Gov. Susana Martinez received perfect scores on recertification for her concealed-carry permit over the weekend in Las Cruces. She scored 100 percent with both .38- and .45-caliber handguns, her staff said.

Martinez’s permit to carry a concealed handgun, originally obtained in 2009, was extended for another two years.

She was [...]]]> New Mexico’s pistol-packin’ governor is a sure shot.

Gov. Susana Martinez received perfect scores on recertification for her concealed-carry permit over the weekend in Las Cruces. She scored 100 percent with both .38- and .45-caliber handguns, her staff said.

Martinez’s permit to carry a concealed handgun, originally obtained in 2009, was extended for another two years.

She was a district attorney and a Republican candidate for governor when she first went through training and qualified to carry a concealed weapon. Her spokesman, Greg Blair, said Martinez’s personal and professional experiences motivated her to arm herself.

Not only was she a prosecutor, but her husband, Chuck Franco, was undersheriff of Dona Ana County.

“Since she and Chuck both made careers out of taking on dangerous and violent criminals, she decided to get her concealed-carry permit for personal protection, especially when traveling alone or at night on the campaign trail,” Blair said.

As governor, Martinez has a security detail, but she still chooses to carry a weapon, Blair said.

One of Martinez’s Republican colleagues, Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, has also carried a handgun.

Perry last year used his laser-sighted pistol to shoot a coyote that he said was threatening his dog during a morning jog near Austin.-[source]

Currently, guns are prohibited on Corps land, even when firearms possession is otherwise allowed by state law.  Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH) introduced legislation—the Recreational Lands Self-Defense Act [...]]]> Gun Owners of America is working with several members of Congress to repeal a gun ban on land controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Currently, guns are prohibited on Corps land, even when firearms possession is otherwise allowed by state law.  Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH) introduced legislation—the Recreational Lands Self-Defense Act (H.R. 1865)—to allow state law to govern firearms possession.

You may recall that in July, Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) offered similar language as an amendment to an appropriations bill.  Gosar’s amendment passed the House on a voice vote, but its fate is uncertain as it heads to the Senate.

The Gibbs bill, as well as the Gosar amendment, is modeled after a similar measure that became law in 2009 affecting National Park Service land.  Army Corps of Engineers land was not part of that bill, something the Corps was quick to point out after that law took affect.

The Corps said, in a statement: “Public Law 111-024 does not apply to Corps projects of facilities . . . [and the Army Corps] will continue to prohibit loaded concealed weapons on Corps properties regardless of the new law and notwithstanding any contrary provisions of state law.”

Rep. Gibbs’ bill will reverse the Corps’ decision.

“The Recreational Lands Self-Defense Act is a bipartisan effort to restore Second Amendment rights to law-abiding citizens while they are legally camping, hunting, and fishing on the 11.7 million acres of Army Corps recreational property,” Gibbs said. “Families and sportsmen taking advantage of this federal land should not have to worry that their legally obtained concealed weapon permit is invalid.”-[source]

The ability to carry a concealed weapon without a permit, general apprehension and lingering concerns that the Obama administration could crack down on gun ownership are among [...]]]> Guns are selling at a record pace this year at sporting-goods stores and specialty shops in Arizona, creating millions of dollars in revenue for retailers.

The ability to carry a concealed weapon without a permit, general apprehension and lingering concerns that the Obama administration could crack down on gun ownership are among the sales drivers.

In Arizona, it is likely that more than 200,000 new weapons will be put in buyers’ hands after background checks this year. That figure doesn’t include firearms purchased at gun shows and through private transactions. Such non-tracked sales are thought to account for 40 percent of all sales, adding about 150,000 guns purchased annually. The estimated sales total: about 350,000 guns per year.-[source]

Winrich, a 34-year-old Madison resident and a member of the gun rights group Wisconsin Carry, likes to carry his Glock 17. He’s done it openly for about [...]]]> When Wisconsin’s law allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons goes into effect, Shawn Winrich is likely to take advantage of it. But if he does, he’ll do it grudgingly.

