Editorial

Gun legislation is swinging wildly from state to state. Some states are seeking to restrict or ban certain classes of firearms; others are expanding gun-ownership rights in ways we wouldn't have thought possible just a few years ago. And the Supremes have taken up a 2nd Amendment case that has the possibility of striking down a gun ban - whodathunkit? Here's a roundup of some of the legal efforts that qualify as The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (hat tip to director Sergio Leone).

A long time ago, when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I worked at Field & Stream magazine in Manhattan, at 1515 Broadway, or 7th Avenue and 44th. At the time, New York City's gun rules were just as crazy and un-Constitutional as today, maybe worse, and were difficult to accept when the articles I edited nearly every day concerned firearms that couldn't be possessed in the city. But I shot in NRA smallbore matches on Long Island and upstate in a Friday-night quarter-course league at West Point (which was awesome), so the strongest anti-gun sentiment didn't extend very far into the ‘burbs. But that seems to be changing for the worse again.

One of the more important claims in the gun-control debate is that the United States has more mass public shootings than any other countries. I'm sure you've heard that reported on gun-ignorant major media outlets. But as John R. Lott, Jr., president of the Crime Prevention Research Center points out in a new video, conventional TV wisdom on this topic is likely misinformed — but we can't find out for sure.

New product announcements are coming fast and furious, including Ruger's announcement of the SR1911 Competition Pistol. Over the past year, the Ruger Custom Shop has worked closely with professional shooting team captain and world champion competitive shooter Doug Koenig to develop the first Custom Shop SR1911, a full-sized 9mm pistol suitable for competitive shooting in IDPA, IPSC, USPSA, Bianchi Cup, Pro Am Shooting, and Steel Challenge disciplines.

By the time you read this, the midterm elections will have already happened, and we'll know if more federal regulations and laws restricting our civil rights are on their way. I would like to say that the congressional outcomes don't mean anything for two years, as long as President Trump is in office. But that's simply not true. PDT has shown an irresolute streak on publicly considering more gun regulations, though, to be fair, we haven't seen any new laws at the federal level.

By the time you read this, the midterm elections will have already happened, and we'll know if more federal regulations and laws restricting our civil rights are on their way. I would like to say that the congressional outcomes don't mean anything for two years, as long as President Trump is in office. But that's simply not true. PDT has shown an irresolute streak on publicly considering more gun regulations, though, to be fair, we haven't seen any new laws at the federal level.

One of the changes I've seen in the firearms industry over the years is the timing of new-product introductions. Formerly, most companies rolled out their new lines at the end or the very beginning of the calendar year, in both cases to time with each year's Shooting Hunting & Outdoor Trade Show, better known as SHOT Show, generally held in January. That always seemed odd to me because it guaranteed new-product coverage would get trampled by the volume of similar coverage.

I honestly thought that once Donald Trump became president, we'd see fewer onerous gun regulations being rolled out - and, perchance, a rollback of some existing regulations, or even an expansion of gun rights. Silly me. President Trump did make it a campaign pledge to delete two regulations for every new one installed, but that effort hasn't been extended to gun regulations, at least that I've heard of. Moreover, while wide-ranging federal efforts to restrict gun ownership and simply make it harder to own, buy, and transact firearms have stalled at the national level, that doesn't mean that the inalienable right to self-defense with guns isn't being challenged across the country. In fact, the new challenges to 2A rights are especially pernicious.

We recently published a news item that updates our readers on legal troubles the SIG Sauer P320 is encountering. Most recently, the Loudoun Times-Mirror website is reporting that a Loudoun County (Virginia) deputy has filed a lawsuit against SIG Sauer alleging that her fully-holstered P320 duty weapon discharged and sent a bullet into her leg. According to the newspaper's account, the incident occurred this year on Feb. 7, "… when 37-year-old Loudoun County Deputy Marcie Vadnais went to the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Academy to attend a general instructor course." The Times-Mirror further reported, "In accordance with academy policy, Deputy Vadnais began removing her firearm from her belt when she arrived." According to the lawsuit, as she fed the belt through the holster's first tooth, her SIG Sauer P320 somehow "fired one nine millimeter bullet, which hit her in the upper right thigh."

The NRA-ILA website had an interesting news item looking into why it might be that gun owners hesitate to share their status as gun owners in surveys. I have to agree with the sentiment expressed in the NRA item: "It makes perfect sense, particularly in times of heightened concerns that anti-gun politicians are plotting to restrict our 2nd Amendment rights and the routine vilification of law-abiding gun owners by politicians, celebrities, and the media." Okay, that's the why. Here's the what.

Remington Outdoor Company announced that it has emerged from Chapter 11 after successfully implementing its plan of reorganization previously confirmed by the Delaware bankruptcy court on May 4, 2018. The plan provides a comprehensive balance sheet restructuring of the company and converts more than $775 million of the company's debt into equity. The plan received support from more than 97% of the voting lenders and noteholders.

Smith & Wesson has launched a "consumer advisory" notice for owners of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol, a common concealed-carry sidearm. It seems the function of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol can be influenced by the type and quality of ammunition used with the pistol. In the case of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety, the company has found "that in very rare circumstances," ammunition that produces a high level of felt recoil can cause the manual safety to move from the Fire position to the Safe position during firing. That means your Shield unexpectedly might not go bang after it's fired. That could be very bad for a concealed-carry gun owner who's depending on the EZ in a self-defense situation.