The Good News Review of 2015 for Gun Owners

I co-host a Podcast about civilian self-defense. That leaves me with a long trail of news and notes to review at the end of the year. I looked back at 2015 and found the good news for gun owners each week.

This is where we were.. and a glimpse of where we’re going.

Guns were the cool gift of Christmas 2014. We didn’t know this until we counted up the background check data in early January, but last Christmas set another record for gun sales. I bet we did the same over Christmas in 2015, but it will take a few months to add up the numbers and find out.

Seven defendants were found not-guilty of open carrying antique firearms in Austin Texas.. while they handed out pro-gun leaflets.

Kroger supermarkets were being boycotted by anti-gun groups because the grocery stores allowed citizens to follow local laws and carry concealed if carry was legal in that state. Kroger’s total sales rose 11 percent.

The veteran’s group Oathkeepers stood fire-watch on rooftops during the riots in Fergusson, Missouri.

We reversed a 20-year trend early this year. A Pew Research poll showed a majority of us now support the right to own a gun rather than supported more laws to control gun ownership.

A Connecticut judge said the second amendment applies to knives, mace, stun guns, and sticks. The right to bear arms means more than guns.

Law enforcement officials in Washington state refused to enforce the states universal firearms registration scheme after thousands of honest firearms owners exchanged weapons at the state capitol.

Professor Eric Dietz of Purdue University built and refined computer models of active armed murderers in public places. He found that a combination of locks and guns was the best defense.

New Hampshire legislators voted to allow licensed carry in the state house.

A three judge federal panel said that a prior mental health commitment does not prohibit owning a firearm once the citizen is no longer a danger to himself or others. The litigant was treated for depression thirty years ago when his wife left him.

Watchdog organizations and investigative reporters finally received government documents showing the government sent guns to Mexican drug gangs in order to justify more gun control here in the United States.

The number of Illinois concealed carry holders exceeded 100 thousand in its first year.

ATF director B Todd Jones resigned. He oversaw walking guns into Mexico and hid records from congress and from the press.

A federal court judge said we should be able to buy handguns across state lines.

Gordon Van Gilder was arrested in New Jersey. Fortunately, the 70 year old retired history teacher was released and not charged for possessing a 300 year old antique flint lock pistol without paperwork.

Missouri passed a law requiring a strict scrutiny level of review for all firearms laws. Strict scrutiny means the state has to show that their gun control laws both work and have minimal side effects.

Research showed that concealed carry holders are convicted at one sixth the rate of law enforcement officers.

Emily Miller finally got her firearms permit. Emily is a journalist who lives and reports in Washington DC.

Research showed that Wisconsin concealed carry holders are extremely law abiding. The rate of violent homicide by Wisconsin concealed carry holders is only 5 percent of the general public.

Gun sales grew in 2014. They set records.. even in anti-gun states like California. NICs check data showed an increase month over month for the last several years.

Firearms instructor Melody Lauer ran her first class of “Baby Wearing and Carrying”. Melody and John Lauer have several pre-school age children. Hurray! We finally admitted that moms both carry guns and need instruction!

Ohio adopted universal reciprocity for handgun permits.

The ATF backed down from its ban on military 855 ammunition. See what a few million phone calls can do. Calls from 52 senators helped too.

A US District Judge said that online ammunition sales are legal, and the seller is not responsible for crimes committed by the person who buys ammunition.

Kansas adopted constitutional carry.

Pennsylvania resident Shaneen Allen was pardoned by the New Jersey governor for bringing her firearm with her as she traveled into New Jersey. She was jailed for 46 days and denied a diversion program for first time offenders.

The number of concealed carry license holders grew from 4.7 million in 2007 to over 13 million today, or about 15 percent per year. Given accelerating gun sales in the last month, it may clear 14 million by Easter.

In five states, the number of licensed concealed carriers is more than one in ten adults.

Research showed that violent crime has continued to fall as gun ownership has soared.

A small church sued a Walmart to force the retailer to stop selling firearms. The church lost. Walmart won.. and so did we.

Several Oregon sheriffs refused to prosecute firearms owners under the state’s new universal background check laws.

Maine re-legalized automatic knives. Hey, all knives matter.

Maryland terminated their failed ballistic imaging program. They photographed a cartridge case from each gun transferred in Maryland. The 15 year old program was never used in a criminal conviction.

