the blogprof
via what really happened
citizens in and around macomb township, michigan organized an open carry picnic in their macomb corners park.
however, macomb township has an ordinance that bans firearms in public parks and they claimed, erroneously as it were, that their ordinance prevailed over the michigan constitution and michigan compiled laws.
that was before john roshek, southeast regional coordinator of michigan open carry, brought to the attention of local officials, the 29 april 2003 michigan court of appeals opinion in michigan coalition for responsible gun owners, jean bruce, alexander kasa and greg neu v. city of ferndale and karen pedro.
in the ferndale case, the city of ferndale, michigan, in november 2001, enacted ordinance no. 945, which prohibited citizens from among other things "the possession or concealment of weapons in all buildings located in ferndale that are owned or controlled by the city."
third district judge joel p. hoekstra writing for the three judge panel, which included second district judge kathleen jansen and judge hilda r. gage (now retired) said that the city of ferndale not only violated michigan compiled laws at section 123.1102 but that the city had no authority to preempt state law.
the court further pointed out that the statute "specifically prohibits local units of government from enacting and enforcing any ordinances or regulations pertaining to the transportation and possession of firearms, and thus preempts any ordinance or regulation of a local unit of government concerning these areas."
click here to download eleven page .pdf [57 kb]
the police showed up more than half-way through. not to check licenses or anything, but to ask questions about their own rights! some police personnel, apparently, themselves do not know that they can open carry in the state of michigan.
here's a pic of the blogprof (R) and one of the organizers"what is it with liberals and gun rights. liberals simply cannot find an individual right to carry in the u.s. constitution, even though it is explicitly cited in amendments that specifically address only individual rights, but can find a right to abortion which is somehow invisibly inserted somewhere in the same document."but it's wrong to cast those that are working to take-away our freedoms by diminishing, subverting or nullifying federal, state consitutions and statutes as only "liberals."
