                       Prepared Testimony 
               Submitted In Support Of Legislation
                 To Allow Citizens The Right to 
             Carry Firearms for Personal Protection

Prepared Testimony of Dr. Suzanna Gratia
Before the Virginia Senate Courts of Justice Committee
January 25, 1995

     On Dec. 17, 1991, in Anniston Ala. a restaurant patron
defended himself and saved the lives of nearly two dozen others
held hostage by two armed would-be robbers.  The reluctant hero,
who was legally carrying his .45 caliber fire arm, stopped both
assailants before they could complete their crime or injure any
innocent customers.
     On Oct. 16, 1991, in Killeen Texas, an armed homicidal
maniac methodically killed 22 people and then himself, facing no
resistance from the scores of potential victims, including me.
     That tragedy will be forever etched in my memory.  My
parents were brutally murdered, and I was helpless to protect
them.  None of us in that restaurant could control our own
destinies, for Texas politicians had seen fit to keep us
disarmed.
     State law prohibits the concealed carrying of firearms,
denying me or someone else the right to have a gun that day to
protect ourselves and our loved ones from the rampages of a
madman.  That's flat out wrong.  And I intend to do everything in
my power to change that ill-gotten law to avert needless
suffering by others.
     The violent incident in Anniston and Killeen ended far
differently because of the laws governing the concealed carrying
of firearms.  Alabama has a fair concealed-carry law, but in
Texas the government has said, in effect, that decent citizens
can't be trusted to carry firearms for self-protection.  The
facts simply do not justify that conclusion.
     Despite claims of gun prohibitionists, allowing law-abiding
citizens like me to choose to obtain a permit to legally carry a
handgun in no way increases criminal behavior.  In Florida, a
concealed-carry reform law was passed in 1988.  Anti-gun groups
in Florida media predicted an outbreak of shootings in the
Sunshine State.
     But this fair and more uniform concealed carry law simply
hasn't shaken the foundations of the Florida legal system, as
doom-sayers predicted.  According to John Fuller, general counsel
for the Florida Sheriff's Association. "I haven't seen where we
have had any instance of persons with permits causing violent
crimes, and I'm constantly on the lookout."
     In fact, it has the opposite effect on homicide rates. 
After statewide concealed-carry law reforms were enacted in
Florida, the homicide rate decreased 6 percent between 1987 and
1990 as the national rate climbed a 13 percent.  In Oregon,
reformed carry laws adopted in 1990 returned a 20.8 percent drop
in homicide rate.  Again, the gun prohibitionists had predicted
mayhem, and again, their predictions proved false.
     Research proves why: A government funded survey of 1,874
felons by noted criminologists James D. Wright and Peter H.
Rossi, designed to determine the experiences of convicted felons
with firearms and their perceptions of gun laws, found about 40
percent of the felons sampled said they had decided not to commit
a crime because they feared the victim was carrying a firearm. 
And 34 percent had been "scared off, shot at, wounded or captured
by an armed victim." 
     Clearly, concealed-carry laws translate to saving the lives
of loved ones in a manner similar to health or life insurance. 
If ever there arises that time when it is needed, no substitute
will do, and I don't intend to be victimized again.
     In drafting the Bill of Rights, the Founding Fathers
acknowledged self-protection as a prime goal incorporated in the
Second Amendment.  In quoting criminologist Cesare Beccaria,
still renowned for his work On Crime and Punishments penned in
1764, Thomas Jefferson said: "Laws that forbid the carrying of
arms...disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined
to commit crimes... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted
and better for the assailants, they serve rather to encourage
than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked
with greater confidence than an armed man."
     The question of carrying a concealed handgun is one that is
highly personal.  It is a choice that should be made by the
individual.  And it is a choice that should not be forbidden to
an honest citizen like myself by an overprotective government,
particularly one which has no responsibility to provide real
protection when my life is threatened.
     Americans are expressing concerns regarding police
protection when the explosion in crime literally overwhelms
police departments across the nation.  In a public opinion survey
done by the Gallup Report for the U.S. Justice Department's
Sourcebook of Criminal Statistics, citizens were asked, "How much
confidence do you have in the ability of the police to protect
you from violent crime." Nation wide, 50 percent of the American
public polled responded "not very much" to "none."  
     In the District of Columbia, where there has been a virtual
gun ban since 1976, the local court of appeals followed the long-
accepted rule that the police have no duty to protect
individuals, only the community at large.
     In states with no provision for concealed carry, legislation
should be proposed, passed and enacted to allow law-abiding
citizens the chance to protect themselves from criminal attack. 
In those states that employ discriminatory and unfair concealed-
carry laws which virtually forfeit citizens opportunities for
these permits, legislation must shift the burden of proof to the
issuing authority to show reasons for denial and away from the
honest citizen seeking a permit.
     While organized police forces do attempt to protect the
public, more and more they are unable to do so.  In fact, armed
private citizens encounter and thwart three times as many
criminals as law enforcement.  This is not to suggest a
diminished role for our nation's law enforcement, but rather to
emphasize the importance of armed self-defense before police can
respond to a crime in progress.  Evidence indicates that the
armed citizen is probably the single most effective deterrent to
crime in the nation.
     When it comes to arbitrary enforcement or prohibition on the
lawful concealed carrying of firearms, what has the law-abiding
American public done to warrant such a mistrust od their
competency and character?  Ask your elected officers, I'm asking
mine.


