The Law Office of Mark Knapp

Introduction to IDPA-and Use of Force at Cabela’s in Post Falls

Our next ATG Meeting is Friday, December 1st, 2017 at Cabela’s the Action Training Group, an Idaho nonprofit, all volunteer corporation, will present Use of Force and Washington state Firearms Law. We recently reviewed how IDPA match shooting procedures relate to our ATG range protocol and objectives. Now we need to start integrating our ATG range procedures with the legal, practical and tactical considerations that arise in life and death split-second situations when confronted by deadly force. There are also encounters that can be mistaken for deadly force confrontations where deadly force is not the right decision. Thus, force-on-force drills are necessary to create stress and confusion in real time scenarios and develop the reactions and judgment that it takes to get it right when the stakes are high!

National Outreach. We also need to start thinking about reaching out to law enforcement and other groups with an interest in the use-of-force issues we are confronting. Carl Chinn’s weekly article addresses the need for us to get involved with a national organization.

Fri, December 1st starting at 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Location: Cabela’s

North Cabela Way

Post Falls, ID

Event details.

We invite everyone to come and hear Bob Smith and Mark Knapp speak on Friday, Dec 1st at CABELA’s at 6:00 PM. The social hour is at 5:00 PM. The restaurant normally closes at 6:00 PM but might remain open later during the holidays. The subject of our ATG meeting next Friday will be Washington firearms law and use of force in general.

David Howlett, of Next Level Training and the U. S. Tactical Rifle Association, will also be giving us a preview of what to expect during the REALITY-BASED force-on-force drills he has prepared for an upcoming event. One of our goals for the ATG is just to identify people with expertise that armed citizens need along with church safety resources.

See David Howlett

We are also promoting the exchange of such information and bringing folks together to encourage more cost-effective training and educational opportunities for churches and armed citizens in general.

We will be presenting indoor live-fire Action Shoots on a Sunday evening, once a month starting in January. Please forward this message to others who might be interested in the ATG or the newsletters. Hope to see everyone one week from tomorrow on Friday, December 1st. Anyone interested can call me or send an email to discuss any questions or ideas related to ATG, Inc., armed defense or church safety.

Watch some IDPA videos by Googling IDPA drills.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbjc8AUTB8k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3txtcVLLrc

We will give you a chance to join our group and invite you just to come out and shoot with us. We are planning Indoor Action Shoots to start in January.

ATG Meeting in October. Our October meeting at Cabela’s presented the team of defense lawyers who represented Gail Gerlach in the Spokane Manslaughter trial several years ago. One of the themes of the meeting was the impact of the news media before, during and after a self-defense shooting trial in which an armed citizen is accused of unjustified or reckless use of force. Gail Gerlach’s criminal defense team, Bob Smith, an expert witness on use of force at the Gerlach trial and defense attorney, Mark Knapp, joined in the discussion with Chuck Delgado regarding how Chuck shot and killed an unarmed attacker when he was a Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputy in 1971.

Lethal Force. If the lethal force available to the police is unduly restricted, the responsibility for armed citizens to deploy deadly force in defense of our own lives and the lives of our loved ones will also become severely restricted. You may not realize that right now armed citizens in Washington State have broader authority to use deadly force than LEOs.

According to the Legislative Note included with RCW 9A.16.040:

Legislative recognition: “The legislature recognizes that RCW 9A.16.040 establishes a dual standard with respect to the use of deadly force by peace officers and private citizens, and further recognizes that private citizens’ permissible use of deadly force under the authority of RCW 9.01.200, 9A.16.020, or 9A.16.050 is not restricted and remains broader than the limitations imposed on peace officers.”

Bring family and friends to Cabela’s on December 1st.

