WANTED: Owners of guns confiscated after Katrina
December 27th, 2007
Gun Seized After Katrina? NRA Wants You
The National Rifle Association has hired private investigators to find hundreds of people whose firearms were seized by city police in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, according to court papers filed this week.
The NRA is trying to locate gun owners for a federal lawsuit that the lobbying group filed against Mayor Ray Nagin and Police Superintendent Warren Riley over the city’s seizure of firearms after the Aug. 29, 2005, hurricane.
In the lawsuit, the NRA and the Second Amendment Foundation claim the city violated gun owners’ constitutional right to bear arms and left them “at the mercy of roving gangs, home invaders, and other criminals” after Katrina.
The NRA says the city seized more than 1,000 guns that weren’t part of any criminal investigation after the hurricane. Police have said they took only guns that had been stolen or found in abandoned homes.
The NRA says that it has only been able to identify about 300 gun owners and has located only 75 of them so far. It’s asking for a delay in the trial, which is set to begin February 19th.
The situation in New Orleans is exactly the sort of situation that many gun owners fear: The government showing up at your door requiring that you immediately surrender your guns.
The anti-gun crowd likes to claim that such fears are baseless. But it happened in New Orleans.
This past summer I was alerted to a new book in the works called The Great New Orleans Gun Grab by Gordon Hutchinson and Todd Masson. It’s out now, and, though I haven’t checked it out yet, you might be interested. It’s also available at Amazon.com.
Tags: LA
December 27th, 2007 at 10:28 pm
I am pleased they are finally doing something about that. I hope they make the police pay up. I would have though the police would have been more concerned with policing the gangs, rather than police people who were not breaking the law.
December 27th, 2007 at 10:42 pm
Unfortunately, it’s easier to police law abiding gun owners. We’re all tracked with handy lists.
December 29th, 2007 at 12:35 am
The book is excellent - a terrifying and compelling read, all the more so because it’s true. If anyone’s interested, there’s video of some of the gun grabbing on YouTube.
January 2nd, 2008 at 9:15 pm
I agree with stevej, if the police were so worried about crime then why didn’t they offer to hold gun owners weapons and return them after they got a foot hold on the crime. Either that or offer to reimburse the owners for the costs of their guns.