Winrich, a 34-year-old Madison resident and a member of the gun rights group Wisconsin Carry, likes to carry his Glock 17. He’s done it openly for about a year, but he doesn’t like the idea of paying a permit fee to carry it concealed.

“The bill is somewhat reasonable,” says Winrich. “But it still doesn’t change the fact that it’s still a violation of the constitutional rights that are secured by the state Constitution, which says (you can carry firearms for) ‘any lawful purpose’ and the U.S. Constitution says ‘these rights shall not be infringed.’ But yet the state still thinks it can regulate and impose a tax on guns. And that’s just not right.”

The law is not ideal in the eyes of the National Rifle Association and other gun groups, either.-[source]

Jim Manley, representing a group of students promoting concealed carry of firearms on campus, said lawmakers would have listed universities as exceptions [...]]]> Opponents of a campus gun ban at the University of Colorado told the state Supreme Court on Wednesday the ban is illegal because it was not approved by the Legislature.

Jim Manley, representing a group of students promoting concealed carry of firearms on campus, said lawmakers would have listed universities as exceptions in a law passed in 2003 if they wanted guns banned on campus.

The Concealed Carry Act prohibits local governments from limiting concealed carry rights, with the only exceptions being K-12 schools, places where federal law bans it, public buildings with metal detectors and private property where owners object to concealed weapons.

Manley told the seven-member court the law was designed to fix a patchwork of confusing local laws.

“Clearly the Legislature wanted to create one statewide rule,” Manley said.-[source]

He didn’t have a gun there, of course. But [...]]]> Michael Mitchell was a graduate student at the University of Kentucky who worked in the operating room at the UK Medical Center in April 2010 when a co-worker lied and told his supervisor that Michael had a gun in his locker.

He didn’t have a gun there, of course. But he then volunteered the information that he was a concealed carry permit holder and that he had a handgun in his car – LEGALLY, in the glove box as provided for by law, in a parking lot a half mile away at Commonwealth Stadium! So the UK security people drove him to his car, confiscated his handgun and sent him home.

He was subsequently fired from his job, in plain violation of Kentucky law which specifically prohibits such actions and specifically protects the possession of a firearm in one’s vehicle.

UK’s position is that they’re special, above the laws that govern the rest of us in Kentucky. They use a bizarre reading of one of the statutes to say that a gun in a car on their parking lot is ON their property, which is plainly NOT legal for any business or school in Kentucky. Until this can be resolved in the legislature the only thing that will make them end this illegal policy is this lawsuit.

Michael turned to KC3, the Kentucky Concealed Carry Coalition, for assistance and our attorneys took his case. They brought suit against UK for damages under our statutes. But his suit was denied by a judge in Fayette circuit court in a badly written and badly reasoned decision.

His attorneys then decided to skip a step in the process and appealed directly to the Kentucky Supreme Court which has now voted 5-2 to hear his appeal!-[source]

A bill to give Texas gun owners the freedom to publicly tote their guns has passed a crucial hurdle, being approved by a House committee, but that [...]]]> An effort to let Texans openly carry their handguns throughout the state is still alive in the Texas Legislature, but its days may be numbered.

A bill to give Texas gun owners the freedom to publicly tote their guns has passed a crucial hurdle, being approved by a House committee, but that might be as far as the proposal goes this session if it doesn’t make its way onto the crowded House calendar in the next few days.

With just three weeks left in the session, Thursday is the last day for the House to give preliminary approval to nonlocal bills and joint resolutions, such as House Bill 2756, which allows the open carrying of guns. Countless bills will be competing for space on the calendars as each of the legislative deadlines come up.

“Time is running out,” said Bill Miller, a veteran Austin lobbyist. “The proverbial logjam is beginning to occur.”-[source]