Source: National Shooting Council
In this blog we update you on letters we received from three coalition politicians on what we hope will lead to positive changes to gun laws in NSW.
The letters, which we publish here, are from the:
- NSW Deputy Premier, John Barilaro;
- Parliamentary Secretary for Police and Justice, Mark Taylor MP (and our response) ; and
- chair of the Law and Safety Committee of the NSW Legislative Assembly, Ms Wendy Tuckerman MP.
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A few weeks ago, we updated you on the plight of David Dunstan, the NSW farmer who had his firearms license and guns were taken from him after confronting an intruder who was armed with a knife, on his property at 3 am in September 2017. It was a cause that many of you donated to, to enable the Dunstans to get advice from a lawyer who specializes in firearms law.
Annoyed that their decision would be questioned, the NSW Police decided to restrict the firearms license belonging to David’s wife, Andrea, which were removed a few days later. In all, it took NSW Police six weeks to return David’s license and guns to him.
My take on the above. A husband and wife barricade themselves in a bathroom in response to an armed intruder in their house. They were both brutally murdered. This is originally policing knowledge that I will never forget.
When I read the story of the farmer and his wife it reminded me of the double murder. If I was to share with you the forensic photographs you would be shocked. The point is this, the firearm was used as a deterrent to a knifeman seeking to gain entry into the house. The police removed the firearm the farmer used to deter the knifeman. I put to you that had the knifeman only ran as far away as a clump of bushes within sight of the house. What might he do after watching the police disarm the farmer?
Might he reconsider what he first intended? Is it not probably he would wait until the police left the scene. and returning and perhaps murder the farmer? Would he then proceed to rape and murder his wife?
The general public just does not realize that there are criminals out there that do this type of thing.
How many of the long term missing are never found? Do the maths, in the senior ranks of the police, the ones I talk with at reunions, the general consensus is there are at least 8 or 9 serial killers working the highways of Australia.
Now some will say, the farmer could have picked up a kitchen knife to defend himself.
From my own experiences, violent criminals occasionally engage in hand to hand combat using all sorts of weapons including the knife. However, if the advantage. favours the innocent they are often deterred.
The entire point of the firearm as a “deterrent” so as to avoid hand to hand combat.
Would you want to go toe to toe in a knife fight with the knifeman or would you like him to run away? Easy answer.
So what about all the other armed home invasions. What about remote campers. What about … there are just so many examples we can take from factual events.
The strong (and armed) prey on the weak (and unarmed).
In outlawing the weapon only Outlaws, not Victims have weapons and criminals are very much aware of that these days. They no longer fear to get shot kicking in a door armed with a knife to do whatever they want.
You see normal peoples fear prison, so the prospect of prison is a deterrent. However, if you have been to prison several times you know longer fear it, it is just an inconvenience. The really bad criminals don’t fear prisons but everyone Australians do and therefore they abide by laws related to firearms. So criminals are armed and their victims are not.
On top of that, we have rediculous laws based on the premise that honest law-abiding citizens can not be trusted. Given them, the training and the responsibility will follow to respond appropriately as did the Farmer instinctively.