Five years ago, in the post-apocalyptic environment that was New Orleans following its devastation by Hurricane Katrina, the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation moved quickly to intervene when local police officials – acting under color of law, but without any warrants, probable cause or true authority under Louisiana statute – announced that in the chaos and anarchy, private citizens would be disarmed.
Now, one of the uglier aspects of this disaster has become clear with the indictment of several police officers for the shooting of several unarmed citizens.
The police decided to suspend the Second Amendment, for everyone but themselves. It has never been acknowledged who actually originated the disarmament effort, or whether then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco and then-Mayor Ray Nagin were involved, but then-Police Supt. Eddie Compass and his successor Warren Riley made the announcement. It visibly stunned SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, who quickly began making phone calls.
James Letten, the chief federal prosecutor in New Orleans, said Tuesday's indictment offered "compelling evidence" against officers who "abused their power in committing violent crimes against unarmed citizens they were sworn to protect."-USA Today
As SAF began working quietly on a lawsuit, the National Rifle Association was also preparing to step in. Rather than trip over each other, the two gun rights organizations joined forces in what would become a landmark joint court effort that became the launch pad for a series of state legislative efforts to pass laws preventing this kind of thing in the future. They sent investigators to New Orleans, hired a local attorney and literally turned them loose to dig out the facts.
The four are charged first with shooting into a group of six unarmed people who were walking across the city's Danziger Bridge on Sept. 4, 2005, in search of food and other scarce supplies, killing James Brissette, 17, and wounding four others.
In the midst of anarchy, which saw police officers captured on film apparently engaged in looting, or forcibly disarming citizens, several unarmed people were shot, and two were killed by police. Note, the reports say these victims were all unarmed. While it is true that some people were apparently firing guns at emergency personnel and equipment, the people who actually got shot evidently had nothing to do with that.
As part of the investigation that followed the SAF/NRA lawsuit, NRA News dispatched its gutsy correspondent Ginny Simone and a crew to the city. The report she produced from that visit should be required viewing for anybody who thinks “only cops should have guns.”
Today, the city and the state are “under new management.” But what occurred in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina should stand as a lesson on what can happen when only the police have guns. Four officers – Sgts. Kenneth Bowen and Robert Gisevius, and officers Robert Faulcon and Anthony Villavaso – face charges that, if they are convicted, could reportedly result in the death penalty. Also charged in the indictments are supervisors Gerard Dugue and Arthur Kaufman, who allegedly conspired to cover up the killings. Earlier Thursday, three of the four entered not-guilty pleas.
PBS’s Margaret Warner filed this report, with some interesting interviews.
What appears to me is that the officers, based upon the admitted statements, immediately decided to not tell the truth. That's just disgusting. It's an insult to everybody who does this work. It's an insult. It's an insult to the community, obviously.”—Ronal Serpas, New Orleans police chief
About two weeks ago, SAF filed a federal lawsuit – discussed by this column here – in North Carolina, seeking to nullify provisions in that state’s emergency powers statute that allows the governor or local government officials to prohibit people from being armed outside of their residences during a declared state of emergency. As we saw in New Orleans, when anarchy reigns and police are not responding to emergencies (and may be part of the problem, rather than the solution), that is no time to be suspending the Second Amendment, and preventing people from defending themselves and their families, wherever they may be. This is yet another example for taking away from police and sheriffs the discretionary authority to deny someone a carry permit or license, as this column discussed here.
In some sections of the city, there were reports of armed neighbors defending entire neighborhoods from roving bands of looters.
By odd coincidence, Washington also has an emergency powers act that allows the governor to prohibit “the possession of firearms or any other deadly weapon by a person (other than a law enforcement officer) in a place other than that person’s place of residence or business.”
Citizens do not surrender their civil rights just because of a natural or man-made disaster.”—Alan Gottlieb
This column does not suggest that all police would conduct themselves like a handful of cops in New Orleans allegedly did. That will be sorted out in court. Indeed, nobody is suggesting anything.
