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Written testimony against Colorado HB24-1242. "Assault weapons" bill is based on plainly false "findings." Further, the bill attempts to outlaw features that enhance accuracy, because the sponsors oppose "ease of use" of firearms by "non-experts." PDF.

Written testimony against Colorado SB24-131. Safe zones for"mass shooters and other violent criminals. Bill to declare vast areas off-limits for licensed carry will endanger public safety. Licensed carry permitees are vastly more law-abiding than the general population.

Law Enforcement Trainers File Scotus Amicus Brief against Maryland Rifle Ban. Citizens should be able to choose the same high-quality defensive arms that peace officers choose. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Mar. 18, 2024.

Bianchi v. Brown, No. 23-863 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Mar. 13, 2024). Petition for certiorari before judgement. Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute. So-called "assault" rifles fire at the same rate as common handguns, are less powerful than most other rifles, and in mass shootings are less deadly than handguns. Law enforcement officers choose the rifles because they are superb for lawful defense of self and others.

Newsom v. B and L Productions, No 23-3793 (9th Cir. Feb. 6, 2023). Amicus brief of Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and the Independence Institute. There is no historical support for the California legislature's ban on all gun shows on government property.

NRA v. Vullo, No. 22-842 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 16, 2023). Amicus brief of Second Amendment Foundation, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the N.Y. Dept. of Financial Services sent written threats to banks and insurance companies warning them not to do business with the NRA. The effort to destroy and silence a constitutional advocacy organization was similar to the actions of segregationist state governments against the NAACP in the 1950s and 1960s. Cuomo has a long record of abusive attempts to eliminate First and Second Amendment rights. The Obama administration similarly abused tax and bank laws to try to choke off the First and Second Amendments. The Court should adhere to its precedents and hold unlawful Cuomo's threat-laundering.

Gates v. Polis, No. 22-cv-1866-GPG-SKC (D. Colo., Nov. 30, 2023). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, the Colorado Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association, the Western States Sheriffs Association, Sheriffs John Feyen (Larimer County), Gene Lillard (Montrose), Brett Powell (Logan), Todd Rowell (Mesa), Steve Reams (Weld), Aaron Shiplett (Baca), Lou Vallario (Garfield), Sam Zordel (Prowers), and the Independence Institute. Colorado ban on magazines over 15 rounds endangers public safety. Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief.

How Magazine Bans Thwart Self-Defense. Bans on standard magazines benefit criminals and endanger victims. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 20, 2023.

Law Enforcement Officers Are Part of "the People," Not Above Them. Law enforcement amicus brief against Colorado magazine ban. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 11, 2023.

Short articles and commentary

Law Enforcement Trainers File Scotus Amicus Brief against Maryland Rifle Ban. Citizens should be able to choose the same high-quality defensive arms that peace officers choose. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Mar. 18, 2024.

Preview of Supreme Court Bump Stock Case. In Cargill v. Garland, the Court should apply the National Firearms Act text that Congress did enact, and not the text that gun control advocates wish had been enacted. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 27, 2024.

"Shall Not Be Infringed" Is Pretty Clear. Analysis of recent court decisions in Maryland and Oregon, and the NY Times' sloppy coverage thereof. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 18, 2024.

Firearms Law Works-in Progress Conference 2024. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Jan. 2, 2024.

History Podcasts for the New Year. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 29, 2023.

How Magazine Bans Thwart Self-Defense. Bans on standard magazines benefit criminals and endanger victims. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 20, 2023.

Law Enforcement Officers Are Part of "the People," Not Above Them. Law enforcement amicus brief against Colorado magazine ban. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 11, 2023.

Podcasts, Radio & Video

Colorado Inside Out. Feb. 16, 2024. Gov. Polis does nothing to stop overcollection of income taxes. Proposed ban on oil and gas drilling is anti-science. Denver slashing services for legal residents to pay for unlawful migrants. Bogus claims about "assault weapons." Disgrace: CU Law pays out for illegal retaliation against Prof. Paul Campos. Best: Denver City Council stands up to pro-Hamas mob's mini-insurrection.

Colorado Inside Out. Feb. 9, 2024. U.S. Supreme Court arguments look bad for Trump ballot ban. Fiasco in State House as Speaker won't allow Israeli hostage families on the floor, for fear of outbursts by the Democrats' Hamas caucus. Denver budget cuts due to Biden doubling number of illegal immigrants in the U.S. Disgrace: State Rep. Regina English was too lazy to read to her own pet tax bill. Best: CU women's basketball ranked #4 nationally.

Colorado Inside Out. Dec. 22, 2023. Ballot case against Trump involves close calls on four issues. Introduction of non-native wolf species to Colorado intensifies the war on rural Colorado. Denver's "housing first" policy for vagrants has failed wherever it has been tried. Colorado legislators in 2024 need to take steps against the toxic legislators who are ruining things for everyone. Disgrace: racist Elisabeth Epps condemns support for investigation of bomb threat against Boulder Jewish Community Center. Best thing: Colorado School of Mines football team completes another great season.

Gun Scholar David Kopel Explains SCOTUS Oral Arguments in Second Amendment Case. The Reload. Nov. 12, 2023.

