Inos: We’re prepared if court shoots it down
Gov. Eloy S. Inos said his administration is prepared in the event the Commonwealth Weapons Act is declared unconstitutional by the U.S. District Court for the NMI.
“This is a constitutional issue and—although I don’t want to preempt any court proceedings that’s going on right now—we will be prepared in the event the court shoots down the CNMI gun law. We’re prepared to initiate legislation that will be consistent with, No. 1, the U.S. Constitution and, No. 2, the court ruling that might come out shooting down the CNMI gun law,” said Inos in an interview with Saipan Tribune.
The governor said he would support legislation that will make it very difficult for anyone to obtain a license to own handguns.
“Possession, ownership, and stuff like that, we couldn’t do much about that, but how do you get there…the licenses to the wholesaler, to the distributor, strict background checks for guns and ammunition is what we’re looking at.”
Press secretary Angel Demapan said Senate floor leader Pete Reyes’ (Ind-Saipan) prefiled bill has the support of the governor as well as Department of Public Safety Commissioner James Deleon Guerrero and Attorney General Gilbert Birnbrich.
“In fact, the OAG and the DPS commissioner worked together in putting the bill together. We cannot maintain the status quo of gun regulation in the CNMI because of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions. AG Birnbrich stated that the pending bill is good because it will accommodate every individual’s constitutional rights as declared by the courts while still maintaining public safety,” he told Saipan Tribune.
The bill Demapan was referring to is Senate Bill 18-69, which was prefiled last Oct. 16 by Reyes. It is a measure “to provide for the possession and management of firearms in the Commonwealth.”
‘Strike and balance’
DPS chief Deleon Guerrero said it is unfortunate that someone has challenged the constitutionality of the Commonwealth Weapons Act. Just the same, he feels the challenge was inevitable.
“There is no better law than the current Weapons Control Act. However, we feel that there’s a high likelihood that the particular law we have here in the CNMI will be rendered unconstitutional and in violation of the Second Amendment. The CNMI when it entered in political union with the United States, the Second Amendment became applicable to the CNMI as a territory. …We need to prepare ourselves in the event that the Weapons Control Act gets thrown put by the courts and one of the ways to prepare ourselves is to come up with legislation that provides a strike and balance between having the most strict form of gun legislation versus meeting the requirements of the Second Amendment,” he said.
Deleon Guerrero said DPS, in consultation with the Office of Attorney General, reviewed the best gun laws in the country and picked provisions that would better suit the CNMI.
“What our the department has done is made extensive research through our legal counsel and looked at what other jurisdictions have; like which of the jurisdictions have the strictest form of gun law. We kind of combined them all together and sort of tailor-made them to the situation here. It’s currently with the Senate and DPS has already submitted its comments.”
Deleon Guerrero said the CNMI community must learn to face reality—firearms will eventually be legalized here in the Commonwealth.
“We don’t want this. So we would prefer to have a strict gun laws in place. The CNMI, especially my department, should be put into a situation where it has the capacity to be able to provide a number of services after this becomes law. We have to start having two-man patrols units throughout the villages and this would require more police officers.”
He said DPS would eventually have to start deploying police officers to schools to prevent mass shooting at campuses, which unfortunately has become a common occurrence in the U.S. mainland.
“We don’t want to have copycat incidents here.”
Deleon Guerrero added that a lot of regulatory agencies that were not previously armed will now have to be armed because of the Commonwealth Weapons Act will become unconstitutional.
“In my opinion, the less guns we have, the better off it is. If you were to give me a choice between having more guns out there and us having more weapons to defend ourselves against this type of menace versus passing a law that will disarm all law enforcers, I prefer not to carry guns. If you were to give me a choice, I would prefer that police officers do not get armed or nobody gets armed as opposed to actually having high-power rifles to defend ourselves against pistols and things like that,” he said.
David J. Radich, a U.S. Navy Gulf War veteran, and his wife has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands challenging the constitutionality of the CNMI Weapons Control Act that prohibits all residents from obtaining handguns for self-defense purposes. Radich’s wife suffered serious injuries during a home invasion on Saipan in 2010.
It is fantastic that the governor is taking this stand to limit handguns. Our islands have very little gun violence compared to other US communities and we want to keep it that way. Way to go governor!
The only purpose of a handgun is to kill or threaten a person. Thank you governor for helping to prevent someone pointing a gun at my family and my friends.
The problem I have is, have you seen the proposed Senate Bill 18-69? It’s a $1000.00 tax fee for each gun. Also current gun laws are going to updated proposed to ban “again” assault rifles. This was done several years ago and was reversed. Also is there a compensation for those that will loose their guns that have had them for 10 or 20 years? This proposed law is again a right to bear arms issue. In addition discrimination against law biding citizens and those with low income.
This law also will hurt businesses like Joeten who is a registered FFL dealer for firearms and ammunition. In addition hurt or even close down shooting ranges that our tourist go to.
There has to be a balance. Yes restrict criminals from owning guns that is given but to take away from law biding citizens that have done nothing wrong. My answer is no.