At some point, according to earthquake specialists, the Puget Sound region could be hit by “The Big One.” If that happens, local authorities are going to have their hands full, and probably the last thing they will want to be doing is running around trying to disarm people who aren’t doing anything wrong.
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Comments
For your safety, it's best to presume that Washington police will be like New Orleans Polcie until they can prove to the people that they will not be. "Emergency powers" needs to be revoked immediately as a step in that direction. If they don't do it when asked, they intend to be just like NOPD.
There is only freedom and protection of individual rights when there is a balance of power between the citizens and the governmewnt they hire to manage everyday affairs. This clearly was not the case in New Orleans and would not be the case anyplace else that laws like what you describe exist. Bad cops exist everyplace and the more power hungry the police hierarchy is the worse that paricular situation will be. When a police chief/police union starts asking for more power and restraints on individual rights he/they are seeking to violate the Bill of Rights under the guise of protecting their men or fear of civil disobedience which in most cases never happens. This is what happened in New Orleans and can still happen anywhere in the U.S. today. Citizens have to face the fact they cannot depend on police and have to defend themselves. It seems everyone knows a crooked cop and never the same cop. That is appalling. There are good ones but they are close to not being the norm today.
I hope the WA Emergency Powers Act is on the SAF "to do list." During a "state of emergency" I might want to rush my child to the Hospital without disarming and risking both our lives. Never know when you'll run into a New Orleans cop!
Didn't 60 Minutes report, long ago, that New Orleans was the U.S. city where one was most likely to be killed by a cop?
Dont wait for the SAF to fix this. Get the code yourself and start writing. It does not take a law expert to get this moving. It takes one person taking the initiative. There are several counties throughout Washington that also have this "emergency powers" provision in their municipal codes. Check yours.!!!
And in Atlanta, N.O. trained Pennington tried to cover up the murder of Katherine Johnson by APD narcs AND Gov. Sonny Purdue contines to veto anti-katrina legislation (SB291) with the help of the NRA.
The whole thing was totally wrong, I remember the News Story of the elderly woman that was roughed up in the process of forcibly taking her gun away from her, She did nothing wrong but they threatened her as if she was a hardened Criminal, If the Police were guilty of shooting any unarmed person they should face the Courts the same as any other accused felon. A badgre is not a license to kill.
I think videotaping ALL interactions between the police and all other citizens while conducting police business should be required by the police union and encouraged for all people.
Get it on tape and then let them try to lie about it.
Mr Workman, could we have a follow up on how your readers can help repeal these sections of law in Washington? I remember emailing wa-ccw about this (Wasington State emergency powers law) after the NO suit was filed and the response was electronic tumbleweeds and the sound of crickets. It looks like people are more interested here and I'd be glad to be part of any rabble that can be can roused to see that unjust law (be it state, county or city level) excised from the books. A vote on it would be a handy marker for the next election too.
Never trust a policeman, never trust a politician. Always assume that they are your enemy. Do your best to be invisible.
Repeat after me, "we'd all be better off with no government at all."
Need further proof than this?
Dave Workman, I don't think there's any mystery as to who ordered the gun confiscation in New Orleans. The Police Supt. Compass publicly announced guns would be confiscated, but he was ordered to do so, by Ray Nagin. In every city, the police commissioner gets his/her marching orders from the mayor. New Orleans is no different.
Nagin himself, said that "...the Second Amendment does not apply in New Orleans". That speaks volumes about who ordered the confiscation, right there.
In any case, New Orleans forever put the lie to the liberal canard, that "the government's not going to take away your guns".
The more Obama utters this, the LESS we are inclined to believe him.
What I want to know is, where are the civil rights lawsuits? These people had their civil rights violated in no uncertain terms. The criminals that ordered it and those that implemented it deserve to do time in jail!
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