Last week week, Attorney General Bob McDonnell advised the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation that it does not have the authority to restrict firearms in state parks, potentially upending rules that have been in place at least 30 years.
Contrary to what the opinion suggests, there's no crime wave at First Landing, Chippokes Plantation or Kiptopeke suggesting the need for such dramatic action.
The last murder in a state park took place 20 years ago near Appomattox when a staffer was killed by her boyfriend. With 7 million visitors each year, that's a safety record worth boasting about.
Park officials have banned firearms around picnic grounds, swimming holes and boat landings - areas where most people gather for fun and relaxation - in an abundance of caution.
But they also have recognized reasonable exceptions. Guns are obviously allowed in designated hunting areas. Visitors who hold concealed weapons permits may keep their guns with them. Those rules make sense.
McDonnell's opinion speaks to the legality, not the wisdom, of banning gun owners from openly carrying their pistols in areas where they are now off-limits. Nothing in the opinion prevents Gov. Kaine from keeping the regulations as they are, but the General Assembly could overturn them - which no doubt is the end game.
The timing of McDonnell's opinion is no coincidence. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne is rushing to release regulations before his job expires that would permit loaded guns in national parks, but only in states with gun-friendly state parks. The National Rifle Association is backing the effort and pushing states to loosen their own firearm restrictions.
Existing regulations, adopted in 1983 under President Ronald Reagan, permit guns in national parks only if they are unloaded and safely stored.
Like their state counterparts, national parks have a minimal crime rate. Park visitors have about the same chance of being a victim of violent crime as they do of being struck by lightning: about 1 in 700,000. About 275 million people visited the 391 parks last year, but only nine homicides were reported, according to the National Park Service. At least two of those occurred more than 20 years earlier but were only recently discovered. Every city in South Hampton Roads, except Suffolk, had more murders last year.
McDonnell was dragged into this. Sen. Ken Cuccinelli of Fairfax requested the opinion and McDonnell had to comply. Cuccinelli is competing for the Republican nomination for attorney general against a former federal prosecutor, and he's been heavily courting gun rights groups.
Unlike Cuccinelli, McDonnell has not engaged in public chest-beating over the gun issue. However, he, too, has a political stake in the maneuvering. He plans to run for governor next year, and one potential opponent is Sen. Creigh Deeds, a Democrat who captured the NRA endorsement in 2005 when the two competed for attorney general.
The NRA rejected McDonnell because he supported the 1993 one-handgun-a-month law and opposed a superfluous constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to hunt and fish.
Only the NRA would think McDonnell's career-long efforts to restrict abortions and expand the death penalty don't qualify him as a conservative. McDonnell has nothing to fear from his political base, but his decision to give Cuccinelli ammunition is creating unnecessary fears and making parks less safe for everyone.
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Murder is not the only crime that concerns us
"The last murder in a state park took place 20 years ago"
Ah, but when was the last robbery in a state park? It is conceivable that the victims escaped murder only at the cost of submission to the robbers' demands. We should not demand that park visitors choose between death versus giving up their Constitutional Right to Freedom from Unwarranted Searches and Seizures.
And when was the last rape in a state park? If the right to control our own bodies is important enough to justify killing unborn babies, it's certainly important enough to justify shooting a rapist.
I live in the land where
I live in the land where Rich Daley, Rod Blagojevich, and Barack Obama have done everything they can to discourage lawful gun ownership, and in 1 of the only 2 states that has yet to enact sensible legislation regarding the lawful carrying of defensive firearms.
Look, I realize that some of you in Virginia are worried (in general) about the proliferation of folks carrying firearms, and would like to discourage it when you can. But that said, look at the records and crime rates of states with liberalized carry versus those who restrict the right. The difference is that when law-abiding citizens carry arms, violent crime is reduced. In Chicago, criminals (who obey no carry restrictions) tote arms with impunity. So not only do they know that they can commit crimes relatively unopposed, but that police departments are often unable to act for political reasons.
Communities are safe when responsible community members act, and when we all take a role in public safety. Criminals are predators who respect no one that matters ... while lawful citizens with firearms are responsible people, who serve as watchdogs.
