Transportation Email to .gov

When an effort is launched apart from this transportation thing, to eliminate PFZs, and especially that silly little liquor license catch-all, you can bet that I will be on board with that effort.

Update

Him : [FONT=&quot]Thank you for the feedback, we are familiar with HB 5282 and helped to write it. It was necessary in that under the rule of lenity whatever is not expressly illegal is legal, so as to define lawful purposes with specific instances means that some activities that were otherwise not considered illegal would somehow be considered not a legal purpose. So for example, if you stopped at a gas station on the way to the range, the gas station stop might be considered illegal because it is not expressly listed (we know of a person who the police got on this point). We understand 5282 would not address your desire for loaded pistols without a CPL, but wanted to explain why HB 5282 was needed. We have talked to other reps about your concept, which we don’t dismiss, but most of them have just suggested the person get a CPL. We see your point but just wanted to convey to you our experience as we have shopped around various proposals we have tried to get support for. Ultimately we are trying to find things that are the best benefit for gun owners that we can still get passed out of both chambers and sent to the Governor.


Me : [/FONT]I am also aware of people who have gotten screwed under the old transportation law. Not everyone can get, or wants to get a CPL. Not all of those people have ever done anything wrong to bar them from getting a CPL. The right to both keep and to bear arms belongs to all mentally stable non violent people, not just a few. A CPL turns a right into a privelidge, it is ine of the worst infringements to the so called right to keep and bear arms that there ever was. A person should not have to ask for, qualify to use, and then pay to exercise a right that the government did not give them in the first place. How would my suggestion of eliminating these two unconstitutional laws not prevent the case you cited from happening to some other innocent person? Gun control is about control, not about guns. These laws do nothing to hinder criminals, I dare say, that most criminals are unaware of them, and wouldn't care about them, nor understand what they read if they knew how to find them. Please try to convince the other representatives to err on the side of freedom by sharing these ideas with them, that way at least we will know whose side they are on come election time.
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Stainless I personally appreciate your efforts in this, I think seeing how in the last exchange you were told the other reps suggested a person "just get a CPL" unfortunately that is not the case for everyone. I think I will be writing Rep. Opsommer myself to let him know others are aware of this and to give him an idea of what someone with no CPL has to go through, as well as the fears they may have when they contemplate not being able to reach their firearm in time.

Thanks again.

You're welcome, and please, if any of you want to help out, by all means, write your reps. I have noticed that MR Oppsomer is one of the only ones in Lansing that at least tries to correspond with me on such things.

I spoke rather sharply on my latest reply, but I feel that it was still professional enough, and necessary.

This is the email I had just sent...some might find it long, I find it helped get my point accross.

Mr. Representative,

I am writing you today because myself and fellow gun owners were made aware of an on going conversation with yourself and a fellow gun owner regarding the need to repeal MCL 750.227 and MCL 750.231a to allow a person without a Michigan CPL to carry or have access to a loaded pistol in the passenger compartment of their private vehicle.

At first I was following a long with the exchanged emails as they were presented to me, with hopes of change coming to give back those freedoms that have been taken away and allow others that God given right to protect ourselves, even in our vehicles. It was not my intention at all to contact you regarding this matter until something rattled my nerve in one of the emails sent by you to the other individual. In the email it was discussed that you have spoken with other representatives and the collective response to repealing both of the MCL's listed above was that they "suggested the person get a CPL." I have a couple problems with the mindset of "just get a CPL" In michigan there is a rather large list of misdemeanors that prevent a person from getting a CPL for between 3 or 8 years. The list can be seen here on the Michigan State Police Website: http://michigan.gov/msp/1,1607,7-123-1591_3503_4654-10926--,00.html I am one of the potentially thousands of citizens within the state of Michigan who cannot "just get a CPL" due to a minor infraction because of some slight slip of mind. I am one of the many that still worry about how they will protect themselves if they are ever attacked or find themselves in a situation where their life or the life of a loved one is in danger and they need to protect it. By viewing the statistics released by the Michigan State Police regarding various crimes here: http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,4643,7-123-1645_3501_4621-259467--,00.html you can see that even though there are thousands of people in Michigan who would like to be able to protect themselves and cant due to having some form of disqualifying misdemeanors, crime in Michigan is not stopping.

Thankfully according to Michigans laws I can still possess, transport, and carry a pistol, provided I carry it openly, so I am not completely unarmed, however due to MCL 750.227 and .231a I am severely hindered in my ability to protect myself, even though I may still have a pistol. Since I cannot "just get a CPL" due to my mistake I am required BY LAW to unload my firearm at the trunk of my vehicle and place it in a container designed for transportation of a firearm (MCL 750.231a) then drive to the desired location and take my firearm out of my trunk, load it, and holster it. This may sound simple and like a solution to my problem however the problem isnt having to frequently unarm and rearm myself, it comes while I am seated in my vehicle.

I heard of an incident a few months ago, one I'm sure is just part of a number of similiar incidents, where a young man and his lady were out in the evening and upon stopping at a location an unidentified man approached the vehicle and attempted to rob the young couple at which time the attacker opened fire with a pistol seriously wounding the young man in the driver seat before fleeing the scene. The last I heard of the incident the young man was in critical condition at a local hospital. This happened in the Lansing area. The only thing that runs through my mind when I hear of incidents such as this is 'what if it was me' and I say this because had it been me and my lady that night, though my firearm was just feet away in my trunk, I would have no access to it and would be unable to access it at the time the attack took place. Even though I had a firearm in my trunk I am still completely defenseless for myself and my loved one. Attacks like this, while not too often, do happen and will continue to happen, the only thing we have to do is ask ourselves and our representatives how long are we willing to allow the citizens of Michigan to be unnecessary victims?

By repealing MCL 750.227 and .231a you allow citizens like myself who cannot "just get a CPL" a means to protect ourselves while in our vehicle. A vehicle which is our private property and if yourself and others do not agree then I must ask, why then do law enforcement need a search warrant to access our vehicles and its locked compartments? By repealing the afore mentioned laws you give the ability to protect oneself back to the citizen, by allowing a person to carry a firearm on their person in their vehicle or to have it easily accessible in their vehicle they can protect themselves from vicious attacks such as the one I mentioned.

Again I ask for your support in repealing MCL 750.227 and 231a so that the citizens of Michigan who cannot "just get a CPL" regain the ability to defend themselves while in their vehicle if they ever have to. The 2nd Amendment grants the right to bear arms to the people, just as Article 1 Section 6 of the Michigan Constition, its time the peoples rights were restored.

Thank you Yance.

Awesome point about the search warrant, somehow, that never crossed my mind. I'm going to use that one from now on, nice job!

Response

[FONT=&quot]Yes, I don’t disagree with you. Don’t have a CPL myself.[/FONT]