Day by Day Cartoon by Chris Muir

Monday, March 12, 2012

Repairing what ain't broke

Milwaukee wants to "fix" our new concealed carry law:
+++++++++++++

Milwaukee police call for concealed-carry changes

Habitual criminals would be targeted


Milwaukee police are asking state legislators and gun rights activists to back three proposals police say would repair Wisconsin's concealed-carry law - among them: barring people with three misdemeanor convictions in five years from obtaining a concealed-carry permit.

The purpose of the changes would be to prevent repeat criminals from carrying guns, and stiffen penalties for those who do.

But one of Wisconsin's most prominent gun rights organizations says the proposals are too broad and could make it more difficult for law-abiding people to exercise their constitutional right to defend themselves with guns.

Police say they see three main problems with the existing law, which took effect in November and made Wisconsin the 49th state to allow concealed carry:

First, straw purchases - buying a firearm for someone who is prohibited from possessing a firearm - are a misdemeanor on a state level, not a felony as they are on a federal level.

Second, the requirements for a gun permit ignore the reality of plea bargains. Many habitual criminals legally qualify for, and could obtain, a concealed-carry permit because they were never convicted of a felony for which they were charged.

"Many of our career criminals don't have a felony conviction," explained Joel Plant, chief of staff with the Milwaukee Police Department. "They've been arrested for felonies, they've been charged with felonies, but because of necessity of the criminal justice process - and this is not a disparaging comment on the prosecution process or the judicial process - but because of necessity in our system, a lot of those felonies, many of those felonies, most of those felonies, are pled down to misdemeanor convictions."

Habitual criminals, Plant said, can carry a concealed gun with impunity from a potential of a felony charge unless they fire their guns.

Nik Clark of Wisconsin Carry, a gun rights group, said the problem seems to lie with the criminal justice system rather than the law.

"If he's got a problem, he needs to go talk to the (district attorney) and say, 'Why are you plea-bargaining these down to a misdemeanor that should otherwise be felonies?' That's a problem the DA needs to address," Clark said. "If these are serious offenses, they shouldn't be plea-bargained out. If you're not going to utilize the laws that exist, don't come asking for new laws that have the potential to infringe on the rights of law-abiding (people)."
+++++++++++++
Exactly. If someone is so dangerous they can't be trusted with their Constitutional rights, WHY are they loose on our streets?

If Milwaukee would back off and support our Constitutional rights, the crime problem might start to get better, like it has in so many other places where citizens are allowed their right to self-defense. And perhaps many of those criminals now getting plea bargains would be getting cheap graves at taxpayer's expense after a citizen does what is necessary.

No comments:

Post a Comment