Will Increasing Gun Control Improve Public Safety? Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University. Apr. 3, 2003. Topics include: Biblical issues (Exodus 22, Luke 22, Romans 13), historic (and unrelated) trends of increasing gun ownership vs. rises and falls in homicide rates, and historic data on mass murder by government of disarmed victims. 90 minutes. Introduction starts at 9:45.

Latest Monographs and Journal articles

The History of Bans on Types of Arms Before 1900. Including handguns, Bowie knives, daggers, slungshots, brass knuckles, cannons and more. 50 Journal of Legislation (Notre Dame, forthcoming 2024). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.

Protecting Law-abiding Firearms Businesses from Abusive Lawsuits. Independence Institute Issue Paper No. 1-2023. Examines bills in Colorado and elsewhere to eliminate firearms stores and manufacturers by junk lawsuits.

Restoring the right to bear arms: New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen. In 2021-22 Cato Supreme Court Review (Trevor Burrus ed., Sept. 16, 2022).

Guns Kill People, and Tyrants with Gun Monopolies Kill the Most. 25 Gonzaga Journal of International Law 20 (2021).

Red Flag Laws: Proceed with Caution. 45 (Alabama) Law & Psychology Review 39 (2021).

Latest Books

Colorado Constitutional Law and History (2d ed. 2022). Treatise and textbook on Colorado's wonderful Constitution--and on how the courts and other branches have nullified much of it. Buy at: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million, IndieBound (to arrange pickup at a local bookstore), or from Vandeplas Publishing. Any of these vendors will sell you the printed book. If you want the ebook, you must buy from Vandeplas and must have an academic email account to install the reader software.

Firearms Law and the Second Amendment: Regulation, Rights and Policy (Aspen Publishers, 3d ed. 2022). With Nicholas J. Johnson, George A. Mocsary, E. Gregory Wallace, Donald E. Kilmer. Authors' supplemental website. Free chapter 3, the American colonies.

Media quotes and cites

Colorado can still block Trump. Top legal scholars highlight ways states can act against an insurrectionist presidential candidate. Colorado Newsline. Mar. 14, 2024. Quentin Young.

Misrepresenting Gun Tracing to Smear a US Senator. Townhall. Mar. 1, 2024. F. Paul Valone.

Concealed carry keeps growing in Colorado; over twenty-five thousand new permits in 2023. Complete Colorado. Feb. 24, 2024. Mike Krause.

Rocky Mountain Gun Owners Director Talks Strategy, Dudley Brown Status and Going Broke in 2023. Taylor Rhodes on the group's outspoken founder and future, as well as Colorado's "last stand" for gun rights. Westword. Feb, 8, 2024. Chris Perez.

Biden Reportedly Is Planning To Unilaterally Mandate Background Checks for All Gun Sales. A watchdog group cites ATF "whistleblowers" who describe a proposed policy that would be plainly inconsistent with federal law. Reason. Feb. 2, 2024. Jacob Sullum.

Ricketts signs brief urging protections for gun owners and Second Amendment. KOLN (Lincoln, Neb.). Jan. 30, 2024.

Lummis and GOP colleagues file amicus brief urging Supreme Court to lift bump stock ban. Washington Examiner. Jan. 26, 2024. Emily Jacobs.

Courts and Legislatures

Written testimony against Colorado HB24-1242. "Assault weapons" bill is based on plainly false "findings." Further, the bill attempts to outlaw features that enhance accuracy, because the sponsors oppose "ease of use" of firearms by "non-experts." PDF.

Written testimony against Colorado SB24-131. Safe zones for"mass shooters and other violent criminals. Bill to declare vast areas off-limits for licensed carry will endanger public safety. Licensed carry permitees are vastly more law-abiding than the general population.

Bianchi v. Brown, No. 23-863 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Mar. 13, 2024). Petiion for certiorari before judgement. Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute. So-called "assault" rifles fire at the same rate as common handguns, are less powerful than most other rifles, and in mass shootings are less deadly than handguns. Law enforcement officers choose the rifles because they are superb for lawful defense of self and others.

Newsom v. B and L Productions, No 23-3793 (9th Cir. Feb. 6, 2023). Amicus brief of Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and the Independence Institute. There is no historical support for the California legislature's ban on all gun shows on government property.

Garland v. Cargill, No. 22-976 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 26, 2023). Amicus brief of Senators Cynthia M. Lummis (Wyoming), Mike Lee (Utah), Kevin Cramer (North Dakota), John Barrasso (Wyoming), Pete Ricketts (Nebraska), Steve Daines (Montana), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Mississippi), Mike Rounds (South Dakota), Markwayne Mullin (Oklahoma); Professors Royce de R. Barondes (Missouri, emeritus), F. Lee Francis (Mississippi College School of Law), Nicholas J. Johnson (Fordham), Donald E.J. Kilmer, Jr. (Lincoln Law School), Joyce Malcolm (George Mason, emerita), Joseph V. Muha (Akron), Joseph E. Olson (Mitchell-Hamline, emeritus), David A. Raney (Hillsdale), Glenn H. Reynolds (Tennessee), E. Gregory Wallace (Campbell); and the Independence Institute. In judicial review of the BATFE's regulation outlawing bump stocks, Chevron deference should not be applied. The rule of lenity does apply, and the standard with the strongest basis in American legal tradition is reasonable doubt. The National Firearms Act does not outlaw all "rapid-fire" guns; to the contrary, BATFE has repeatedly affirmed that Gatling guns are not covered by the NFA. The Court should apply the actual text of the NFA ("single function of the trigger"), and not BATFE's regulatory substitute ("single pull").