Prepared Testimony of Bruna Bizzotto
Before the Virginia House Courts of Justice Committee
February 16, 1995

Mr. Chairman, Delegates:

     My name is Bruna Bizzotto and I live in Fairfax County.  I
am speaking here today as a representative of the Northern
Virginia Citizens Defense League in support of a
non-discretionary concealed carry law. I have the unenviable
distinction of being a woman who has survived an attempt on my
life purely by chance.
     Imagine my astonishment when reporters from New Jersey
contacted me asking for my comments on the woman who wanted me
dead.  That was how I was informed my life was in danger.  I was
later contacted by an assistant district attorney who explained
how, out of jealousy and spite for my husband she stalked me with
intent to kill, but couldn't bring herself to do it.  She then
attempted to hire someone to kill me. It was pure luck that the
individual she attempted to hire was an upstanding citizen and
turned her in to the police.
     While the requirement to demonstrate need to acquire a
concealed carry permit may appear reasonable on the surface, the
fact that you have no knowledge of an imminent need, as my
experience shows, does not mean your life is not in danger. 
Since this incident I have received firearms training as I refuse
to be a defenseless victim in my own home.  Because of existing
discretionary laws, I am forced to remain vulnerable whenever I
am outside my home. 
     I ask that you support and pass Senate Bill 744 without
further amendment and establish a non-discretionary concealed
carry law. 

     Thank you for your time.

Prepared Testimony of Nancy Anderson
Before the Virginia House Courts of Justice Committee
February 16, 1995

     My name is Nancy Anderson and I am a resident of Fairfax
County in Northern Virginia.  Some years ago I was home with my
five children when I was awakened by someone trying to gain entry
through a basement door.  I called the police, and then retrieved
my semi-automatic pistol.  
     Obviously, I was terribly frightened, but I took comfort in
knowing that if the police couldn't arrive in time and the
intruder got into my home, I would be able to defend myself and
my five children.  The intruder spent the next 45 minutes trying
to get through the back door, because that's how long the police
took to arrive.  In fact, I had to call them twice.  
     Virginia law affords me the opportunity to protect myself in
my own home as I was prepared to do that frightful night. 
However, for many Virginia residents the opportunity to protect
oneself stops when you leave your home.  This is unfortunate and
dangerous since most crimes of violence occur outside the home.  
     I teach Emergency Care classes, many of them at night.  And
I usually travel alone.  Yet when I investigated getting a permit
to carry my gun.  I was shocked to learn that my chances of
getting a permit were slim and none, because I live in Fairfax
county.  
     I am a proud resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, yet
for some reason, because I reside in Fairfax County, I'm treated
like a second class citizen, unworthy of being trusted with a gun
for my own personal safety. 
     A few weeks ago I sat here and listened to a lobbyist from
the League of Women Voters decrying Bill 744 as a prelude to
Virginia City.  And the representative from Virginians Against
Handgun Violence blatantly attempted to link the issue of right
to carry to the issue of gender, saying that women had been
convinced by men they needed handguns for protection.  
     In part, she was correct, the man that convinced me that I
needed a gun for protection, was the one that tried to break into
my home.  
     I urge this committee to please empower the defenseless
women of the Commonwealth so that we will not be dragged from our
beds, our homes, or our cars without having the ability to
protect ourselves.  
     Thank you


