THE KIDS SET HIM UP--
Marion Barry Inadvertently Exposes the Fallacy of D.C.'s Gun

Ban
Washington, D.C. has a gun ban, and gun bans stop crime. That's the ruse the gun ban lobby and

their cronies would have you believe. That's what Washington, D.C. Council member and former mayor Marion Barry

(D) would have you believe. But, in an ironic twist of fate, Barry's anti-gun premise has been challenged by

circumstances involving none other than Barry himself.

This week, the ex-mayor was the victim of a violent crime

in "gun-free" Washington, D.C. He was robbed at gunpoint by two young men who entered his apartment, held a gun to

his head, and robbed him of his wallet, cash, and credit cards. The nearly three-decades-old ban did nothing to

protect Barry. Despite the ban, Barry admitted that "guns are everywhere." What he didn't say is that those guns

are in the hands of criminals, while the District's law-abiding citizens are prohibited from possessing them.

Clearly, the ban has done nothing to stem the tide of armed criminals carrying out violent crimes.

While not

suffering any physical injuries during the ordeal, Barry did indicate that his feelings were hurt. "There is a sort

of an unwritten code in Washington, among the underworld and the hustlers and these other guys, that I am their

friend....I was a little hurt that this betrayal did happen."

Councilman Barry, himself a convicted felon, says

he does not want to prosecute the perpetrators (if they are ever caught), but also says that he will push the city

council to pass a bill he introduced that would increase penalties for carrying a gun in the District! Such is the

contradictory logic of the ex-mayor. Pass more gun laws, and don't enforce existing ones.

Of course, violent

crime in D.C. is nothing new. Homicide had been declining in D.C. before the 1976 ban, but increased after the ban

was imposed. By 1991, D.C.'s homicide rate had risen more than 200%. By comparison, the U.S. homicide rate rose

only 12% during the same period. Since then, the District has ranked at, or near, the top of the list for highest

per capita murder rate of major cities in the nation. If gun bans work, how can this tragic and shameful

distinction possibly be?

In the wake of his most recent ordeal, Barry called for a summit of the city's leaders

to address the "pandemic" of gun violence in the District. Clearly, he and the law-abiding citizens of the District

of Columbia would be better served by a summit convened to call for the enactment of S. 1082 and H.R. 1288--the

Senate and House versions of the "District of Columbia Personal Protection Act."

As we continually note, this

legislation seeks to restore the constitutionally-guaranteed Second Amendment rights of the law-abiding residents of

the District of Columbia. It would allow these citizens to lawfully defend themselves and their families from

violent crime. It is time to pass this critically important and obviously necessary law.

Please be sure to

contact your U.S. Senators and Representative and ask them to cosponsor and support S. 1082 and H.R. 1288.

For a

list of Senate cosponsors, please visit

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?

d109:SN01082:@@@P.

For a list of House cosponsors, please visit

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?

d109:HR01288:@@@P.

You can call your U.S. Senators at (202) 224-3121, or your U.S. Representative

at (202) 225-3121.