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GA gun rights activist dig in to defend Stand Your Ground

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The state of Georgia has had a Stand Your Ground law for quite some time. Even before that, though, case law in the state amounted to pretty much the same thing. People didn’t have to try to run from a violent attack before exercising their right to self-defense.

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And the state has solidified its pro-gun bonafides recently with the passage of constitutional carry.

So gun rights are well and truly preserved here.

Or are they? It seems a gun rights group in the Peach State is digging in for a fight on Stand Your Ground.

While Georgia’s General Assembly ramps up early in January, the fight over gun rights legislation is underway.

GA2A, a Georgia Second Amendment advocacy group, launched a “Stand Up for Stand Your Ground” campaign in what they call a “right to self-defense” movement.

The campaign aims to fight House Bill 842, Georgia Shoot First Act, sponsored by State Rep. Marvin Lim (D-Norcross).

The legislation replaces Georgia’s stand your ground law — with duty to retreat.

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“We are continuing to protect the right to self-defense so long as someone has a reasonable perception of a deadly threat,” said Lim, an attorney. “The one thing that we are adding is to say that when you are considering what is reasonable, make sure that the ability to walk away, i.e., the duty to retreat, is part of what a person considers.”

Now, Lim has proposed this legislation and apparently thinks it has a chance in hell of actually passing, so I don’t blame GA2A for fighting back.

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I also don’t blame them for gearing up for it now and start making their voices heard well before the legislative session begins in January.

The good news, though, is that there’s not much chance of this happening.

After all, Georgia just passed constitutional carry not that long ago. There’s little chance of that same legislature and governor supporting an end to Stand Your Ground.

Moreover, I can’t recall a single state that passed a Stand Your Ground law repeal it for duty to retreat. That’s important because if it were causing the kinds of problems that some claim, someone likely would have done so.

And that’s good because duty to retreat laws are nothing more than a tool anti-gun prosecutors can use to make life difficult for people caught in a bad situation and who used lethal force.

Lim says his bill respects the right of self-defense, but what will happen is anti-gun prosecutors will use the absence of Stand Your Ground to go after anyone they can. They’ll look in the cold light of day and suddenly discover some window they could have crawled through or some gate they might have squeezed through and then prosecute a law-abiding citizen for defending their life.

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Yet the question is, if there’s little chance of this bill passing, why gear up for the fight?

My take is that if you don’t smack these things down and smack them down hard, anti-gunners start thinking they’ll get it next year. They’ll start pushing more and more anti-gun legislation into the pipeline, all in an effort to take away our right to self-defense.

And Georgia has elected two Democrats to the Senate, so while Stand Your Ground is safe for the moment, it won’t be indefinitely if things keep going as they have. GA2A gearing up now means they’ll have the manpower to do it later.

WATCH: Not Even Merrick Garland Was Falling for Hank Johnson’s Clarence Thomas Nonsense During Hearing

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It was a wild day on Capitol Hill, to say the least, considering the fireworks that were at times on display during the House Judiciary Committee’s hearing on the oversight of the Dept. of Justice.

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U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland was of course the star of the show, getting grilled by Committee Chair Jim Jordan, Thomas Massie, Matt Gaetz, and other Republicans on numerous issues including January 6th and the FBI informants, U.S. Attorney David Weiss’ investigation into Hunter Biden, and the DOJ dropping a Trump-era initiative that was “focused on countering Chinese espionage.”

But at one point during the hearing, Garland faced questions from Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson, who used some of his time to butter up Garland and try to get him to comment on supposed “ethics concerns” Democrats have about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. 

Instead of giving Johnson what he wanted to hear, a seemingly agitated Garland simply told him he would “speak to the office of legislative affairs” regarding Johnson’s and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s April request to the Judicial Conference to refer Thomas to the DOJ for investigation:

Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., has asked the Justice Department to investigate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for potential ethical violations. Johnson asked Garland, a former judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, whether a billionaire ever flew him on a private jet, paid for vacations at exclusive resorts or paid for his godson’s tuition.

Garland nervously said he didn’t want to answer questions that sounded both hypothetical and nonhypothetical. It’s also a question that is somewhat personal for him: Garland had been nominated to be a Supreme Court Justice by former President Barack Obama, but Senate Republicans, led by Mitch McConnell, blocked a vote on his election-year confirmation.

“I know these are not hypothetical questions and I think this is really not within my realm,” Garland said. “I always held myself to the highest standards of ethical responsibility.”

Garland said he would check with the department about where Johnson’s request for an investigation of Thomas stood.