Prepared Testimony of John M. Russi, Director
Division of Licensing, Florida Department of State
Before the Texas Senate Crime and Criminal Justice Committee
February 28, 1995

General Information
 
     In 1987, the Legislature adopted Chapter 87-27, Laws of
Florida, the Jack Hagler Self-Defense Act, creating the Concealed
Weapon or Firearm Licensing Program.
     Prior to October 1, 1987, licenses were issued by sheriff's
offices and county commissioners. The fees and eligibility
requirements varied from county to county and licenses were valid
only in the county of issuance.
     This program is trust funded and is totally supported by the
license fees.
     Since October 1987, the Department has issued 266,710
licenses.
     As of January 31,1995, there were 150,487 people licensed to
carry concealed weapons or firearms.
     Fiscal year 1993-94 has been the largest licensing year with
45,040 new applications and 28,639 renewal applications.
     Carrying a concealed weapon or firearm without a license is
prohibited. Carrying a concealed weapon without a license is a
misdemeanor of the first degree.
     Carrying a concealed firearm without a license is a felony
of the third degree.

The Application Process

     Applicants must be at least 21 years of age, submit a
completed application, a fingerprint card, a color photograph,
evidence of firearms training and $137 (this fee includes a $42
fingerprint processing fee).
     The concealed weapon license is a three year license.  Cost
to renew is $1 17 which includes a $42 fingerprint processing
fee. The initial application process takes approximately 60-90
days.
     Any law abiding citizen who desires a legal means to carry a 
concealed weapon or firearm for lawful self-defense is eligible. 
     An individual may be declared ineligible for a license if
convicted of a felony and certain crimes of violence, has been
declared incompetent, is physically impaired, has been committed
for drug  or alcohol abuse or has been declared a habitual
offender.
     Acceptable evidence of firearms training includes; a
certificate of completion of a state certified hunter education
course; a NRA firearms safety course taught by a certified
instructor, completion of any law enforcement firearms safety
class, evidence of military training such as a form DD214. 
     The Department has not experienced any problems with the 
training criteria and has no record of any accidents or incidents 
resulting from a lack of training.
     Criminal history record checks are conducted via the Florida 
Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation. Additionally, participating sheriff's offices
provide background information which they feel may be pertinent
to the licensure of the applicant.
     The Department maintains an automated listing of license
holders and pertinent information which is available on-line at
all times to all law enforcement agencies through the Florida
Crime Information Center.
     Applications may be obtained from the Division of Licensing, 
Post Office Box 6687, Tallahassee, Florida 32314-6687.  Telephone
904/488-5381 or from most sheriff's offices.  Applications for
license should be submitted to the Division of Licensing at the
previous stated address.
     The Department is authorized to suspend or revoke the
licenses of individuals who no longer meet the eligibility
requirements.
     Since the program's inception in 1987, 470 licenses have
been revoked. Only 19 of these revocations were the result of a
firearms related incident.
     Florida does not require a separate training course for
different types of firearms nor does it require a separate
license for different firearms.  Each individual may select the
firearm he or she is comfortable with.  We are not aware of any
problems in this area.

Closing

     Florida's Concealed Weapon law has been very successful.
     All major law enforcement groups supported the original
legislation and in the 7 1/2 years the program has been in place,
none of those groups have requested any changes.
     The Department receives excellent cooperation from law
enforcement agencies throughout the state.  Many retired and
former law enforcement officers possess a concealed firearm
license.
     Lastly, some of the opponents of concealed weapons
legislation in 1987, now admit the program has not created the
problems many predicted.

*  A twenty-seven year veteran of the Florida Highway Patrol and
a graduate of the FBI National Academy, Mr. Russi is currently
Director of the Division of Licensing, Florida Department of
State in Tallahassee.  He is responsible for the Concealed Weapon
and Firearm Licensing program, regulation of the private
investigation, private security and repossession industries.  He
has held the position of Director for six years. 


