Monday, February 14, 2011

Weapons offenses

Here is a recap of the 207 weapons offenses investigated by the Lincoln Police Department in 2010:

There were 15 cases of possession of weapons that are illegal per se.  This included three sawed off shotguns, and two firearm with the serial numbers ground off.  The remainder were illegal knives—primarily switchblades. 

Seventeen cases were felons in possession of firearms. 

Illegally concealed weapons constituted 83 cases: 56 knives, 15 firearms, and 10 brass knuckles, one Samuri sword, a machete, and two flails

The remainder ran the gamut, such as underage possession of a handgun, illegally discharging guns (and crossbows) within the city limits, illegal transactions or attempts at pawn shops .

34 comments:

Steve said...

Does that include the kids who brought small pocket knives to Lux Middle School? Maybe that was already 2011. I think it's a sad day when a person can't carry a pocket knife wherever they have a legal right to be.

Anonymous said...

So, judging from this and contrary to what you said, passing the concealed weapons law hasn't caused any additional problems.

Mamma Spice said...

How do you conceal a samurai sword???

Anonymous said...

How many of those 15 illegally concealed firearms were possessed by someone ineligible to possess them?

Anonymous said...

Chief-Looks like a serious percentage increase in flail violations over past years. Probably offset by a decrease in nun-chuck violators. Have a nice chuckle.

256

Anonymous said...

I may be the dumbest commenter ever but how does one "illegally conceal" a Samurai sword? Aren't they kind of large? Or was said Samurai wearing Hammer Pants?

Unknown said...

While most taxpayers realize that Mr. Cassidy is against human rights, especially the right to self preservation, I do have a question about the recap. I, and most other legal gun owners in Nebraska would like to know how many Conceal Carry permit holders were in violation of your possession laws and how many were found to be carrying in your gun free zones? Seems this is an incomplete report, would you please complete it. Seems that your gun control efforts in Lincoln are not working the way you are telling the people they are.

Anonymous said...

How do you conceal a samurai sword? Along the inside of the pant leg?

Anonymous said...

Chief,
One of my pet peeves are "infringements" on the rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment.That whole issue can be argued on another day. I just want to say that when Second Amendment rights come up in a discussion it is almost always assumed that firearms are the topic of the second amendment. "The right to keep and bear Arms" is not exclusive to firearms. Swords, knives, hatchets, etc would and should be included.

Gun Nut

Grundle King said...

Chief,

I know you can't divulge CCW permit holders names, addresses, etc. But, could you tell us the number of CCW license holders in the city of Lincoln, or Lancaster County?

I guess I'm curious because it seems folks flip out at the idea of someone legally concealing a weapon, but remain blissfully ignorant to the fact that there are a lot of people already illegally concealing weapons...and the LPD has the arrests to prove it.

I'd like to get a feel for how the legal crowd stacks up to the illegal crowd.

Anonymous said...

You would think if someone were going to insult you they could at least have the courtesy to spell your name correctly.

Anonymous said...

Grundle King-Just a thought. I'm not from there. I have a CCW. I legally carry. On any given day, there could be folks like me in town, not just those that live in Lancaster County/Lincoln. I'd venture a guess there are more people in Lincoln carrying legally on any given day versus those carrying illegally. Only because there are a lot more goodguys than badguys in the population.

256

Tom Casady said...

7:37-

Well, "no additional problems" might be going just a touch too far. It's a small minority, but it sure leaves you shaking your head. I've mentioned a few of them before, but there are several others. Did I mention that one of these individuals shot the chair in his basement five times, then shot himself? It wasn't fatal, thankfully.


9:28-

Very, very carefully.

9:29-

Dave-

I'm not aware of any concealed carry permit holder in Lincoln who has been found to be carrying concealed in a place where he or she is prohibited from doing so. I really don't think we have much in the way of "gun free zones," other than those established in State law. I guess the City Council added city-couonty facilities and domestic violence shelters, but that's it as far as I know. By the way, your Google searches will work better if you spell my name correctly.

Grundle King-

1,445 permits in Lancaster County. No way of knowing, though, how many people actually carry concealed or how often. I'm curious about that myself. I suspect that many people simply want to be able to keep a concealed pistol in their car at certain times. Hard to say. I am anxiously awaiting a Lincoln case in which a concealed handgun permit holder thwarts a crime with his or her concealed handgun. It has to happen, eventually.

