DRAWING
A BEAD
Wilmette Case Raises Gun Ban Question
Richard A. Pearson
Executive
Director, ISRA
The recent self-defense shooting in Wilmette, IL has brought the question of gun bans to the forefront. “Wilmette residents are much safer without a handgun in their homes,” told Chief Carpenter to the Chicago Tribune. That statement is patently untrue. Chief Carpenter must be on the mailing list of handgun control. The anti-gunners quote the Kellermann study (in which Kellermann, et al suggest that gun ownership increases homicide at home) – a study Kellermann now rejects. The fact is there are at least four studies that show firearms are used between 2,600,000 to 4,200,000 times per year to prevent crime.
There are a couple of disturbing mentalities in the world that seem to promote helplessness and victimization. The first, promoted by Chief Carpenter, is that when faced with a potential killer, all you need to do is gather your family and cower behind your bedroom door; defenseless, of course. Not to worry, the police will arrive in the nick of time – just like the US Calvary in a B movie. In reality, the police arrive on time about as much as the US Calvary really did arrive in time. When you hide behind your bedroom door, you are depending on hope. Hope is a poor strategy. The Chief suggests that if you had a handgun you would try to search the house yourself. The Chief needs to take a Personal Protection course – he would learn that you stay put and wait for the police to arrive, with your handgun, of course. If you took a personal protection course, you would learn the Supreme Court has ruled the police are under no obligation to protect you (Warren vs. District of Columbia, 1981 and Riss vs. City of New York 1968). I guess the Chief forgot to mention that.
The more you are convinced you cannot defend yourself, the more important mayors, councilmen, and local police chiefs become. Conversely, the more knowledge and confidence you possess, the less need for them you have. Criminals do not respond to restraint, they respond to overwhelming force. The handgun is the best implement for close quarters self-defense. The Police Chief and Tom Mannard of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence (ICHV) suggest using a shotgun. Can you imagine, knowing you have an intruder in the house, trying to quietly slip through your dark house and at the same time gathering your family as you carry a four-foot long shotgun? The shotgun would catch on every door frame and table leg and knock off every knickknack in the house. A shotgun requires two hands. Imagine how you are going to carry your children, open and close doors, and be quiet – all that with both hands full. Their bias is obvious. A handgun is the most maneuverable in tight places because it can be used with one hand.
The second mentality is that somehow it is more virtuous to be a victim than to defend yourself. Those who espouse this mentality seem to promote a couple of concepts. First: “Your life is worth nothing in comparison to that of the criminal.” Second: “We’re sorry you are dead, but it is for the greater good.” Suppose you buy into the second, ‘it’s better to be a victim’ theory – suddenly there’s an intruder in your house, you gather your family and huddle behind the locked bedroom door, and wait for the men in blue to ride to your rescue. Then it dawns on you – if you are killed, your family will probably be killed also because they are all witnesses. You might not want to defend yourself, but did those with you give you a proxy allowing you to decide whether they should live or die? You have decided not to defend yourself and you have decided the fate of others.
When the intruder has already come through the locked outside door, what good will the flimsy lock on your bedroom door do? If you even have one. When you come nose to nose with a potential killer in your own home, all those philosophical arguments about why you shouldn’t own a handgun go out the window.
What about those police chiefs, mayors, city councilmen, and village trustees who decided handguns or other firearms should not be in their city or town? Well, the town is yours, too. When you voted for a mayor, city councilman, or village trustee because you liked their ideas on garbage collection, snow removal, or beautification, you did not give them the authority to decide how or if you can defend yourself. They assume too much; they are not elected for life; and it should not be their choice whether you live or die.
The village president, village trustees, and police of Wilmette are typical of the anti-gun establishment. They will not reverse the anti-gun ban even though it is clear the ordinance is a bad one. The Illinois State Rifle Association’s (ISRA) response to this event is the support of SB2165. SB2165, sponsored by Sen. Ed Petka (R - Plainfield), provides an affirmative defense to a violation of a municipal ordinance that prohibits, regulates, or restricts the private ownership of firearms if the individual who is charged with the violation uses the firearm in an act of self defense or the defense of another. We urge all of you to support this bill.
Richard A. Pearson
Executive Director, ISRA