Texas Gov. Rick Perry shoots coyote that threatened his dog

Perry told The Associated Press on Tuesday he needed just one shot from the laser-sighted pistol he sometimes carries while jogging to take down a coyote that menaced his puppy during a February run near Austin.

Perry said he will carry his .380 Ruger — loaded with hollow-point bullets — when jogging on trails because he is afraid of snakes. He’d also seen coyotes in the undeveloped area.

Iowa is about to become Shall Issue.

Of course, this brings predictions of blood running in the streets and the OK Corral.

Here’s a bit about how the current “may issue” law works in one Iowa county, presented as proof that it’s just fine:

In Henry County, Sheriff Allen Wittmer has created a criteria on who is able to get a concealed weapons permit and who’s not qualified.

Under that criteria, those whose jobs require a firearm can be qualified to carry a weapon. The self employed also can get a permit if they collect and transport large sums of money or other valuables. Retired police officers also are qualified.

Wittmer, too, is in strong opposition to the law change.

“I did not support it,” Wittmer said. “There’s nobody that knows their constituents better than the sheriff. It’s totally taking the discretion away from the sheriff.”

Wittmer noted out of the 18 applications he received last year, nine were denied, just by merely following the county’s criteria.

“We have it working well here,” he noted. “We have a procedure in place that works in Henry County.”

So it sounds like the only people who get one in Henry County are people who require a gun for their jobs, people who transport large sums of money for their jobs, and people who are retired cops. So, unless your job necessitates it, only retired cops get permits.

That is a great example of a working may issue system. And a great example of why shall issue is the way to go.

Overheard a guy telling someone that his buddy wanted them to go down and get their concealed carry permit so they could buy guns at gun shows without having to fill out paperwork or anything.

I had to stop and explain that, in Michigan, owning a Concealed Pistol License allows you to purchase handguns without having previously acquired a 10-day permit to purchase from the local law enforcement agency, but that all the standard paperwork and background checks were still required.

Which reminds me of the big sign out along I-90 in Boston near Fenway. I got a pic and will post it tonight.

The antis rely on people believing lies. Unfortunately, a lot of people do exactly that.

From today’s FAQ Newsletter sent by the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners:

Q: I am a current CPL holder. I bought a new motorcycle this spring and wondered if it’s legal to carry my revolver concealed on me while riding the bike. I also wondered if I can store or conceal the revolver in a locked compartment on the bike?

A: So long as you have a valid, Michigan CPL (Concealed Pistol License), you may carry concealed pistols anywhere in the State of Michigan except for those places listed on the “Pistol Free Areas” list in the statute, or private property where the party in control prohibits weapons in general or asks you specifically not to carry there. Note that the intent of the law is that you should lock your gun in your vehicle when you find yourself about to enter a “Pistol Free Area.” (NOTE: I use the quotation marks to indicate that the statute uses the term “Pistol Free Area,” but only law-abiding citizens are deterred by the rule.) The question of storage is a question of reasonableness. If you have a compartment on your motorcycle that is secure, you should be fine storing your pistol there. However, if the gun falls into the wrong hands, you could potentially face criminal and civil liability. So, be sure that your method and location of storage pass the “sniff test”.

With the weather turning into spring, there are going to be more and more bikes on the roads in Michigan. Keep an eye out for them.

The MCRGO also maintains a Do Not Patronize While Armed list of Michigan businesses with posted “No Guns” policies. This list should help gun owners avoid inadvertently breaking the law AND help gun owners know which places might not be worthy of their hard-earned dollars.

This looks nice. Really nice.

Murdoc does not own a revolver, but he thinks he needs to remedy that.

Via Uncle.

Judge Strikes Down Tennessee Guns-in-Bars Law

Residents load up on permits

As of mid-October, 28,197 new concealed weapons permits have been issued this year by South Carolina’s State Law Enforcement Division.

It’s an annual record that already has surpassed the 14,630 new permits issued in all of 2008 and by far outstrips all previous years, according to SLED statistics.