Unknown said...

Chief Casady,

Thank you for your response. I do sincerely apologize for misspelling your name, it was not intentional and will not happen again

Tom Casady said...

Dave-

De nada.

Anonymous said...

Steve, bringing a pocket knife to school is a school policy violation. An it is not a sad day when a kid can't bring a knife to school. In todays society, I have to agree with the school. I would never let my son bring a knife to school and if he did....well he deserves what he gets. Besides, what's the point of bringing a knife to school. It can only get you in trouble.

ARRRRG!!!! said...

I'm still trying to figure out how to conceal one of these.

Anonymous said...

Stun gun, is a gun? Or is it classed in another way?

Anonymous said...

Steve,

About half the guys in my grade school grade class carried a pocket knife all the time, school included. We were even advised by a stern German nun that if buying a knife, we should get one that also had a screwdriver blade and scissors, along with a few other tools (something like this), because such a knife was very practical for any boy.

Steve said...

You use a pocket knife to clean your fingernails, as a screwdriver in an emergency, to cut cloth into bandages in an emergency, to sharpen your pencil, and thousands of other things that harm no one. It's really one the first things a boy (or girl) ought to learn how to use and care for properly. If someone wants to do harm with a pocket knife, and they don't have one, they can use a screw driver, a pencil, a broken piece of glass, or most anything else that happens to be handy. Yes, it is a sad day when a person can't carry a pocket knife wherever they are legally entitled to be.

Anonymous said...

Arrrrg,
A cold shower would make it easier to conceal. Works for me anyway.
Gun Nut

Mike said...

I did not know that brass knuckles were illegal. Also doesn't the city code state that it is legal to shoot a bow and arrow (or throwing knives) as long as it is not destructive to property or a harm to others (or is it different for a crossbow)? I remember the case just few weeks back that contained a lot of controversy with videos being posted to youtube. Is this the incident you mention in the blog post? I did not think that this particular case he was charged with anything relating to the crossbow but rather for resisting arrest and causing harm to the officer because of this city code.

Tango Juliet said...

Chief, in reference to your article, "More guns in Lincoln will only create more problems", which was published May 1, 2006 in the LJS, (http://journalstar.com/news/opinion/mailbag/article_6bbe2e7e-0071-53d7-9e5d-04f379f7ff5c.html), I'm curious, do you still feel the same way, given the four years of experience with the CCW law in Nebraska?

What "problems" have you encountered with permit holders? Are they involved in more, or less, crime than the general public?

Given the fact that many of those opposed to CCW virtually guaranteed us some kind of apocalypse with the passage of the law, it's simply amazing so very few permit holders have been a "problem", isn't it?

Grundle King said...

I made the mistake of bringing a pocket knife to school in 4th grade. Not to do harm or scare anyone, but to show it off. The principal didn't call my parents, and he didn't call the police. He simply informed me that I could come back and retrieve it at the end of the school year...and this was in September.

Lesson learned.

Anonymous said...

Chief,

This was apparently a weapons offense. There has to be a lot more to that story. For two men to plan and execute a robbery of a man outside his home, they must have followed him home from some sort of transaction. Otherwise, how would they know he was carrying any significant amount of cash (in the middle of the month, no less) on him? People don't generally pay their landlords rent mid-month, and gub'mint checks came 10 days to 2 weeks ago.

I asked the Magic 8-ball if they were just getting their money back, and they reply was "outlook good", which isn't 100% certain.

Anonymous said...

Chief,

Is it illegal to own a crossbow in the city or just to fire it? Do you need a permit to have one? If so, does a handgun permit qualify or do you have to get a 'crossbow permit?'

Curious.

Tom Casady said...

4:09-

Classified in another way.

Tango Juliet-

Played out pretty much as I predicted (refer to my earlier comment):

"Carrying a handgun, though, is a risky business. There will be mishaps, as there have been in all states that have adopted concealed-carry laws. Fortunately, they will be uncommon; hopefully, they will be nonfatal."

One thing I also predicted that hasn't yet occurred in Lincoln is that a concealed carry permit holder will thwart a crime with his or her handgun. You can rest assured that I will acknowledge that, when it inevitably does happen--if I'm around.

