I recently suggested in my column, The Firearms Lawyer (see FEDERAL WAY MIRROR), that violent crime has increased in Phoenix. Apparently it has actually gone down! But Arizona’s violent crime rate is nevertheless still well above the national average and Phoenix and Tucson compare particularly unfavorably with most other U.S. cities!

A recent Wall Street Journal story shows that crime has actually been going down over most of the U.S. “For the first quarter of 2010, violent crime was down 17% overall in the city (of Phoenix), while homicides were down 38% and robberies 27%, compared with the same period in 2009.”

Despite the fact that the violent crime rate has gone down in Phoenix, the murder rate was 2.4 times the national average in 2003. The murder rate from 2008 to 2009 has dropped 26.2 percent. In 2003, Phoenix was ranked number seventeen in the U.S for violent crime with Tucson number eighteen.

Using statistics going back to 1985, Phoenix’s highest murder rate was in 1994, when there were 231 murders. The city had 1,076,108 people, and a murder rate of 21.5 murders per 100,000 residents. The highest total number of murders was in 2003, when there were 241 murders. Thus, the decrease in crime is measured from fairly high benchmarks established during the years when illegal immigration went from being a river to a virtual flood.

The Phoenix rate for murder probably still lags behind cities like Chicago and Detroit, however. According to the Washington Times, “The latest figures show that Chicago had racked up 122 homicides for the year (2010), exceeding the 116 killings over the comparable period in 2009, a very bad year… It’s no coincidence that the Windy City is already the U.S. gun-control capital.”

Arizona, on the other hand, is a very gun-friendly state. None of the above can tell us whether the murders are being committed by people that are in Arizona illegally or whether more or less guns would impact violent crime statistics positively or negatively!

Would Arizona’s violent crime rate be higher or lower if Arizona adopted a draconian prohibition on firearms such as exists within the Windy City’s boundaries? One thing we know for sure- making it easier to come here illegally breeds contempt for the law!

“Liberal” gun-grabbers use statistics to argue that less crime cries out for more gun control (i.e., guns not necessary) and then cry for more restrictions when violent crime increases. One minute the gun-toting rednecks are “paranoid“; the next moment private possession of firearms is responsible for fomenting a wave of sociopathic mayhem!

Banning guns as Chicago has done, is a form of legalistic anarchy!

The perception is that illegal aliens in Phoenix are perpetrating a great deal of violent crime. Some folks in Arizona apparently believe that the failure to police the border is threatening the social fabric of their state. I would be interested to know how violent crime rates for Seattle, Tacoma and Federal Way compare to Arizona cities like Phoenix and Tucson.

It is self-evident that the Second Amendment determines that the citizens should be able to decide whether to carry a gun without the government dictating the answer to that question for us.

Additionally, the fact that journalists around the world are constantly targeted for violence suggests that even if the rate of violent crime were to plummet to zero percent, a blogger or journalist that discusses subjects like terrorism, Mexican cartels and active shooters could become a target for the kind of people about whom he or she writes. Or someone that writes about Scientology for that matter- or in favor of abortion! And what if you just happen to witness a violent crime in a city where the crime rate is low and the person that is accused and prosecuted decides to kill you in order to prevent you from testifying?

In the U.S., we have seen a few isolated attacks against journalists such as the attack against Chauncey Bailey. Bailey was allegedly gunned down by Black Muslims in Oakland, California after he exposed criminal activity. The statistics manufactured by pro-gun advocates often don’t prove much more than that if you like statistics you will always find some numbers that suit your purposes!

Well-documented evidence shows that the cartels are smuggling immigrants in from Mexico and warehousing people, often against their will, in houses within Phoenix. The number of kidnappings reported in Phoenix, which hit 368 in 2008 is down. According to a May 25, 2010 article in the Wall Street Journal, police officials don’t have exact figures. But some professional security forecasters predict that kidnapping is predicted to spread beyond Phoenix. We know that the crime of rape increased in Phoenix amd kidnappings are the highest in the U.S. and higher than most places in the world!

