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http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090226-NEWS-90226032
Exeter resident takes concealed carry fight to N.H. Supreme Court
By Elizabeth Dinan
edinan@seacoastonline.com
February 26, 2009 2:26 PM
EXETER — A year after he was denied a license to carry a concealed weapon, Exeter resident Dan Garand is taking his case to the state Supreme Court. His hired gun is attorney Penny Dean, a Second Amendment specialist, NRA-certified shooting instructor, hunting safety instructor and graduate of the "Lethal Force Institute."
"If you can lawfully own a gun, you should be issued a license to carry," said Dean, who hopes to convince the state’s highest court that appeals of gun license denials should be heard in superior courts.
The case is scheduled for oral arguments before the Court on March 17, when Dean and Exeter attorney Dan Schwarz will each have ten minutes to make their arguments.
Schwarz, who is representing the Town of Exeter, is out of the office this week and could not be reached for comment. Exeter Police Chief Richard Kane, who denied Garand’s gun license, did not return the Herald’s message seeking his comment.
According to court records, Garand, of 80 Linden St., has been an Exeter resident since 1987. On April 14, 2008, he applied for a resident license to carry a concealed weapon and eight days later, Kane denied the request. Dean said the police chief’s response contained "numerous, exaggerated, and outrageous allegations," including that her client had been under investigation for several serious crimes and had committed crimes as a juvenile.
Dean said her client has never been convicted of a felony or a domestic violence crime, and that her requests for evidence to the contrary have been ignored. She describes the police chief’s denial as "arbitrary, capricious and in bad faith."
She describes her client as "a 22-year-old kid who, if he came to take your daughter out to dinner, you wouldn’t have a problem with it."
Court records show Garand appealed Kane’s denial to the Rockingham County Superior Court and on July 7, 2008, Judge Kenneth McHugh rejected it, citing a "lack of jurisdiction," while ruling the case should have been heard in Exeter’s District Court. In response, Dean asks the Supreme Court to decide whether superior courts have the jurisdiction to hear denials for concealed carry licenses, in instances other than when an issuing authority violates procedure, such as requiring a photograph or fingerprints, or using the wrong application form.
Further, she alleges, before Judge McHugh declined to take her client’s case, he heard and ruled on a similar case in 2004. That Salem gun license appeal — McQuate v. Donovan — was not dismissed for lack of jurisdiction, notes Dean, adding that her own form for filing license denial cases was used during the 2004 Superior Court hearing.
"The statute hasn’t changed," said Dean. "Why have they heard (these cases) in the past?"
Dean says she prefers to appeal permit denial cases in superior courts because there are longer time periods for discovery (evidence) and judges are often rotated, which she said allows for greater impartiality.
Garand also alleges Kane violated a statute prohibiting chiefs of police from requiring photographs of concealed carry applicants, when he asked for and photocopied Garand’s driver’s license at the time he filed his application.
"A driver’s license to me is the same thing as a photograph," said Dean. "I just hope the Supreme Court decides correctly."
http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090226-NEWS-90226032
Exeter resident takes concealed carry fight to N.H. Supreme Court
By Elizabeth Dinan
edinan@seacoastonline.com
February 26, 2009 2:26 PM
EXETER — A year after he was denied a license to carry a concealed weapon, Exeter resident Dan Garand is taking his case to the state Supreme Court. His hired gun is attorney Penny Dean, a Second Amendment specialist, NRA-certified shooting instructor, hunting safety instructor and graduate of the "Lethal Force Institute."
"If you can lawfully own a gun, you should be issued a license to carry," said Dean, who hopes to convince the state’s highest court that appeals of gun license denials should be heard in superior courts.
The case is scheduled for oral arguments before the Court on March 17, when Dean and Exeter attorney Dan Schwarz will each have ten minutes to make their arguments.
Schwarz, who is representing the Town of Exeter, is out of the office this week and could not be reached for comment. Exeter Police Chief Richard Kane, who denied Garand’s gun license, did not return the Herald’s message seeking his comment.
According to court records, Garand, of 80 Linden St., has been an Exeter resident since 1987. On April 14, 2008, he applied for a resident license to carry a concealed weapon and eight days later, Kane denied the request. Dean said the police chief’s response contained "numerous, exaggerated, and outrageous allegations," including that her client had been under investigation for several serious crimes and had committed crimes as a juvenile.
Dean said her client has never been convicted of a felony or a domestic violence crime, and that her requests for evidence to the contrary have been ignored. She describes the police chief’s denial as "arbitrary, capricious and in bad faith."
She describes her client as "a 22-year-old kid who, if he came to take your daughter out to dinner, you wouldn’t have a problem with it."
Court records show Garand appealed Kane’s denial to the Rockingham County Superior Court and on July 7, 2008, Judge Kenneth McHugh rejected it, citing a "lack of jurisdiction," while ruling the case should have been heard in Exeter’s District Court. In response, Dean asks the Supreme Court to decide whether superior courts have the jurisdiction to hear denials for concealed carry licenses, in instances other than when an issuing authority violates procedure, such as requiring a photograph or fingerprints, or using the wrong application form.
Further, she alleges, before Judge McHugh declined to take her client’s case, he heard and ruled on a similar case in 2004. That Salem gun license appeal — McQuate v. Donovan — was not dismissed for lack of jurisdiction, notes Dean, adding that her own form for filing license denial cases was used during the 2004 Superior Court hearing.
"The statute hasn’t changed," said Dean. "Why have they heard (these cases) in the past?"
Dean says she prefers to appeal permit denial cases in superior courts because there are longer time periods for discovery (evidence) and judges are often rotated, which she said allows for greater impartiality.
Garand also alleges Kane violated a statute prohibiting chiefs of police from requiring photographs of concealed carry applicants, when he asked for and photocopied Garand’s driver’s license at the time he filed his application.
"A driver’s license to me is the same thing as a photograph," said Dean. "I just hope the Supreme Court decides correctly."
Anyone is welcome to come. Supreme court at 12:30 check in time and hearing at 1:30.