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California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the results of a 5-day sweep led by the California Department of Justice, or DOJ, that targeted 51 prohibited persons. The state arrested 13 people and seized 114 firearms and 49,148 rounds of ammunition during the sweep.
The sweep was focused on Los Angeles County using California’s Armed and Prohibited Persons System, or APPS.
“California’s Armed and Prohibited Persons System is a critical tool that makes the work of cracking down on illegal gun ownership and possession possible,” said Bonta. “Last week, using APPS and working together with our law enforcement partners in Southern California, our teams removed 114 firearms from individuals who are no longer legally allowed to own or possess firearms or ammunition.”
“Collaborative efforts like these increase our success in taking guns out of potentially dangerous hands, reducing gun violence, and keeping our neighborhoods safe,” said Bonta.
“A great display of local and state partners coordinating and cooperating to ensure prohibited persons aren’t in possession of firearms,” said LAPD Chief Michel Moore. “The LAPD supports and maintains a relationship with our local partners as well as California DOJ to accomplish this mission on a daily basis.”
The California DOJ’s Bureau of Firearms, or BOF, worked with officers representing the Azusa Police Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, the LAPD, the Pasadena Police Department, the Pomona Police Department, the Los Angeles County Probation Department, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
“We are thankful to all the partner agencies of the operation and proud to have been a part of getting dangerous guns off the streets,” said Los Angeles County Probation Chief Deputy Karen Fletcher. “Working together, we helped make Los Angeles safer thanks to all those who put their lives on the line daily and the hard-working members of our probation team.”
“Pasadena Police Department is excited about partnering with the California Department of Justice in an effort to stop gun violence,” said Interim Pasadena Police Chief Cheryl Moody. “This collaboration will certainly benefit those communities most impacted by individuals who illegally possess or use firearms.”
Following leads from 439 cases, agents and officers seized 55 handguns, 19 rifles, 15 shotguns, 17 “assault weapons” and eight “ghost guns” in addition to ammunition and magazines. The sweep follows an earlier operation in the Bay Area that netted 30 firearms, resulting in eight arrests.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is pushing legislation that would open the floodgates for frivolous lawsuits against the gun industry.
During a press conference at Del Mar Fairgrounds last Friday, Newsom spoke about his mission to go on the “offensive” by allowing private citizens, municipalities, and the state attorney general to sue gun makers and sellers for “reckless behavior.”
“California will continue to lead the fight to end gun violence with bold action to tackle the national crisis putting millions of Californians at risk,” said Gov. Newsom.
“It’s time to go on the offensive with new measures that empower individuals to hold irresponsible and negligent gun industry actors to account, crack down on shameful advertising that targets our kids and more,” he continued. “This is not about attacking law-abiding gun owners – it’s about stopping the tragic violence ravaging communities across the country.”
Per a press release from the governor’s office, the three bills being prioritized are as follows:
- AB 1594 would allow individuals and the Attorney General to sue firearm manufacturers and sellers
- AB 2571 would prohibit the marketing of certain categories of weapons to children
- AB 1621 would tighten ghost gun restrictions
Media outlets are covering AB 1594 as a copycat of a controversial Texas law that allows any private citizen to sue an abortion provider even if that individual did not receive an abortion. Newsom threatened to propose such a law after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to strike down the Texas policy.
In fact, the California law is modeled more closely after another equally bad New York law that allows gun makers to be sued for creating a “public nuisance.” That law has come under fire from the National Shooting Sports Foundation as a blatant attempt to “impose on the firearm industry a ‘death by a thousand cuts,’” said Lawrence Keane of the NSSF.
With a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers, it’s likely that Legilsture will move expeditiously to enact the proposed bills. Stay tuned for updates.
A veteran New York firefighter has been charged with multiple gun-related crimes after an interstate task force followed him to a gun show in Pennsylvania and arrested him as he was driving home.
The sting is the first publicized action of the new Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns, a collaboration between state and federal law enforcement agencies announced by New York Governor Kathy Hochul last month.
When the task force was announced, it was unclear whether agents would be targeting large criminal networks of gun runners or individual gun owners. Now, we know.
Aaron B. Martin, 49, who works for FDNY’s elite Rescue 4 in Queens, was charged with multiple crimes, including felony possession of an “assault weapon,” according to the New York Post.
It’s unclear why agents targeted Martin, but the Post reports that a surveillance team followed Martin to the “Oaks Extravaganza” gun show at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center on Feb. 13.
There, they allegedly observed him purchase two Polymer80 receivers, two “high-capacity magazines,” holding more than ten rounds, and one Sipahi semi-automatic 12-gauge shotgun.
Agents followed Martin until he crossed the border into New York City and pulled him over in Howard Beach, Queens, on Belt Parkway.
At the time, Martin admitted to purchasing the shotgun but denied possessing any other firearms or gun parts, according to police. Law enforcement seized the gun and parts along with a set of brass knuckles.
