Last night at 12:30 pm a MD State Police "Armed Response Team" showed up at our door. I was dead asleep, my Wife was laying some ceramic tile on our basement floor when our driveway alert went off several times. She looked at the camera monitor and screamed that Police in Assault gear were running up to our front door. That made me sit straight up from a dead sleep...Read the whole account and then come back for some commentary.
Done?
The following observations were sent to me by a regular correspondent and blogger--who, this time, fears making his identity known for reasons he explained to me and which I will not go into now. Here is what he had to say about this "situation":
There are no laws in the State of Maryland whatsoever that cover the use of ammunition logs at the point of sale. None. This is pure policy intimidation on the part of local and State police and if you are in Maryland and presented with a requirement to sign such a log, REFUSE politely and call a lawyer.
There are no laws in the State of Maryland that restricts the type or quantity of ammunition you may possess. The only requirement is that you are not permitted to purchase handgun ammunition if under the age of 21. If the police show up and question you about your purchases or their quantities, REFUSE politely and call a lawyer. Request to see ID and demand to see a warrant.
There are no laws in the State of Maryland that restrict you to regulated firearm ammunition for firearms that you own that are on record as having been purchased in the state. The fact the police are using these purchase/registration lists is yet another reason to abhor gun registration and to use it as a club against anyone who suggests it is a "safety measure".
There is no requirement in the State of Maryland that requires to you register firearms that are regulated that were purchased legally before moving into the state. Registration is voluntary. The fact that the police is suggesting a law-abiding citizen register their arms to prevent further harassment is an abuse of their authority. If they suggest it, REFUSE politely and call a lawyer.
And lastly, there is no requirement in the State of Maryland or anywhere else in this country to let any police officer into your home or answer questions about your law-abiding activities in the absence of a warrant detailing the premises to be searches, items to be seized and/or the charges you are facing. If an officer asks any of these things of you, REFUSE politely and call a lawyer.
I have no words to describe how it feels to live in Maryland under such a threat for having done nothing wrong. To any gun owner in Maryland who thinks such "ammunition logs" or use of the regulated arms purchase registry in such a fashion to be no big deal, think again.
If you own regulated arms in Maryland, buy your ammo out-of-state. Don't give anyone anyone a single round of ammo to use against you. Not one.
Then get out if you can.
Talk about Jack Booted Thugs. This incident could have gotten ugly, real quick.
ReplyDeleteClare, is it time?
Gee, I'm glad there are no CRIMES in Maryland needing the attention of the police, besides made-up PAPER ones.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who ISN'T buying large quantities of ammunition is behind the curve.
What a disgusting act. This is one reason we detour around the entire state when we go hunting in Pennsylvania. They will seize on ANYTHING gun-related.
Once again we've been reminded that there are authorities who don't mind at all putting on the jackboots and goose-stepping a little. More of them all the time, apparently.
We could send e-mails. But I think they already know we don't approve. Just not how many of us and how much.
Anywhere in Maryland is three hours from me, except the far western part bordering West Virginia, and my guess is they're not demented neo-fascists out there. Not yet.
I'm not blustering, spitting, desk-pounding angry. It's the cold, calm, scary kind.
Now.III
ReplyDeleteI guess the original should say 12:30 a.m. Middle of the night.
ReplyDeleteSolzhenitsyn is dead and buried.
The Soviet Organs arrested about a third of the population of the major Russian cities. Solzhenitsyn wrote "How we burned in the camps..." What if, every time the Organ men arrived, people met them in large groups with [weapons] instead of cringing at every bang of the downstairs door. What if they overturned and burned the [paddy wagons] and each operative never knew whther he was going home in the morning?
What if?
I may see something going on and inadvertently come to the aid of a drug dealer or Most Wanted child-killer. Know what? It's all the same to me. The police -- with the blessing of the elected -- have sown. harvest time is coming.
These sacks of crap deserve whatever they get.
ReplyDeleteSorry, but "just following orders" just doesn't cut it.
This one's going to be with me for a long time. I wish I could say "I don't believe it."
ReplyDeleteThe Virgina State Police are getting close. "Forward-tracing" potential gun purchasers DURING a gun show, asking their neighbors how they felt about so-and-so being armed. Confiscating the new guns before people even left the parking lot if there was ANY question. Using confidential Brady Instant Check records to do it, and handing over copies to ATF. There were 50 police cars parked near the gun show entrance. B-S!
So the feds can serve us all the happy horsesh-- they want about not wanting to take away our guns. People who live near us will be glad to do it.
I just read that the undercover Virginia Beach detective shot to death in a shopping center parking lot Thursday was sitting in his truck talking to someone about buying half a pound of marijuana when the guy's partner just walked up and shot him three times.
ReplyDeleteI guess he got recognized.
I'm sure his eulogy said he was MAKING A DIFFERENCE.
Eight ounces of pot. There was probably that much in the air at every high school football game in the '70s. To see the Comedy Channel, that's what Snoop Dogg has before breakfast.
The cops can't stop THAT, but they have to stop SOMETHING...
They should get... recognized.
This is messed up, big time.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very scary thing to read about. I am glad I don't live near one of those so called free states. Something I noticed on line last evening while searching for some brass was that one of the sellers requires an FFL to buy empty brass. What is up with that, anyone have a clue.
ReplyDeleteMany ammunition sellers won't sell to residents of IL without having a copy of their FOID (Firearm Owner's ID) and shipping to the address of the FOID. Our current Attorney General has stated that even possession of reloading components requires possession of a FOID card. This means that if you accidently lose a single empty shell casing in your trunk and someone without a FOID uses your car, they can be charged with a felony.
ReplyDeleteIt is not hard to conceive that sellers of empty brass to residents of IL might start requiring a copy of the buyer's FOID.
I wonder if Mayor Daley is taking notes. Since residents of Chicago can only possess ammo for the guns they have registered, perhaps he'd love to have the State Police engage in these antics.
If they mess with one of us, they mess with all of us. That's how it has to be, or we're dominoes.
ReplyDeleteIf they want a war, Pensylvania hunters alone outnumber all of American law enforcement 2-to-1.
Or they can keep ratcheting up the pressure like a medieval torture machine until we can't breathe. Then some guy can finish us off with a clothespin on the nose.
Someday somewhere somebody is going to say enough.
ReplyDeleteMOLON LABE, will be real then.
This is why you NEVER say one word to a police officer. If you see them in the street, if you are the victim of a crime, it doesn't matter. Never talk to them.
ReplyDeletewww.youtube.com/watch?v=i8z7NC5sgik
part 2
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6014022229458915912
Anon: Those are great vids, and have been required education for my kids.
ReplyDeleteThere's one more that must be added, it forms the trifecta of "must-see" info for every citizen.
As I told my kids, I don't think you'll smoke pot, but someone else might, you might find yourself in someone else's car, even a rental could have been dirtied by a previous renter... Worst of all, though most are clean, there are cops who will plant evidence to make a bust.
Your two vids, and this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqMjMPlXzdA will teach almost everything you need to know to survive police encounters.
Keep your private stuff private - lock it in the trunk, and disable any sort of remote-release so that it cannot be "accidentally" opened.
Practice these phrases:
(1) "Sir, am I being detained, or am I free to go?"
(2) "Sir, I do not consent to any searches of any kind."
(3) "Sir, I have nothing to say until my lawyer is present."
(4) "Sir, unless you have a warrant, I cannot let you in." - see #2.
HTH...
DD