10:29-

Not illegal to own, only to discharge (with exceptions for properly contained archery ranges specified in ordinance.)

Anonymous said...

You say it is legal to own but illegal to discharge unless in an archery range etc... but according to city ordinance-

9.36.050 Discharge of Weapons and Other Instruments Unlawful.
It shall be unlawful for any person, except as provided in this chapter, to fire or discharge,
within the corporate limits, or on any property of the City of Lincoln outside of the corporate limits,any air rifle, toy pistol, toy gun, slingshot, or any other air, gas, or spring operated gun, weapon,apparatus, or instrument for the purpose of throwing or projecting missiles of any kind by any means whatsoever in such a manner as to endanger the safety of persons or property, whether the
instrument is called by any name set forth above or by any other name. (Ord. 15625 §5; July 9,
1990: P.C. §9.28.040: Ord. 9382 §2; January 22, 1968: prior Ord. 3489 §9-103; July 6, 1936).

According to this I should be able to safely and within the law without having to worry about cops coming to my house, be able to shoot a bow and arrow in my backyard or property as long as it is not a danger to others or property.

This provision seems to cover everything crossbows, knifes, bow and arrows, etc... everything but firearms.

Archery ranges have their own provision: 9.36.080 Exemptions.

So am I reading this wrong, are you wrong?

Tango Juliet said...

I understand your concern Chief. Handguns can be dangerous, particularly in less than dedicated and trained hands.

The problem I have is I don't see anyone questioning the "need" for police officers to carry handguns when one of them has an accidental discharge or commits some other error with a firearm.

Speaking for myself, the odds of thwarting a crime are almost nil. I don't do stupid things and I don't hang out with stupid people. You won't find me hanging out in C-marts at 2AM. I avoid "bad areas" of any town I'm in. I am much more aware of my surroudings than the average Joe, which alone makes me a much less likely target.

Yes, my odds of ever "needing" a handgun to defend myself are slim.

But I just can't help but think of Von Maur. I'm sure none of those people got up that morning thinking they would "need" a handgun.

Bad things happen to the nicest of people in the darndest of places.

"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves." -- William Pitt

Anonymous said...

Chief
I just submitted the recent comment where I listed the ordinance. I don't mean to sound bitter or rude. I am just curious because you seem to share a different view of this law/ordinance and I just want to make sure I am an informed citizen and there is not something else that I am not aware. As of now I have always thought it was totally legal to practice my crossbow in my backyard and I was following all rules. If I am wrong please show me or point me in the correct direction so I can improve.
Thanks

Tom Casady said...

11:39-

I said archery range, because the law says you can't shoot things"...in such a manner as to endanger the safety of persons or property." A bale of straw in your backyard is, IMHO, insufficient, unless you've got side protection, and protection from overshooting the backstop. Yes, you could certainly build something along these lines. If you did, I think it would be fair to call it an archery range, don't you?

mikey said...

chief,


wondering about some info floating around, last friday night, I was told LPD had to use tasers on persons involved in a brawl at mainstreet cafe?

can your comment please ...

thanks
Mikey

Anonymous said...

"Speaking for myself, the odds of thwarting a crime are almost nil. I don't do stupid things and I don't hang out with stupid people. You won't find me hanging out in C-marts at 2AM. I avoid "bad areas" of any town I'm in. I am much more aware of my surroundings than the average Joe, which alone makes me a much less likely target."

I agree completely. I don't do stupid things, and I don't shop anywhere they have "that sign" on the door. Someone else, perhaps an online retailer, will be happy to accept my business. Considering that CHP holders tend to be older and (at least in Texas, from their zip codes) have above-average incomes, retailers should think twice about putting up that sign.

Only on rare occasions, such as registering a new car, or doing walk-in business at a bank, do I ever set foot in a no-guns facility or establishment, because I have no do-able option. I never, ever, patronize a "no guns" business. I'm far more likely to encounter large, loose dogs than I am to be in a store that gets robbed.

Tom Casady said...

Mikey-

Sent on a fight, at closing time. Arrived and intervened in fracas, one defendant was resisting ararest quite actively. Information in original dispatch indicated that someone had a gun. Tased subject and ended fight. No gun. Three combatants arrested, two of the three ex-cons for robbery & terroristic threats. Tasered subject is from Omaha, so I don't know much about his background.