SAFE Act advocate busted for carrying a gun in school.

[Skeeter Barnes]

Dwayne Ferguson spent more than a decade advocating for nonviolence and peace in the streets of Buffalo.

He was a well-known face in the movement for the SAFE Act, the state law that made carrying a gun on school property a felony. He was also a familiar presence in the hallways of the city’s Harvey Austin Elementary School, where he worked in the after-school program and mentored students.

No one imagined that on Thursday he would show up at the school in possession of a gun, touching off an hours-long lockdown, search and ultimately his arrest on two felony charges.

Ferguson, 52, told WGRZ-TV that he frequently carries the gun, for which he has a permit, and did not realize he had it on him when he went to the school as part of the mentoring program.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/buffalo-public-schools/associates-defend-man-who-had-gun-in-school-20140207

[SecularMotion]

1. I'm not sure I believe the claim that he didn't realize he had it on him.

I suspect that he's been doing this unnoticed for awhile and just got caught. It's odd that he didn't come forward if he knew they were looking for a gun in the school. In any case, he sounds like a good guy with no bad intentions and his associates are defending him. Whatever the penalty is, he should receive the minimum.

[petronius]

4. I agree - I'm pretty skeptical of that claim. Forgetting a gun in a bag

is foolish enough, but apparently wearing it in a holster (in such a way that someone else saw it), claiming that he forgot about it, and further claiming that he didn't make the connection when told to reason for the lockdown? That strains the bounds of credibility.

But despite the juicy irony here - and my disdain for chunks of this law - I also agree that this is a case for prosecutorial discretion and judicial leniency (although that gun permit needs to be revoked, at least temporarily)...

[clffrdjk]

5. So why exactly should he be let off?

I mean I dislike the safe act as much as the next guy. But is he not the exact target of the safe act, legal gun owners who are not out to do any harm? Did he not try to help build support for the law and it's increased penalties? Why should the "some people are more equal than others" attitude of New York be further reinforced? He helped to create his crime if anything he deserves a larger punishment than someone who could truly plead ignorance.

[petronius]

7. In every case, I think that intent and circumstances should be considered

It's a stupid law, and people shouldn't get hammered with multiple felonies for what may have been a minor lapse*. This guy's activism or stance on the law isn't relevant - I'd say the same for a CCW-holding parent who came to a parent-teacher meeting or anyone else who happened to carry a gun onto campus harmlessly and without ill intent. Just as I do for nimrods who leave a gun in a carry-on, or those perfectly innocent NYers who fill a magazine instead of stopping at seven.

I didn't say he should be let off - he did break the law and waste LEO time/resources - but I don't see felonies and lengthy prison time as appropriate. Loss of permit, a fine, ban from school grounds, misdemeanor, infraction ... something at the low end of the scale is what I'd advocate.

* Now if it turns out that SecMo's guess is right, and this guy has been willfully disobeying the law since even before the SAFE Act, my stance will be far more punitive.

[clffrdjk]

10. Well then let's consider the circumstances

The man actively promoted the law that he broke. Intent well I put a heck of a lot more weight in actions and results than what was intended.

Also how else should I take "prosecutorial discretion and judicial leniency" than to let him off we are talking a felony level "crime"

[oneshooter]

6. Seems to me he was a legal gun owner, till he wasn't. Nail him down hard.

He wanted and supported the law, now let him feel the hurt.

[Ghost in the Machine]

13. Actually, it's easier to forget than you think. I used to have a Kel-Tec 9mm that I carried in a

pocket of my cargo pants, or cargo shorts, while walking around my property. I carried it because of snakes, the occasional wild boar, and the pack of wild dogs that run through my property. I have 15 acres, and like to get out when I'm able and check it out to make sure trespassers and/or poachers haven't placed any tree stands or blinds.

If you noticed my title, it says I *USED TO HAVE* this weapon. A Kel-Tec only weighs 6 to 8 ounces, depending on the model, and I sold it after the 3rd time I caught myself going to town with it still in my pocket. I could have gotten into a lot of trouble had I been pulled over and searched for any reason. I don't have a concealed carry permit, but don't need one to carry on my own property. I carry a rifle now.... can't forget you're carrying that!

