what law did he break?

I was reading news from CNN and found this:

http://articles.cnn.com/2010-11-04/...est_1_flight-risk-camper-firearms?_s=PM:CRIME

{quote}

An Arizona man will have a preliminary hearing Friday morning on charges related to the discovery of several firearms in a camper parked near the National Mall.

James M. Patock, 66, of Marana, Arizona, entered a not guilty plea Thursday through his attorney. Patock was being held overnight.

District of Columbia Magistrate Judge Karen Howze found probable cause to hold Patock. Federal prosecutors said Patock has prior arrests in Arizona, is a flight risk and is a threat to the community. The judge did not find Patock to be a serious flight risk.

Patock faces charges of carrying a pistol without a license and unlawfully transporting a firearm.

According to U.S. Park Police, police Wednesday noticed propane tanks connected by wires to four car batteries and a generator. The windows of the camper, which was attached to a pickup truck, were covered in foil. The vehicles were parked near the Air and Space Museum, police said.

Park Police spokesman David Schlosser told CNN that several firearms were found in the camper. Officers found a .223-caliber rifle, a .243-caliber rifle barrel, a .22-caliber rifle, a .357-caliber pistol, boxes of ammunition, various forms of identification, cameras, a laptop and more than $1,500 in cash, police said.

Thursday's hearing did not cover any possible motive.

Patock's court-appointed attorney, Larry Williams, said his client is in great pain and is totally disabled. He did not specify those ailments.

"After his arrest, the Defendant waived his rights and stated again that he lived in the trailer, that he slept there every night, that he had been in the District and the surrounding area for approximately two weeks," the complaint stated.

Police searched the camper and removed items, including clothing and a mattress. Bomb sniffing dogs and bomb technicians were brought to the scene, but no explosives were found.
{/quote}

So he was not in AZ? The news story was not clear on that.

His pickup and trailer were parked in front of the National Air and Space Museum, Independence Avenue at 6th Street, SW downtown Washington, DC.

The Firearms Owners’ Protection Act, or FOPA, protects those who are transporting firearms for lawful purposes from local restrictions which would otherwise prohibit passage.

Under FOPA, notwithstanding any state or local law, a person is entitled to transport a firearm from any place where he or she may lawfully possess such firearm to any other place where he or she may lawfully possess it, if the firearm is unloaded and locked out of reach. In vehicles without a trunk, the unloaded firearm shall be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console. Ammunition that is either locked out of reach in the trunk or in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console is also covered. FOPA also seems to provide for necessary stops, like gasoline and rest.

This where it gets hairy:

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Caution: In general, no one may possess a firearm within the District without a valid registration certificate. No such registration is available for .50 BMG rifles or so-called “assault weapons.” The District also bans the possession of magazines (except those for .22 caliber rimfire ammunition) with a capacity of more than 10 rounds or that can be readily converted or restored to accept more than 10 rounds, as well as the possession of ammunition without a firearms registration certificate. The certificate requirement does not apply to nonresidents who are “participating in any lawful recreational firearm-related activity within the District, or on [their] way to or from such activity in another jurisdiction.” To qualify for this exception, a person must, upon demand of a law enforcement officer, “exhibit proof that he is on his way to or from such activity” and that the person’s possession of the firearm is lawful in the person’s place of residence. The person must also be transporting the firearm from a place where the person may lawfully possess and carry it to another place where the person may lawfully possess and carry it, the firearm must be unloaded, and neither the firearm nor any ammunition may be readily or directly accessible from the automobile’s passenger compartment, or if the vehicle does not have a separate trunk, the firearm or ammunition must be kept in a locked container.
****

Will be interesting to see how this unfolds. The man did state he had been to the NRA building.....justifying the possession of weapons. Arm chair lawyers should be kept out of trouble for quite some time over this one.

If this Man is in His Home, then, He should be covered by Heller.
Is the Camper/Trailor His Home?

Furthermore, what ever became of The Second Amendment Enforcement Act: http://media.nbcwashington.com/documents/gun+bill+mccain.pdf

Washington DC, and its laws are among the most draconian in the country.

Every single round of ammunition is considered a separate felony in DC.