Most Americans saw what happens when unarmed individuals face a crowd of thugs. If you missed the riots in Fergusson, we saw a sad repeat when Baltimore was looted and burned.

A US Appeals Court ruled that open carry is not probable cause for a police officer to stop a citizen. The judge said that the officer’s qualified immunity did not extend to detaining an individual who was lawfully open carrying a firearm. This means officers can be sued and are personally liable for court costs and damages.

probable cause for a police officer to stop a citizen. The judge said that the officer’s qualified immunity did not extend to detaining an individual who was lawfully open carrying a firearm. This means officers can be sued and are personally liable for court costs and damages. Florida now allows permit-less concealed carry during an emergency.

Minnesota legalized firearms mufflers.

Oklahoma allowed armed staff in schools, legalized automatic knives, and passed a knife pre-emption bill.

The US Supreme court ruled that we may sell our guns if we’re accused of a crime.

A judge told Washington DC that it had to issue licensed to carry a firearm. The DC city council then passed permit regulations that were so restrictive that only one person in four thousand could get a permit. Again, a judge issued an injunction against DC’s regulations. The city dropped its legal appeal.

Texas passed a knife pre-emption bill, open carry with a license, and passed school carry legislation.

An Oregon legislator was instrumental in passing that states universal background check bill. Now she faced a recall.. and resigned her seat rather than face the voters.

Puerto Rico allowed open and concealed carry after a court order.

Nevada eliminated their obnoxious handgun registration requirements if you visited Las Vegas. Hotels on the strip still prohibit guns.

Katie Pavlich narrated the video Safe Haven

Wisconsin eliminated their waiting period to buy a gun, and they allowed armed police on school grounds.

New York and Connecticut legislators demanded that citizens register their modern rifles. Fewer than 5 percent of us complied .. including most police officers.

A study from Columbia University found that a third of us own guns.

California state Senator Leland Yee sponsored many firearms restrictions when he was in office. He won awards from the Brady campaign to stop gun violence. Senator Yee was convicted of fraud and firearms trafficking in federal court.

CNN commentator Lynne Russell and her husband were attacked at gunpoint. She and her husband defended themselves with a gun. The media covered the case since she was one of their own.

Cleveland Ohio imposed mandatory firearms registration. No one complied.

The two muslim terrorists armed with rifles attacked an art exhibit in Garland, Texas. The terrorists were shot and killed by a 60-year-old traffic cop armed with his handgun.

The mayor of Boston started a gun turn-in program. They had one gun turned in this year.

Three Americans stopped a muslim terrorist on a French train. The terrorist was armed with an AK-47 rifle and the Americans were armed with their bare hands.

An academic study out of Chicago showed that criminals don’t buy guns legally.. so they are never bothered by background checks.

The Alabama supreme court ruled that open carry of a handgun is legal.

The countries of Russia, Panama, Israel and Brazil made legal moves toward arming more citizens to reduce crime.

Princeton University armed their Public Safety Officers with modern rifles. (Hint- Princeton is in anti-gun New Jersey!!)

Maine became the sixth state with constitutional carry.

A study from the Harvard journal of law and public policy found that the more legally owned guns a country has, the lower the crime rate.

A Gallop poll found that 56 percent of us think concealed carry makes us safer. Gallop also found that the NRA is considered more honest than Hillary Clinton.

40 school districts in Ohio now have trained and armed school staff.

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg paid 2 million dollars to support two candidates in the Virginia Senate race.. and these candidates lost.

Sunnyvale California demanded that gun owners turn in their ammunition magazines that held over 10 rounds. No one turned in magazines to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety. Not one.

We’ve seen a huge surge in firearms purchases, requests for training and concealed carry applications after the numerous terrorists attacks this year. We are adding about a million new gun owners a month.

Researchers looked at historical data. They found that magazine capacity is not a factor in the casualties from armed attacks.

The New York assembly leader who got the anti-gun NY SAFE Act passed in the middle of the night was convicted of fraud. He should spend the rest of his life in prison.

Law enforcement officers spoke publicly after the domestic terrorism in San Bernardino. Dozens of sheriffs from across the country asked legally armed citizens to carry concealed.

The rate of concealed carry applications hit an all-time high.

See you on the Podcast.

~_~_

Rob