The Gun Counter

NEW ORLEANS - City officials have agreed to return hundreds of firearms that police officers confiscated in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, part of a deal to resolve a lawsuit filed by gun lobbying groups.
The settlement agreement filed Tuesday in federal court calls for the National Rifle Association and Second Amendment Foundation to drop their case if the city follows a plan for returning guns to owners who had them seized by police after the Aug. 29, 2005, hurricane.

[center]After Years of Stonewalling, New Orleans Mayor Admits Illegal Gun Confiscation, Settles with NRA[/center]

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Fairfax, VA-After a three-year legal battle over the unconstitutional confiscation of lawfully owned firearms, the City of New Orleans has agreed to settle a law suit by the National Rifle Association (NRA). A permanent injunction has been issued against the city, Mayor Ray Nagin and current Police Chief Warren Riley. The Second Amendment Foundation assisted NRA in the legal battle against Mayor Ray Nagin and the City of New Orleans.

“Today’s outcome is an important victory for the citizens of New Orleans and the Second Amendment,” said Wayne LaPierre, NRA’s executive vice president. “We fought for three long years in a fundamental legal challenge to assert the inherent self-defense rights for law-abiding citizens, knowing the Constitution would prevail. Today it has prevailed and freedom has won.”

Judge Carl J. Barbier presided over the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Judge Barbier signed the permanent injuncation against the City of New Orleans. The city admitted the firearm confiscations carried out by Nagin and Riley were unconstitutional and illegal.

Under the terms of the injunction, Mayor Ray Nagin, Police Chief Warren Riley and any agents or employees of the City of New Orleans shall:

• · cease and desist confiscating lawfully-possessed firearms from all citizens;
  
  · make an aggressive attempt to return any and all firearms which may have been confiscated during the period August 29 to December 31, 2005;
  
  · within one month of the settlement, post on the City website the procedure for the return of confiscated firearms. This notice must include an interactive form for those claiming firearms to fill out, resulting in timely transmission of the information to the appropriate official. All other information on claiming a firearm will also be included on the site.
  
  · within one month of the settlement, the City must mail notices to all individuals who are identified on the property tags of firearms in the City's possession which were confiscated during the aftermath of Katrina.

“On behalf of the lawful gun owners of New Orleans, NRA is pleased with this outcome,” said Chris W. Cox, NRA’s chief lobbyist. “We thank Judge Barbier for his leadership and constitutional scholarship in presiding over our lawsuit. NRA will continue to aid however we can in the full return of all the firearms confiscated by the City.”

N.O. agrees to return weapons
Confiscation after Katrina drew protest
Thursday, October 09, 2008
By Gwen Filosa

Agreeing to settle a lawsuit filed by the National Rifle Association, the city of New Orleans promised this week to return hundreds of firearms seized by police from law-abiding citizens during the chaotic days that followed Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Gun-rights groups took the city to task after National Guard soldiers and police officers confiscated weapons without a warrant or probable cause during the storm's aftermath.

U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier hasn't signed the agreement yet, and no monetary award is in the settlement.

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