SAF Lawsuit Against New Mexico

BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation recently filed a lawsuit in federal district court in New Mexicochallenging that state’s prohibition on the issuance of concealed carry permits to legal resident aliens.

SAF filed the complaint in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico on behalf of John W. Jackson, an Australian citizen who came to the United States with his wife, an Americancitizen, in 2007. He obtained permanent resident status in November 2008. They are represented by Albuquerque attorney Paul M. Kienzle, III and Glen Ellyn, Illinois attorney David Sigale. Named as defendants in the case, in their official capacities, are New Mexico Attorney General Gary King and Bill Hubbard, director of the Special Investigations of the New Mexico Department of Public Safety.

“Legal resident aliens in the United States should have the same personal protection rights as anyone,” noted SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, “because criminals do not play favorites. Mr. Jackson is a productive member of his community, and his plight is shared by many legal alien residents.”

According to the SAF complaint, the laws of New Mexico completely prohibit resident legal aliens from the concealed carry of guns, in public, for the purpose of self-defense. In New Mexico, only citizens may have the benefit of an armed defense by concealed carry.

“Our lawsuit is firmly grounded in the recognition and incorporation of the Second Amendment that came with our Supreme Court victory in McDonald v. City of Chicago,” Gottlieb noted. “We also believe the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal protection clause renders the State’s ban on non-citizens obtaining a concealed carry permit to be unconstitutional. Mr. Jackson and others like him only seek to be treated the same as law-abiding citizens. The Second Amendment renders a ban such as that challenged in ouraction to be impermissible.

“We just won a similar case inMassachusetts,” he said, “and we will pursue this case with equal vigor.”

The lawsuit seeks to enjoin King andHubbard from further enforcing the state ban on the issuance of concealed carry permits to non-citizens, and to declare that the law is null and void because it violates the Second Amendment’s right to keep and bear arms, and the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation's oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control. In addition to the landmark McDonald v. Chicago Supreme Court Case, SAF has previously funded successful firearms-related suits against the cities of Los Angeles; New Haven, CT; New Orleans; Chicago and San Francisco on behalf of American gun owners, a lawsuit against the cities suing gun makers and numerous amicus briefs holding the Second Amendment as an individual right.

By: Second Amendment Foundation

NSSF Invites Employees of Voting Member Companies to Apply for $60,000 in Education Scholarships

NEWTOWN, Conn. -- Employees of companies that support the National Shooting Sports Foundation at the highest level can apply for education aid through the NSSF Voting Member Scholarship Program. NSSF has made a total of $60,000 in scholarship funding available for a maximum of 25 winning entries.

NSSF is accepting applications in the Voting Member Scholarship Program through 5 p.m. EST on June 3, 2013.

Scholarships are available only to employees and their family members of Voting Member companies of NSSF. (For specific eligibility, refer to the official guidelines.) The scholarship program is one of a number of benefits that Voting Member companies receive from NSSF, the trade association for the firearms and ammunition industry.

Applicants must be enrolled in, or have been accepted and plan to attend, a college, university or vocational school during the fall 2013 school year. Scholarships are limited to candidates seeking an undergraduate or vocational degree only. The complete rules are available on this Scholarship Program webpage, and application forms are available at www.nssf.org/members. NSSF urges applicants to read the rules thoroughly before applying.

An application requires an essay on one of the following topics:

· Discuss how being a target shooter or hunter has positively influenced your life and taught you about responsibility, firearm safety, community and other important values.

· Discuss why safely handling and storing firearms benefits gun owners, their families and the community at large.

Submitted essays must be in English, typed, double-spaced and single-sided, on 8.5 by11-inch paper in 11 or 12 point Times New Roman font, Microsoft Word format and not exceed two pages (not including bibliography). No PDF documents will beaccepted.

Twenty-five applicants with the highest overall essay scores will be selected as scholarship prize winners. The applicant with the highest scored essay willearn the grand prize $8,000 scholarship. One first-place prize winner with the second-highest scored essay will receive a scholarship of $5,000. One second-place prize winner with the third-highest scored essay will receive a scholarship of $3,000. The remaining 22 runner-up prize winners will each receive a scholarship of $2,000. NSSF will notify the winners by email by June 24 and list the recipients on its website after their acceptance.

NSSF Voting Member companies will receive posters and application forms to promote the scholarships to their employees.

For more information about the NSSF Voting Member Scholarship Program, contact Samantha Hughes, NSSF's member services coordinator, at shughes@nssf.org.

By: NSSF

Shooting Industry Masters

You probably know by now the 2013 Shooting Industry Masters is sold out! Five months prior to the first shot going downrange, we have maxed out team entry. What a telling statement for not just the Masters, but for the industry itself.

There are many industries where the people involved just work, but aren’t really a part of what they do. That’s what’s great about the shooting industry: We’re a part of it, we want to be involved with it and more importantly, we want to enjoy it — which is why the Masters sells out as quickly as it does.

So, if you missed getting your team entry in on time, we have another option for you. Attend the Masters on a Pardner Pass. The 2013 Shooting Industry Masters Pardner Pass offers the opportunity for an individual to enjoy and experience the flavor of the match without actually entering a team.

A Pardner Pass grants you access into the Shooting Industry Masters. You can shoot all of the Side Matches, enjoy the daily lunches and dinners, and participate in all the evening festivities with your friends and colleagues. The only thing the Pardner Pass doesn’t allow is shooting in the main competition itself.

Those who have attended the Masters know this event is not about the competition. It’s about getting together with other members of the industry, networking and socializing in an atmosphere that’s relaxed and friendly.

Now, there are a few folks out therewho perhaps have attended the previous Masters and are feeling a little slighted, because they didn’t get into the 2013 match. Those who know us at FMG Publications know we’ve never shown preferential treatment. We did not do it at the Academy of Excellence and we don’t do it at the Shooting Industry Masters. It’s all on a first-come, first-served basis.

So, if you didn’t get your team in, come to the Masters on a Pardner Pass and enjoy all the benefits of being there. It’s only $250 per person. Email me at shari@shootingindustry.com and I’ll be happy to send you the sign-up form. You can shoot side matches, chew the fat with your buddies and throw back a few sarsaparillas.

By: Shooting Industry