Sorry John, but the obvious fact is that the only purpose for handguns is to shoot or threaten people. And don’t bother with the target practice arguement since we all know that those targets look like – people. Besides, rifles that can be used at shooting ranges as well as for hunting and rifles, unlike guns, are not easily hidden under clothing.
Nobody wants to see their kids killed by handguns, people robbed at gunpoint, policemen shot while trying to protect us, etc. I know you don’t either. If some criminals use handguns now, and we all know they do, bringing in hundreds more handguns isn’t going to fix that. On the contrary, it is a recipe for creating armed criminals.
Plus we’ll see all the other consequences such as children killed playing with guns, drive-by shootings, arguments ending when someone grabs a handgun, etc., school yard shootings, etc., and getting worse each year as the handguns pile up. Nobody wants that.
Let law-enforcement deal with the criminals. Their job is hard enough without endangering them further.
What happens when you have easy access to guns? Exactly what we’ve seen on Guam… strong-arm robberies and normally petty crimes that are escalated because the perps are armed. Look at the news today on Guam, two men rob folks at Days Inn using guns, and get into running gunfight with officers. Guam has armed bank robberies, armed store robberies, etc.. This crime doesn’t happen here… it is very very rare anyway. You want to be jacked up with a gun, robbed at gunpoint, see your kid shot in a silly squabble? I don’t. The last thing most of us want to see, is this place saturated with firearms. The Governor, the Commissioner, and the people, are spot on in wanting to prevent this. Here is what we can expect in a few years if this happens:
http://www.guampdn.com/article/20141204/NEWS01/141204001/BREAKING-Two-arrested-connection-Days-Inn-robbery
http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/component/content/article?id=41936:bank-of-guam-in-yigo-robbed-at-gun-point-by-2-masked-men-this-morning
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/gunman-hugs-kisses-robbery-victims-stealing-5-000-article-1.1968096
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/gunman-hugs-kisses-robbery-victims-stealing-5-000-article-1.1968096
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CD8QFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.guampdn.com%2Farticle%2F20141108%2FNEWS01%2F311080003%2FAlleged-gunman-arrested-Silent-alarm-alerts-security-firm-robbery&ei=UNN_VOfQIsrXoATor4DYAw&usg=AFQjCNEbmb8BTWcZAvDrlPfS3yDTwCOhLQ&sig2=FSd6I2HTKRkHjhiPUHB74w
http://openjurist.org/524/f2d/195/people-of-territory-of-guam-v-root
http://www.guamsupremecourt.com/opinions/images/2001%20Guam%2001.pdf
http://www.ksla.com/story/27533963/bcso-searching-for-ladys-island-armed-robbery-suspect
http://murderpedia.org/male.M/m/maguadog-peter.htm
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/21035/filipina-victim-of-guam-gun-rampage-brought-home/
http://www.socnet.com/archive/index.php/t-32630.html
http://www.guampdn.com/article/20140122/NEWS01/140122003/BREAKING-NEWS-Two-life-sentences-Raymond-Tedtaotao-Nimitz-case
https://twitter.com/GuamPDN/status/216578192624992256
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/three-dead-in-guam-clinic-shooting/
http://mvguam.com/local/news/31583-pay-less-employees-robbed-at-gunpoint.html
http://stayingsafeabroad.blogspot.com/2011/11/tourists-robbed-at-gunpoint-in-guam.html
http://www.kuam.com/story/14081327/2011/02/23/mangilao-subway-robbed-at-gunpoint
Mr. Hunter,
We have more illegal guns than Guam in the CNMI, for you to state that legalizing hand guns in the CNMI would bring more crimes is an over statement. You don’t have a clue with reality in our CNMI and you are in a make believe world. Illegal guns are every where in the CNMI. The way you describe crimes in Guam is nowhere near the CNMI. Get your facts together. You don’t need to buy a gun, because you may manufacture one provided you have the bullets.
Thank you
You have more illegal guns… because it is easier to bring in guns. And I’ve lived here for over four decades… so give me a break with the “you don’t have a clues” about the CNMI. I posted actual articles on gun crimes in Guam. These are facts.
Buenas roberthuntercnmi,
I had no intention to degrade you with my comment above. You read about gun crimes in Guam, but I made an effort to see gun crimes in Guam. I am telling you based on my experienced with the streets of Guam. What I learned in Guam was Toto Village is equivalent to Compton or 98 in Oakland or 9th & Airport Way in Stockton when it comes to illegal guns. It is the environment (drugs, poverty, gangs, etc.) that creates most of the crimes in our society not guns in general.
You probably had not read in the news about gun shoot out in the CNMI, but it had happen in the past. Don’t base your facts on your reading, because news article are at times inaccurate. Try living within the street environment and you would understand where I am coming from. Excuse my grammatical errors, but I am writing in this blog for self-improvement not to show that I can write proper English.
Add this to the list above… two more armed robberies. Compared to the CNMI, robberies and assaults using firearms (handguns especially), are off the charts. Not even comparable.
http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/public-safety/item/1283-police-looking-for-suspects-in-two-armed-robberies-in-mangilao-just-hours-from-each-other
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!
Its better to ZAP then to SHOOT to kill!! Or better off a stun gun!!