Airsoft in your Local News

Toy guns nearly led to shootout (Crazy Canadians!)

2012-01-28T09:50:00.000-08:00

Filmmaking is a passion for 19-year-old Fredericton resident Brock Jorgensen, who likes to make short movies with his friends through a small production company called BJ Productions.

Filming sessions are a chance to have fun with friends, Jorgensen said, but one evening last February, a routine shoot became a harrowing night he'll never forget.

"We were filming an action thriller," he said. "I opened a window to get some natural light and, by chance, an off-duty police officer drove by and saw my buddy in the window with one of our fake [airsoft]AK-47s."

Jorgensen said his crew was using realistic-looking airsoft guns, which shoot plastic airsoft pellets and are used for games similar to paintball. Many airsoft guns are made to look as genuine as possible, using full-metal construction and slides that move when fired.

Jorgensen's collection includes replicas of well-known airsoft firearms, such as the MP5 submachine-gun, which is prohibited in Canada.

Unbeknownst to the high school students, the whole area had been quietly cordoned off by police.

"They had the whole street blocked off, and a SWAT team surrounding the area," Jorgensen said. "We had no idea."

Just after the crew packed up their cars and drove off, Jorgensen got a terrified text message from the friend who lives in the home where the filming took place.

"Dave texted me saying: "Why is there a SWAT team busting into my house right now!? They have tear gas and assault rifles and they're holding me down right now."

Soon a female officer approached Jorgensen, who was watching the scene, and asked where the guns were. He opened his trunk to reveal the realistic-looking airsoft toys.

"You mean our props?" he said. "She saw they were fake. . . . You should have seen the look on her face."

Jorgensen and his friends laughed at the time, but Fredericton police Const. Rick Mooney said this issue is no joke. He said this incident brought airsoft toy guns to the forefront, although they're not a pressing issue on a day-to-day basis.

"The realistic nature of these imitation airsoft toy guns poses a serious threat to both the public and police safety," Mooney wrote in a news release is-sued following the incident. "These airsoft replicas cannot easily be distinguished from real firearms, especially under stressful situations."

Jorgensen spent the next three days under questioning at the Fredericton police station. Police told him if filming continued half-an-hour longer, the SWAT team may have began shooting through the windows.

After police photographed his airsoft guns, he had to pay a $2 fee to register each toy. He received numbered registration stickers for each, which he later removed.

Toy guns can cause real problem

2012-01-20T08:57:00.000-08:00

Two people charged last week after allegedly pointing a toy airsoft gun at a woman driving a vehicle on Md. 97 are lucky that they only face a few criminal charges and that the incident didn’t end more badly than it did.

The woman called police saying a passenger in another vehicle pointed a large [airsoft] rifle out the window at her. When police responded and stopped the car, they found that the gun was an Airsoft gun, which shoots non-metallic airsoft BB pellets.

Most toy airsoft guns manufactured today are identifiable because they have orange tips on the airsoft gun barrels or some other feature that allows people to quickly distinguish them as airsoft toys. In this case, police say the colored tip had been painted black.

What those involved in this incident and others who may have done similar things in the past probably didn’t think of, however, is that police responding to a call involving someone pointing a gun at someone else aren’t going to know that the gun is an airsoft toy.

Instances of people pointing or even firing weapons at people in other vehicles are not common, but they do happen. Instances of police responding to homes where people are brandishing guns are more common. In every case, however, police in most cases have only seconds to assess the situation and take appropriate action to protect themselves and any innocent victims who may be involved.

Getting a call about someone pointing what looked like an assault rifle at someone in another vehicle likely had police on high alert and ready for any contingency. Those accused are lucky that the police were able to stop them and quickly determine the gun was an airsoft toy.

Lt. Jim DeWees, commander of the Westminster barrack of the Maryland State Police, told the Times that toy airsoft guns can look real, especially from a distance, and that people who are using them need to exercise care.

“People just need to be more responsible when it comes to this,” DeWees said.

"Every boy will walk tall, when he wears a holster and pistol . . ."