NRA v. Vullo, No. 22-842 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 16, 2023). Amicus brief of Second Amendment Foundation, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the N.Y. Dept. of Financial Services sent written threats to banks and insurance companies warning them not to do business with the NRA. The effort to destroy and silence a constitutional advocacy organization was similar to the actions of segregationist state governments against the NAACP in the 1950s and 1960s. Cuomo has a long record of abusive attempts to eliminate First and Second Amendment rights. The Obama administration similarly abused tax and bank laws to try to choke off the First and Second Amendments. The Court should adhere to its precedents and hold unlawful Cuomo's threat-laundering.

May v. Bonita, No. SACV 23-01696-CJC (C.D. Cal., Dec. 20, 2023). Holding new California ban on licensed carry almost everywhere unconstitutional. Citing The “Sensitive Places” Doctrine: Locational Limits on the Right to Bear Arms, 13 Charleston Law Review 205, 211, 233 n. 108, 234, 235-36, 242, 250, 289, 290-91, 292, (2018).

Gates v. Polis, No. 22-cv-1866-GPG-SKC (D. Colo., Nov. 30, 2023). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, the Colorado Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association, the Western States Sheriffs Association, Sheriffs John Feyen (Larimer County), Gene Lillard (Montrose), Brett Powell (Logan), Todd Rowell (Mesa), Steve Reams (Weld), Aaron Shiplett (Baca), Lou Vallario (Garfield), Sam Zordel (Prowers), and the Independence Institute. Colorado ban on magazines over 15 rounds endangers public safety. Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief.

Miller v. Bonita, No. 19-cv-01537 (S.D. Cal. Oct. 19, 2023). Holding California "assault weapon" ban unconstitutional. Slip opinion citations: 27 n.86, 38 n.107, The History of Bans on Types of Arms Before 1900, 50 Journal of Legislation at 45-46, 60 (Notre Dame, forthcoming 2024); 41-42 n.121, 66 n.203, State court standards of review for the right to arms, 50 Santa Clara Law Review 1113, 1145 n.51 (2010); 45 n.133, The “Sensitive Places” Doctrine: Locational Limits on the Right to Bear Arms, 13 Charleston Law Review 205, 240 (2018); 50 n.152 Knives and the Second Amendment, 47 University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform 167, 168 (2013).

United States v. Rahimi. No. 22-915 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Oct. 4, 2023). Amicus brief on behalf of professors Randy Barnett, Robert Cottrol, Lee Francis, Donald Kilmer, Joyce Malcolm, George Mocsary, Joseph Muha, Joseph Olson, Glenn Reynolds, and Gregory Wallace; the Second Amendment Law Center; and the Independence Institute. Old and discriminatory gun control laws that were repudiated by subsequent constitutional enactments are not valid precedents to support modern gun controls. Restricting arms rights of individuals whom a court has found to be "a credible threat" to intimate partners does not infringe the Second Amendment; disarming people with no judicial findings at all does infringe the Second Amendment. Thus, 18 U.S.C. sect. 922(g)(8)(C)(i) is not an infringement, and (C)(ii) is an infringement.

Delaware State Sportsmen’s Association v. Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Nos. No. 23-1633, 23-1634, 23-1641 (3d Cir. July 10, 2023). Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, National Association of Chiefs of Police, Professors of Second Amendment Law, and Independence Institute. Assertions about the supposedly "exceptional" wounding power and dangers of so-called "assault weapons" are false. The arms are well-suited for law-defense of self and others, and are frequently chosen for that purpose by law enforcement officers and citizens. Claims that ordinary law enforcement officers routinely use extremely dangerous super-powerful weapons are defamatory to law enforcement.

United States v. Daniels, 77 F.4th 337 n.29 (5th Cir. 2023). Amicus brief cited and quoted in the court's opinion. Amicus brief by Scholars of Second Amendment Law (F. Lee Francis, Nicholas J. Johnson, Donald E.J. Kilmer, David B. Kopel, George A. Mocsary Joseph V. Muha, Joseph E. Olson, Glenn H. Reynolds) and Independence Institute. The ban on firearms possession by every "user" of marijuana, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), is contrary to history and tradition, as shown by historic laws pertaining to alcohol. Shooting or wearing firearms while intoxicated may be prohibited, but not use while sober. The ban on firearms possession by every "user" of marijuana, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), is contrary to history and tradition, as shown by historic laws pertaining to alcohol. Shooting or wearing firearms while intoxicated may be prohibited, but not use while sober. Result: Prosecution held unconstitutional, as applied to Daniels.

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