Prepared Testimony of Dr. Mary L. Cannon
Before the Texas Senate Crime and Criminal Justice Committee
February 28, 1995

     I am Dr. Mary Cannon.  I live in Southlake, Texas.  I am a
forensic psychiatrist.
     I want to thank you for letting me come here today and speak
to you.
     For the past four years I have devoted my professional life
entirely to dealing with people in the jails of Tarrant County. 
Prior to 1991, when I had a private practice, I devoted a large
portion of my time to the forensic area.  I have been a
consultant to the courts in Dallas County as well as Tarrant
County.  I have also been a consultant to the Federal Courts of
the Northern District of Texas.  I have been a consultant to the
Federal prison at Seagoville, Texas, to the Dallas County
Sheriff's Department, to TDC and the Dallas County Mental Illness
Court.  In 1991, I went to the Vernon State Hospital where I
worked and studied for one year--part of the time as Chief of
Adolescent Services and the remaining time as psychiatrist in
charge of a competency unit at the maximum security campus.  I am
a gun owner of many years and a gun lover of great proportions. 
So, I feel I am well qualified to speak on the issue before us.
     Briefly, I would like to tell you about a young man that I
examined in August of last year.  He had turned 18 y/o two weeks
before I saw him.  He had been indicted on three counts of
capital murder in a drive-by shooting.  He has never married, but
he has two daughters, ages 18 mos. and 6 mos. When he was 10 y/o,
he beat and stabbed an old 101 y/o woman nearly to death--she did
survive.  He spent the next 5 or so years in various
rehabilitative centers.  At the time I saw him in the jail, his
mother was in another part of the jail.  He told me that she had
been convicted of 10 felonies since 1977.  He also stated that
she had been incarcerated in TDC on five different occasions.  I
questioned this young man about his feelings regarding the
killings.  I asked him, "Does it bother you to have killed these
people? Do you feel badly about it?" In a flippant, almost
sarcastic, manner he replied, "No, if you don't have something
you want and you see somebody else has it, you take it." I asked
what he took at the drive-by shooting.  His reply was "Nothing. 
Those people were ----.  They didn't deserve to live."
     When I worked with the adolescents at Vernon, a gang member
from Ft. Worth told me that the requirement for membership in his
gang was one of the following three things: one murder
(preferably of an opposing gang member), or three forcible rapes,
or eight burglaries.  I believe this young man.
     What has this to do with the concealed-carry weapon bill? A
lot! Because we are almost constantly told that weapons cause
violence.  I am here to tell you that people cause violence.
     If you do not believe anything else you hear at this meeting
today.  Please believe me that behavior is driven by internal
mechanisms.  Behavior is driven by emotions, values, morals--by
character.  If we cannot accept that fact we will be led down a
path that is as deceptive and devious as it is destructive.  We
will pass bills against guns and believe that we have performed a
great good.  We will blame inanimate objects for the crimes of
our own souls.  We will place blame on inanimate objects as if
they had will and volition.  We must learn to see guns as the
tools that they are.  We must learn to place responsibility for
behavior on the individual rather than a particular instrument or
tool.
     Until we can learn to do this, the law-abiding citizens of
this state must have some relief.  The predators are out there. 
They are not going to go away.  Until great changes are made,
they will continue to see their own value and worth in terms of
the amount of destruction and chaos they can create.  These young
men see their very manhood defined by the killing of others. 
Obviously, the police cannot be everywhere.  The well-trained
law-abiding citizen must be given an even chance.  I urge you to
pass a concealed-carry weapon bill.
 
     Thank you for your time and attention.


Prepared Testimony of Ken Blanchard
Before the Texas Senate Crime and Criminal Justice Committee
February 28, 1995

     Every night on the evening news we are reminded of the crime
problem in all areas of the country.  It is a reality that law-
abiding, hard working people of color live in the same areas
plagued by this violence and profiled each night on TV.
     As a federal law enforcement officer - and a firearms and
tactics instructor - I support the right to carry.  However, the
system that is established must be fair and just.  Honest
Texans - regardless of where they live, their color, their
gender, or how much money they make -should be afforded the
opportunity to provide for their own security through a fair and
equitable permit system.  It is sad to say, but it is well
documented, that the minority community is the group that most
often suffers the ravages of violence.
     As a working cop, based on my training and experience, I am
not concerned that this legislation will increase the risk to our
police...rather it will allow decent people to feel safer.  The
legislation must guarantee all law-abiding citizens of the state
equal treatment under the law.

*  Kenneth Vincent Ford Blanchard is a former U.S. Marine
sergeant and a personal protection and anti-terrorist specialist. 
He is currently a mid-level manager for a armed security police
force in the Intelligence community.  He is the founder and
president of African American Arms & Instruction, Inc. (A3i).