2012-01-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

It’s been just over 23 years since section four of the Federal Energy Management Improvement Act of 1988 went into effect, forcing manufacturers of toy airsoft guns to implement both a solid “blaze orange” muzzle to the end of the airsoft gun’s barrel as well as a “marking permanently affixed to the exterior surface of the airsoft gun barrel.” While New York City had already instituted a ban in 1955 on the sale, use, and possession of toy and imitation airsoft guns that resembled firearms, the iron fist of federal law forced the rest of the country to follow suit in the late 80s, and toys like the NES Zapper morphed from its original dark-gray model to a bright-orange monstrosity—of course, the Zapper still killed video-game ducks, but it was in a strange, different kind of way.

However, once the federal law was passed, it became easy to paint over the orange markings. Airsoft and paintball guns, for instance, are required to have orange barrels or markinghttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifs when sold, but they're often painted by their owners to hide any bright markings that can be spotted during play. From a slight distance, an airsoft gun probably won't look much different than a deadly, real-bullet-shooting firearm.

Unsurprisingly, imitation and airsoft toy guns are still being used in robberies and are still causing controversy in schools. Just recently an eighth grader in Texas believed to be holding a real gun was shot and killed by police. And in 2010, a small media frenzy swarmed upon a fourth grader who was reprimanded for bringing a two-inch-long Lego gun to school.

Considering there are still ongoing issues with toy airsoft guns some two decades later, it's wild to revisit classic, pre-1988 toy-gun commercials. Companies like Mattel wanted guns to look as realistic as possible—in fact they reveled in it. Eight-year-olds toting fake airsoft firearms were advertised as badasses, and a commercial's micro-plot would often revolve around fending off bad guys with cap-loaded pistols. Detective kits were being hawked, complete with tommy guns (automatic bolt action!), snub-nosed revolvers, and snap-draw shoulder holsters.

Into the 80s, the objective stayed the same but just grew louder and more intense. Water guns mimicking AK-47s were being pushed based on their realistic firing sounds, and laser tag stepped into the realm of social relevance, inexplicably climbing in popularity.

Below are a handful of videos of classic toy-gun commercials I plucked from the Internet:

The kid's smile during the tommy-gun description is almost maniacal. His outfit is pretty snazzy, though, I guess.

"It's seven guns in one, let's count them."

The early shot of the kid loading bullets in the gun is straight chilling and a little too real.

"Surprise, out comes your secret derringer . . . Multi-Pistol 09! Multi-Pistol 09! Multi-Pistol 09!"

The 80s were so big and loud. Get a look at the rocket water launcher about 20 seconds in. That thing is just unnecessary.

"Be the ultimate laser warrior."

Teenager with gun in KATU video arrested

2012-01-20T08:43:00.000-08:00

PORTLAND, Ore. - A 17-year-old boy was arrested Friday after he was recorded by a KATU News crew last week carrying a handgun and being chased near the Lloyd Center MAX stop.

The gun, police said, turned out to be an Airsoft pistol, but the orange tip that distinguished it from a real handgun had been removed from the airsoft gun.

The 17-year-old was charged with second-degree disorderly conduct and was excluded from riding TriMet buses or MAX trains, police said.

Last Friday, a KATU News crew happened to arrive at the MAX stop to work on a story about crime on MAX trains when it recorded on video the teenager running with the airsoft gun from a volunteer safety patrol group known as the Guardian Angels.

The group had apparently confronted the teenager at or near the MAX stop when he took off running. Two safety patrol members pursued him but the teenager outran them.

Police used KATU’s video to assist in identifying the suspect. They contacted the teenager who agreed to turn himself in.

StressVest adds realism to force-on-force training

2011-12-22T09:53:00.000-08:00

Force-on-force training is a critical part of any law enforcement officer’s basic and in-service education. Basic skills learned by shooting holes in a paper target or striking a pad or training dummy don’t translate well to a world where the targets move on their own, hide behind things, and shoot or hit back. There is no substitute for introducing a live opponent into the fight.

Those live opponents come with their own set of complexities. Using paintball, Airsoft, or Simunition weapons means protecting the participants from injury, and that involves wearing goggles, face masks and possibly heavy gloves that detract from the realism of the scenario. The best simulation training duplicates the real world as closely as possible.

That’s what the makers of the StressVest system are going for with their “stress inoculation training” system.