Even though the violent crime rate is apparently going down, a violent predator may come looking for you just because you said something (or saw something) that someone doesn’t want law enforcement to know about. The First Amendment freedom to speak the truth as we see the truth becomes very hollow indeed when the sociopaths are looking for you. Statistics will not protect you or me or our friends and loved ones from violent predators in Seattle, Federal Way or Phoenix! Another statistic I would like to see is how many violent crimes are committed in Seattle by illegal immigrants that have been protected from deportation by means of Seattle’s status as a “sanctuary city.” There have recently been several well-publicized rapes committed in Washington state- allegedly by individuals in the U.S. illegally.

According to the Second Amendment Foundation and Joe Waldron:

“The Northwest has a particular problem with violent illegal aliens. The last three peace officers killed in eastern Washington all died at the hands of illegal aliens. An illegal alien named Hector Francisco Diaz killed a man in Everett last November (2006). Prosecutors in Snohomish County won’t charge him with murder because they believe he acted in self-defense, but he remains in jail on drug trafficking charges.

We love and respect every tribe and tongue and nationality. America is not centered on an ethnic group. We hold to a secular creed (the U.S. Constitution) that has its roots in the great religious truths pertaining to individual liberty, economic freedom and limited government under the restraints of just laws applied equally.

We don’t know whether life in the U.S.A. will deteriorate or improve. Nor is exercising your Constitutional duties by speaking out as an involved citizen, being vigilant, training with weapons and remaining armed a guarantee of security!

The watchman watches in vain unless God stands guard over the city.

We presented our third class in Federal Way on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at Federal Way City Hall. We had 16 participants most of whom are volunteers with our local police department and/or volunteer emergency personnel. The May class focused on Washington law and the use of lethal force to protect your home and family.

We are available to meet with your neighborhood group, church or business and present a seminar specially tailored to your needs.

We will customize a presentation for your group or business organization anywhere in Washington State. We can help you develop a threat response plan for your church and will provide legal training for your family members or volunteers. We recently presented the class at Holmes harbor Rod & Gun Club on Whidbey Island in February and almost thirty people attended.

Our motto is think like a man of action and act like a man of thought. Speak cautiously and politely and only use deadly force after you have thought through everything carefully. Apply cautious reasoning powers to each situation but start doing so now, not when you are faced with a decision in which you may have seconds to save your own life or the lives of your loved ones!

We have a message and a curriculum that relates to overcoming threats of violence by a combination of intelligence, moral persuasion, physical courage and deadly force if necessary.

The cost for the class is $49.00 but still only $79.00 for a couple.

Magna Charta

We emphasize development of good legal and tactical reasoning- reasoning that will allow you to understand your situation more accurately if you are ever faced with the necessity of confronting lethal force.

Remember, every principle must be applied by means of thoughtfully contemplating the moral, legal and tactical issues engendered by the subject matter. There are no answers that are always right in every situation.

Marty Hayes, the founder of Firearms Academy of Seattle was our guest speaker for February. Marty discussed the Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network, FAS and how training protects us legally from accusations that we are acting without knowledge of the legal rules pertaining to use of lethal force. Marty stayed for the three hour class and participated in our discussions, including almost an hour of informal discussion after class was dismissed. Marty has many years experience as an LEO, police instructor and as an instructor of armed citizens. Everyone, including me, learned a great deal from the time spent together.

Classes include but are not limited to:

1. Who should carry;

2. Concealed carry and open carry options, including Washington State case law pertaining to unlawful display of a weapon;

3. How to carry your weapon;

4. Deploying deadly force;

5. When and where to go with your weapon;

6. How to interact with law enforcement before, during and after an incident;

7. Threat response planning for home & business;

8. Stress psychology;

9. Preparing for the aftermath of a justified self-defense scenario.

We expect everyone to take notes! Keep your class notes and materials. Your firearms training materials may someday become necessary to document a life or death decision to use deadly force if you need to defend yourself in court. The stakes will be high- before, during and after a violent confrontation. After the gunfight, however, the thugs may be wearing suits and carrying brief cases!

Keep your class notes sealed in your gun safe or some other secure location so that you have documentation in court for every decision you make during a violent encounter.

Learning is facilitated by asking the right questions and participating in lively and informative discussions. Most of the issues that arise do not have clear answers but in the event that you are confronted with a threat of death or grave bodily harm, the choices become fairly simple. Only use deadly force when you are confronted with deadly force that is an imminent threat to you or an innocent person that is in your immediate presence.