A3i is a group of federal law enforcement firearms training
instructors that focus their attention to people that have
traditionally not participated in sport shooting activities.  Mr.
Blanchard speaks to African American organizations on behalf of
the Second Amendment and firearms related issues that have been
unchallenged in minority communities.  Mr. Blanchard teaches
firearm safety and qualifies law enforcement professionals for
armed duty in Maryland and the District of Columbia.  He
organized and sponsors the Tenth Cavalry Gun Club.  This club was
designed to further the interest and participation of people of
color in recreational shooting across the country.


Prepared Testimony of Harriet "MIKEY" Voorhees
Before the Texas Senate Crime and Criminal Justice Committee
February 28, 1995

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen, for allowing
me to come before you to tell you about an experience I had which
helped shape my strong belief in a right to carry bill.
     A number of years ago I accompanied my husband and son on a
hunting trip into the Guadalupe Mountains.  We made camp down a
dirt road normally used by ranchers to reach their grazing lands. 
The only sign of our camp was our horse trailer parked off the
highway.
     Just before dawn, my husband and son left to hunt and I was
alone in camp.  I began picking up the camp and went into the
tent to straighten up the sleeping bags.  I came across the .380
Llama my husband had just given me for protection, so I strapped
it on anticipating some target practice later on.
     While I was standing behind the camp stove, doing the
dishes, a station wagon, full of men, screeched to a halt in
front of me.  It was obvious the men were drunk or high on
something as they stumbled out of the car.  They were laughing,
joking, and punching at each other, all the while they yelled
obscene remarks and make obscene gestures at me, egging each
other on.  As you can imagine, I became extremely frightened as I
realized what they were planning to do.
     I was a lone woman about to be attacked by 8 men and there
was absolutely no one to help me.  I had no idea where the
nearest camp was and our backup rifles were in the truck beyond
the station wagon.  I had to protect myself.
     As I looked around for some sort of a weapon, I remembered
the gun in the holster on my hip.  Moving from behind the stove,
I removed the leather thong from the hammer, and stood with my
hand on the gun.
     One of the men, seeing the gun, yelled, "My God, the bitch
has a gun!  With that, they stumbled all over each other as they
piled back into the car.  The last man was being pulled through a
window as the car screeched off.  It would have been comical if
it hadn't been so frightening.
     So you see, I know, first-hand, what a lifesaving tool a
firearm can be.
     Law-abiding citizens defend themselves with firearms far
more often than most people realize.  Professor Gary Kleck, an
award winning criminologist and author from Florida State
University, found that people use firearms to defend themselves
from criminal attack over 2 million times a year.  The majority
of the time a shot isn't even fired.  Just the presence of the
gun, as in my case, is enough to deter the crime.
     Most Americans are allowed to keep a gun in their home for
self-protection but are defenseless on the streets and in their
neighborhoods.  The right to live and be secure from personal
attack is one of the most fundamental rights of human beings.
     According to the Department of Justice, 87% of all violent
crime occurs outside of the home.  Having the right to carry a
firearm gives the honest citizen, especially women, the freedom
to leave their homes and to provide protection for their families
and themselves, a necessity, since the Supreme Court ruled that
local law enforcement has no duty to protect a particular person
but only a general duty to enforce the law.
     The recent experience of states with right to carry laws re-
enforces what the gun owning community has known all along.  Law-
abiding gun owners pose no threat to the safety of the general
public.
     In 1987, Florida enacted its right to carry legislation. 
Critics predicted doomsday.  Prematurely, Florida was dubbed the
"Gunshine" state.  Now, however, the naysayers and political
detractors have been forced to admit they were wrong.
     Florida State Senator Ron Silver, who originally opposed the
legislation, recently concluded, "I am pleasantly surprised to
find out that its working pretty well."  Senator Silver shouldn't
have been surprised.  As John Russi, Director, Florida Division
of Licensing pointed out in the same interview, "You need to keep
in mind, that most people that obtain (permits) are for
legitimate purposes and they're not the people committing crimes. 
People that commit crimes are crooks and are not going to obtain
a concealed weapons license."
     Between October of 1987 and November of 1994, 258,193
permits were granted.  Of those, only 18 or 0.00675% have been
revoked.  The effect of the armed public was a lowering in crime
statistics and the development of a healthy respect and fear of
the law-abiding citizen by criminals.  The attacks on tourists we
read about, for instance, were a direct result of that fear.  The
criminals admitted that they went after people they knew would
not be armed.  Florida's homicide rate dropped by 22%  since
1987, while the national homicide rate rose 15%.  
     Many detractors of the right to carry bill cry that passage
of the bill would bring back the "Wild West" mentality.  If those
people would really read their history, and not rely on the
movies and TV, they would find that violent crime was rare and
women could walk the streets in safety because citizens were
armed and able to protect themselves and their families.
     Today, with the disintegration of families and a higher
percentage of single parent households living in urban
communities, children are much less likely to be taught to
respect firearms.  They see thousands of acts of violence on TV
every year.  I see examples, almost daily, where children do not
understand the difference between real life and the violence they
see on TV.
     As the School Nurse and an educator, I am deeply involved
with the Eddie Eagle Program on gun safety for children.  It
teaches children if they find a firearm "To stop, don't touch,
leave the area, and tell an adult."  The literature directed to
the parents encourages proper securing of firearms.  Hopefully
this will also encourage parents to teach their curious children
safe handling of firearms.  Children of the past were taught
about firearms at an early age.  They were taught to respect them
as tools of their everyday life.
     The rising tide of violence in America has brought with it a
new wave of pro-gun legislation prompting our hearing here today. 
In twenty-two states citizens have the freedom of choice to carry
firearms for their own protection.  Utah, Arkansas, and Virginia
have passed their legislation just this year.  We need a
reasonable bill that does not, by virtue of its specifications
and price, discriminate against women and individuals of low
income.  It must be uniform so as not to allow communities
freedom of interpretation.
     Texans are intelligent and responsible enough to decide for
themselves whether or not a gun will provide the protection they
need.  I like to call such legislation "Freedom From Fear" bill. 
It is imperative that the legislature empower citizens with that
choice.  For many, as those of us here have testified, it's a
matter of life or death.