I live in Northern VA, and will not travel to DC (Or Maryland) because of their laws. I will not purchase goods from, or manufactured in, either sovereignty since since tax dollars will go to tyrannical governments.

Your friend from Arizona is in deep kimshee

District of Columbia Law
DC Code Ann.
Title 6, Chapter 23: Firearms Control
Subchapter I. General Provisions

6-2301. Findings and purpose. The Council of the District of Columbia finds
that in order to promote the health, safety and welfare of the people of the
District of Columbia it is necessary to:
(1) Require the registration of all firearms that are owned by private citizens;
(2) Limit the types of weapons persons may lawfully possess;
(3) Ensure that only qualified persons are allowed to possess firearms;
(4) Regulate deadly weapons dealers; and
(5) Make it more difficult for firearms, destructive devices, and ammunition
to move in illicit commerce within the District of Columbia.

More:

Subchapter II. Firearms and Destructive
Devices
6-2311. Registration requirements.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no person or organization
in the District of Columbia (“District”) shall receive, possess, control,
transfer, offer for sale, sell, give, or deliver any destructive device, and
no person or organization in the District shall possess or control any firearm,
unless the person or organization holds a valid registration certificate
for the firearm. a registration certificate may be issued:
(1) To an organization if:
(A) The organization employs at least 1 commissioned special police officer
or employee licensed to carry a firearm whom the organization arms during the
employee’s duty hours; and
(B) The registration is issued in the name of the organization and in the
name of the president or chief executive officer of the organization; or
(2) In the discretion of the Chief of Police, to a police officer who has
retired from the Metropolitan Police Department.
(b) Subsection (a) of this shall not apply to:
(1) Any law enforcement officer or agent of the District or the United
States, or any law enforcement officer or agent of the government of any
state or subdivision thereof, or any member of the armed forces of the United
States, the National Guard or organized reserves, when such officer, agent,
or member is authorized to possess such a firearm or device while on duty in
the performance of official authorized functions;
(2) Any person holding a dealer’s license: Provided, that the firearm or destructive
device is:
(A) Acquired by such person in the normal conduct of business;
(B) Kept at the place described in the dealer’s license; and
(C) Not kept for such person’s private use or protection, or for the protection
of his business;
(3) With respect to firearms, any nonresident of the District participating
in any lawful recreational firearm-related activity in the District, or on
his way to or from such activity in another jurisdiction: Provided, that such
person, whenever in possession of a firearm, shall upon demand of any member
of the Metropolitan Police Department, or other bona fide law enforcement
officer, exhibit proof that he is on his way to or from such activity, and
that his possession or control of such firearm is lawful in the jurisdiction
in which he resides: Provided further, that such weapon shall be unloaded,
securely wrapped, and carried in open view.


Mr. Patock may have some wiggle room here.

"The Metropolitan police Department bomb squad responded to the scene to investigate the truck and trailer. Shortly thereafter, officers made contact with the suspect, James M. Patock. At this time,the suspect was not under arrest. During a conversation with the suspect, Patock stated that he had visited the NRA building, that he was a member of the NRA and that he had guns in the trailer. Later, Patock spontaneously stated that he lived in the trailer and that he was allowed to have his guns in his home."
From the charging documents

There is a range at the NRA building. He may or may not have utilized the range, but if he is a member, and had firearms along to shoot if he chose to.....I read it that he may have been able, as a non-resident, to transport to "any lawful recreational firearm-related activity in the District, or on his way to or from such activity in another jurisdiction".....
I'm wondering how good his court appointed attorney is on this kind of charge. All I can find on the court appointed attorney is that he is the treasurer for the Northern Virginia Black Attorneys Association. The attorney is

Larry Williams, Esquire
7619 Bertito Ln #200
Springfield, VA 22153
703-912-6873

aadvark said:

If this Man is in His Home, then, He should be covered by Heller.
Is the Camper/Trailor His Home?

Furthermore, what ever became of The Second Amendment Enforcement Act: http://media.nbcwashington.com/documents/gun+bill+mccain.pdf

Click to expand...

Ideally, "...keep <i>and bear</i>..." should cover him, but the courts haven't gotten that far yet. Under D.C. "law", however, I think he may be well and truely fornicated.