SOMETHING AMAZING JUST HAPPENED

Something that might have otherwise been the lead story in most newspapers didn’t make lots of news because it involved a Fourth Amendment victory with a strong Second Amendment angle.

The establishment media doesn’t like to report anything positive about the rights of gun owners, especially under the following circumstances.

In 2015, Edward Caniglia of Cranston, R.I. had what was described by the SCOTUSblog this past March as a “heated argument” with his wife. During the exchange, he produced an unloaded firearm, put it on a table and asked his wife to “put him out of his misery,” the report detailed.

Ignoring the directive, Kim Caniglia left the house and stayed in a hotel. The next morning, when she couldn’t get an answer to her phone call home, she called Cranston police and asked for a “welfare check.” Long story short, Cranston officers found Ed Caniglia outside the home. He confirmed the argument, saying he was tired of the conflict. He agreed to go to a hospital for a psychiatric exam, on the condition police not enter the home and confiscate his handguns, though the police disputed this claim.

Nevertheless, once Caniglia was on his way, officers entered the home and seized his firearms. Edward was not admitted to the hospital after the evaluation. This sparked a prolonged effort to get his guns back.

Caniglia sued the city and the individual officers, alleging violations of the Second, Fourth and 14th Amendments. While the lower courts decided on the side of the city and the police, a unanimous Supreme Court — with Associate Justice Clarence Thomas writing the opinion — reversed and came down in favor of Caniglia.

https://www.scotusblog.com/2021/03/theres-no-place-like-home/

Warrantless Search, Seizure

The city argued the police search and seizure were covered under a case known as Cady v. Dombrowski, which involved an abandoned automobile, not a home.

Ever hear the expression “a man’s home is his castle?” When Thomas finished writing the opinion, everyone was reminded. Quoted by TheGunMag.com, Justice Thomas observed in his unanimous opinion, “The very core of the Fourth Amendment’s guarantee is the right of a person to retreat into his or her home and ‘there be free from unreasonable governmental intrusion.’ A recognition of the existence of ‘community caretaking’ tasks, like rendering aid to motorists in disabled vehicles, is not an open-ended license to perform them anywhere.”

Full disclosure: I am editor of TGM, but did not write that story.

In concurring opinions, Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh offered their own perspectives on the case, which was remanded for further proceedings “consistent with this opinion.”

While the justices agreed there are circumstances under which police may enter someone’s home without a warrant, this was not one of them. So it is a narrow opinion, but it could have broad implications.

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20-157_8mjp.pdf

http://www.thegunmag.com/caniglia-v-strom-free-from-unreasonable-government-intrusion/

New From Hoppe’s

It is the opinion of many a gun owner the scent of Hoppe’s No. 9 solvent should be the standard for aftershave.

Hoppe’s recently released what it calls the Ready Roll Gun Cleaning Kit, and I’m cruising local gun stores to buy one.

According to Hoppe’s, the new kit “can be used in multiple configurations, either unrolled onto a flat surface like a shooting bench, or as a bucket apron for shooters who like to carry their range gear in a five-gallon bucket.” (We all know at least one guy who does that, no matter how strange it looks.)

The Ready Roll Kit features MOLLE elastic webbing to hold your cleaning tools, the company says. Made from rip-stop material, the Ready Roll kit might be the solution to a storage problem because it keeps your gear together.

There are two versions, a stand-alone kit or a pre-loaded kit that includes Hoppe’s gun cleaning tools. Find out more at Hoppes.com.

I am a faithful reader of the Police Blotter, usually Seattle’s because it is constantly offering reminders about how gun control laws simply fail, and occasionally provides some amusement.

Last month, a couple of Seattle’s finest encountered two guys on a city street late one night, and what they saw raised alarms. One of the guys handed what appeared to be a small handgun to the other guy, who evidently didn’t think this through.

According to the Blotter entry, the recipient of the gun stuck it into his pocket as officers approached, which was a big “oops.” When the police further investigated, they found this gent to be a convicted felon. He’s not supposed to have guns in his pocket. Bingo! Free trip to jail!

The other guy didn’t have any better luck. He was also arrested on a firearms violation.

The pistol, a small Ruger with a fully loaded magazine, was confiscated.

https://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2021/05/22/police-recover-firearm-arrest-two-men-friday-night-in-capitol-hill/

‘Epitome’ Criminal Gets Slammed

Meet Demetrius Lamar “Meechy” Jackson, a one-man Georgia crime wave who will be cooling his heels in a federal pen for the next 444 months, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of Georgia.

Whatever else he is, Meechy is a prolific thug, and he’s only 31 years old. When he gets out, he’ll be 68, and will do five years of “supervised release.” According to the authorities, Jackson is actually lucky to be alive because on his last job, he ran into a legally armed would-be victim who shot him.

The news release called Jackson “the epitome of a violent, armed criminal.”

His crime spree in November 2018 involved carjackings, armed robbery, the brutal beating of a 73-year-old woman in Athens, the shooting of a female store employee in Savannah, and one incredibly painful encounter with a Boost Mobile employee in Columbia, S.C. on the night of Nov. 23, 2018. Jackson tried to shoot the employee, but his gun jammed. Unfortunately for Meechy, the employee’s own gun worked perfectly and he got plugged, hard. His accomplice, Nautica Morgan, drove him to a Jackson, S.C. hospital in a stolen car. How’s that for being stupid in public?

Meechy had a “thing” for Boost Mobile stores, since he robbed at least five during his 2 ½-week spree.

Morgan, incidentally, pulled 144 months — that’s a 12-year stretch — for her part in this misadventure.

Subscribe To American Handgunner