Friday - October 26, 2007
Who Needs Rights Anyway?
via SayUncle, we find this lovely bit of news:
I think it’s worth acknowledging the primary functions of the law as it’s used by prosecutors in DC: the gun ban is both a preventive detention statute and an intelligence-gathering tool. At one time when I was a prosecutor, we were prohibited from extending a plea offer in gun cases unless the defendant agreed to come into the office (with his attorney, of course) and be “debriefed” about his knowledge of criminal activity in the city. The statute was also a mechanism for locking up individuals perceived as violent, but against whom other cases could not be brought for whatever reason. It’s pretty simple to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an individual was in possession of a gun without a license and a lot tougher to prove that he committed a violent crime. These functions may not be relevant to the question whether the statute is constitutional, but it’s worth acknowledging that invalidating the gun ban will surely have a tremendous impact on crime-fighting in the District.Got that? Here’s a former prosecutor who (a) doesn’t care if it’s constitutional or not (b) knows that the gun ban does nothing to decrease gun crime but makes a nifty tool to imprison people for (c) HAVING A PERCEPTION OF BEING VIOLENT.
I had an interesting conversation a couple of weeks ago with an acquaintance of an acquaintance who is a cop in another city in Virginia. When I asked if open-carry was common in that city, he scoffed: “If I see anyone open-carrying, they are going to get jumped on by me and any other cop in the district.” We were in a polite setting and it would not have been proper for me to get all in his face about it. (BTW, open-carry is legal by anyone over 21 in the Commonwealth of Virginia)
On one hand, I know what he meant. He works in a bad part of this city and the general population he encounters are less than nobel in their collective contribution to society. That notwithstanding, you can see the parallel in his words to this prosecutor’s above.
It is the general perception by law enforcement and the government that they are our betters. That we are but sheep needing to be tended to. If we get out of line, we will be poked and prodded until we comply, or else sent to the slaughterhouse.
It is very disturbing.
Posted by Mr. Christian
on 10/26/2007 at 02:22 PM
Filed Under: • Crime • Firearms • Lawyers •
• Comments (9)
•
Trackbacks (0) •
Permalink • Five Most Recent Trackbacks:
Interesting article for the gun fans among us...
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Signal94
This gets my old forensic juices going simply because so much work is involved in the investigation and prosecution of firearms cases.
On: 01/02/09 04:38
22 pounds of innefficiency
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Macker's World
Or, what the UAW foists on the Detroit automakers? I vote "Yes" because in both cases, it's so much regulatory bulls**t that it simply isn't funny anymore. In this case,…
On: 12/14/08 07:02
Bypass grandfather fights off Samurai sword post office raiders. Another battling Brit, in civvies
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Signal94
The British government's insistence on disarming law biding citizens is more like a plan to control health care costs by eliminating those pesky senior citizens who insist on getting old…
On: 12/05/08 05:29
SANDI TOKSVIG IS ANOTHER FAT CLUMSY CLOWN and SPOONS MADE ROSIE FAT.
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Democrat=Socialist
Fat blabber mouth, infected cyst of a human being Rosie tried to revive the Variety Show and America spoke. You suck Rosie! Just Jared Rosie O’Donnell tried to revive the…
On: 11/30/08 11:36
A little good news
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Macker's World
Rosie O'Donnell, prominent member of the Film Actors’ Guild, has had her "variety show" cancelled after just one airing! Not that that's an unusual thing, it happens quite often in…
On: 11/29/08 12:57
DISCLAIMER
THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.
Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.
- Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
- Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
- Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
- Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.
RSS 2.0 
Atom 
