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| US sheriffs lay down challenge to Obama in public vow to defy gun laws | US sheriffs lay down challenge to Obama in public vow to defy gun laws |
| (25 days later) | |
| At least four county sheriffs across the country have openly challenged the Obama administration's campaign for new gun control laws, vowing not to enforce any measures that would infringe on the rights of citizens as they see them. | At least four county sheriffs across the country have openly challenged the Obama administration's campaign for new gun control laws, vowing not to enforce any measures that would infringe on the rights of citizens as they see them. |
| "Any federal regulation enacted by Congress or by executive order of the president offending the constitutional rights of my citizens shall not be enforced by me or by my deputies," Crook County sheriff Jim Hensley of Oregon wrote on Wednesday in a letter to Joe Biden. "In summary, it is the position of this sheriff that I refuse to participate, or stand idly by, while my citizens are turned into criminals due to the unconstitutional actions of misguided politicians." | "Any federal regulation enacted by Congress or by executive order of the president offending the constitutional rights of my citizens shall not be enforced by me or by my deputies," Crook County sheriff Jim Hensley of Oregon wrote on Wednesday in a letter to Joe Biden. "In summary, it is the position of this sheriff that I refuse to participate, or stand idly by, while my citizens are turned into criminals due to the unconstitutional actions of misguided politicians." |
| Hensley wrote after a nearly identical letter by a sheriff in a neighboring county went viral on Facebook, garnering tens of thousands of likes on an official county page. Sheriffs in Minnesota and Kentucky have come out with similar vows. | Hensley wrote after a nearly identical letter by a sheriff in a neighboring county went viral on Facebook, garnering tens of thousands of likes on an official county page. Sheriffs in Minnesota and Kentucky have come out with similar vows. |
| "I consider this a moral obligation [to defy new gun laws]," Sheriff Denny Peyman of Jackson County in Kentucky told the Lexington Herald-Leader. "American citizens already have given up too much power over guns … I'm for people defending themselves." | "I consider this a moral obligation [to defy new gun laws]," Sheriff Denny Peyman of Jackson County in Kentucky told the Lexington Herald-Leader. "American citizens already have given up too much power over guns … I'm for people defending themselves." |
| President Barack Obama signed 23 executive orders on Wednesday relating to gun control, and he proposed new federal laws that would ban assault weapons, among other measures. Any such proposal would have to overcome stiff opposition in Congress to become law. The executive orders were signed on the recommendation of a taskforce headed by Biden that was created after the deaths of 20 first-graders in Connecticut. | President Barack Obama signed 23 executive orders on Wednesday relating to gun control, and he proposed new federal laws that would ban assault weapons, among other measures. Any such proposal would have to overcome stiff opposition in Congress to become law. The executive orders were signed on the recommendation of a taskforce headed by Biden that was created after the deaths of 20 first-graders in Connecticut. |
| The pair of Oregon sheriffs said new gun laws could violate the constitution. "I believe strongly in the second amendment," Hensley told local KTVZ News. "If the federal government comes into Crook County and wants to take firearms and things away from [citizens], I'm going to tell them it's not going that way." | The pair of Oregon sheriffs said new gun laws could violate the constitution. "I believe strongly in the second amendment," Hensley told local KTVZ News. "If the federal government comes into Crook County and wants to take firearms and things away from [citizens], I'm going to tell them it's not going that way." |
| The second amendment ensures the right "to keep and bear arms". Other gun advocates who object to new federal laws point to the 10th amendment, which says that "powers not delegated" to the federal government under the constitution are reserved to the states. | The second amendment ensures the right "to keep and bear arms". Other gun advocates who object to new federal laws point to the 10th amendment, which says that "powers not delegated" to the federal government under the constitution are reserved to the states. |
| County sheriffs are elected officials who may gain power by opposing federal policies that are locally unpopular. Federal authorities largely rely on local enforcement of the law, and non-enforcement is difficult to demonstrate. Legal battles to ensure enforcement – a federal investigation or indictment of county officials – are costly, time-consuming and politically unsavory. | County sheriffs are elected officials who may gain power by opposing federal policies that are locally unpopular. Federal authorities largely rely on local enforcement of the law, and non-enforcement is difficult to demonstrate. Legal battles to ensure enforcement – a federal investigation or indictment of county officials – are costly, time-consuming and politically unsavory. |
| A clash over gun laws between county law enforcement and the federal government went all the way to the supreme court in 1997. In that case, Mack and Printz v United States, the court deemed unconstitutional a provision in the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act that would have required local authorities to conduct background checks for handgun purchases pending the establishment of a national checking system. Most local authorities conducted the checks despite the legal challenge, which originated in Montana and Arizona. | A clash over gun laws between county law enforcement and the federal government went all the way to the supreme court in 1997. In that case, Mack and Printz v United States, the court deemed unconstitutional a provision in the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act that would have required local authorities to conduct background checks for handgun purchases pending the establishment of a national checking system. Most local authorities conducted the checks despite the legal challenge, which originated in Montana and Arizona. |
| More recently, the tension between federal and state law was cast into stark relief by two high-profile issues of the last election season. The legalization of marijuana possession by state referendum in Colorado defies federal guidelines, while states voting to approve same-sex marriage have ignored a federal law defining marriage as between a man and a woman. In each case, local authorities have wide latitude for enforcement. | More recently, the tension between federal and state law was cast into stark relief by two high-profile issues of the last election season. The legalization of marijuana possession by state referendum in Colorado defies federal guidelines, while states voting to approve same-sex marriage have ignored a federal law defining marriage as between a man and a woman. In each case, local authorities have wide latitude for enforcement. |
| The National Sheriffs' Association says the power to interpret the law belongs to the courts. "A sheriff should always perform his or her duties in accordance with the constitution of the United States as interpreted by the United States supreme court," the association's web site says [pdf]. | The National Sheriffs' Association says the power to interpret the law belongs to the courts. "A sheriff should always perform his or her duties in accordance with the constitution of the United States as interpreted by the United States supreme court," the association's web site says [pdf]. |
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