Things are looking good to get a permanent injunction against the city’s five illegal gun control laws:
Greenspan ordered the city and the NRA to condense their positions into writing by this morning, in advance of an afternoon hearing.
The city wanted to offer testimony from 10 witnesses, including Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey and a retired ATF agent, along with 75 exhibits that included two semiautomatic assault rifles. The city planned to use that testimony to argue that there is “no common lawful purpose” for assault weapons.
But NRA attorney C. Scott Shields objected to such a lengthy proceeding.
“What we’re trying to circumvent now is putting on a dog and pony show of having to listen to all the different reasons why the city needs gun control,” Shields said. “They should really be concerned about criminal control.”
The judge seems to have rebuked the city’s request for a dog and pony show of witnesses. I’m guessing the judge didn’t take too kindly to having her courtroom used as a three ring circus for the city politicians. This is really a matter of law, and the City of Philadelphia is on the wrong side of it. I do hope that Judge Greenspan rules the right way on this one.
UPDATE: Just noticed this one, “The hearing drew a small crowd of demonstrators from X-Offenders for Community Empowerment, a group of men who previously served prison terms, some for crimes with guns.”
Felons for gun control! Are you kidding me?
“The city planned to use that testimony to argue that there is “no common lawful purpose†for assault weapons.”
I submit for the record that shooting cans or other targets in my backyard (though I live in a different state) is still lawful, and a lot more common than these twits might realize.
Felons for gun control? Hell yes—it’s simply lobbying for a safer work environment. OSHA does it all the time.
Yeah, they’re switching to knives now. :)
So the city’s argument would be that they will show the judge that guns are bad so the judge should rule a state law invalid thus usurping the authority properly vested in the state legislature by the state’s constitution.
Well, it is good to see that the politicians in Phili aren’t just biased against the United States Constitution but rather deny all laws that interfere with their agenda.
Felons for gun control? Can’t wait to see the citation that 30 convicted felons were injured while committing criminal acts last year by law abiding citizens with guns, thus interfering with the felons’ the right to make a living as they choose. We must act now to make the criminal’s job safer and lower cost of health care.