Gun Rights News Roundup

Articles, news stories, and op-eds of interest to gun owners:

[Pennsylvania] City passes gun control ordinance, despite state preemption law:

At the June 9, 2009, City Council Meeting, the Council unanimously approved Administration Bill No. 9, “requiring prompt notification to authorities of lost or stolen firearms, and imposing penalties.” The new ordinance would require gun owners to report the loss or theft of any registered firearms within 72 hours of their discovery.

One city woman addressed the Council to express her concern about the ordinance, citing that, according to her understanding, the bill would violate a state ban on gun registration, compromise a state-sanctioned right to bear arms, and create legal costs for both taxpayers and gun owners.

Several city children also addressed the Council to state their support for the ordinance, reading prepared statements to describe the benefits of such controls. This presentation was followed by a public statement from Joe Grace, Executive Director of Ceasefire PA, a Philadelpha-based group that fights to reduce gun violence through public policies like the one being enacted in Lancaster. ...

[Illinois] Another county passes Second Amendment resolution:

It took three votes -- including one that went to a chairman's tiebreaker -- but a non-binding resolution in support of the Second Amendment won Kane County Board approval Tuesday.

The 19-4 vote, with one member voting present, didn't come without some jousting by board members. Drawn up as a general recitation of the constitution's guarantee of freedom to keep and bear arms, the resolution weathered one attempt to table it for more discussion and one member's effort to strengthen its opposition to restrictive gun legislation.

For two years, the group Illinois Pro 2A has asked all of the state's 102 counties to pass a resolution affirming support of the Second Amendment. Pro 2A provides a template that offers a strong objection to certain gun control proposals, but Kane's County's modified version was tempered to be more general. Based on the group's data, Kane becomes the 91st county to adopt such a resolution, although it isn't clear what specific language is used in each of those measures. ...

[Ohio] Women take advantage of firearms training classes:

Thanks to Joy and Faith Ferkel, more than 75 men and women are now better prepared to defend themselves and their families, having taken the National Rifle Association-certified concealed carry courses taught by the mother/ daughter team.

Most of the female students have taken advantage of all-women classes.

The Ferkels began offering the all-women classes last year as a way to provide a comfortable setting for women to learn how to shoot a gun and obtain a concealed carry permit.

"Women have different reasons for choosing a women-only class," Joy said. "Some feel intimidated by those they know have more firearm experience, some have personal protection issues that they believe other women understand, and some want the encouraging camaraderie of a ladies' sewing circle."

"It's easier to ask questions and easier to take the skills test (in an all-ladies class)," said Kim Kuieck, who took the class this spring. "It's easier to think about what you're doing, instead of what everybody's thinking about you."
...
Just as the women had varying reasons for taking an all-ladies class, they also had different reasons for obtaining a concealed carry permit in the first place.

"I felt like it was a civic duty," VanWey said. "I believe all citizens should be armed, not only to defend themselves, but to defend others. If citizens are well-trained and know how to use the firearm, it can only help them."
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For others, it was fear of another kind that brought them to the class. Mel Wammes was robbed at gunpoint while working in a Fremont tavern last year.

"Everyone had left, except a friend and the captain of the dart league," she said. "A man came in demanding money. He had a mask on, he had his hood up, and he was wearing gloves."

That night, both she and her friend were physically assaulted. "That's when I decided, that's it. Never again will I get hit across the face." ...