commonwealth.

As an all volunteer organization, VCDL depends on YOU to volunteer your time at our area events, where we recruit new activists and keep gun owners informed. No experience necessary; if it's your first time we'll pair you with a veteran volunteer. To find out more about helping at our gun show tables, go to:

LOBBY DAY EVENTS

1. Supreme Court upholds the George Mason University building/event gun ban - good and bad news 2. New gun bills introduced, including more VCDL requested bills

The General Assembly begins its 2011 session today.

The Brady Campaign couldn't wait to get in front of the press to call for more gun control (and more money) in the wake of the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords and 18 other people over the weekend. And the usual anti-gunners in Congress are now rushing to put in bills to restrict your right to keep and bear arms.

First a correction to the previous alert:HB 305 should have been HB 995:HB 995 - Delegate Nutter - allows a person who has a CHP or who has current or retired military officer identification and who is purchasing an 'assault weapon' to be exempt from needing to prove citizenship (with a birth certificate, voter registration, passport, etc.) - VCDL Strongly Supports this billI have been getting several comments about this bill being discriminatory because it only exempts military officers and not rank-and-file members of the military.  I believe the reason for the officers-only wording is that rank-and-file military members don't necessarily have to be U.S. citizens, but officer must.-Here are some new bills:HB 1600 - Delegate BaCote - a perennial bill that allows libraries to ban guns - VCDL Strongly Opposes this billHB 1669 - Delegate McClellan - another perennial bill that closes the non-existent "gun show loophole."  It is nothing but a thinly veiled attempt to destroy gun shows and register private firearms - VCDL Strongly Opposes this billHB 1699 - Delegate Athey - cleans up conflicting/inconsistent wording dealing with a person who has been acquitted by reason of insanity from certain charges to petition to have his gun rights restored upon discharge from treatment - VCDL Supports this bill

THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD

The Virginia Citizens Defense League thanks the following member-activists who generously gave of their time to advance and help defend the rights of their fellow gun owners by working our recruiting and information booths at gun shows and events around the state.

For those who haven't had a chance to respond to the previous alert on the BATFE power grab dealing with reporting of multiple sales of semi-automatic rifles, here is another approach you can take instead (thanks to EM Dave Yates):Let's urge Senators Webb and Warner to make sure that there is a full 90-day comment period for the proposed BATFE emergency regulation, not a mere 3 weeks.  There is simply no need to rush into this.The message below anticipates the Senators saying they can't do that, showing them that they most certainly can do so.Here are the web-mail address for our Senators:-Senator Mark Warner:   http://warner.senate.gov/public//index.cfm?p=ContactPageSelect "Second Amendment Rights" for the subject.-Senator Jim Webb:     http://webb.senate.gov/contact.cfmSelect "Crime/law enforcement" for the subject.-Message to copy/paste to each Senator:The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives is attempting to force licensed firearms dealers to report multiple sales of certain long guns (FR Doc. 2010-31755) without allowing the customary public comment period.   This regulation was published in the December 17th Federal Register and comments close January 5th, 2011!  Not only is the proposed regulation a bad idea, but there are only 3 weeks to receive comments, and that over a major holiday season!In 2008, Congress intervened and re-opened the comment period for the Department of the Interior’s amended weapons regulation after the first comment period had closed.  http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/E8-15614.htmPlease contact the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and notify them that they must either allow the 90 day period for public comment or withdraw the regulation.  If they are less than receptive, they can appear before Congress to explain their legal justification.

The Virginia Citizens Defense League thanks the following member-activists who generously gave of their time to advance and help defend the rights of their fellow gun owners by working our recruiting and information booths at gun shows and events around the state.

VCDL Lobby Day at the General Assembly Building in Richmond (241 N 9th Street, at the SE corner of Broad St. and 9th St) will be held about a month from now - on Monday, January 17th, and we need to get team leaders and team members lined up!