Peace,

Ghost

[gejohnston]

15. Bullshit

I don't care what his politics is, he lobbied for it, he should get the max 2 years for each count.

[sarisataka]

16. GCRA recently posted on technical violations

re: Connecticut gun owners who filed registrations but missed the dead line.

So much for gun owners being law abiding.

No amnesty. Throw them in jail.

I find the statement that he forgot a holstered gun, after entering the school, after being told that police were looking for MWAG, until physically searched extremely difficult to accept.
Curious, do you agree with his associates who say because he was carrying he could potentially have helped the police?

[Historic NY]

2. Even before the safe act you could not carry on school grounds unless

you were law enforcement.

265.01-a Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds.
A person is guilty of criminal possession of a weapon on school
grounds when he or she knowingly has in his or her possession a rifle,
shotgun, or firearm in or upon a building or grounds, used for
educational purposes, of any school, college, or university, except the
forestry lands, wherever located, owned and maintained by the State
University of New York college of environmental science and forestry, or
upon a school bus as defined in section one hundred forty-two of the
vehicle and traffic law, without the written authorization of such
educational institution.
Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds is a class E felony.

Case of a kid with a civil war replica gun at his school which hosts a civil war unit, and is lead by history teacher. The youth was arrested an gun confiscated. He was on school grounds with it in his vehicle.

[Duckhunter935]

3. he pushed for the act and now

he should be charged under the law he wanted, no exceptions. I see him getting off with a slap on the wrist. Some are above the laws they pass you know.

[Eleanors38]

8. Gun control is always about elite prerogatives and dispensations...

that protects such hypocrites as Diane Feinstein, Michael Moore, and Sylvester Stalone. This is casual gun control corruption, so I expect a slap on the wrist from their fellow elites.

[DonP]

9. Here's another gun control supporter caught carrying illegally = misdemeanor

April 24, 2013

State Sen. Donne Trotter pleaded guilty today to misdemeanor reckless conduct for trying to board a flight with a handgun in his carry-on luggage in December.

In a plea deal worked out with Cook County prosecutors, Judge Charles Burns sentenced Trotter, 63, to a year of court supervision and 60 hours of community service. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped the original felony charge of bringing a gun onto an airplane. A felony conviction could have resulted in up to three years in prison.

Trotter was arrested after Transportation Security Administration officials at O’Hare International Airport spotted a .25-caliber Beretta zipped inside a side pocket of his carry-on bag.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-state-sen-trotter-pleads-guilty-to-misdemeanor-20130424,0,1789537.story

[ileus]

11. Bad gun laws make good folks criminals every day.

[oneshooter]

12. You need to post this at CastleBansALot.

The gun controllers are so funny.

[friendly_iconoclast]

17. HA! That's a good one- they tend to avoid inconvenient truths over there

It just doesn't do to point out the blatant hypocrisy of certain 'gun control advocates'
like Feguson.

Or the fact that they treat Gabby Giffords like the crazy aunt that no one wants to talk about,
because while she's undoubtedly a victim of gun violence and a voice for gun control, she's also
*GASP* a gun owner and feels that Americans have the right to own guns:

http://americansforresponsiblesolutions.org/about/

...As gun owners and strong supporters of the Second Amendment, Gabby and Mark know we must protect the rights of Americans to own guns for collection, recreation, and protection.

So no, this will not be discussed at the Gun Control Reform Activism group...

[friendly_iconoclast]

18. I posted it in GD. I suspect it will produce some amusing replies if not locked.

[gejohnston]

14. IIRC, that charge was a misdemeanor before the SAFE Act

He lobbied for it to become a felony. Now he and his supporters are being total hypocrites. Had he been a vocal opponent of the SAFE Act, his now supporters would be "throw the book at him."
I don't give shit what his politics is, or what he stands for. He known broke a law that he supported to be applied to others. Fuck him, he should do the 2 year max for each count.