PRESS RELEASE
To ALL MAJOR MEDIA AND ORGANIZATIONS
Subject: GOP Assembly Candidate urges non-compliance and selective civil disobedience with new gun laws.
As a buyback period for a banned assault rifle ends, one California Assembly candidate is actually calling for Californians to selectively disobey the law and keep their weapons.
Liz Michael, Republican candidate for State Assembly in the 43rd District in California, called for civil disobedience against Attorney General Bill Lockyer, and against a law she says is flatly unconstitutional. Namely, the new law which bans the SKS Sportster assault rifle.
"You cannot continue to have respect for the law when the law has been made an ass", said Michael. "The time has come for patriotic citizens of California, with all the new intrusive laws, to begin to say 'No more', and for those who feel able to do it, I believe the time has come for the time honored tradition of civil disobedience against the lawmakers of California who have chosen to trample upon our civil right to self-protection and community protection."
Michael also called on members of juries to begin considering jury nullification of these cases, and of certain drug cases and consensual sexual cases such as prostitution.
"Specifically, I believe the second amendment to the U.S. Constitution permits any law abiding citizen of California to own any firearm which they deem appropriate for their own protection and for the protection of their community. The legislature wants to continue to punish law-abiding citizens with these laws. They have now succeeded in turning the law-abiding gun owner into a criminal class of people. Since they have done this, and are intent on proceeding with even more gun laws against honest citizens, I don't believe that the law in California has any meaning any more. And the only recourse left to us now is to fight such efforts in the courts."
There have been about 600 Sporter owners statewide who have turned in the gun, which becomes illegal to own on Jan. 1, 2000. Of course, law enforcement officials estimate that there are many many more such weapons in circulation, as many as 5,000 according to some sources. Additionally, these weapons are not illegal in other states. Some Californians, instead of selling their weapon, have chosen to have it stored for them out of state in a neighboring state where such weapons are legal. "I know of several candidates and lawmakers in high office who have chosen to do this," Michael said. But Michael does not believe these people should have ever been required to do even this.
"It is ridiculous to legislate against firearms law in this manner. And I now fear that law enforcement resources will be diverted away from doing their true jobs, to serve and protect the community, to chasing honest citizens who may have, through either negligence, lack of knowledge, or willful civil disobedience, failed to obey this or any other gun law, which they really should not have to deal with in the first place."
.The Department of Justice was allotted $1.4 million for the buyback program, which was conducted by law enforcement agencies throughout the various counties. Of that, less than $140,000 has been spent on vouchers while $400,000 has gone for public relations and administration of the buyback program. Michael sees gun buyback programs as "attempts to disarm the honest law-abiding citizen." Critics as well as proponents of the Sportster buyback say the guns are not coming from the streets of major cities. Even law enforcement officials doubt so-called "traditional lawbreakers" such as gang members or inner city criminals are going to bother to turn in the weapon.
"Obviously there are some people who cannot risk civil disobedience, and I hold no grudge against them. However, I feel the time has come for those of us who can to proceed with such disobedience against unjust law, jury nullification of unjust laws, and fight for our rights. I am doing this in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the spirit of Gandhi. I do not advocate violence against law enforcement, nor do I advocate that individuals try to forceably prevent law enforcement from seizing their weapons at this time. I believe the knowledge that enough people view these laws as invalid will begin to encourage legislators to see the folly of them."
###
Liz Michael for Assembly
California State Assembly - 43rd District
P.O.Box 546, Glendale CA 91209
818-240-9425 213-840-6972
lizmich43@aol.com http://hometown.aol.com/lizmich43 http://home.earthlink.net/~analoncom/liz43
To ALL MAJOR MEDIA AND ORGANIZATIONS
Subject: GOP Assembly Candidate urges non-compliance and selective civil disobedience with new gun laws.
As a buyback period for a banned assault rifle ends, one California Assembly candidate is actually calling for Californians to selectively disobey the law and keep their weapons.
Liz Michael, Republican candidate for State Assembly in the 43rd District in California, called for civil disobedience against Attorney General Bill Lockyer, and against a law she says is flatly unconstitutional. Namely, the new law which bans the SKS Sportster assault rifle.
"You cannot continue to have respect for the law when the law has been made an ass", said Michael. "The time has come for patriotic citizens of California, with all the new intrusive laws, to begin to say 'No more', and for those who feel able to do it, I believe the time has come for the time honored tradition of civil disobedience against the lawmakers of California who have chosen to trample upon our civil right to self-protection and community protection."
Michael also called on members of juries to begin considering jury nullification of these cases, and of certain drug cases and consensual sexual cases such as prostitution.
"Specifically, I believe the second amendment to the U.S. Constitution permits any law abiding citizen of California to own any firearm which they deem appropriate for their own protection and for the protection of their community. The legislature wants to continue to punish law-abiding citizens with these laws. They have now succeeded in turning the law-abiding gun owner into a criminal class of people. Since they have done this, and are intent on proceeding with even more gun laws against honest citizens, I don't believe that the law in California has any meaning any more. And the only recourse left to us now is to fight such efforts in the courts."
There have been about 600 Sporter owners statewide who have turned in the gun, which becomes illegal to own on Jan. 1, 2000. Of course, law enforcement officials estimate that there are many many more such weapons in circulation, as many as 5,000 according to some sources. Additionally, these weapons are not illegal in other states. Some Californians, instead of selling their weapon, have chosen to have it stored for them out of state in a neighboring state where such weapons are legal. "I know of several candidates and lawmakers in high office who have chosen to do this," Michael said. But Michael does not believe these people should have ever been required to do even this.
"It is ridiculous to legislate against firearms law in this manner. And I now fear that law enforcement resources will be diverted away from doing their true jobs, to serve and protect the community, to chasing honest citizens who may have, through either negligence, lack of knowledge, or willful civil disobedience, failed to obey this or any other gun law, which they really should not have to deal with in the first place."
.The Department of Justice was allotted $1.4 million for the buyback program, which was conducted by law enforcement agencies throughout the various counties. Of that, less than $140,000 has been spent on vouchers while $400,000 has gone for public relations and administration of the buyback program. Michael sees gun buyback programs as "attempts to disarm the honest law-abiding citizen." Critics as well as proponents of the Sportster buyback say the guns are not coming from the streets of major cities. Even law enforcement officials doubt so-called "traditional lawbreakers" such as gang members or inner city criminals are going to bother to turn in the weapon.
"Obviously there are some people who cannot risk civil disobedience, and I hold no grudge against them. However, I feel the time has come for those of us who can to proceed with such disobedience against unjust law, jury nullification of unjust laws, and fight for our rights. I am doing this in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the spirit of Gandhi. I do not advocate violence against law enforcement, nor do I advocate that individuals try to forceably prevent law enforcement from seizing their weapons at this time. I believe the knowledge that enough people view these laws as invalid will begin to encourage legislators to see the folly of them."
###
Liz Michael for Assembly
California State Assembly - 43rd District
P.O.Box 546, Glendale CA 91209
818-240-9425 213-840-6972
lizmich43@aol.com http://hometown.aol.com/lizmich43 http://home.earthlink.net/~analoncom/liz43