Martin does not possess a license to own a shotgun, which is a requirement in New York City.
Martin has been suspended from the Fire Department of New York for 28 days without pay. Along with serving for Rescue 4, he is a chief on the Roosevelt, L.I., volunteer fire department.
Law enforcement officials have not said why Martin was targeted, and he does not appear to have a criminal history.
When Gov. Hochul announced the task force, she characterized it as a way to stop the “flow of illegal guns.”
“We have a moral obligation to do everything we can to fight the scourge of illegal guns on our streets,” she said. “Too many lives have been lost because of illegal firearms that should never have been on our streets. By convening law enforcement officials from across the region, we can share intelligence and strategies that stem the flow of illegal guns and keep New Yorkers safe.”
The task force brings together ATF agents along with law enforcement agencies from New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, Ohio, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New Hampshire.
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Sorta Blasphemy
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have an example of an earlier adopter of the centerfire cartridge. This is a French Devisme 11mm cartridge revolver. These revolvers made their way into the world around 1858 and is a centerfire self-contained cartridge revolver, this makes it one of the first adopters of centerfire long before it was cool!
The Devisme name was long associated with high-end products such as firearms, swords, and daggers. They had a fairly avid clientele that weirdly featured many higher-ups in the American Confederacy. People such as Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. This fact is not so weird at a closer look since many European nations were in support of the Confederacy during the American Civil War.
The Model 1858 11mm cartridge revolver was especially unique in that it was a break-action revolver like a Smith and Wesson Schofield but instead of being “top-break” it was “bottom-break”.
“The top of the barrel is signed “Devisme a Paris.” Devisme of Paris was known to have supplied weapons to a number of top Confederates, including President Jefferson Davis. This revolver has a barrel that locks to the frame with a swiveling key, which is fitted with a gear arrangement to automatically position the ejector rod when the breech is unlocked. Fitted with checkered bag shaped grips with a pair of screw escutcheons on each side.”
Lot 1392: Devisme Fp Revolver 11 mm. (n.d.). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/67/1392/devisme-fp-revolver-11-mm.
For revolver fans the Smith & Wesson K-Frame is a time-tested choice. These medium frame guns have served as home defense and carry guns for over 100 years and counting.
The “service revolver” sized K-frame has several advantages over the smaller “back up gun” sized J-frame revolvers. The K-frame guns have six shots to the J-frame’s five, better triggers, a larger grip, and typically have longer barrels. While the average J-frame gun sports a 2” tube the standard barrel length on the K-frame is usually 4”. The downside, of course, is that the larger K-frame is harder to conceal than the snub-nose J-frame guns.
That brings us to a popular choice among revolver aficionados: The 3” barreled K-frame. The one-inch shorter barrel makes the gun easier to conceal while giving up only a little bit of velocity from the 4″ version. The 3” K-frame also retains the full-length ejector rod found on the 4” barreled gun which allows for a full ejection stroke to more reliably kick the empty cases out of the chambers. While there are also 2” K-frame models, they use a shortened ejector rod similar to that on the 2” barreled J-frame guns.
Among the 3” K-frames the Model 65 has the unique combination of features that make it, in my opinion, the best of the breed. The Model 65 is chambered in .357 Magnum which gives it greater versatility than the .38 Special guns including the Model 10, Model 15, and Model 64. The 65 is made of stainless steel which is more resistant to wear and moisture than the blued finish of the Models 10, 13, 15, and 19. This is especially important for concealed carry where the gun can come into contact with body sweat. The Model 65’s fixed rear sight does not have sharp edges to catch on clothing or skin while also being less prone to breakage from rough handling than the adjustable target sights on the Model 15, Model 19 (both blued) or the stainless steel Model 66.
For shooting the 3” Model 65 points well with good balance and, in my experience, is as accurate as the 4” barreled models for all practical purposes. For carry, it’s amazing the difference losing an inch of barrel makes when carrying a 3” gun instead of a 4” gun. I can carry my Model 65 3” in an inside the waistband Alessi Talon holster much more comfortably than I have ever been able to carry a 4” revolver in the same spot. Nestled in front of my right hip the gun disappears under a T-shirt.
For all its advantages there is a drawback to the 3” Model 65: They are hard to find. Unfortunately, this model fell victim to the cutbacks in the S&W K-frame line over the years along with many other classic K’s. While the company currently offers several .38 Special and .357 Magnum blued revolvers in their “Classics” line, none have 3” barrels. The closest is the regular production Model 66 .357 Magnum with a 2.75” barrel but this revolver lacks the full-length ejector rod of the 3” gun, and while stainless steel, features an adjustable target sight instead of the fixed rear sight of the Model 65.
As a result the 3” Model 65 has a bit of a cult following among those who favor the wheelgun. Those who have them tend to keep them and those who want them are forced to haunt used gun cases in local shops or pay scalper’s prices on the auction sites.