     Thank you very much.

*  Mikey Voorhees has resided in El Paso, Texas for the past 27
years.  She is a wife of 25 years and mother.  Mrs. Voorhees is a
former Captain, U.S. Army Nurse Corps.  She is currently a school
nurse and is Past President of the Yslata School Nurse
Association.  She was chosen first Yslata School Nurse of the
Year by the Lower Valley Rotary Club of El Paso.  Mrs. Voorhees
is also Past President of the El Paso Coalition of Sportsmen. 


Prepared Testimony of Tim Oxley
Before the Texas Senate Crime and Criminal Justice Committee
February 28, 1995

     One evening myself and my wife Jan were getting into our car
as a yellow cab pulled up behind us, blocking our car and another
occupied car in our parking spaces.
     The cab driver got out of his cab and approached the other
car with a knife.  At my wife's request I opened our car trunk. 
I then proceeded to command the cabby to put the knife away.  By
this time, Jan had removed her handgun from the trunk.  Then the
cab driver turned and threatened me and the occupants of the
other car with the knife.  I informed the cabby that he had
better think twice because my wife had a gun pointed at him and
was prepared to use it.  After pausing for a moment, the cab
driver got back in his cab and drove away. 
     Had my wife and I not had access to a firearm, that
situation most certainly would not have had a pleasant outcome.
     It's imperative that the legislature of Texas empower law-
abiding honest Texans with the ability to defend ourselves from
criminal attack outside our homes.  Since the Department of
Justice reports that 87% of all crimes occur outside the home,
the need is great and immediate.
     As a firearms instructor, I know that a handgun in the
possession of a proficient citizen can be a very effective
deterrent to crime.  Not only for the individual that possesses
the gun, but for other people that this person may be able to
assist.

     Obviously, the police can't be everywhere.  As you and I
know, it is not the duty of the police to protect individual
citizens.  This is why myself and my wife, feel very strongly
that we must be empowered to defend ourselves when we leave home,
we no longer want to remain helpless victims in a vicious game of
Russian roulette.  Is this the time someone is lurking behind the
bushes or around the corner?  Is this the time that someone takes
a fancy to my wallet, my jacket, my car, or more importantly my
wife?

     Please help us regain control of our self respect and our
lives.

* Tim Oxley has spent 16 years as the Chief Range Officer at a
public shooting facility in Houston, Texas.  Mr. Oxley is the
Director of the Texas Smallarms Academy where he teaches all
levels of marksmanship including rifle, pistol, shotgun, law
enforcement, and s.w.a.t.  He also is the Chief Instructor at
American Shooting Centers for rifle and pistol.

Mr. Oxley's wife Jan used her firearm to defend herself, her
husband, and two other law-abiding citizens from an armed
attacker.  Mr. and Mrs. Oxley had their first child in March.

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