Big Brother wants to put a magnifying glass over anyone who buys more than one semi-automatic rifle in five days!The BATFE, under the guise of controlling Mexico's crime problems, wants the power to require dealers to report to the government all sales of 2 or more semi-automatic rifles, which are  .22 caliber or greater, which have a detachable magazine, and which were purchased by the same person during a span of 5 business days or less.This adds even more unnecessary paperwork to the long list of what dealers already have to provide, while putting your name on another list.And if the dealer makes a mistake on any of those forms, then he is in hot water.Oh, and this is considered an "emergency" issue by the BATFE, so all of a sudden the BATFE wants to hurry along, even though Mexico's crime problems have been around for a long time.Here is a link to the Gun Owners of America web site with more information on this power grab and a way to take action to help stop this new dealer requirement which is an invasion of your privacy:http://tinyurl.com/2dl4frl

The Virginia Citizens Defense League thanks the following member-activists who generously gave of their time to advance and help defend the rights of their fellow gun owners by working our recruiting and information booths at gun shows and events around the state.

1. VCDL will have a booth at the Sports Booth in Stafford THIS Saturday 2. Gun shows and events!

1. Suggested dress for banquet 2. Delegate Dick Black will speak at VCDL meeting on Thursday 3. Gun shows and events!

1. Gun show volunteers for Doswell show on November 6th and 7th needed! 2. Gun shows and events

Gun shows and events!

On Thursday, October 7th, VCDL will be holding our second meeting at Rivanna Rifle and Pistol Club (RRPC) in the Charlottesville area.  The meeting is open to all.  You don’t have to be a VCDL member or a RRPC member to attend.  In fact, we invite you to bring a guest!VCDL President Philip Van Cleave will be speaking about recent events that affect firearms owners, VCDL’s legislative agenda for 2011 and his thoughts on force-on-force training.The meeting will be preceded by a pot luck dinner at 6:00 p.m.  Bring a side dish if you can.  The main course will be provided.  The meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m.  Please RSVP to     pat.webb@vcdl.org     so we have an approximate head count for the food.Once again we offer our thanks to RRPC for their generosity and support!

1. Reminder - Eric Cantor protest on Oct. 2 2. Gun shows and events!

I have been holding a few stories, waiting to see if more details emerge. Two of the stories deal with Virginia CHP holders breaking the law and one story with an ex-Virginia Deputy Sheriff doing so.

This is the fifth and final installment of some force-on-force training that I took earlier this year at Practical Firearms Training (PFT) earlier this year. It is long, but I think you will find this to be one of the most interesting of the scenarios.

1. Hillsville wrap up 2. VCDL Pot Luck Picnic in Salem 3. Gun shows and events!

Many of you have sent me a link to a Senate Judiciary meeting announcement that just came out:http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?id=4771The announcement, which is titled, "Firearms in Commerce: Assessing the Need for Reform in the Federal Regulatory Process" says nothing about what the hearing is about, but sure sounds scary.However, with some digging and confirmation from the NRA, it is about reforming the BATFE and is pro-gun:http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Federal/Read.aspx?id=5210http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?id=251&issue=28Unfortunately, Virginia's two Senators, Mark Warner and Jim Webb, have NOT cosponsored the bill (S. 941)!Let's ask Senators Warner and Webb to cosponsor S. 941:Senator Warner's web mail:http://warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=ContactSenator Webb's web mail:http://webb.senate.gov/contact.cfmSuggested message:As a constituent, I urge you to cosponsor S. 941 to provide much needed pro-gun reforms to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.Please let me know if you are going to cosponsor S. 941 or not.

1. Life or death - how to interact with police 2. Gun shows and events!

Back in May, I took several force-on-force classes at Practical Firearms Training in West Virginia. To make the training scenarios as real as possible, the instruction included "live fire" with Airsoft and paintball guns and simunitions. In this third scenario, our instructor once again placed us in a simulated convenience store. The room was sparse, but spacious. There was a small table at the front and some shelves with a smattering of grocery store items in the back, furthest from the door. Our task: clear the room. Or, alternatively, avoid discovery. It was "hide and go seek"---with guns.

This is part two of a five part series on some lessons learned in an advanced tactical training force-on-force class I took at PFT in West Virginia back in May. Force-on-force uses Airsoft guns, paintball guns, or simunitions to make the training scenarios as real as possible.

1. Restaurants for the July 1st restaurant carry celebrations 2. Free speech safe for now. More on the NRA and the HR 5175 issue

1. ACTION ITEM: NRA sells out grassroots to Congressional antis 2. Successful evening in York County last night, more changes are probably coming

One of our members has just forwarded to me an email he received from the Attorney General's office. The email addresses a previous VA-ALERT ("Et tu, Cuccinelli") from a couple of weeks ago.

This is the first part in a five-part series where I will share my experiences from some extremely realistic firearms survival exercises that I was involved in.