Is Ward Bird a gun-toting criminal nutcase or a citizen defending his property against an intruder?
According to both the Carroll County (New Hampshire) Superior Court and the state Supreme Court, he's a criminal.
The case, in which Bird was accused of criminal threatening, pits the rights of gun carrying homeowners against criminal statutes that could easily see them prosecuted and convicted for protecting their property. Bird was convicted of threatening his accuser after the women drove on to his property and to the front of his house despite numerous No Trespassing signs posted along the edge of his property and along his driveway.
I have to ask this: What part of No Trespassing did this woman not understand? The 'No' part or the 'Trespassing' part?
What makes this case more controversial is that Bird had never been in trouble with the law before this incident while his accuser had a criminal history. Even more tragic, the presiding judge in the criminal trial wanted Bird to have minimal incarceration (30 days) in the county jail and then work release or home confinement. But the law tied his hands and the Department of Corrections said Bird has to serve a minimum of two years of his mandatory seven year sentence before he's eligible for release. He'll be serving his time in the state prison.
Quite a few people believe there has been a miscarriage of justice and that Bird should be pardoned. Count me as one of them.
According to both the Carroll County (New Hampshire) Superior Court and the state Supreme Court, he's a criminal.
The case, in which Bird was accused of criminal threatening, pits the rights of gun carrying homeowners against criminal statutes that could easily see them prosecuted and convicted for protecting their property. Bird was convicted of threatening his accuser after the women drove on to his property and to the front of his house despite numerous No Trespassing signs posted along the edge of his property and along his driveway.
I have to ask this: What part of No Trespassing did this woman not understand? The 'No' part or the 'Trespassing' part?
What makes this case more controversial is that Bird had never been in trouble with the law before this incident while his accuser had a criminal history. Even more tragic, the presiding judge in the criminal trial wanted Bird to have minimal incarceration (30 days) in the county jail and then work release or home confinement. But the law tied his hands and the Department of Corrections said Bird has to serve a minimum of two years of his mandatory seven year sentence before he's eligible for release. He'll be serving his time in the state prison.
Quite a few people believe there has been a miscarriage of justice and that Bird should be pardoned. Count me as one of them.
A man charged into my personal space, angrily, saying, "We don't do that here!" I had no idea who he was.
My offense was smoking my pipe outside the Moultonborough Lions Club in the fall of 2006 or '07 during a Cub Scouts meeting that was taken outside. This hamburger-bellied man was saying, I guess, that smoking in front of the boys--who weren't really present, playing capture-the-flag in an adjacent field--wasn't acceptable behavior.
I was then in visibly much better physical condition. In fact, I'm still quite manly.
As a concealed carrier of a J-frame revolver, I was being accosted by another CCW individual. We were both armed, as his wife says he's always carrying. Filled with all sorts of potential problems.
Immediately, the thought popped into my head: "You amend your belly, and I'll amend my ways." But it was the first time I had showed up for my son's, Matthew, scouting.
This intolerant individual dished out what he thought was right with a degree of vehemence that was jarring. I can only imagine the apoplexy he displayed by the feckless women coming onto his property.
Brandishing a weapon? Give me a break, Chan. What. Was. Ward. Thinking?
Not done. Review you Syd podcasts at front sight press--learn to say "WHATEVER"--and re-read your Mas Ayoob books. Ward's a large-sized man. He's being threatened by a flighty woman? He was endangered? Then shoot the bitch.
http://frontsight.podbean.com/2007/05/10/concealed-carry-for-normal-people/
Otherwise, call the PO-lice and go in and make a cup of tea and sit back and watch the antics. Those NO Trespassing signs aren't valid if a name and address aren't given in a certain size. Consult the relevant RSA's at your leisure.
Going back to my first encounter with Ward, I meekly agreed with him and put away the pipe. It was one of three choices I immediately faced: not take it, meekly comply, or ignore him. Judging from the irascible personality of Ward, two of those would have led to an escalation of conflict. CCW holders have a responsibility not to stir up shit, which Ward couldn't refrain from doing. Now he's paying an inordinate price.