Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

Okay, in the town I am moving to, Fredericksburg, they print all new CHP Holders names in the local Newspaper. Is this also the case in other cities? Why do they feel the need to print this stuff? I am from Michigan and they just don't do that up here.

I knew nothing of this... Do they do only city of Fredericksburg, or surrounding counties as well?

What is the point of this?

meak99 wrote:I knew nothing of this... Do they do only city of Fredericksburg, or surrounding counties as well?

What is the point of this?

I was hoping you could tell me!

The Roanoke Times did this several years ago and the Courts made them stop.

I believe that this practice has ceased. I don't understand what the newspaper was expecting to gain by publishing it in the first place, but I don't think they do it any longer sine they were told to stop, as smltooner mentioned above.

If anyone finds out otherwise, please let us know!

I don't even know what the original intent was behind that.

Lots of questionable information floating around this thread...

1. Who told you that the Free Lance-Star was doing this? It is true that they were routinely printing the names and streets (no house numbers) of newly issued CHPs as of about 3 years ago, but I have not heard any reports of this recently.

2. Nobody told them to stop, at least not anyone with any authority to require such action. The Roanoke Times did request an electronic copy of the entire database maintained by the VSP under a FOIA request. They then published it on their website. The outcry from the general public was swift and furious, so they removed it on their own accord within just a day or two of publishing. Since then, state law has been modified to prevent the VSP from providing the entire list to anyone. HOWEVER and this is a very big however, CHP applications are handled by the local General District Courts of each jurisdiction, and as such, are still considered to be public record. This is how the local newspapers (and quite literally anyone who can walk into a building, speak and read) are able to collect the data. They literally sent a flunky around to the various clerk of the courts offices once a month to collect "this month's list".

3. Each year for the past three, bills have been submitted to the General Assembly to privatize this information, but each year the anti-gun leadership of the Virginia Senate has killed these bills.

It is my personal opinion that the members of the press, seeing that this action was infuriating at least the CHP holders, as well as others who have a certain amount of common sense, have voluntarily stopped publishing these lists, in favor of taking the pressure off passing legislation to lock up the information. The media loves nothing more than to be able to report those one or two whack job criminals who have been issued a CHP. I believe they have given up the monthly reporting to preserve this source of information.

As for the why? Well, they won't come out and tell you, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that if Joe Citizen knows ahead of time that if he decides he wants to get a CHP then his name and address will be splayed all over the newspaper for his neighbors, employers, friends, enemies, local criminal elements, to see, then some of those Joes just might decide not to get a CHP after all. The anti-gun media sees that as a win.

The funny thing is, if a person has a gun, it would make much more sense for them to GET the CHP, which does require the demonstration of at least some amount of training. Owning a gun without a CHP is just as legal, but no training is required, whatsoever.

The question I always wish someone would ask the anti-gun nuts is, "if Joe Citizen has decided to buy a gun, would you rather he obtain or not obtain a CHP?" I can only imagine the horror of conflict that processing such an answer would wreak upon their brain.

TFred

jmicheals1984 wrote:I am from Michigan and they just don't do that up here.

Well, we don't have pistol registration down here, so we're probably even.

smltooner wrote:The Roanoke Times did this several years ago and the Courts made them stop.

I gotta go with TFred on this, I'm pretty sure they stopped of their own volition. The courts and legislature have been very reluctant to curb the excesses of the press in this regard.

So did anyone confirm this alleged printing is happening?

They don't seem to want to post the names and addresses of everyone who gets a drivers liscense, and cars kill a lot more people than guns. Therefore they must have an anti second ammendment agenda in the posting of CHP owners. If my name and address gets posted, and I get robbed or burglarized shortly afterward, I think that my shysters will be able to get me at least a large portion of a newspaper.

Jakeiscrazy wrote:So did anyone confirm this alleged printing is happening?

I don't have any proof other than reading a Free Lance Star one day that had a list of names of people that got their permits. No addresses or license numbers, just their names.

jmicheals1984 wrote:

Jakeiscrazy wrote:So did anyone confirm this alleged printing is happening?

I don't have any proof other than reading a Free Lance Star one day that had a list of names of people that got their permits. No addresses or license numbers, just their names.

Yeah, but how long ago? We've established that they used to, but didn't think they did anymore.

Simple: Some papers have editors/staff who hate firearms. They then go out of their way to harass law-abiding firearm owners out of a perverse sense of morality. They generally think they are doing the community a service because of their own deficit of formal logic and ignorance of firearms in general. Anyone with a gun is obviously out to kill them, yet we're the paranoid ones for owning guns.