Watch out "Brady Bunch", Utah is aiming for a perfect ZERO!

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With the passage of Senate bill 78, Utah will have a law that states employees can bring firearms to work in their vehicles. Here is the text from the Brady website that further explains this.

GUNS AT WORK
Are businesses forced to allow guns in the workplace?No

Utah - There is no state law forcing employers or businesses to allow guns on their privately held property.

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So when Governor Huntsman signsSB 78, we should lose two points from the Brady State Scorecard.

Now, onto the final two points. Here is the final hurdle guys and gals, courtesy of "The Brady Bunch".

SHOOT FIRST
Is deadly force allowed to be a first resort in public?No

Utah - The state does not allow the use of deadly force as a first resort in public.

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I believe this to be an inacurate statement. Utah laws regarding deadly force are very clear, and do allow for the above. We have no "duty to retreat".

SoI ask all that read here to help Utah achieve a perfect ZERO! No other state in the union can claim this achievement! I urge you, as painful as it sounds, to contact the Brady Campaign, and remind them of these two details. The more people that contact them, the sooner they get off their ass and give us the zero that weworked so hard for!

I have not been able to find actual email addresses for the Brady center, so if you find one, please post it!

Cut and paste this link into your browser to "report a problem or concern with their website".

bradynetwork.org/site/Survey?SURVEY_ID=2240&ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS

Or if you prefer snail mail, phone calls or faxes, here are some more contacts.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
1225 Eye Street, NW, Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20005

Brady Campaign Phone: (202) 898-0792
Brady Campaign Fax: (202) 371-9615

Brady Center Phone: (202) 289-7319
Brady Center Fax: (202) 408-1851

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I even found a related article from last month! Not sure how I missed this!

ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=5511370

Brady Campaign rates Utah low on gun laws

February 5th, 2009 @ 6:00am
By Marc Giauque

The nationally-based Brady Campaign is giving Utah a four out of 100 possible points on its latest scorecard.

Many might argue such a score is a good thing. But Dee Rowland of the Utah Gun Violence Prevention Center does not.

While she doesn't dispute the right to bear arms, or even to have concealed weapons permits, Rowland agrees with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Violence and it's claim that Utah's laws help feed the illegal gun market.

"Such as the gun show loophole, where you can go to a gun show and purchase a weapon without a background check," she said.

The report card also criticizes Utah's lack of limiting bulk gun sales and allowing non-residents to obtain concealed weapons permits.

Local advocates are urging support of Utah Senate Bill 96, which would change that. Supporters, though, are not optimistic it will pass.

Brady Campaign spokesman Paul Helmke says lawmakers "have done nothing to improve the state's reputation when it comes to common sense gun laws."

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The information you have posted is from the Brady Bunch website located here.
http://www.bradycampaign.org/legislation/state/viewstate.php?st=ut

You can email them with concerns or problems with the website via this email web-page.
http://www.bradynetwork.org/site/Survey?SURVEY_ID=2240&ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS

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think theyre gonna try to take our guns? if they do i think theyll be outnumbered...

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SGT Jensen wrote:

ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=5511370

Brady Campaign spokesman Paul Helmke says lawmakers "have done nothing to improve the state's reputation when it comes to common sense gun laws."

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I thought we added a considerable amount of "common sense" to our gun laws this year.

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Well, to be fair to Paul, this article was written before these bills passed.

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Just a friendly reminder since this will officially become Utah law, we need to keep reminding the Brady Bunch that we want our illusive ZERO!


http://www.opposingviews.com/articles/opinion-nra-applauds-utah-s-new-self-defense-law

NRA Applauds Utah's New Self Defense Law

FAIRFAX, Va. - Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. (R) announced today that he signed important National Rifle Association-backed legislation into law that will protect the rights of law-abiding gun owners. Senate Bill 78 will protect the right to lawfully transport and store firearms in privately-owned, locked motor vehicles that are parked in a publicly accessible parking lot controlled by a business.

"Governor Huntsman and the Utah legislature have taken an important step toward reinforcing self-defense laws in Utah," said Chris W. Cox, NRA’s chief lobbyist. “Crime can happen anywhere – even during a person’s daily commute. As employees work longer hours and travel longer distances, it is reasonable for these workers, if they choose, to have an effective means of self-protection."

In addition to signing Senate Bill 78, Governor Huntsman also signed House Bill 357. Existing Utah law requires a person to have a concealed weapon permit to carry concealed in or on their own property. HB357 fixes this problem. Now law-abiding individuals will be able to carry a concealed firearm in their own residence, on their own property, or in their place of business without a concealed carry permit. HB357 also clarifies current law with respect to firearms in vehicles, to allow law-abiding citizens the choice of how they would prefer to carry a handgun for self-defense (open, concealed, unloaded or loaded).