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Watch the number of times Johnson made veiled references to Thomas’ alleged unethical behavior below in using hypotheticals, and how Garland refused to take the bait each time:

In response, one Twitter user quipped that they were “surprised Hank Johnson is at the hearing today for Merrick Garland. I thought he’d be at the island of Guam, checking to see if it’s still afloat,” a reference to Johnson’s infamous remarks during a 2010 House Armed Services Committee hearing where he expressed concern that Guam would “tip over and capsize” from having so many military personnel on it.

For those who missed that moment or would like a refresher on it for context, watch:

Nobody ever said you had to be the sharpest tool in the shed to become a member of Congress, and we have Hank Johnson to thank for continuously proving the point.

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Flashback: Merrick Garland’s DOJ Takes Aim at Jim Justice and the Timing Absolutely Should Be Questioned

Georgia Homeowner Shoots Wanted Murderer Who Broke Into His Home

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A Georgia homeowner was forced to use his firearm to defend himself after an intruder broke into his residence. The incident further underscores the importance of gun ownership and the ability to defend oneself even in one’s own home.

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The situation started when an intruder carrying a knife broke into the resident’s home.

Just before 2 a.m., the Fayette County 911 got a call from a resident in north Fayette County about a possible intruder in his house. At the same time, they also received a notice from the alarm company for that residence.

Deputies were just a couple of minutes away. They say the homeowner armed himself with a gun and confronted the intruder in the basement. Investigators say the intruder was armed had a knife.

Deputies say the homeowner warned the intruder before shooting him. Investigators say the homeowner then left the basement and took up a position to protect his family on the second floor at the staircase.

“There, he took his stand as the subject made his way up to the second floor. [He] made the comment, something to the effect of, ‘You’re going to have to kill me.’ When the resident fired a second shot. That was about the time the deputies got there. From we can tell, he was coming down the stairway with a second gunshot wound,” said Fayette County Sheriff Barry Babb. “At that point, they actually still struggled with him [as they] took him into custody.”

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What is even more alarming about this incident is that the suspect was also wanted for murder and a slew of other crimes:

Investigator do say the suspect has a long criminal history and may be connected to a murder that occurred outside of Georgia. They are not releasing where, but say they are working with law enforcement from that area as the investigation continues.

Fortunately for the homeowner, he happens to live in a state that does not impose strict gun control laws. His being a gun owner ensured that he had the ability to defend himself from a potential murderer. While law enforcement has not released much detail about his criminal history, the fact that he is wanted for murder says all we need to know about how dangerous this situation could have become, especially had the homeowner not been armed. It’s situations like these that show you that one can never know when they might be placed in a dangerous situation.

It is also worth noting that the police arrived shortly after the resident shot the intruder for the second time. They essentially arrived just in time to take the individual into custody, which further conveys a popular maxim in the gun community: “When seconds count, the police are only minutes away.”

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Another noteworthy component of this story is that the resident did not rush to shoot the intruder. Instead, he issued a warning first, and only when it became clear the assailant wasn’t going to back down, he fired his weapon. This could potentially protect him if he happens to live in an area where the prosecutor doesn’t look favorably on self-defense. It might also be helpful if, for some wacky reason, the attempted assailant decides to file a civil lawsuit against the homeowner.

All in all, this was another situation in which an armed citizen used his firearm to protect his life and property. Once again, this story shows why it is important for people to be responsibly armed.

 

GA Governor Kemp Declares State of Emergency and Suspends Gas Tax—Take Note California

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Atlanta, GA—Georgia Governor Brian Kemp officially declared a state of emergency today due to high inflation and poor economic conditions in the state stemming from bad economic policies coming out of Washington, D.C. In his declaration, Kemp said he is temporarily suspending the state’s excise tax on motor and locomotive fuel. The suspension of the tax took effect at midnight this morning and will go through October 12th, 2023. This move will save everyone buying gas in Georgia approximately 29 cents per gallon. Kemp has suspended the state’s gas tax before, and that suspension lasted for 10 months when it was in effect from March to December of 2022. 

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It is no secret that people are struggling every day due to the poor economic policies of President Joe Biden’s administration. Everything in this country is more expensive than it was before he took office, and gas prices are still at record highs around the country, especially here in California. The lower and middle classes are suffering, but Biden is all smiles, though he probably isn’t smiling for the reasons we think he is. He’s probably thinking of ice cream or vacations, not us. When you have leftists saying it’s bad, you know you have a problem: 

California is not so different than Georgia; in fact, one can even say we have it far worse than they do, yet Governor Gavin Newson refuses to take similar action. When the overwhelming majority of Californians can’t even buy a house, let alone pay for a tank of gas, there is a huge problem. The Golden State currently has the highest gas prices in the entire nation, with an average cost of $5.48 per gallon compared to the average cost in the U.S. at $3.85 per gallon. California residents also currently pay the highest gas tax in the nation, with a whopping $1.18 per gallon just in taxes. 