Virginia ... do you want to be safer, or do you want to go the rou
Show Me
"Chances are an innocent person will get shot." Really??? Show me where you got that information. That statement is completely false.
To all, on a separate but related topic...
There is no glory in not knowing something that could one day save your life or the lives of your children, family, friends. There is no glory is telling yourself that you do not know how to safely handle a firearm.
I believe every law-abiding adult American should spend one Saturday afternoon at your local gun range and learn how to shoot. How to hold a firearm. Learn the safety rules, etc. Even if afterwords you decide that you don't want to own a gun you will still learn enough in that one day to keep yourself alive in a violent attack where by some miracle you get the gun away from the bad guy. If you don't know how to use it you will be in heap big trouble.
In one short afternoon you will loose the fear and gain confidence. Everyone I have ever taught how to safely handle a firearm has Thoroughly enjoyed the experience. A few were a little fearful before, but none were fearful afterwords.
It's not expensive and you can rent everything you need at the range. A day at the r
sorry I won't use your name
because I strongly disagree.
"Serial killers, or any other criminal, would not be carrying a firearm openly. It draws attention. The would-be perpetrator would conceal the firearm for the element of surprise."
Look how surprising it will be when serial killers and the like do carry their guns openly so they can fit in with the crowd. I'm not interested in taking your gun away, but I do want laws that ban them in certain venues.
PS: Gun do kill, so please don't open carry thinking you are going to save a life. Chances are an innocent person will get shot.
Gertz Point ???
Hey Gertz Point, the answer is easy.
Serial killers, or any other criminal, would not be carrying a firearm openly. It draws attention. The would-be perpetrator would conceal the firearm for the element of surprise.
Criminals will always find firearms. Gun bans only apply to those that have no propensity to commit a crime with a firearm.
To all,
Have you noticed that these anti-freedom folks try to prevent law-abiding citizens from owning and carrying firearms in urban (read: liberal controlled) areas because there is "too much violence"... and then also say the same thing about parks because there is "not enough violence" ???
How much "violence" is the proper amount? If a city has over a 100 murders but less than 150? What if, by allowing the law-abiding to carry firearms, the murder rate decreases below 100 - should we then ban the carrying of firearms? At least until there is more than 100 murders? It's nonsense.
Those who are afraid of the object that is called a 'firearm' are just repeating what they have been told by the liberal media since the 1960's. The mainstream media (ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, almost all newspapers, most colleges, etc.) bl
there seems to be no end
There seems to be no end where guns (open carry) is legal. Is the state has anything to say about this, then it's my opinion open carry should be restricted in certain venues.
Erroneous connection
The editorial errs in linking the timing of the request for this opinion to the proposed national park rules changes. The federal Department of the Interior proposal would only allow concealed carry - not open carry - and only in states that already permit licensed concealed carry in state parks. As Virginia does, in fact, allow concealed carry permit holders to take their weapons into state parks - which the editorial describes as reasonable - this opinion by the attorney general is irrelevant to the federal regulation. The new federal rules would simply allow a concealed carry permit holder in Virginia to carry into any national park in the state, as well. Logically, that would be as reasonable as the provision allowing permit holders into state parks. It also should be noted that all state laws relating to concealed carry - including recognition, or not, of non-residents' permits - would remain in effect.
Cars
That would be as silly as saying that we should ban cars because we can't tell if the driver has a license or is drunk.
if everyone carries a gun
how will you tell the serial killer from the average nut who wants to walk around with a gun on his hip?
How many traps do you wish to set?
National Parks are safe? Are you aware that a serial killer has been active along the Appalachian Trail, prying on female hikers, for almost a decade?
Of course, not all of the killing has been in a portion of the trail which is a part of a national park, but anyone hiking the trail will pass through areas that are parks. So, if one part of their hike passes through a park, they must be disarmed on their entire route.
The same principle applies in our daily lives. If I walk, or take the bus, on a series of errands in Norfolk, and any one of my stops is a Post Office, Restaurant with a liquor license or school, I must be disarmed the entire trip, even if parts of the trip are through dangerous areas. Now you want to ad parks to the number of places on my route that would disarm me. Gee, thanks.