Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 11:12:06 -0400 From: NRA Alerts To: firearms-alert@shell.portal.com Subject: FAXNET: Keep up the Co-Sponsor Calls! NRA-ILA FAX NETWORK 11250 Waples Mill Road * Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: 1-800-392-8683 * Fax: 703-267-3918 Vol. 2, No. 42 9/22/95 KEEP UP THE CO-SPONSOR CALLS! We're still looking for co-sponsors to H.R. 1488, legislation repealing President Clinton's 1994 gun and magazine ban! Please contact your U.S. Representative and urge him to sign on as a co- sponsor to H.R. 1488. If he has already done so, thank him for his support and encourage him to lobby his fellow lawmakers to do the same! Remember, the more co-sponsors we get, the better chance we have for a vote this year. Encourage your family, friends and fellow club members to call as well! RUBY RIDGE HEARINGS HEATING UP: Hearings on the 1992 Ruby Ridge tragedy took a new twist this week, when U.S. deputy marshals Larry Cooper & Arthur Roderick testified that they believed Randy Weaver shot his son, despite the fact that at Weaver's trial in 1992, Cooper was identified as the agent who shot Weaver's son. The two agents' testimony was rebuked by Jack Weaver, the foreman of the jury that acquitted Randy Weaver in 1992, who questioned the veracity of the marshals' statements, as they were not raised during the 1992 trial. Gerry Spence, Weaver's lead defense attorney, noted that the federal government would not have paid Weaver and his family 3.1 million dollars if they actually believed that Randy Weaver shot his own son. In some of the hearing's most revealing testimony, former Green Beret, Col. "Bo" Gritz, testified that he believed Vicki Weaver was the FBI's intended target all along. Gritz recounted an incident when Richard Rogers, former head of the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team (HRT), told him that the FBI specifically targeted Vicki Weaver because she was "the maternal head of the family " and she would "kill all of her children rather than [s]urrender." The Senate hearings conclude next week -- stay tuned! NRA ENDORSES JUVENILE CRIME LEGISLATION: Last week, U.S. Sen. John Ashcroft (R-Mo.) unveiled his "Violent and Hard-Core Juvenile Offender Reform Act." This legislation, which has been endorsed by NRA CrimeStrike, calls for juveniles 14 years old and older to be tried as adults for certain violent crimes, including murder. The bill will also strip away the confidentiality of violent juvenile criminal records, a protection that conceals past behavior when offenders reach the adult criminal justice system. Sen. Ashcroft's legislation is a sound response to the urgent problem of violent juvenile crime. We'll keep you posted on its developments! PAROLE DENIED FOR "THRILL KILLER": The Oregon Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision refused "Thrill Killer" Jeffrey Lee Spoonire's parole at a hearing in Salem on September 14. Spoonire was convicted of murder and sentenced to death 13 years ago. The decision to deny parole came after NRA CrimeStrike and the victim's family presented the parole board with petitions signed by more than 4,000 Oregonians opposed to Spoonire's release. Oregon is the 12th state where NRA CrimeStrike has played a key role in blocking the parole of a violent felon. USF&WS APPROVES USE OF BISMUTH/TIN SHOT: The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has provisionally approved bismuth/tin shot for this year's waterfowl season. According to a September 17, Washington Post story, the decision came in response to hunters' claims that steel shot was insufficient in bringing down birds, thus allowing many wounded birds to escape and left to die. Although the non-toxic bismuth/tin shot is somewhat hard to find & expensive, it's believed that its availability increase, and price decrease after the Fish & Wildlife Service approves these loads unconditionally. A LOOK AT THE STATES: Arizona: Last week, the Tucson City Council & the Pima County Board of Supervisors voted to fund a gun buy-back program with $25,000 in taxpayer monies. They intend to give the money to churches, who in turn would facilitate the buy-back program by using the monies to buy shopping mall certificates to trade for firearms. This is a direct violation of the Arizona state constitution, which specifically forbids the state and local governments from giving funds to religious organizations. To find out how you can help stop this illegal, taxpayer-funded "gun control" measure, call (520) 298-8643. Hawaii: The Hawaii Rifle Association will host two special grassroots seminars on Saturday, September 30, in Honolulu, and Sunday, October 1, in Kailua. Come meet with legislators, candidates and gun owners to find out how we can work together to elect pro-gun lawmakers to office and prevent further erosion of our rights! Members: To register, or for more information, call (808) 261-8980. Michigan: The House Judiciary Committee has postponed action on HB 4720, the NRA-backed right to carry reform bill. The subcommittee to which it was referred will continue consideration of the measure. Members: please contact your State Representatives and State Senators and urge them to support right to carry reform. Ohio: On Tuesday, September 26, Congressmen Steve Chabot (R-1) and Frank Cremeans (R-6) will host a fundraiser featuring Speaker Newt Gingrich. The event will be held at the Cincinnati Convention Center, third floor ballroom at 8:00 a.m. For more information, call 419/874-2045. Wisconsin: On Thursday, September 28, the State Assembly will vote on AB 69, NRA-supported state firearms preemption legislation. If passed, AB 69 will move to the Senate State Government Operations & Corrections Committee and then the Senate floor for consideration as early as the first week in October. Members: please contact your State Representatives & State Senators and encourage them to support AB 69! Next week: special election results from the states! =+=+=+=+ This information is provided as a service of the National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action, Fairfax, VA. This and other information on the Second Amendment and the NRA is available at any of the following URL's: http://WWW.NRA.Org, gopher://GOPHER.NRA.Org, wais://WAIS.NRA.Org, ftp://FTP.NRA.Org, mailto:LISTPROC@NRA.Org (Send the word help as the body of a message) Information may also be obtained by connecting directly to the NRA-ILA GUN-TALK Bulletin Board System at (703) 934-2121.