Today’s the day Aloha State legislators hear bill HB 1813. The bill empowers the Hawaii po-po to confiscate the guns of residents subject to an ex parte restraining order. In other words, a gun owner accused of domestic violence is guilty until proven innocent and disarmed without due process. Sweet. Even better/worse, HB 1813 further states that . . .
No person who is named on the consolidated Terrorist Screening Database maintained by the Terrorist Screening Center that is administered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall own, possess, or control any firearm or ammunition therefor.
In theory the Hawaiian authorities would contact the FBI and ask if a given individual is on the Terrorist Watch List (1 million names and counting). If they are, guns gone. How would a falsely listed gun owner recover his or her rights/guns? There is no official appeals process for citizens on the List. In effect… fuhgeddaboutit (as a New York tourist might say).
This is not a new idea. After gun control advocates failed to create a no-fly ban for citizens on the Terrorist Watch List on the federal level, several states picked up the cudgel.
Back in December, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy announced his intention to sign an executive order denying gun sales to Americans on the Terrorist Watch List (including a “rigorous appeals process”). After much anti-gun fanfare and appropriate pro-gun teeth gnashing, the plan disappeared with a Trace.
I reckon the FBI told The Constitution State to go sing. The Fibbies weren’t about to tell anyone who is and isnt ‘t their super-secret list. Which kinda makes you wonder about the coordination (or lack thereof) between the federal and state law enforcement re: keeping track of suspected terrorists.
Anyway, let’s hope Hawaii’s “terrorist loophole” gun ban nonsense goes the way of Connecticut’s plan. And not forget that America’s 50th state is yet another state where gun rights go to die.