Including ... Open Letter to Wayne LaPierre • Defending Knife Use • President's Message • Attorney Question of the Month • Book Review • Networking • Editor’s Notebook • About this Journal
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Open Letter to Wayne La Pierre, NRA Executive V.P.
Dear Mr. La Pierre:
In your capacity as Executive Vice President of the National Rifle Association (NRA), you are not only the “face” of the NRA but also its de facto leader. I acknowledge the NRA board members and officers, including a new elected President, but it is you who either sets the agenda for the NRA or carries out the Board of Directors’ policies. It is with this in mind that I address this open letter to you through the Official Publication of the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network, Inc. (ACLDN).
Defending Knife Use
An Interview with Attorney Jim Fleming
Interview by Gila Hayes
eJournal: Jim, drawing on all the years you’ve defended folks at trial, I’d like today to explore what an attorney has to do to defend someone who uses a knife in self defense, instead of using a firearm. When you, the attorney, need to explain to the trier of fact why using a knife against an assailant was reasonable and necessary, are there particular challenges you face because the defensive tool was a knife?
Fleming: There is something peculiar about the knife that does not attend the use of fists, elbows, knees or feet to try to defend yourself against some kind of an attack.
President’s Message
by Marty Hayes, J.D.
The 2017 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting was by far the most interesting I have attended. I started attending the annual meetings in 2009 in Phoenix, when Network V.P. Vincent Shuck, Network member Bill Van Tuyl and I took turns manning a booth. Our mission was to introduce the Network to potential members, and of course, recruit as many members as possible. I know we signed up a few members, but honestly, the return on investment was pretty slim. Having said that, we did sign up enough members to keep our spirits high during those formative years, and if you are one of those first Phoenix meeting members, I want you to know that I really appreciate your long-term commitment.
Attorney Question of the Month
This month we asked our affiliated attorneys:
An armed citizen who carries a trauma kit justifiably shoots an assailant, then calls 9-1-1. From a legal defense viewpoint, what are the possible benefits and risks of treating the gunshot wound while waiting for the first responders?
Gary True
Attorney at Law
Summers Compton Wells LLC
8909 Ladue Road, St. Louis, MO 63124
314-872-0331
Treating the attacker’s gunshot wounds virtually guarantees a civil suit by the attacker, or his family if he dies. Staying on the phone with 9-1-1 while repeatedly stating that paramedics and an ambulance are needed ASAP will show enough concern for the attacker so the defender will not be viewed as cold and callous.
Book Review
Sentinel
Become the Agent in Charge of Your Own Protection Detail
by Patrick McNamara
Published November 29, 2012, 145 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1475960495
Kindle version: $3.03; paperback $13.48
Reviewed by Gila Hayes
I’d been eyeing this book for a few years when a short bout of post-convention illness put some reading time on my schedule. McNamara’s safety instruction takes an interesting approach – one that creates interest in a much-taught subject and it also gives a tool for raising safety preparation amongst folks who, frankly, find our prepared lifestyles a little boring.
Networking…with Attorneys
by Josh Amos
This month I get to go in a new direction compared to the topics I normally write about. With the great growth of the Armed Citizens' Legal Defense Network, it’s time for us to revisit a very important topic: attorneys. The mission of the Armed Citizens' Legal Defense Network is to pay attorneys to represent our members immediately after a self-defense situation. While Network members are always free to choose their own lawyer, not everyone knows one, so we have found it helpful to maintain an extensive network of affiliated attorneys across the United States.
Editor's Notebook
by Gila Hayes
The first week of May brought all the scofflaws out from under their rocks. I’m never sure what starts these trends in questions, but phone call after phone call, email question after email question, the argument put forward was, “I cannot get a license to carry in [pick a restrictive state or area], but I go there armed anyway. I want to join and I will need you to pay my legal expenses if I have to defend myself with my illegally carried gun.”
About This Journal
The eJournal of the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network, Inc. is published monthly on the Network’s website at http://armedcitizensnetwork.org/our-journal. Content is copyrighted by the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network, Inc.