Minneapolis Star-Tribune Aug 23, 2010
'Straw' Gun Buyers Leave a Bloody Trail
Give Mark Koscielski the slightest indication that the gun you want to buy from him may not be for you, and the sale's over. "Say a couple comes in, and the male is looking at guns while the female doesn't do anything, and finally he says, 'I will take this gun,'" said the owner of Koscielski's Guns and Ammo in south Minneapolis. "We hand him the federal form, and he will hand it to his girlfriend or wife. Can't do that." That's how federal authorities want gun sellers to respond to "straw buyers" -- people with no criminal record who buy a ...read the full article


Associated Press Aug 23, 2010
Stray Bullet Prompts Call for More Border Security
EL PASO, Texas -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry is again calling for the federal government to step up border security after officials said at least one stray bullet from a weekend shootout in Mexico hit a University of Texas-El Paso building. A 30-minute fire fight between gunmen and police broke out Saturday along the border in Ciudad Juarez. That's just across the Rio Grande from El Paso and is ground zero in the Mexican drug cartel war. The next day, university officials found a bullet lodged in an office door frame inside a campus building. Police believe it flew across the border ...read the full article


Illinois Radio Network Aug 23, 2010
Closing the Gun Show Loophole
An Illinois congressman says he supports legislation that would close what he calls a loophole in regulations regarding gun sales at gun shows. U.S. Representative Mike Quigley says the "gun show loophole" is a gap in federal law that allows person-to-person sales at gun shows without a background check. Quigley says those weapons can end up in the hands of anyone, including terrorists, felons and the mentally disabled. Quigley says the Gun Show Loophole Closing Act of 2009 would require background checks at gun shows in all 50 states, assuring guns don't end up in the wrong hands. The law would affect neighboring ...read the full article


El Paso Times Aug 22, 2010
Police: Bullet from Juárez Shootout May Have Struck Vehicle in El Paso
El Paso police are investigating a report that a stray bullet from Saturday's shootout in Juárez struck a vehicle in El Paso. "At this time, El Paso police have received one report of a vehicle possibly being struck by a stray bullet," El Paso police said Sunday in a statement. "Officers did check the surrounding area for any injuries or other property damage, but none was reported or located." Police spokesman Detective Mike Baranyay said, "We are still investigating whether the bullet, if it came from Juárez, struck a parked or moving vehicle." At the request of the U.S. Border Patrol, police closed West ...read the full article


Fort Wayne News Sentinel Aug 21, 2010
Helmke Hopes Gun Owners Realize Real Life Isn't Like the Movies
Commentary by former Republican Mayor Paul Helmke was featured on the news website The Huffington Post this week presenting an interesting scenario of a gunfight to illustrate his point that real life is not like the movies. Helmke is president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington. In his column he recalled that when he was mayor and police were involved in a shooting, he would often be asked why the police officer shot to kill. Why couldn't they shoot the weapon out of the assailant's hand or at least just wound them in the arm or leg? "I ...read the full article


Delaware County Daily Times Aug 21, 2010
Reasonable Regulations on Guns Needed
Opponents of common-sense laws to prevent gun violence - most notably, the National Rifle Association -- claim the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in McDonald v. City of Chicago gives them the right to carry guns anywhere, anyplace, all the time. But that isn't what the court actually said in its decision. The court sent the Chicago handgun ban back to the lower courts and extended the Second Amendment to apply to state and local gun laws - not unexpected developments. However, the court also said reasonable regulations of firearms are permitted under our Constitution. They always have been, and they always ...read the full article


Cleveland Plain Dealer Aug 21, 2010
Activists Demand Background Checks for All Ohio Gun Show Sales
BEREA, Ohio -- Gun enthusiasts at the Ohio Gun, Knife & Military Show browsed Saturday afternoon through a bazaar of assorted weapons and collectible firearms, many toting their newly purchased artillery as casually as if they were fresh veggies from the market. But if the Columbus-based advocacy group ProgressOhio has its druthers, those easy transactions will soon require a dive into the buyer's background -- a critical safeguarding measure that the activists say would help prevent firearms from falling into the wrong hands. The group held a news conference outside the gun show on the fringe of the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds, calling ...read the full article


New York Daily News Aug 20, 2010
Bloody Mexico Drug War Boosts U.S. Gun Shops, Banks
They found the body of Edelmiro Cavazos on a dirt road on the outskirts of Santiago, a popular tourist spot near Monterrey, Mexico. The 38-year-old, U.S.-educated mayor of Santiago had been shot execution-style, hands tied behind his back, head bound with tape. Cavazos, whose body was found Wednesday, was the fifth Mexican mayor gunned down in the past two years - the latest high-profile victim in a nation that is bleeding to death from its War on Drugs. The mayhem in Mexico has gotten so bad that President Felipe Calderon launched an unprecedented public debate and political summit on ways to end the ...read the full article


Ventura County Star Aug 20, 2010
Editorial: Being Vigilant About Guns
Although he may not realize it yet, a 9-year-old Camarillo boy is extremely lucky to be alive today after being shot in the face with a .45-caliber pistol. According to police, the young boy was playing "cops and robbers" with his 13-year-old stepbrother at home Wednesday morning when the accident occurred. The bullet from the semiautomatic pistol entered the boy's cheek and passed through the back of his jaw, causing what doctors called soft tissue damage. Here's where the luck comes in. Camarillo Police Sgt. Craig Adford told Star reporter Adam Foxman, "It could have been a really bad day today if ...read the full article


WLS TV 7 News Aug 19, 2010
Quigley Criticizes 'Gun Show Loophole'
August 19, 2010 (WLS) -- Chicago congressman Mike Quigley calls the so-called gun show loophole a threat to national security. Illinois has closed the loophole. But, according to Quigley, 33 states do not require buyers to undergo a background check when purchasing weapons from private gun dealers at a gun show. Indiana is among them. At a forum Thursday in downtown Chicago, Quigley and others called for the gun show loophole to be closed in all 50 states. Chicago police superintendent Jody Weis expressed support for legislation to require background checks. ...read the full article