Posted: 3/27/2007 11:22:01 AM EDT
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HB 2469, which reduces the penalty for a concealed weapon permit holder failing to have their permit in their possession while carrying concealed, is headed for a vote by the full Senate – probably this week. Under current law (ARS 13-3112.D), a person is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor offense if they fail to present a concealed weapons permit upon the request of a law enforcement officer. The language of the current law does not clarify that a person must be a concealed weapons permit holder, or in possession of a weapon, or even if a weapon must be concealed. However, if they produce a legible permit that was valid at the time of the violation when they go to court, "they shall not be convicted." Meanwhile, they have been subjected to possible arrest and confiscation of their weapon prior to appearing in court. Furthermore, their concealed weapon permit information was available to the arresting officer, via a records search, at the time of the encounter. The proposed language in HB 2469: · Restricts the application of the law to concealed weapons permit holders. · Reduces the penalty to a petty offense. · Clarifies that a permit holder can only be charged if they are carrying a concealed weapon when they fail to present their permit at the request of a law enforcement officer. Please take the time to send a polite note to the Senators and let them know that you want them to vote for HB 2469. You can also use the cut-and-paste message provided below. Following the message are the email addresses of the Senate in both semi-colon and comma separation formats. Use the list that is compatible with your email software. Subject: Support HB 2469. Dear Senator: The Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) has informed me that HB 2469 will soon be considered by the full Senate. I urge you to vote for HB 2469. Under the current provisions of ARS 13-3112.D, I am subject to a class 2 misdemeanor if I am unable to present a concealed weapons permit upon the request of a law enforcement officer. The language of the current law does not clarify that I must even be a concealed weapons permit holder or in possession of a weapon or even if a weapon must be concealed. Furthermore, the law says I "shall not be convicted" if I produce a valid permit to the court. HB 2469 clarifies that ARS 13-3112.D applies only to concealed weapons permit holders who are in possession of a concealed weapon. The penalty is reduced to a petty offense while the "shall not convict" language is retained for those producing a valid permit to the court. This allows honest mistakes by law-abiding citizens to be handled quickly, allowing scarce law enforcement and court resources to be focused on more important issues. Again, I urge to vote for the passage of HB 2469. Sincerely, (Your Name) (Street Address) (City, State, Zip) Senate members in semi-colon format: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; to'[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] Senate members in comma format: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], to'[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] Information on HB 2469 and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html As legislation progresses, we will keep you up to date via these Alerts and at our website. These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html Copyright © 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SB 1629, which reduces the penalty for carrying a concealed weapon without a permit for otherwise law-abiding citizens, passed in the House Homeland Security and Property rights (HSPR) committee on Monday, March 26, 2007 by a vote of 6-4. The bill was amended to make the first offense for carrying a concealed weapon without a permit a petty offense. Any subsequent violations would be a class 3 misdemeanor, unless you are committing, or attempting to commit, a serious or violent crime, in which case it would remain a class 1 misdemeanor. Currently all violations are class 1 misdemeanors. SB 1629 was previously heard in the HSPR committee on Monday, March 19, 2007, but because of a tie vote (5-5) cast by Representative Barto, it looked like the bill was effectively killed for the session. When word got out, many of you contacted Rep. Barto expressing your disappointment with her for voting against SB 1629. At the same time, Dave Kopp and John Wentling, AzCDL's president and vice-president, met with Rep. Barto and the House leadership to address her concerns about SB 1629. The end result is that Rep. Barto asked the committee to reconsider SB 1629 where she voted for passage on March 26th. We will keep you informed on the progress of SB 1629 and other important legislation. Information on this and other bills can be found at the AzCDL website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/legislation.html These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html Copyright © 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. |