Thursday, September 27, 2012

Florida Concealed Carry Permit Holder Brings a Gun to the Airport - He Forgot It

The Sacramento Bee reports

A central Florida man faces charges after authorities say a loaded gun was found in his backpack at Orlando International Airport.

Police say 47-year-old Edward Jody Calderon was stopped Sunday morning after a security screener spotted a .22-caliber pistol, which was loaded with six rounds. An additional magazine with 10 rounds was also found in the bag.

Calderon, who has concealed weapon permit, told police that he forgot the weapon was in his backpack. He told them he had taken the handgun with him on a recent hunting trip for snakes he might encounter. 

Calderon was arrested and charged with carrying a firearm in a place prohibited by law, a second-degree misdemeanor.
How many times do we have to hear this excuse before something is done? You know what happens in gun-friendly states like Florida with second-degree misdemeanors? They're plea-bargained down to almost nothing and the dangerous and irresponsible gun owner continues on his way.

One strike you're out demands that irresponsible gun owners be held responsible for their actions.  Why would other gun owners, who are responsible, object to that?

By the way, he doesn't look like the kind of guy who would forget a gun was in his backpack.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

17 comments:

  1. He doesn't look like the kind of guy? When you're hinting at prejudice, you should be clearer. There are too many possibilities here.

    By the way, "one strike, you're out" isn't a law or even a public outcry. It's your personal aberration, so there's not much of a demand going on here.

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  2. Mike - Where is your outrage about all of the other illegal items that are confiscated at the airport? Bags and bags of pocket knives and other prohibited items are collected daily at these screenings. Mostly people are either made to check those items in or just throw them away. Nobody is arrested over "accidentally" having a pocket knife on them, yet the 9/11 terrorists only used knives and box cutters to hijack the planes.

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  3. Here's the problem: carrying a gun around requires a state-issued license or permit. The terms of this license/permit are such that one must agree to abide by a very few and very basic requirements.

    As a licensed professional, I really fathom having to go before a disciplinary board to explain a violation with an excuse of "I forgot."

    IOW, do you really think the IRS is going to let you off with just a sternly-worded letter if you say "I forgot to pay my taxes?" Or can you say "I forgot to send my child to school"?

    Jimmy: A pocket knife isn't a gun. Surely, you know that.

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    1. Licensed in what area, Green Goblin?

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    2. Jade - yes a pocket knife is not a gun. However, pocket knives are clearly listed as prohibited items to carry onto a plane just like a gun. Do you propose to arrest the people that "forget" they have a pocket knife on them when they show up at airport screening trying to board a plane? Why are these people not arrested and tried as potential terrorists? Again, how many guns did the 9/11 hijackers use in taking control of those airplanes?

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    3. say "I forgot to pay my taxes?" Or can you say "I forgot to send my child to school"?”

      Um, yeah- that is exactly what the IRS does. They send a letter. Do you think they start arresting people on April 16th? Or that the truancy police bust down doors of parents? When you talk guns even your “IOWs” are horribly, horribly wrong.

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    4. C'mon TS, now you're gonna compare gun ownership to paying taxes. A gun is a WEAPON. It has no peers, not cars, swimming pools and certainly not tax returns.

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    5. Your view is too narrow, Mikeb. A gun has many peers. It's a piece of property. It's a choice. It's a tool of power--in that sense, it's like a vote.

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    6. Mike, Jadegold is the one who made the comparison. Tell him how silly it is.

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  4. I don't think MikeB wants to hear my perspective.

    Oh why not, I never let that stop me before. I think the whole security screening activity at airports is (a) unnecessary, (b) a failure, and (c) unconstitutional.

    If people with concealed carry licenses and law enforcement officers carried concealed on planes, there would never be another successful hijacking again. And for that reason, there would probably never be another attempt.

    The security screenings fail to catch "contraband" all the time. Just have bomb sniffing dogs take a quick whiff of everyone as they go by. No explosives == step right on through.

    Then we have the U.S. Constitution with that pesky Fourth Amendment that says people have a right to be secure in their persons, and effects and against unreasonable searches and seizures.

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    1. Oh, boy! Shootouts on planes by nervous, untrained CCW permit holders!

      I guess it beats watching "Water for Elephants."

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    2. Who says CCW permit holders are untrained? Who says there will be shootouts?

      If I were a criminal, I would chose a location for crime that allowed escape. There is no way to escape a plane. And if a terrorist wants to do something, their only limit is their creativity. Don't believe me? Then please explain how all of the terrorists managed to get contraband (like explosives) on planes in the last 10 years.

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    3. Anonymous, the day they start letting all you CCW guys fly with your guns is the day I start taking boats and trains everywhere.

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    4. mike - I think the trains and boats already allow CCW permit holders to carry on them.

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    5. Concealed carry holder are on Amtrak trains now.

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  5. The amount of uneducated comments on guns and ccw holders is scary. It's like you people are afraid of an inatimate object. This article made me laugh. The writer is clearly afraid of guns and their owners. I for one will not allow others fears dictate, limit, and strip me on my rights. Oh how many people i laugh at in my head when they speak to me of the dangers of ccw holders carrying a blood thirsty gun...and here i am listening to them while carrying my firearm. It truly is laughable.

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    1. That's rich coming from a man who's so fearful and insecure that he carries a gun everywhere he goes. Why don't you give yourself a name, Mr. Anonymous, and comment on some of our recent posts. I'm sure we could learn a lot from you.

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