Since 2017, with the passage of SB1 (also referred to as the gas tax), consumers in the state now see an additional $0.58 per gallon of gasoline and diesel across the state. 

California traditionally has had higher gas prices than the rest of the country due to state emissions standards requiring a certain blend of fuel for each season. All in total, California residents pay an extra $1.25 per gallon than the rest of the country, and for each gallon you pump, $1.18 is just taxes and fees alone. In addition to higher fuel costs, residents got hit with higher annual vehicle registration fees, and it outlawed any diesel-powered bus or truck over 14,000 pounds from being operated in the state as of this year. 

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California residents have a compounding problem when it comes to our current economic outlook. With the state’s Democrats ignoring millions of people demanding a lower cost of fuel and living, they continue to press on with their agenda of making it more costly to live here. The compounding issue is the average California voter, who continues to vote for the politicians that pass these laws, but more importantly, who votes for the ballot propositions that tax us more and vote against the propositions that would tax us less. 

California voters have rejected a ballot measure to repeal the recently enacted gas tax hike slated for the repair of roads, bridges and highways across the state, the Associated Press projected Tuesday night.

Proposition 6 would have kept more money in residents’ wallets by stopping the state from bringing in some $5 billion in annual tax revenue that was approved just last year as part of Senate Bill 1, a massive transportation package supported by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Between Washington and Sacramento, Californians are hemorrhaging money from our accounts faster than ever before. Newsom has the power and ability to give the residents a reprieve, at the very least. But the powers that be are too concerned with social justice issues to care about anything else. When will we see any relief?

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Georgia mayors press governor for gun control

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There’s long been an understanding about how states are with regard to gun control. For the most part, the urban areas are going to favor restrictions and more rural areas are going to oppose them.

The suburbs can go either way, depending on the state and the city themselves.

Now, this is like any other generalization; it’s not a universal fact. This is what you see most of the time.

But it’s true enough that when you see something that goes in the opposite direction, it’s startling, which is relevant because of this:

Nearly four dozen mayors — from Adel in South Georgia to Dalton in North Georgia and cities in between — want stricter gun laws.

They sent a letter urging Gov. Brian Kemp and state lawmakers to help curb gun violence in their communities.

“We currently live with the reality that gun violence has become the No. 1 killer of children,” they wrote. “Georgia has become a top exporter of illegal weapons. We come to you with this request because our residents rely upon us to be the front line of efforts to enhance their quality of life.”

In the letter, the mayors — mostly Democrats — requested movement on several specific mental health and gun control policy measures.

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Girtz said the checks should include “places like gun shows and online sales that are often escape routes for people who want to purchase weapons illegally.”

So-called “red flag” laws seen in other states that aim to prevent people deemed dangerous to themselves or others from buying firearms have proved a hard sell in Georgia.

The mayors also want to stop sales of “high-capacity clips [with which] you can kill a lot of people quickly,” Girtz said.

What was shocking was the mention of Adel in the first paragraph.

See, I know Adel. I was just there less than two weeks ago, though briefly. It’s a small town in a rural part of the state. It’s closest urban area is Albany, where I live, more than 50 miles away–and we’re not an area that usually has commutes that long.

For the mayor of Adel to sign on with something like this is troubling to me.

As for some of what’s being asked for, I can’t help but just shake my head at the ignorance on display by these elected officials.

Red flag laws have failed to stop numerous shootings and there’s little evidence they’ve ever stopped any act of violence. Magazine capacity limits also don’t stop violent attacks and really don’t reduce the body count when there is a mass shooting–after all, the Parkland killer carried out one of the worst school shootings in American history with 10-round magazines.

And contrary to the scary media stories, gun shows aren’t some outlet for skirting gun laws on purchases. The vast majority of people who sell at gun shows are FFL holders and are required to conduct a background check. Those who don’t are private individuals who are just selling their personal weapons.

Yet a letter like this popping up in pro-gun Georgia is more than a little troubling to me. Is Georgia starting to turn blue, as many have alleged? If so, even more rural parts of the state pushing for gun control could be a troubling harbinger of things to come.

Or it could just be that mayors of towns like Adel figure that due to the demographics of the city, he can get away with taking the anti-gun side.