18-01-2013, 08:36 PM
So far 5 Oregon County sheriff's will refuse to enforce unconstitutional gun laws.
Lane County Sheriff says court has final say on guns
Lane County's sheriff releases a letter on the enforcement issue
By Jeff Wright
The Register-Guard
Published: January 18, 2013 12:00AM, Today
In contrast to some other county sheriffs across Oregon and the country, Lane County Sheriff Tom Turner is putting his faith in the U.S. legal system, including the Supreme Court.
Turner on Thursday released a letter asserting that neither he, nor any other U.S. citizen, has the right to determine which laws are legally valid and which ones are not.
That's a job, ultimately, for the Supreme Court, he said.
Turner released his letter, addressed to Lane County residents, in the wake of other law enforcement officials who have declared that they may ignore any restrictions the federal government imposes as part of President Obama's proposed ban on new assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition clips.
"While I understand the sense of urgency on behalf of citizens, I believe that any reaction, decision or response to issues that impact the rights of all people should be done so without haste and after careful consideration," Turner said in his letter. "Ultimately, it is the Supreme Court, not any individual, that determines the constitutionality of any law."
Turner predicted that, as details of Obama's proposal become known in the coming days, there will be many discussions "on whether improvements can be made to increase public safety while upholding the Constitution and following the laws of our country."
At least five other county sheriffs in Oregon, however, have taken a different tack beginning with Linn County Sheriff Tim Mueller, who fired off a letter to Vice President Joe Biden indicating he wouldn't work with federal officials to enforce any future gun laws Mueller deemed unconstitutional.
The sheriffs in the politically conservative counties of Douglas, Crook, Grant and Josephine have expressed similar sentiment.
"A lot of sheriffs are now standing up and saying, Follow the Constitution,'" said Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilbertson in Grants Pass.
Turner starts his letter with a reference to Sandy Hook, the elementary school in Connecticut where the massacre last month of 26 people, including 20 children, has spurred the renewed national debate about gun control. He then notes that Oregonians are not unfamiliar with the reality of gun violence citing last month's shooting at the Clackamas Town Center near Portland, the murder of Eugene police officer Chris Kilcullen in April 2011, and the fatal shooting at Thurston High School more than a decade ago.
Without offering specifics, Turner said that, as a member of the law enforcement community, he supports lawmakers evaluating the recent tragedies and discussing ways to avoid future such incidents. "It would be irresponsible if we didn't consider ways in which to make our country safer," he said.
Turner oversees a sheriff's department that routinely releases jail inmates and doesn't respond to calls for service because of a funding crisis that limits the number of deputies assigned to the jail and patrols. He ends his letter asserting that the county's primary focus "needs to be on strengthening our failing public safety system" and asking for the public's support.
Turner said he decided to write his letter in response to "many" inquiries from county residents wanting to know his position on the issue.
Political posturing
While sheriffs concerned about or opposed to the president's call for gun restrictions have spoken up across the country, their actual powers to defy federal law are limited. And much of the impassioned rhetoric amounts to political posturing until and if Congress acts.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said on Wednesday it's unlikely an assault weapons ban would pass the House of Representatives. Absent action by Congress, all that remains are 23 executive orders Obama announced that apply only to the federal government, not local or state law enforcement.
Gun advocates have seen Obama as an enemy despite his expression of support for the interpretation of the Second Amendment as a personal right to have guns. So his call for new measures including background checks for all gun buyers and Senate confirmation of a director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has triggered new vows of defiance.
In Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant, a Republican, urged the Legislature to make it illegal to enforce any executive order by the president that violates the Constitution. And in Tennessee, state Rep. Joe Carr has said he wants to make it a state crime for federal agents to enforce any ban on firearms or ammunition. Carr instead called for more armed guards at schools.
"We're tired of political antics, cheap props of using children as bait to gin up emotional attachment for an issue that quite honestly doesn't solve the problem," Carr said.
Legislative proposals to pre-empt new federal gun restrictions also have arisen in Wyoming, Utah and Alaska.
A Wyoming bill specifies that any federal limitation on guns would be unenforceable. It also would make it a state felony for federal agents to try to enforce restrictions.
Republican state Sen. Larry Hicks credited Wyoming's high rate of gun ownership for a low rate of gun violence.
"Our kids grow up around firearms, and they also grow up hunting, and they know what the consequences are of taking a life," Hicks said. "We're not insulated from the real world in Wyoming."
Supremacy Clause
In Utah, some Republicans are preparing legislation to exempt the state from federal gun laws and fine any federal agents who try to seize guns. A bill in the Alaska House would make it a misdemeanor for a federal agent to enforce new restrictions on gun ownership.
While such proposals may be eye-catching, they likely could never be implemented.
"The Legislature can pass anything it wants," said Sam Kamin, a constitutional law professor at the University of Denver. "The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution makes that clearly unconstitutional. Where there's a conflict between state and federal law, the federal government is supreme."
Kamin and other legal experts said such disdain of Obama's proposals is reminiscent of former Confederate states' refusal to comply with federal law extending equal rights for blacks after the Civil War.
The National Sheriffs' Association has supported administration efforts to combat gun violence after the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings. President Larry Amerson, sheriff of Calhoun, Ala., said he understands the frustrations of people in rural areas with the federal government. But he feels his oath of office binds him to uphold all laws.