Be a Good Victim by David Rittgers

Marin County, California:

In August, a man shot two people to death on a bridge near San Francisco. At the moment of the killings, two on-duty Marin County sheriff’s deputies were within 100 yards of the shooter. One was close enough to see the muzzle blast of the shotgun. The police officers, however, did not move against the culprit. One, stuck in traffic, called in a description of the killer’s vehicle as he fled. The other positioned her car to prevent traffic from entering the crime scene.

These two law-enforcement officers did what police officers tell the public to do: Don’t intervene. Get a description of the offender. Call the police. Be a good witness.

Much debate ensued about whether the officers’ behavior was appropriate, but the real tragedy is that the victims of this rampage did not have the legal opportunity to arm themselves. To them, the message was clear: Be a good victim.

“May Issue” can be better than “No Issue”, but it’s a compromise that can work against the God-given and Constitutionally-guaranteed right to bear arms. Sheriff Robert Doyle in Marin County requires applicants to demonstrate “extreme need” before he’ll okay a permit. That’s like forcing drivers to demonstrate that they’re going to be in a traffic accident before the government allows them to put on their seat belts.

Rittgers writes about the District of Columbia and concealed carry, adding:

Tom Palmer (disclosure: Tom is my colleague at the Cato Institute), once used a handgun to deter a mob of violent aggressors who were yelling death threats at him. Tom’s right, and the right of any other citizen, to arm himself should not be subject to approval by a civil servant who will not be present to protect them.

Criticism leveled at he Marin sheriffs for the August incident may not be warranted. Though close, they may not really have been able to do anything.

Which is exactly the point.

Michigan’s bill HB 5474 would prohibit colleges and universities from banning concealed weapons. As usual with this sort of proposal, this law would merely allow those who already have concealed pistol licenses to carry as normal.

Here’s a quote from Helmke on the bill:

“We need to do more to make it harder for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons,” said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. “Michigan should reject this bill, just as all other states have done.”

Helmke apparently didn’t elaborate on how the first part of his quote (about making it harder for dangerous people to get guns) related to the second part of his quote (about guns on campus).

Getting past the predictable input from the Bradys, here’s more on the topic:

The MSU Board of Trustees voted in June to allow those with concealed weapons permits to carry firearms through campus. But concealed weapons are not permitted in dorms, classrooms, arenas or stadiums and this would not change, said state Rep. Jase Bolger, R-Marshall.

“(These) are pistol-free zones and that wouldn’t change at all,” Bolger said. “They are prohibited today, and they would be prohibited tomorrow. Michigan State would not change a thing because of this law, because Michigan State has passed policy that is consistent with state law.”

But some university officials disagree.

MSU Trustee Colleen McNamara said weapon regulation on campus should be determined solely by the university.

“It’s our campus,” McNamara said. “And we have responsibility for the safety of the students and the employees of the university, and our policy on guns should be our policy, not the state’s.”

MSU spokesman Kent Cassella said the university could not speculate on proposed legislation.

The bill is included in a package of bills supported by the Michigan State Police to eliminate inconsistencies in statewide firearm regulation.

“We have a situation right now where the state has said, ‘Our laws are going to be the only laws that are going to (be) applicable on this topic,’” said First Lt. Matt Bolger, legislative liaison for the Michigan State Police.

The State Police backing the bill should give it a better chance.

Here’s some input from a Wayne State University (in Detroit) student:
(more…)

Detroit:

A 43-year-old woman shot and killed a suspected purse snatcher who confronted her at a northwest Detroit gas station this morning, according to police.

Two men approached the Detroit woman at about 5:30 a.m. at the Schoolcraft and Southfield Mobil station, Detroit Police spokesman John Roach said. The woman is licensed to legally carry a gun for self-defense, he said.

“They didn’t realize she has a CCW (license), so she had a weapon of her own,” Roach said. “She fired several rounds at the suspects and they fled.”

The pair made off with the woman’s purse. But about a half-hour later, a man with several gunshot wounds went to Sinai-Grace Hospital for treatment and died later this morning.