Use of Deadly Force: the Unarmed Assailant

Shooting 1971 Summary. The following is a summary of information presented by one of our members at our monthly Action Training Group meeting in July. The purpose of the presentation in Spokane Valley was to initiate discussion about self-defense issues so we can start creating Reality Based scenarios that develop situational awareness for armed citizens, church safety teams and law enforcement personnel in the Spokane and North Idaho areas. Criminal defense attorneys & civil practitioners also need to understand the dynamics of what actually occurs during the decision making process under high stress situations.Continue reading “Use of Deadly Force: the Unarmed Assailant”

He Trains My Hands to Protect the Body of Christ

The following is an excerpt from Chapter 3 dealing with church safety & liability issues from our book entitled He Trains My Hands for Battle.

Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.

Ezekiel 3:17-18

Training Your Security Team. The number of professional training firms has grown. One of the most well recognized national ministries in the field of church safety is Sheepdog Ministries. Get involved with national church safety ministries and network with local ministries and other church teams. We have groups meeting in Kootenai County, Idaho and the Spokane, Washington area to share information and training opportunities.

Your team needs to participate in regular Reality Based Training (RBT) to avoid exposure to the risk of church liability. Such events involve volunteer actors playing roles such as an active shooter, innocent bystander, plain clothes law enforcement officer who enters the room with weapon drawn, etc, These events normally require simulated ammunition or Simunition or might even be conducted with SIRT laser pistols. The key is to create the stress of a chaotic life threatening event that causes team members to react to foreseeable situations.

Well recognized legal precedents provide that law enforcement agencies that fail to train for foreseeable situations will be held liable.

Firearms and use of Force Training: Training must be tailored to avoid specific church liabilities in a safe and caring atmosphere. Potential church liability is a compelling factor when anticipating the allegation that armed school personnel are not in compliance with the guidelines for law enforcement officers spelled out by the U.S Supreme Court in Popow vs Margate, 476 F.Supp. 1237 (Dist. N.J. 1979) (Officer’s firearms training consisted of going to a range twice a year; no training with respect to low light conditions, moving targets or firing in residential areas. Entirely foreseeable that an officer from the City of Margate, a largely residential area, would have to pursue a moving suspect at night under low-light conditions). See also Young v. City of Providence, 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1847 (R.I. 2004). Continue reading “He Trains My Hands to Protect the Body of Christ”

Brief in Support of Retired LEO Denied Federal LEOSA Card

Petitioner has standing and states a claim upon which relief may be granted because LEOSA and the Administrative Procedure Act is appropriate for the relief sought. Johnson v. New York State Dep’t of Corr. Servs presents facts that are very different from the facts presented herein. In Johnson, the Plaintiffs asserted a right to carry under LEOSA. The court held that Congress did not intend to create a private cause of action, but rather a private right. The Johnson court stated:

For the same reasons as with consideration of the second Cort factor, the creation of a federal remedy would be inconsistent with LEOSA’s statutory scheme because Congress left the states with the authority to issue concealed firearm certifications. Therefore, this factor also weighs against the determination that Congress intended to establish a private cause of action.

Johnson, supra (emphasis added). Continue reading “Brief in Support of Retired LEO Denied Federal LEOSA Card”

Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act (LEOSA) & the Air Force

Purpose. Certain law enforcement officers who work for the Air Force, have requested that the Law Office of Mark Knapp draft an Opinion Letter analyzing issues related to Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act (LEOSA) Identification set forth below. The officers have indicated that they have been treated differently than other DOD and Air Force employees and that LEOs and their families are endangered thereby.

Facts. Law enforcement members of the 375th Security Forces Squadron have raised certain issues pertaining to the Qualified Law Enforcement Officer Identification cards. The LEOS asserted that their right to carry a weapon off duty is being violated by Air Force policy. One grievance has been filed via the officers’ collective bargaining representative which is National Association of Independent Labor (NAIL) Local 19. The grievance raised issues under the Second Amendment and Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act (LEOSA) of 2004 and as amended in 2008. Continue reading “Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act (LEOSA) & the Air Force”

Spokane Criminal Defense Law Firm

Criminal Defense. A big component of our Spokane area criminal defense practice is dedicated to restoring the right to own firearms. Up until a few years ago, the NICS did not recognize restoration of rights for non-felony domestic violence convictions entered in Washington state. With many Domestic Violence (DV) convictions, a person is still prohibited by Washington state law from possessing firearms under RCW 9.41.040 (2)(a)(i).

