Enraged, Mr. Zettergren ordered Mr. Robinson to leave. After a brief confrontation, Mr. Zettergren shot him in the temple at point-blank range with a Glock-17 semiautomatic handgun. He then forced Mr. Robinson’s hysterical fiancée, at gunpoint, to help him dispose of the body in a nearby river.
It was the first homicide in more than 30 years in the small town of Endicott, in eastern Washington. But for a judge’s ruling two months before, it would probably never have happened.
For years, Mr. Zettergren had been barred from possessing firearms because of two felony convictions. He had a history of mental health problems and friends said he was dangerous. Yet Mr. Zettergren’s gun rights were restored without even a hearing, under a state law that gave the judge no leeway to deny the application as long as certain basic requirements had been met. Mr. Zettergren, then 36, wasted no time retrieving several guns he had given to a friend for safekeeping.
Key excerpt:
While previously a small number of felons were able to reclaim their gun rights, the process became commonplace in many states in the late 1980s, after Congress started allowing state laws to dictate these reinstatements — part of an overhaul of federal gun laws orchestrated by theNational Rifle Association.
Violent felons should remain in prison until we're sure that they're ready to reintegrate into society entirely. Non-violent felons should have their rights restored upon paying restitution.
ReplyDeleteGreggy: It's your buddies at the NRA.
ReplyDeleteYou mean the organization that, along with the Second Amendment Foundation and others, defend the gun rights of tens of millions of Americans? Curious, but I don't see those listed as having been present at the shooting. I see one man, Zettergren, who is responsible. Your side loves collective responsibility, but this was the act of one person.
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