Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL)

Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
PO. Box 513, Newington, VA 22122 • 804-639-0600 • 703-372-3285 • 757-271-3705 • 540-446-5783

06/23/08 - Picnic and Fairfax police make false arrest!

1. The VCDL picnic - wow! 2. Three Fairfax County police officers prove the Keystone Kops are alive and well ********************************************************** 1. The VCDL picnic - wow! ********************************************************** Saturday's picnic in Newport News couldn't have been better! With almost 200 attendees, the picnic was VCDL's largest yet. The weather was incredible, too. Bright sunny day, with low humidity and a continuous and fairly strong breeze kept everyone comfortable. Members and non-members came from as far away as Bristol and even Maryland! The press was there filming for most of the day - more on that in an upcoming alert. Apparently a Newport News park ranger was called about a "man with a gun." He took one look at well over 100 armed men and women peacefully enjoying a picnic, took a few pictures of the pavilion, and left. He never actually came to the pavilion. The pictures were probably for his fellow rangers - "you aren't going to believe this!" ;-) Delegate Pogge, who carried a bill for VCDL this year, spoke to the group. She also spoke briefly for Senator Ken Cuccinelli, who had been invited but couldn't make it. Many thanks to all those who made the picnic and the food line flow smoothly, including: Board members Dennis O'Connor and Bruce Jackson, EMs Ron and Jean Hyson, Ron Lilly, Pete Clark, Bonnie Clark, and Sandy Ferris, and members Bill and Jan Donald, Ed Burton, Monty Oakes, Coreena and William Taylor, and membership director Jacque Blundell (who was updating memberships on the spot with a portable computer). Some "celebrities" that dropped by were Chet and Debbie Szymechi, Bill Mixon, and Danladi Moore. Chet was unlawfully arrested for open carry and his wife assaulted last year by the Norfolk Police and sheriff's deputies. Their federal lawsuit is progressing. Bill Mixon was the VCDL member who was on the cover of Concealed Carry Magazine a few months ago. Danladi was unlawfully arrested last year for not identifying himself to officers when open carrying, having done nothing wrong. I was approached by Jo Whistler at the picnic and she discussed a petition for the redress of grievances that GiveMeLiberty.org has put together on the Second Amendment. I told her I would pass it on the the alert list so that anyone who wanted to sign it, could. It does require you to register to sign the petition: http://tinyurl.com/4x2z4g ********************************************************** 2. Three Fairfax County police officers prove the Keystone Kops are alive and well ********************************************************** We haven't had any issues with the Fairfax County police in quite a while now. I have found them to be one of the best run police agencies in Virginia. However, three officers tarnished that image last week when they unlawfully arrested a North Carolina resident who was legally carrying a handgun and had a North Carolina CHP. Hold on tight - this is a weird story. The gun owner was pulled over for running through a red light, a charge which the gun owner disputes. The gun owner, believing that he had to disclose he was lawfully armed as they do in North Carolina, dutifully told the officer he had a NC CHP and was indeed armed. The officer seemed to ignore the statement, but very shortly two more patrol units pulled up. The next thing the gun owner knew he is in a "felony stop" mode. He was asked to walk backwards towards the officers, who then disarmed and handcuffed him. While trying to unloaded his gun, THEY DROPPED IT ONTO THE ROAD! The two officers and a SERGEANT then proceeded to tell him that he was under arrested for: 1. Having hollow point bullets, which they claimed were illegal in Virginia (!) 2. Taking a loaded gun across the state line, which the gun owner was told was a FELONY (!) 3. Having a concealed gun that the police said he couldn't have since he was from North Carolina (!!) His car and gun were impounded and he was taken off to a magistrate. The magistrate looked at the charges and told the police officers that they had just made a false arrest. The officers pointed out the possession of hollow point bullets. The magistrate asked, "are they teflon coated?" "No," replied on of the officers. "Then they are legal." Trying to find something that would stick and justify the false arrest, one of the officers said, "We couldn't verify that his North Carolina permit is valid." The magistrate looked at the permit, noticed the phone number on the back where one can call to verify the permit, called the number, and within a few minutes found out the permit was indeed valid. The gun owner was ordered to be released. After being released from custody, the gun owner was given a hard time by another officer about getting his gun back, but he did finally get it back. If all of that isn't bad enough, the arresting officer went ahead and gave the gun owner a ticket for the alleged offense of running a red light! In essence, with that brilliant move, the officer was practically BEGGING the gun owner to PLEASE sue Fairfax Count for the false arrest! I have already talked to my high-level contact with the Fairfax County PD about this entire situation and the gun owner has filed a formal complaint. In the past, Fairfax County PD has been very good when such internal investigations are required. Now we will wait and see what happens. What is clear is that Fairfax County PD needs to educate its officers on: 1. Possession of hollow point bullets 2. Reciprocity laws 3. Lawful carriage of firearms across state lines 4. Safe gun handling (a few years ago unsafe gun handling by an officer cause a gun to discharge, killing an unarmed, handcuffed man) ------------------------------------------- ***************************************************************************