"Any sheriff who knows his duty knows we don't enforce federal law, per se," said Amerson, a longtime firearms instructor and hunter.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.registerguard.com/web/updates...t.html.csp
Lane County Sheriff says court has final say on guns
Lane County's sheriff releases a letter on the enforcement issue
By Jeff Wright
The Register-Guard
Published: January 18, 2013 12:00AM, Today
In contrast to some other county sheriffs across Oregon and the country, Lane County Sheriff Tom Turner is putting his faith in the U.S. legal system, including the Supreme Court.
Turner on Thursday released a letter asserting that neither he, nor any other U.S. citizen, has the right to determine which laws are legally valid and which ones are not.
That's a job, ultimately, for the Supreme Court, he said.
Turner released his letter, addressed to Lane County residents, in the wake of other law enforcement officials who have declared that they may ignore any restrictions the federal government imposes as part of President Obama's proposed ban on new assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition clips.
"While I understand the sense of urgency on behalf of citizens, I believe that any reaction, decision or response to issues that impact the rights of all people should be done so without haste and after careful consideration," Turner said in his letter. "Ultimately, it is the Supreme Court, not any individual, that determines the constitutionality of any law."
Turner predicted that, as details of Obama's proposal become known in the coming days, there will be many discussions "on whether improvements can be made to increase public safety while upholding the Constitution and following the laws of our country."
At least five other county sheriffs in Oregon, however, have taken a different tack beginning with Linn County Sheriff Tim Mueller, who fired off a letter to Vice President Joe Biden indicating he wouldn't work with federal officials to enforce any future gun laws Mueller deemed unconstitutional.
The sheriffs in the politically conservative counties of Douglas, Crook, Grant and Josephine have expressed similar sentiment.
"A lot of sheriffs are now standing up and saying, Follow the Constitution,'" said Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilbertson in Grants Pass.
Turner starts his letter with a reference to Sandy Hook, the elementary school in Connecticut where the massacre last month of 26 people, including 20 children, has spurred the renewed national debate about gun control. He then notes that Oregonians are not unfamiliar with the reality of gun violence citing last month's shooting at the Clackamas Town Center near Portland, the murder of Eugene police officer Chris Kilcullen in April 2011, and the fatal shooting at Thurston High School more than a decade ago.
Without offering specifics, Turner said that, as a member of the law enforcement community, he supports lawmakers evaluating the recent tragedies and discussing ways to avoid future such incidents. "It would be irresponsible if we didn't consider ways in which to make our country safer," he said.
Turner oversees a sheriff's department that routinely releases jail inmates and doesn't respond to calls for service because of a funding crisis that limits the number of deputies assigned to the jail and patrols. He ends his letter asserting that the county's primary focus "needs to be on strengthening our failing public safety system" and asking for the public's support.
Turner said he decided to write his letter in response to "many" inquiries from county residents wanting to know his position on the issue.
Political posturing
While sheriffs concerned about or opposed to the president's call for gun restrictions have spoken up across the country, their actual powers to defy federal law are limited. And much of the impassioned rhetoric amounts to political posturing until and if Congress acts.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said on Wednesday it's unlikely an assault weapons ban would pass the House of Representatives. Absent action by Congress, all that remains are 23 executive orders Obama announced that apply only to the federal government, not local or state law enforcement.
Gun advocates have seen Obama as an enemy despite his expression of support for the interpretation of the Second Amendment as a personal right to have guns. So his call for new measures including background checks for all gun buyers and Senate confirmation of a director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has triggered new vows of defiance.
In Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant, a Republican, urged the Legislature to make it illegal to enforce any executive order by the president that violates the Constitution. And in Tennessee, state Rep. Joe Carr has said he wants to make it a state crime for federal agents to enforce any ban on firearms or ammunition. Carr instead called for more armed guards at schools.
"We're tired of political antics, cheap props of using children as bait to gin up emotional attachment for an issue that quite honestly doesn't solve the problem," Carr said.
Legislative proposals to pre-empt new federal gun restrictions also have arisen in Wyoming, Utah and Alaska.
A Wyoming bill specifies that any federal limitation on guns would be unenforceable. It also would make it a state felony for federal agents to try to enforce restrictions.
Republican state Sen. Larry Hicks credited Wyoming's high rate of gun ownership for a low rate of gun violence.
"Our kids grow up around firearms, and they also grow up hunting, and they know what the consequences are of taking a life," Hicks said. "We're not insulated from the real world in Wyoming."
Supremacy Clause
In Utah, some Republicans are preparing legislation to exempt the state from federal gun laws and fine any federal agents who try to seize guns. A bill in the Alaska House would make it a misdemeanor for a federal agent to enforce new restrictions on gun ownership.
While such proposals may be eye-catching, they likely could never be implemented.
"The Legislature can pass anything it wants," said Sam Kamin, a constitutional law professor at the University of Denver. "The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution makes that clearly unconstitutional. Where there's a conflict between state and federal law, the federal government is supreme."
Kamin and other legal experts said such disdain of Obama's proposals is reminiscent of former Confederate states' refusal to comply with federal law extending equal rights for blacks after the Civil War.
The National Sheriffs' Association has supported administration efforts to combat gun violence after the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings. President Larry Amerson, sheriff of Calhoun, Ala., said he understands the frustrations of people in rural areas with the federal government. But he feels his oath of office binds him to uphold all laws.
"Any sheriff who knows his duty knows we don't enforce federal law, per se," said Amerson, a longtime firearms instructor and hunter.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.registerguard.com/web/updates...t.html.csp
"You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.â€
Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller