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 Edward Koller's mug shot (courtesy The Grennwich Police)

“Officers responded to a medical call relating to Mr. [Edward] Koller,” greenwich.patch.com reports. While privacy laws prevent the police from disclosing the nature of Mr. Koller’s medical emergency, police spokesman Lt. Kraig Gray was specific about Mr. Koller’s 10-20: in his car. “As a result of that contact and previous contacts with him, officers determined he had a weapon in the motor vehicle,” Gray said. Wait. What? What does that mean? Anyway, the cops discovered that Mr. K’s car was kitted out with guns, ammo and magazines. Apparently, none of those prohibited under Connecticut’s freshly-minted gun control laws. But the story doesn’t end there . . .

Disclaimer: the Patch story is pretty patchy written in the style normally attributed to bloggers in pajamas in their mother’s basement. But I’m thinking that this bit – “Koller had a pistol in his possession even though his state pistol permit was revoked in February 2014 by the Connecticut State Police (CSP)” – came before this bit . . .

Police obtained a search and seizure warrant that day and seized a Bushmaster XM 15 assault rifle and 49 high capacity magazines from his home, as well as anabolic steroids and a small amount of suspected cocaine, Gray said. “They are contraband items in Connecticut,” Gray said.

After the seizure, officers applied for an arrest warrant. Koller surrendered at police headquarters at 6:45 a.m. Monday, May 5. He was charged with 49 counts of failure to register high capacity magazines, and one count each of possession of narcotics, weapons in a motor vehicle, possession of drug paraphernalia, carrying a pistol without a permit, illegal possession of an assault weapon and operating a motor vehicle without a license.

So no angel this Koller fellow, then. Presumably. But it doesn’t appear that Mr. Koller intended to do anything illegal with the prohibited items – unless the mysterious “medical emergency” was somehow suicide-related. In any event, it’ll be interesting to see how hard the prosecutor whacks Mr. Koller on the “high-cap mag” and “assault weapon” charges. And whether or not Koller will become a poster boy for firearms freedom in the Constitution State.

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196 COMMENTS

      • What do you think the possibilities are that he was “chosen” ahead of time or shortly after the initial encounter with der police? Seems like a convenient 2fer for the grabbing group. Constitution State? Not really.

        • Shopping for “good” defendants to use for setting legal precedents is far from unknown.

          They’ll slam dunk this cokehead — “for the children!” and all that — and then encourage him to appeal so that they can get higher court rulings in support of their magazine ban.

          They’re not going to take the chance on prosecuting a decent citizen. Not yet.

          Once they’ve got a few “good” convictions under their belts and upheld on appeals, then they’ll start going after the rest of us.

        • I think he was a target of opportunity. Given his record he was bound to have more run ins with the law. He won’t be appealing his conviction. I bet there won’t even be a trail. He will plea bargain.

    • Because he had a an assortment of substances that the State considers contraband?

      As long as Koller wasn’t injecting steroids or cocaine into anyone else – or lead projectiles, for that matter – what was this man’s crime?

      • Steroids shouldn’t even be illegal. Well, none of it should, but steroids shouldn’t even be scheduled meds under the current system–they just don’t “fit”. Also the fact that substances that exist naturally within us can be scheduled=kind of funny/sad. (Note: not condoning steroid use–it’s largely a stupid thing to do unless you have a legit medical need for them, not to say it’s a “good idea” but if you want to use them go nuts, just make sure to have a doctor go over vitals with you, come up with plan for what to do post-use with a doctor, etc).

        As for coke (for the record, I strongly despise all stimulant drugs…i’m not counting things like caffiene and modafinil as stimulants though, I classify those as wakefulness promoting agents.. no one can stay up for 4 days on coffee, energy drinks, or some aldafanil they ordered online or something and go into stimulant psychosis and go crazy)… Even coke should be legal. Shouldn’t have anything to do with gun ownership. If moderate stimulant use made everyone murderers, our country would be in deep deep ****. Because there’s a TON (estimates in the millions) of people on amphetamines, ritalin (similar to coke in how it works), etc. Remember: if you take an amphetamine pill twice a year for finals you are a horrible drug abuser and should be in jail, your rights taken away. If you take amphetamines every day for years, that is perfectly fine and society welcomes you =p.

        A lot of the country has a huge meth problem right now. People take it for days on end without sleep and it ages them insanely fast. Or causes stimulant psychosis, makes people go nuts, causes insane behavior and crime. But if meth were legal tomorrow would you go buy any? Would anyone you know start doing it? Yeah, mean either, and no to the second question. The people that want it are already getting it. If they truly wanted to protect society, meth would be sold by the pharmacist in packs. It’d be cheap (it’s so cheap and easy to make it would be cheap enough that no one would bother stealing your air conditioner to buy more just like no one steals your air conditioner to sell to buy ciggs), taxed (so my tax dollars don’t have to go to feed and house these people, thanks, I’d rather my tax dollars go to pay for more worthy causes), and every pack would come with some sort of extra-strength valium and have massive warnings about going more than a day without sleep, and the valium in there would knock you out when needed and get you past the “crash’. That combined with a ton of advertising would be much more effective than current policy…

        • actually pharmaceutical meth is out there…..Desoxyn…….or….Methamphetamine HCL.

          Hahah

      • It’s about perception. Sure banning drugs is as stupid as banning full capacity magazines or automatic rifles, but someone “seedy” like that is not going to garner as much public support as a church going, happily married, father of four, who pays his taxes and volunteers reading to blind kids every Saturday.

      • Imagine a black man, dressed like a gang member, walking a Pitbull with cropped years, a spiked collar and built like a tank. Even though the Pit could be the most sociable dog and the man and prominent community leader, it’s a poor presentation and leaves many with negative opinions.

        • Right – because that sort of thing always stops the Left. They always wait until they have just the right person.

          Seriously, they always fight, no matter how disreputable the person is (think, e.g., of Trayvon Martin, or, going back a generation, Rodney King).

    • No license? Hmm, is it possible that he is a Free Stater? They do not recognize the Federal Government, and some have had some super good luck in court cases.

      • Many prefer to live as a “Free Stater” than groveling as a “Slave Stater”. As a CT expat, I found that the New Hampshire Free Staters I’ve met believe in a limited government, personal freedoms and responsibilities, and the Constitution. Beliefs that are the complete opposite of those of CT.
        Driving licenses, now linked to the federal Real ID, appear to be no more than the governmental internal identification documentation and revenue generators, they have nothing to do with driver competence or safety. Gun owners from CA, CT, MA, NJ, NY, etc… may want to research and consider emigrating to NH and be part of the NH Liberty movement.

  1. Looks like the MO we expected–use the law to throw the book at someone no one will want to be seen standing up for. Don’t do anything to inflame people, like arresting someone who is otherwise law-abiding solely for breaking this absofuckinglutely ridiculous law.

    • Did you expect this would start with a shining example of New England accepted progressive society?

      Let’s dissect this. This evil man is charged with FORTY-NINE fiat felony counts … for magazines. The sum total of all his other charges represent a tiny fraction of that.

      Isn’t the symbol for justice a balance? Where’s the balance in here?

        • It happens. Commenting without thinking ten times or more? That’d be someone else.

      • Too bad he’s not the child of illegal immigrants. If he were, Holder would give him a pat on the head and a scholarship. Oh well.

      • …and one count each of possession of narcotics, weapons in a motor vehicle, possession of drug paraphernalia, carrying a pistol without a permit, illegal possession of an assault weapon and operating a motor vehicle without a license.

        Those are all fiat charges as well.

      • Perfect for the media to praise the actions of law enforcement on this “ticking time bomb”.
        “Thank goodness we passed these mag registration laws, look what was averted”. Probably provide web links to the crazy guy who burned down his house and shot responding firemen with a straw purchased rifle. See how we nipped this in the bud with pre-emption guilty till proven otherwise laws. Good for us.

    • Depends on the subject of the poster. All his problems have apparently not stopped him from amassing a pretty impressive selection of guns and drugs which, supposedly, the many laws passed should have prevented him from having access to in the first place. Why do we have such laws if we cannot effectively enforce them? If he were REALLY evil, he could have gotten thoroughly doped up and murdered dozens, up to the day before his arrest. These laws don’t work, we need to arm up, each and every one of us who is able bodied and sane.

  2. I would be very interested in seeing the language on the warrant for searching the home. I would alsobe interested in knowing why Koller’s license to carry was revoked in February…

    • Indeed … every one of these crimes he’s been charged with:

      * failure to register “high capacity” magazines
      * possession of narcotics
      * weapons in a motor vehicle
      * possession of drug paraphernalia
      * carrying a pistol without a permit
      * illegal possession of an “assault weapon”
      * operating a motor vehicle without a license

      is a victimless crime. No one was physically injured or even threatened by any of these “crimes.”

      That’s not to say that abusing steroids or cocaine is in any way a good thing. But from what I read in the article, no one has actually been injured or harmed by Mr. Koller.

    • Indeed. If he wants to get coked up with a bit of roid rage thrown in, I personally believe that’s his business as long as he keeps everything to himself. But if he was packing a gun or driving in that state of mind (I admit that I don’t know if he was or not), then I can’t really approve of that. Not enough info, but what little there is certainly doesn’t make Koller look good.

    • It really shouldn’t matter who the arrested person is, since the goal is to put the imperialist government on trial at every possible opportunity.

  3. “as well as anabolic steroids and a small amount of suspected cocaine”

    Ok Im going to be the guy who rains on the parade here… but if the above is true, sounds like this is the kind of person we dont need to be standing behind.

    just my 0.02, although I guess we cant expect them to praise him for volunteering at the homeless shelter since they are pretty much just looking for fact to prove all gun owners are like this guy.

    Still

      • How large of a percentage of legal gun owners do cocaine and have his criminal record?

        If it’s divide and conquer they’re not going to be able to do the latter if they can’t do the former better than 2%.

        • “If it’s divide and conquer ”

          It’s divide and conquer when a significant number of 2A people would throw a whole class of Freedom Fighters under the bus because they disapprove of our choice of euphoriant.

    • Nothing reported about him here threatened anybody but him. That doesn’t mean there isn’t something, like the reason for revocation of his permit, but my bet is that if he had actually done or tried to do anything violent, that would have led the story, front page headlines.

    • Not disagreeing, but there are better hills to fight on than this.

      It took MLK a while to find Rosa Parks. It’s not like there weren’t cases that could be argued before she turned up.

      We need to be strategic about these things.

      • The gun-grabbers are being strategic too.

        It’s no accident that they’re arresting this guy and not some tax-paying church-going veteran who refused to register his magazines.

        They’re going to build a solid foundation of convicted dirtbags and denied appeals before they go after the decent people who refuse to comply.

        • Incorrect. Booker Washington, NAACP lawyers, and a thousand others laid the groundwork, inch by inch, over the course of generations. MLK, Rosa Parks, and all the others in the 60’s showed up at the finish line in time to stand in the spotlight. Not that they did nothing, but the way had been prepared for them.

          We also have to do hard work – work that will go unrecognized and unthanked – for a long time, and regain our liberties inch by inch. Our models must be the men who acted in the shadows long before MLK – who built the stage onto which he finally walked.

  4. I think the high-cap mag charges are piling on for the coke and ‘roids charges, but while his “rights” are being violated, this is not the guy to back up. we need a clean sheet defendant who is ONLY charged for high cap possession so a judge can throw the charges out.

    • In the ideal world, sure. But what do we always say around here about unicorns?

      I think that’s not going to happen; they are going after the low hanging fruit, and if this “felony” of unregistered magazines continues unabated, it’s going to be that much harder to defeat.

      There have been a lot of important cases that came about due to some pretty nasty guys. Miranda, Terry, Garner…none were “saints” and it could be argued not good “poster boys” for the cause of civil rights.

      But there it is…they are the ones that come into contact with police and thus they ARE the ones that become test cases.

      It’s important to defeat this fast…the first possible chance. We don’t care what happens on the other charges (so much…), but the 49 counts of “unregistered magazines” is crap no matter who the guy is or what else he’s done.

      • The 49 counts are for show by the DA. I bet they get dropped. This person has a long list of other charges. If they go forward with the 49 count charge, then sure, this may be “your huckleberry” — politics and past CT cases show it will not — CT has shown that it does not enforce the gun laws it has but uses them for plea bargains.

        • That somehow makes it right to charge him with 49 counts of “unregistered magazines.”

          Um. Okay.

        • JR – The state law is such that each infraction, each mag, is a separate violation, hence the number of charges being equal to the number of mags, rather than a single charge. I agree, they will probably plea out or drop those charges and stick to the gun/drug possession charges.

          Relevant language from SB1160:

          “With exceptions, anyone who possesses any LCM on or after January 1, 2014 obtained before the bill’s effective date is guilty of a infraction punishable by a $90 fine and a class D penalty for any subsequent offense; anyone who possesses a large capacity magazine on or after January 1, 2014 that was obtained after that date is guilty of a class D felony.”

        • “JR – The state law is such that each infraction, each mag, is a separate violation, hence the number of charges being equal to the number of mags, rather than a single charge. “

          Are you saying this because you think I don’t know that?

          Believe me, that’s not my complaint here.

          There is NO WAY to defend FORTY NINE FELONY charges for possession of “unregistered magazines” as right, moral or consistent with the values of American society.

          Felonies are supposed to be society’s most serious crimes…things like murder, rape, armed robbery, NOT failure to fill out a form and pay a FEE.

          So, here’s another way to look at the distinction. A felony is an ACTION…it’s something you DID, usually to someone else. You took their life, for example, is an action. NOT doing something is NOT a crime…especially when it is “not filling out a form.”

          I cannot believe you think you needed to explain how “counts” work, when the discussion is so, so, so VERY far above that level.

          And FORTY-NINE counts…good grief. If convicted (at least theoretically possible) with consecutive sentences…the guy could die in prison for OWNING A FEW BOXES OF METAL, and you are for some reason lecturing us on how this somehow makes sense just because a group of men called it a SERIOUS CRIME by the way they defined it in “law?”

          Please, let’s take the word ‘felony’ back NOW. I’m kind of sick of this kind of perversion.

        • JR – First, understand that I agree with you in the utter ridiculousness of the law, its arbitrary application and its ability to get out of control. The wording of the law is what the asshats in Hartford passed, over the objection of myself and thousands of others. To sound trite, it is what it is.

          Second, the charges are a Class D felony, the lowest of four felony classes in CT and one notch above a 1st degree misdemeanor. The maximum penalty for a Class D in CT is “Class D felon = 1 to 5 years / Up to $5,000” So yes, applying 46 counts to this is decades and/or more than a quarter million dollars.

          Third, I think we can assume that these 46 charges will be dropped or pleaded away, in part or in whole.

          Lastly, it is ridiculous and I have to wonder whether normal, non gun owners, non gun takers, will see such charges as being over the top if they were to become aware of them, in context. Earning 46 to 200+ years in prison for owning bent metal boxes will not seem reasonable to any reasonable person.

      • If there are no ‘unicorns’- in this case I think that means otherwise legal gun owners charged just on the ridiculous gun charges- then our problem clearly isn’t as bad as we think.

        Don’t worry, we’ll get our unicorn.

  5. See if he’s a small town mayor who’s currently active in MAIG. He certainly meets the criteria.

  6. “The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one’s time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all.”

    H. L. Mencken

    • +1,000,000 at least.

      This is very important. We don’t get to pick “who” in this. The crap laws need to be defeated for ALL of us.

    • In theory, but not in practice… at least if you’re talking about the legal route. Many court cases favorable to defendants are better fought with otherwise clean defendants. Sometimes you can’t do that, like with Miranda, but it’s best to have a simple case.

      If you’re not talking about the legal route, that might be different.

    • Thanks. Great quote, and one that speaks directly to what they’re trying to do to this guy.

  7. He’s a perfect poster boy for the gun grabbers. A sketchy guy who is linked to the new mag law. He is who they have been waiting for. Watch them promote the high cap mag aspect in the media. This is a PR campaign.

  8. So this is the way it will go. Pull someone over (who you already know has unregistered mags, guns), detain them, acquire a search warrant and go into his home and confiscate the weapons, mags, ect.
    No bloodshed, no last stand, no one going out in a blaze of glory. Goodbye mags and scary rifles.
    Oh and start with the sleaziest people first, that way no one will pay attention when we go after the model citizens.

    • EXACTLY!

      Go after the ones that are the easy sell to the public and get everyone used to hearing “unregistered high capacity magazine charges.”

      Normalize the language, normalize the court system and…JURIES….to the charges, and…DONE. Law legitimized.

      • Yes, which is why the citizenry should try to force a stand. For instance, 1,000 citizens could gather peacefully with their “illegal” guns and magazines (unloaded) in front of the capitol, and force the police to make a choice whether to arrest them. That’s just one idea, of course.

        But you are right that we will not win if we allow the police and bureaucrats to wage a guerrilla war against us, picking us off one by one week after week, month after month, year after year.

    • Exactly right. Plus those mags and guns are unusable by law abiding citizens. They can never see the light of day.

  9. This AIN’T the poster boy. Just a run of the mill criminal suspect. NOBODY gets a prescription for steroids or cocaine these days. Please don’t defend this fool people.

    • I’m sorry to be blunt, but you are wrong. We don’t have to defend him on his other charges, but “unregistered magazines” is a crap charge and he has FORTY NINE COUNTS.

      I think if you are going to give up on this guy just because of tangential issues pertaining to his potential guilt in other charges, we’ve already lost Connecticut, and everywhere else that puts a law like this in place.

      Read up on Miranda’s history. He was no nice guy “poster boy” either.

      • Nobody needs forty-nine 30-round magazines for hunting. Hell, I only have around 30! Who’s in charge of the BS flag this week?

        • Only he can determine what he NEEDS. I’m surprised to hear you use that sort of language, Larry. A right is a right. If a man wants 49 magazines, he can have them, for whatever peaceful purpose he chooses.

        • @Mothalova – Please check your sarc detector batteries, I’m fairly certain they are discharged.

      • There was no other way to challenge the theory of Miranda except by using a defendant who admitted guilt in some offense. The evidence being challenged had a nexus to the crime charged.

        To challenge laws like this it would be best to have a defendant ONLY charged with the unconstitutional law. Not only for the sake of having an otherwise innocent man, but also because you can bet a guy like this will happily plea down for a lesser sentence.

        • “To challenge laws like this it would be best to have a defendant ONLY charged with the unconstitutional law.”

          That’s a fantasy.

          The law has already been ruled “Constitutional” by a judge back in January.

          By the time your ideal defendant gets arrested, the idea of these charges will be accepted in the public consciousness (read: jury pools) to the degree that this will be that much harder to defeat.

          Nip in the bud at the first chance. Fight it NOW, no matter who the defendant is.

    • Sorry, but the state is smart enough to not go after attractive victims. But, rest assured, they’re next. Rest assured, we’re next.

    • I suggest we all take the defense attorney’s standard position in a case like this–we’re not defending the person, we are defending the law–“the law” including all the legal requirements the prosecution must meet (including constitutional requirements) just as much as the statutes the defendant is accused of violating.

    • This is how a lot of the sham gun laws are going to be prosecuted. They will go after the low hanging fruit. He may or may not be guilty on the drug charges (I’ll let the jury/judge decide), but he sure as hell shouldn’t be prosecuted for “high cap” magazines and an “assault” weapon. If you want to wait for a perfect set of cases, then you’re probably going to wait a long time. The state can find all kinds of violations that you may technically be guilty of in order to get their foot in a person’s door.

  10. Couple of questions here. Which of the cops brought the “suspected cocaine?” Why was his LTC revoked? Was it because they know what he has because the 4473 form he filled out and didn’t register his gear on Jan 1, 2014 and they revoked his LTC as a result? And is this the first domino of how it’s going to go down in CT?

    • If his CCP (LTC) was revoked as a measure of retribution, this will get interesting pretty quick because he certainly won’t be the only one…

    • Exactly this. I’m well past being skeptical of how anything will be handled in CT and this has a certain stench about it.

      It’s also a little disappointing to see people toss this guy and his rights away based on some prior misdemeanors or because he was “allegedly” in possession of some drugs.

      Some fair weather rights supporters here at TTAG.

    • Oh, shoot, you are right on. There is supposed to be no record of that 4473, how did they know? I mean, could they have broken the LAW?

  11. It’s unfortunate the first publicized story has to revolve around someone that may not be wrapped tight.

    It remains to be seen if any of the “suspected substances” turn out to be so. We will also have to wait and see if the medical emergency was suicide related or, maybe something legitimate like heart…with him doing nothing more than transferring his collection from one home to another.

  12. This is the very definition of ad hominem.

    I don’t care who Mencken was; I’m not asking him for a dinner date.

    Do the words quoted ring true or not? Is the sentiment in that quote good or bad?

  13. There are better accounts of his arrest. Police have had many prior run ins with this person and where called to the house because he threatened someone at the house with a gun.

    No, not a poster boy but a dumbass. This is the opposite of what we want representing the PoG.

    • Listen, and hear this.

      We don’t get to CHOOSE who is going to be our “poster boy.” Who started this imbecilic nonsense?

      Every major court case that you’ve heard of on the issue of Constitutional Rights began with the arrest of a criminal. In most cases, those criminals were not “ideal poster boys” either.

      We have to live in the real world. No matter who he is or what else he’s done, he’s being charged with “unregistered high capacity magazines.”

      Now, you either think those charges are bull feces or you don’t.

      If you give those charges a pass for this guy, they will be THAT MUCH HARDER to fight or overturn for your ideal poster boy he EVER is found.

      • Oh no, that’s where you’re wrong, JR. We have to be very, very afraid at all times – timid, trepid, and tremulous – of what the leftist media will say. If we can’t satisfy the media, then we should stay quiet. The successful campaigns of McCain and Romney prove how effective it is to appease the media. This is the course we should continue to follow.

        So stop advising us to live in reality; that might require us to take risks, to take stands – in a word, to fight. No, no, we would rather make excuses and stay seated on our rumps.

  14. Someone might want to do a quick Google search on his name and location to find out a bit more about past history. Some recent and some not.

  15. I’m not quite clear on what their probable cause was to search his house? Because he was found to be carrying a concealed pistol without a permit? Was the search warrant supposed to be looking for further evidence of that crime (what further evidence can there be, other than the presence of a pistol concealed on the person of a non-permitted individual?) or is there some general rule that allows the police to go on fishing expeditions when someone gets arrested to see if they committed any other crimes?

    • People who have a bit of drugs on them usually have a lot more at home. Put some incriminating statements with that and you’ll get a judge to sign it.

  16. I’m sure that a lot of you people want a 75 year old nun with a Nobel Peace Prize and a so-called “high cap” magazine to be our poster child, but it ain’t gonna happen that way. Get over yourselves.

    • I keep hearing that the police are going to start with the scumbags and then move on to the rest(?) of us. If that’s the case, why can’t we find a defendant who sounds like a normal, otherwise law-abiding citizen?

  17. Meanwhile tattooed ,gold teeth gangbangers ,killers ,carjackers,rapists thieves and those who Actually commit crimes against others are getting away!But we the Stupid Liberals under a stupid liberal Governor are going to waste time and resources and enforce an unconstitutional ,illegally passed by midnight oil,law as we violate the 4th Amendment Rights of this individual of Illegal search and seizure while we make up “probable Cause”reason to violate all these Constitutional Rights ,so we can prove our Unconstituional Laws are Constituional! That about sum it up?

  18. Someone please tell me, WHERE IS THE VICTIM?!?!? Who or what did Mr. Koller harm or damage? Since there is no victim, how can we say that Mr. Koller committed a crime? Against whom?

    I’ll tell you who the victim is, it is Mr. Koller. We have to end this nonsense where government calls someone a “criminal” for possessing objects made of metal, wood, and plastic.

  19. Cops did their homework and picked the right guy to start with. Look at some of the posts here from POG and imagine what the gun grabbers are saying.

  20. looks a whole bunch like a post pubescent jerry mathers, another epic beaver. looks like ward was a little hard on him last night, too.
    coke and ‘roids are kidstuff- things most people outgrow.
    being a no- load shmendrick, not so much.

  21. If youre having a heart attack make sure to hide all your toys before EMS arrives. Including the tens of thousands of rds of ammo under your bed, tote all that to the attic before letting paramedics in. You dont want EMS checking the box under the new Obamacare medical form “does patient have access to firearms.” Once all that stuff is hidden you can rest easy and let Obamacare work its magic.

  22. Is he a shit bag? Yes! Are the 49 Counts of Failure to Register High Capacity Magazines charges ridiculous. Yes! When I make an arrest and someone has multiple items of contraband that are in the same category and violate the same statute, I initiate a single charge not multiple charges. This is called piling on charges to make an example of someone and it is uncalled for. Again, he is a shit bag and we need not use him as poster child. The left is counting on us to use him so they can tear us to shreds.

    • I would actually rather defend this guy (on the mag charges) than Bundy.

      Because even though he’s a shitbag, the law is BS.

  23. So here’s how this is going to work… this is going to be the state version of the federal Gun Free School Zone Act (GFSZA), an inherently unconstitutional law that is virtually never enforced, only as add-on charges to otherwise unsympathetic criminal acts. This allows them to keep the law on the books, unchallenged, the perpetual “hammer held over the head” of virtually every otherwise law-abiding gun owner, to be used at the whim of immoral government persecutors.

  24. All you cheerleaders for this loser, are you going to kit on and head on out to CT to provide security for him, maybe pull out your ARs and point them at the police?

    How far are you willing to go to put more than hot air behind your brash statements defending this guy?

    I mean, if this man is as you say, the victim of a tyrannical government and a martyr for our cause, then what you are doing about it?

    Just curious.

    • You are so completely missing the point…it’s not about cheering HIM…it’s about a crap law that needs to be defeated.

      For ALL of us. Every. Single. One. Of. Us.

      But, yeah, hide behind the skirts of thinking you get to manage and control how the other side abuses the rights of the people of this country.

      Really….reading this kind of comment explains a LOT to me in regard to how we arrived that the point of infringement that we are.

      • You are choosing to miss “the point.”

        We do not latch on to a loser like this guy to attack the laws we don’t want.

        You can chat it up all you want on a gun forum, which, I suspect, is all you ever do anyway, but there is no point, at all, in getting in this guy’s corner.

        He made a mess of things and hollering bloody murder about the magazine issue is pointless.

        Politics is the art of the possible.

        But if you want to run off to a Banzai charge at the drop of a hat, we won’t stop you.

        • We do not latch on to a loser like this guy to attack the laws we don’t want.

          What in the real world makes you POSSIBLY think we get to CHOOSE who to latch onto?

          As I suggested before…go take a look at Miranda. Or Terry. Or Garner.

          No important Rights Case ever starts with “latching onto” a model citizen.

          But whatever. You latch onto whoever you want. And the world will pass by, probably with even more onerous laws and restrictions on Rights while you wait for your ideal “poster boy.”

    • So how much are they paying you, over there at “Everytown for Gun Safety”?

      Hourly, or salary? Is there a set number of snarky bullshit posts you have to make every day? Or are you paid per piece?

      • Methinks he is one of “Team BudZ” who trolls the net all day posting how fabulous they are and how anybody who was ripped by them should be disregarded. Thats why Budz cant get any deliveries out on time, most of the staff is pounding on their keyboards trying to protect Rex and his stellar operation.

    • Well, Paul, first we’re going to talk about it to figure out where we stand, then we’ll get back to you on the next course of action. In the meantime, contemplate this; being contrarian but as ineffectual as those you disagree with in no way elevates your position.

      • Lots of talk… if the past is to be believed that’s about it.

        Talk about how the law is ridiculous all you want (it is!) but the bottom line is I don’t see guys like this getting much support.

  25. I think the cop’s already had a look out for this guy after they revoked his CCL and illegally searched his car after they found this pistol that he may or may not have had (planted) also he may or may not even known about his CCL being revoked. Their’s a lot of information missing from this story. What’s the deal with the narcotics was that illegal drugs or prescribed medicine just out of the bottle? It all just sounds to convenient…

  26. Just a minute here… was he in his car when the police made contact? If so, someone care to explain under what pretense would a search warrant for his home be granted?

    • Search warrants are signed based on probable cause.

      People are arrested upon probable cause.

      When the second happens it’s not hard for the former to be granted by a judge if they think there’s evidence in the home (which there usually is with drugs and weapons). I think you are vastly overestimating the evidence needed for such an action.

    • they stopped him while he was leaving. took him to get evaluated and waited for a search warrent. Why, If they were called on a med emergency then they had no right to search the home. They know him. He has no criminal record. Listen no one is a angel but he didnt harm anyone

  27. +1 Reverend. Ragging on Martin Luther but not the slaveholders who founded America & wrote the 2nd Amendment & the rest of the constitution. Some of us think OWNING slaves might be worse than antisemitism. Defend this guy if you want.

      • I’ll tell you what, come up with a number and we’ll call that an appropriate amount and to hell with anyone who has more. That applies to mags, guns and ammunition equally. Seriously, listen to what you’re saying, if it was 490 mags or 4900 mags it wouldn’t change the issue at all. It’s irrelevant how many of what he has, what’s at issue is whether we’ll stand for making an otherwise innocuous possession, one that incorporates a natural right, illegal to own.

        • I see your point, but it has nothing to do with my comment. I was not in any way saying there was an excuse to charge him. He has every right to have as many as he wants, and I never indicated otherwise! He can have a thousand mags if he wants, more power to him. I could care less.
          I was just wondering why he would want so many. If he doesn’t want to tell me, that’s fine too!

    • Served concurrent or consecutively?

      Either way he’ll probably plea out and this is the last we’ll hear of it.

  28. I have not read all of the comments above but need to point out that he source article was very poorly written and left off many facts that can be found in article linked below. The local SRU team was on scene along with patrol units. Killer walked out of his house, drove down his long driveway, saw the significant LE presence,mourned Jeep round and walked back into his home. A short time later he walked out (unarmed) and surrendered.

    Seems he made a smart decision when given time to consider his “options”. But, imagine he was of a mind with those “sovereign citizens” up in Alaska whose overreaction to warrant service led to the deaths of two ASP. What if Koller decided to go out in a blaze of glory.

    Read this article and then decide whether this upstanding citizen was “pre-selected” to be made an example, or, did a heretofore unexpected medical call to a known and troubled gunowner lead to a proportional and rational response by the local LE.

    http://www.greenwichtime.com/local/article/Police-seize-cache-of-weapons-from-Greenwich-home-5455049.php

    And for one who suggest his violations were “victimless”, that is only because he decided it was not his day to perform suicide by cop.

    And for those who say he would not have been breaking any laws prior to the effectiveness of PA13-3, his carrying a firearm in a vehicle (or anywhere off his property) without a valid permit was a violation of the law pre-2013’s changes.

    • “his carrying a firearm in a vehicle (or anywhere off his property) without a valid permit was a violation of the law pre-2013′s changes.”

      And you are OKAY with this being a violation?

      I think you just made my point for me.

      Welcome to the slippery slope, folks…where we should celebrate the enforcement of “No Right To Carry Without A Permit” enforcement.

      I get it: “I support the Second Amendment, but…”

    • “…And for one who suggest his violations were “victimless”, that is only because he decided it was not his day to perform suicide by cop….”

      That doesn’t make any sense. Victimless crimes are victimless, period. Your statement is like saying the only reason I’m not a murderer is because I decided not to kill anyone today.

  29. “Planted”? Based on what exactly? Your hatred for LE? I guess if we did deep we will find that the cops “planted” a pistol in the dude’s car that he actually bought legally and was registered with the state. Note that he was not charged with possession of a stolen firearms so he likely legally bought/owned that gun until his permit was revoked.

    But I love that logic! The gun was not in the Jeep so stealthy SRU dude sneaks in back door, while Koller is in the house, finds his pistol and then sneaks back out and plants it in the Jeep so they can find it and then apply for a warrant.

    Do you ever think about things before you accuse cops of being dirty?

    • I think folks are just trying to articulate how low their general trust of law enforcement personnel has gotten.

      As in….they would not be surprised if it WAS planted, because, you know, that kind of corruption DOES happen.

      • Almost everything happens (somewhere, sometime, but it’s kind of silly to throw out the most conspiratorial theory possible. I think the proper approach is to treat allegations of planted evidence seriously, but not assume it happened.

        But then again I think we landed on the moon, too.

    • I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that coming from the courant this was spun to gin up the anti’s as much as possible.

      Reading between the lines:

      Wife was having an affair, hubs found out and confronted her. She files for the order making the whole thing up.

      So not only does she cheat, she screws him with the false order and takes his kids away all part and parcel for setting up a favorable divorce judgment for her.

      Happens all the time, just not often with deadly results.

  30. I love how everybody keeps using “church going” as a criteria for the ideal poster child. No thank you. I’ll take the cokehead. Churchgoing does not equal possession of the moral high ground.

  31. Did I miss the PC for the search? EMS violated HIPPA unless it was a suicide threat. I know of 1 case law that had a warrant voided when an off duty officer working as a medic found an 8 ball on a patient. I was the medic/officer.

  32. So he did not commit any crimes against anyone or anyone’s property nor did he appear to have any intent to do anything to anyone. So what is he guilty of again? Oh I forgot we need to protect the children. I think the real question is who in the hell is going to protect us from those protecting the children ?

  33. It seems awful convenient that the people who the police keep popping for gun charges also happen to have a small amount of narcotics. Kokesh, anyone?

    • Well, it’s possible that the police are all carrying around cocaine and planting it willy nilly whenever they have someone on a gun charge…

      Or, the less paranoid-schizo theory: cops generally don’t go around trying to lock people up for these gun laws but use them as additional charges when they come into contact with someone with other illegal activities.

  34. I cannot understand why the police had probable cause to search his home. He was driving with a pistol that had been properly registered but the registration had recently expired. Kind of like driving a car whose registration had just expired. Why does that give police probable cause to search your home? I’m missing something here.

  35. all the other charges will be thrown out..the MAG charges will stick…….as the agenda is anti gun and anti freedom… we the people do not have any ‘poster boys or girls’……only the Constitution and the Bill of Rights…which get trashed and disrespected on a daily basis,in this ‘land of the free and home of the brave’….imho

    • Rethinking my previous support for driving licenses, I recently realized licensing is unnecessary, and a rather high regulatory and fiscal burden to many, many millions.

        • Licensing is another way in which we express our distrust of the average American to exercise care of his own accord. This same distrust drives a great deal of the governmental control in this country. And it is an unjustified prior restraint on our liberty. That’s the general point.

          The particular application here is that anyone who is ready to drive should drive. Anyone who does not exercise prudence should bear liability, and his parents also if he is a minor.

          Licensing prevents few bad drivers, and actually encourages a lot of bad driving (for instance, by telling all kids that they’re ready to drive as of 16 when they’re not), while at the same time foisting another expensive and burdensome bureaucracy on us.

  36. Has he ever been aressted? …. If it was a medical call then how come they needed a warrent ? What was the cause for the warrent. This sounds like the police had something personal against him. He has no record of ever being violent to anyone.

    • They need a warrant because you can’t go into someone’s house, even if you have probable cause, without a warrant (with few exceptions). The fact that it’s a house does not elevate the level past probable cause, however… just need a judge sign off on it.

    • Folks, listen up. A family member in the home with him called 911 out of fear he was going to commit suicide. That family member mentioned concern due to the number of guns Koller owned. LE responded based on those facts, the past “interactions” with Koller and state records that showed him to have owned a number of firearms, legally. SRU is not rolled out for routine medical calls but this was far from routine. Probably cause was the mention of suicide and the threat of guns on the premises as told by the family member on the scene.

      Those are facts that I know because I live nearby and have friends who know.

    • He’s a target of opportunity. They found someone they can throw a mountain of charges at, in hopes of nailing him on something, setting a precedent, and raising the heat under the frogpot by another half-degree, inuring the roobs to more infringement.

  37. Anyone defending this guy is a fucking moron. We will not be successful in our fight against anti-gunners if we take every story like this and prop it up as legitimate infringement. Get smart, dullards. Guys like this are criminals…not our people.

  38. 18 U.S. Code § 1584 – Sale into involuntary servitude
    (a) Whoever knowingly and willfully holds to involuntary servitude or sells into any condition of involuntary servitude, any other person for any term, or brings within the United States any person so held, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both. If death results from the violation of this section, or if the violation includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or the attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, the defendant shall be fined under this title or imprisoned for any term of years or life, or both.
    (b) Whoever obstructs, attempts to obstruct, or in any way interferes with or prevents the enforcement of this section, shall be subject to the penalties described in subsection (a).
    18 U.S. Code § 1585 – Seizure, detention, transportation or sale of slaves
    Whoever, being a citizen or resident of the United States and a member of the crew or ship’s company of any foreign vessel engaged in the slave trade, or whoever, being of the crew or ship’s company of any vessel owned in whole or in part, or navigated for, or in behalf of, any citizen of the United States, lands from such vessel, and on any foreign shore seizes any person with intent to make that person a slave, or decoys, or forcibly brings, carries, receives, confines, detains or transports any person as a slave on board such vessel, or, on board such vessel, offers or attempts to sell any such person as a slave, or on the high seas or anywhere on tide water, transfers or delivers to any other vessel any such person with intent to make such person a slave, or lands or delivers on shore from such vessel any person with intent to sell, or having previously sold, such person as a slave, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than seven years, or both.
    18 U.S. Code § 2112 – Personal property of the United States.
    2112
    Whoever robs or attempts to rob another of any kind or description of personal property belonging to the United States, shall be imprisoned not more than fifteen years.

    18 U.S. CODE § 3571 – Sentence of fine.
    3571
    a) In General. – A defendant who has been found guilty of an offense may be sentenced to pay a fine.
    (b) Fines for Individuals. – Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, an individual who has been found guilty of an offense may be fined not more than the greatest of –
    (1) the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense;
    (2) the applicable amount under subsection (d) of this section;
    (3) for a felony, not more than $250,000;
    (4) for a misdemeanor resulting in death, not more than $250,000;
    (5) for a Class A misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $100,000;
    (6) for a Class B or C misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $5,000; or
    (7) for an infraction, not more than $5,000.
    (c) Fines for Organizations. – Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, an organization that has been found guilty of an offense may be fined not more than the greatest of –
    (1) the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense;
    (2) the applicable amount under subsection (d) of this section;
    (3) for a felony, not more than $500,000;
    (4) for a misdemeanor resulting in death, not more than $500,000;
    (5) for a Class A misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $200,000;
    (6) for a Class B or C misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $10,000; and
    (7) for an infraction, not more than $10,000. (d) Alternative Fine Based on Gain or Loss. – If any person derives pecuniary gain from the offense, or if the offense results in pecuniary loss to a person other than the defendant, the defendant may be fined not more than the greater of twice the gross gain or twice the gross loss, unless imposition of a fine under this subsection would unduly complicate or prolong the sentencing process. (e) Special Rule for Lower Fine Specified in Substantive Provision. – If a law setting forth an offense specifies no fine or a fine that is lower than the fine otherwise applicable under this section and such law, by specific reference, exempts the offense from the applicability of the fine otherwise applicable under this section, the defendant may not be fined more than the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense.

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