Domestic Violence. The Domestic Violence convictions that prohibit possession of firearms under Washington state law are the following crimes when committed by one family or household member against another, after July 1, 1993: Assault in the fourth degree, coercion, stalking, reckless endangerment, criminal trespass in the first degree, or violation of the provisions of a protection order or no-contact order restraining the person or excluding the person from a residence. Continue reading “Spokane Criminal Defense Law Firm”

Expungement of Convictions, Gun Rights & Criminal Defense in Spokane, Washington

Criminal Defense. As a Spokane Criminal Defense attorney, Mark Knapp often gets calls regarding restoration of gun rights, expungement and the right to possess firearms under Washington state law. In Washington state, expungement does not restore the right to possess firearms. A Petition to Restore the Right to Possess Firearms is the procedure that is required pursuant to RCW 9.41.040.

Washington State Firearms Attorney. There are many pitfalls and potential problems that arise in the process of restoring gun rights. Although some situations seem simple, it is best to have an attorney handling your case that focuses on firearms issues and restoration of gun rights. Continue reading “Expungement of Convictions, Gun Rights & Criminal Defense in Spokane, Washington”

Personal Self-Defense is Fundamental to Liberty & Economic Freedom

The cartels just across the border from El Paso, Texas erupted in violence several years ago. Ciudad Juárez was ground zero in Mexico’s war against drug cartels. The violence spread until citizens in Michoacán organized what became known as Autodefensas or self-defense organizations.

Dr. José Manuel Mireles, the leader of the self-defense group in the Mexican state of Michoacán, was released from prison on the morning of May 12, 2017, after serving nearly three years in prison. Cartel Land is a documentary film that tells the story of how, under Dr. Mireles, the Autodefensas, recruited and trained fellow citizens to stop the Knights Templar in Tepalcatepec. Starting in February, 2013, the citizens of Tepalcatepec confronted the Knights Templar cartel, which had been terrorizing the population of the Tierra Caliente area of Michoacán.Continue reading “Personal Self-Defense is Fundamental to Liberty & Economic Freedom”

Criminal Assault Laws, Self-Defense & Display of a Weapon With Intent to Intimidate

Display With Intent to Intimidate. The Spokane area Law Office of Mark Knapp PLLC handles many kinds of criminal defense cases. Many present issues of self-defense. The ability to claim self-defense depends on whether there is an imminent threat of death or grave bodily harm. The issue of self-defense often arises when a weapon is displayed during a road rage incident or some altercation.

The Washington State Legislature enacted RCW 9.41.270, the Display With Intent to Intimidate law, in 1969. The statute prohibits display of a weapon in “a manner, under circumstances, and at a time and place that either manifests an intent to intimidate another or that warrants alarm for the safety of other persons.” Continue reading “Criminal Assault Laws, Self-Defense & Display of a Weapon With Intent to Intimidate”

Spokane Church & Action Training Group: Use of Force to Detain

On June 5, 2017, several members of the Action Training Group, Inc. met at Genesis Church in Spokane to discuss church security, use of force to detain and citizen’s arrest laws for church safety teams in Washington state. Rustin Rathbun, presented the information for the Genesis Safety Team and the ATG. A good discussion of Washington law followed. We had some very informative discussion as to when Church Safety teams are permitted by law to detain individuals who commit crimes on church premises.

The following points are from my notes and include several conclusions reached by my own independent research and conclusions. The conclusions herein are my own and should not be construed as legal advice. The facts of each specific situation dictate a very wide range of different legal outcomes.

The starting point for church safety teams is that even though a team of volunteers is not licensed to perform professional security operations, the church itself comes under the laws that pertain to shopkeepers.Continue reading “Spokane Church & Action Training Group: Use of Force to Detain”