Date: Wed, 27 Jun 2001 08:45:05 -0700
From: weavert@LEMWEAVERLY.COM (Tim Weaver)
Subject: Gun-rights activist targets Glendale
To: AZRKBA@asu.edu


Go Rick, Go Rick!!!  Oh, I and Jay McKim and a woman
named Erica were the other three who appeared...

BTW, I believe Mr. Godfrey's email would be
dennis.godfrey@arizonarepublic.com if you want to
comment to him on this fine article.

Tim


http://www.arizonarepublic.com/glendale/articles/0627guns0627Z2.html

Gun-rights activist targets Glendale

By Dennis Godfrey
The Arizona Republic
June 27, 2001

In his crusade against limits on guns, Rick DeStephens
no longer sees the Legislature as the place to do
battle.

The place to fight, he has concluded, is city council
meetings.

DeStephens, of Glendale, is vice president of
Brassroots, an advocacy group for gun rights. He and
four others spoke to the Glendale City Council
recently, criticizing the city for its failure to set
up gun lockers in municipal buildings.

DeStephens is a veteran of the gun wars and until
recently spent a lot of time lobbying legislators.

"I found that the people who are much closer (to the
people) are the city council," he said. "They are far
more approachable than the state Legislature. . . .
The city councils are designed to move things."

That's not to say that he thinks most council members
are on his side.

The goal, he said, is to "get them to obey laws that
they hate or change laws that they love" concerning
weapons.

In 2000, the Legislature allowed municipalites to ban
guns in city halls, libraries and other publicly owned
buildings. The state also said that the cities must
provide "reasonable accommodations" to store weapons.

That, DeStephens said, is what he wants Glendale and
other cities to do. Glendale has purchased 48 gun
lockers, but they have not been installed because
"protocols" on dealing with the weapons have not been
established, said Stuart Kent, a field operations
supervisor.

"We went after Glendale because we know they were
going to play hardball with us," DeStephens said.

Most Valley cities are implementing the gun-locker
approach, where the gun-carrying citizen can get a key
and place the weapon in the locker without a city
employee touching the gun. That is Glendale's plan as
well.

"None of our employees are going to be touching the
firearm," said Richard Flaaen, the city attorney.

That at least would comply with the law, DeStephens
said. He said he sees no reason that cities should
prohibit legally carried weapons from any buildings
other than those with specific security needs, such as
courts or jails.

"We're the good guys," he said. "The bad guys don't
care."

Brassroots has singled out Glendale for attention, but
there are problems with other cities, as well,
DeStephens said.

"Nobody is up to speed," he said.


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