--- begin forwarded text X-Sender: (Unverified) Mime-Version: 1.0 Date: Fri, 15 Aug 1997 09:22:03 -0700 To: rah@shipwright.com From: Vinnie Moscaritolo <vinnie@vmeng.com> Subject: SSETS FORFEITURE BILL ON THE MOVE GENERAL-RKBA digest 282 ASSETS FORFEITURE BILL ON THE MOVE At press time, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee had passed H.R. 1965 -- an assets forfeiture bill. This legislation contains provisions that would allow the Clinton-Gore Administration to seize the assets of virtually any business on any pretext -- including firearms-related businesses! Even if the warrant for the original seizure is struck down, the government would then be given additional time and "discovery" to examine the business records to try and build a case to continue holding the assets (read: firearms). Virtually any business that has any substantive inventory and that is extensively regulated by the government is in danger of having its goods seized -- even for non-criminal regulatory infractions. H.R. 1965 is a Clinton-Reno scheme -- and a civil rights nightmare -- and we strongly believe it will be used as a tool against gun stores, collectors, or anyone else who has a firearms collection or inventory worth stealing. We are trying to work in Congress to get the needed changes to this legislation before it is brought to the House floor, but it may be put on a fast-track to try and dampen opposition. Call your Congressman now at 202/224-3121, and explain the problems with asset forfeiture from the gun owner's perspective, and urge him to oppose the Reno-backed asset forfeiture scheme. AND THE TALL TALES GET TALLER Hoping that going on the offensive would provide him with a good defense, President Clinton has elevated the falsehoods surrounding the Brady Act to new heights. Obviously anticipating that the Supreme Court would strike down the "mandated background check" provision of the Brady Act, the President, along with Sarah Brady, began touting their latest statistics on the Brady Act's "success." (For a complete summary of the Court's decision, see the article on this subject in the September issue of the American Guardian.) Previously, the President, Attorney General Janet Reno, and others used the inflated figure of 186,000 to note the number of felons, fugitives, and stalkers they claimed were prevented from buying a handgun under Brady. That 186,000 figure was derived from a February 1997 Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) report that concluded that of nine million handgun transactions nationwide, 186,000 (2%) were rejected. The President, in turn, incorrectly claimed that the BJS study showed that the Brady Act had resulted in 186,000 handgun purchase attempts by prohibited persons being denied. However, the BJS stated on the front page of its report the 186,000 was a national estimate. Recognizing that 18 states and the District of Columbia have never been subject to Brady's five-day waiting period, BJS noted only 86,000 denials occurred in the 32 "original Brady states." Even that figure is inflated, however, because 12 of those 32 states are no longer subject to Brady, having adopted instant check or other laws in the past three years. Additionally, many Brady-exempt states conduct records checks on people who purchase long guns, while Brady only applies to handguns. However, prior to the Court's ruling, Mr. Clinton upped the ante by unveiling his newest "success statistic." According to the President, apparently in the course of a few months, the number of felons denied handgun purchases under Brady miraculously skyrocketed to 250,000! Even if that claim was true, "handgun purchase denials"--warranted or not (data indicates that most denials are not)--is not the standard by which the Brady Act should be judged. Rather, the effectiveness of a law titled the "Handgun Violence Prevention Act" should be measured by how much handgun violence is prevented. And on that test, Brady is a failure, as we know our prisons aren't bursting at the seams from "felons" who violated federal law by attempting to purchase a handgun. In fact, there have still been only three individuals who've seen the inside of a prison cell for violating the Brady Act. Unfortunately, in addition to the numerous individuals who've been denied a handgun purchase under the Brady Act because they had unpaid parking tickets or had the same name as a prohibited person, the truth apparently will continue to be another casualty of this misguided law. Vinnie Moscaritolo Apple's Key Escrow Agent (for now) http://www.vmeng.com/vinnie/ PGP: 4FA3298150E404F2782501876EA2146A DSS/DH: B36343A790489C8D4E149147D57A7566C206F586 1 if by land, 2 if by sea. Paul Revere - encryption 1775 --- end forwarded text ----------------- Robert Hettinga (rah@shipwright.com), Philodox e$, 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' The e$ Home Page: http://www.shipwright.com/