“The right to self-defense and to protect loved ones is paramount, and we are pleased to see legislatures across the country reinforce this right,” concluded Cox. “NRA would like to thank Governor Huntsman and the lead sponsors, State Senator Mark Madsen (R-13) and State Representative Steve Sandstrom (R-58) for their continued support for the Second Amendment.”

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Gotta love it! I'm very happy that these two bills passed.:monkey

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I discussed this with the Brady Campaign some time ago. From what I recall (which may not be accurate given the passage of time since my conversation), they've examined Utah's law and determined that it doesn't meet their definition of "allow the use of deadly force as a first resort in public." IIRC, we need to have some form of protection against civil lawsuits for self-defense shootings in public places. It seems like current castle doctrine bills include this, and Utah law already has this for defense of habitation, but not for self-defense in public places.There may have been other points we were lacking as well. One way to find out is to see what the laws say for those states that managed to get a zero in that category.

One suggestion might be to push this "protection from civil suits" into car-jacking DGU's as well. It expands on the whole notion that your car is a part of your domain that we did so well to expand on this year with car carry and parking lot laws. Extending the home's protection against civil suits would seem like a logical next step to me.

It still may not be quite good enough to get us a zero, but is a good step in the right direction.

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We finally got the zero we deserve! :dude:

http://www.bradycampaign.org/xshare/bcam/stategunlaws/scorecard/2010releases/UT.pdf

BRADY CAMPAIGN TO PREVENT GUN VIOLENCE

For Immediate Release
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Contact: Peter Hamm, 202-898-0792, phamm@bradymail.org
Gary Sackett, Utah Center for the Prevention of Gun Violence, 801-534-7336

BRADY CAMPAIGN STATE SCORECARD:
UTAH HAS WEAKEST GUN LAWS IN U.S.

Washington, D.C. – Utah has the nation’s weakest gun laws that help feed the illegal gun market and allow the sale of guns without background checks, according to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. In the organization’s 2009 state scorecards released today for all 50 states, Utah has the weakest gun laws in the U.S.

Individual state scores range from 0 to 79. Utah is the only state that scored zero out of 100 possible points.

“Because Utah does not require Brady criminal background checks on all firearm sales, including those at gun shows, gun traffickers can easily funnel illegal guns to felons and gang members,” said Gary Sackett, spokesman for the Gun Violence Prevention Center of Utah. “Utah legislators have done nothing in the past to stop the flow of illegal guns within the state, such as closing the loophole that allows dangerous people to walk into gun shows and buy guns without background checks.”

The Brady Campaign is advocating for legislation to close the gun show loophole at the national level, but the Utah Legislature has never taken any action on this important public safety issue.

“We still make it way too easy in Utah for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons,” said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign.

The state’s complete scorecard results can be accessed at http://www.bradycampaign.org. The categories covered by the Utah 2009 scorecard are as follows:

• States can earn up to 35 points by taking steps needed to “Curb Firearm Trafficking.” States can fully regulate the gun dealers within their borders, limit bulk purchases of handguns, provide police certain technology to identify crime guns, and require lost or stolen guns to be reported to the police. Utah scored zero points in this category.

• States can earn up to 27 points by “Strengthening Brady Background Checks.” This involves requiring background checks on all gun sales, requiring a permit in order to purchase firearms and laws regulating ammunition. Short of universal background checks, states can also close the gun show loophole, at least requiring background checks for all gun show sales. Utah scored zero points in this category.

• States can earn up to 20 points by “Protecting Child Safety” when it comes to guns. States can require that only childproof handguns be sold within their borders, require child safety locks to be sold with each handgun, hold adults accountable for keeping guns away from kids and teens, and require handgun purchasers to be at least 21 years of age. Utah scored zero points in this category.

• States can earn up to 10 points by “Banning Military-style Assault Weapons,” as well as banning high-capacity ammunition magazines. Utah scored zero points in this category.

• States can earn up to eight points by restricting most “Guns In Public Places” to trained law enforcement and security and by allowing localities to “Preserve Local Control” over municipal gun laws. This includes keeping guns out of workplaces and college campuses, not forcing law enforcement to issue concealed handgun permits on demand and not preventing municipalities from passing their own gun laws. Utah scored zero points in this category.

Brady Campaign officials acknowledge the research of Legal Community Against Violence on state gun laws. Their publication, “Regulating Guns in America,” and website served as a basis for our analysis. For more information about Legal Community Against Violence, see http://www.lcav.org.

As the nation's largest, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence, the Brady Campaign, with its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters, works to enact and enforce sensible gun laws, regulations and public policies. The Brady Campaign is devoted to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in our communities.

For continuing insight and comment on the gun issue, read Paul Helmke's blog at http://www.bradycampaign.org/blog/. Visit the Brady Campaign website at http://www.bradycampaign.org.
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:celebrate:celebrate