All in the Family
The StressVest is an offshoot of and uses the same technology as the ShocKnife, made by the same company. The problem the ShocKnife tries to address is the same — realistic simulation training. Most edged-weapon defense training has to be done with dull or rubber knives for obvious reasons — it won’t do to have trainees finish up the course with gaping, open wounds. Yet, there’s no negative reinforcement to being “cut” with a rubber knife. The ShocKnife uses a harmless but painful high voltage, low amperage jolt of electricity to zap anyone who comes in contact with the blade. The reinforcement is realistic and immediate.

The StressVest extrapolates the concept to the entire upper body and even extremities with a vest worn over the trainee’s shirt. When the laser-sensitive panels on the front and back are struck with the beam from a laser emitter in an opponent’s firearm, the wearer gets a very brief but painful shock. The vest can be set up for varying intensities of shock, and can even be set to require multiple laser hits before delivering the shock. Accessory panels for the arms can extend the sensation to the extremities.

The basic model of the StressVest is manually activated by a trainer before a scenario begins. An “RF” (radio frequency) model uses a car key-type wireless fob to activate or deactivate the vest(s) at the instructor’s command. The vests themselves are powered by a standard 9V battery.

Tremendous Training Value
The triggering laser beams come from bullet-size emitters that drop into regular sidearms or shotguns equipped with a retrofit kit, or from special dedicated simulation firearms that will fit in regular duty holsters but are incapable of firing projectile ammunition. Which are best suited is largely dependent on the type of firearms in use by your trainees. Sidearms that fire double-action without manual recocking will work with the drop-in hardware, but weapons like the Glock — which requires racking of the slide to reset the trigger — aren’t suited for that type of adapter.

Used effectively, the value of this kind of reinforcement is tremendous. Early simulation training would end when a bad guy got the drop on the police trainee, firing a blank cartridge followed by a grim, “you’re dead.” Eventually trainers got the idea they were conditioning cops to stop fighting and die if they got shot, and the mantra of “never give up while there’s still a breath left in you” became the watchword. Still, trainees didn’t have to fight through anything except physical resistance from the simulated bad guys until paintballs, Airsoft and Simunitions came into play, and it hurt to get popped with one of those projectiles. The StressVest maintains that same sense of realism but eliminates the need for special protective gear and an environment tolerant of stray paintballs and similar decoration.

Introduction of gear like this requires careful supervision and policy writing. Cops are born pranksters, and any device capable of delivering a painless but harmless shock is going to be used in a practical joke faster than you can say “hostile workplace lawsuit.” Everyone with access to the equipment has to understand how it is to be used, and that penalties for willful misuse will be swift, sure and severe.

This is not inexpensive hardware. The price of a single basic model of the StressVest is $1,999.00, with discounts for multiple units purchased as a package. Their website includes several videos, testimonials, a price list, and other details.

Fighting for fun is air-gun battle station’s business

2011-12-21T09:58:00.000-08:00

Fans of urban warfare finally have a place where they can target each other in Wichita.

All in good fun, of course.Wichita Indoor Airsoft opened this month in the Kellogg Crossing Center. Housed in a former call center, it’s a maze of about 20 rooms built of two-by-fours and plywood and containing airsoft obstacles such as oil drums and the remnants of a Halloween haunted house.Up front there’s a snack bar and counter where airsoft equipment can be rented.

The setup is conducive to simulated “CQB," or close quarters battle, as opposed to air-gun battles that take place outdoors.

“This is a lot faster paced" than outdoor battle games, said Sean Black, who manages the airsoft facility. “You’re a lot closer. You’re going to room to room and there are obstacles to go around, which is real popular.

"In the [airsoft] games, teams of up to 15 people start at either end of the 15,000-square-foot space and make their way toward each other, attempting to shoot each other with plastic 6-millimeter [airsoft] balls fired from [airsoft] guns modeled after assault weapons.

One hit and a player is eliminated from the game. A referee monitors all games to resolve disputes and make sure there’s no cheating, Black said. Among other things, players are prohibited from firing blindly around corners and shooting each other from within five feet. Violations of rules can result in [airsoft] players being banned for the day or permanently.

Goggles, long pants and long-sleeved shirts are required, although Black said the airsoft pellets don’t travel at a velocity high enough to penetrate skin. Still, being hit can sting, which is why Black also recommends that [airsoft] players wear gloves.

“It’s not real painful, but it’s enough to let you know you’ve been hit," Black said. “I’ve taken a shot in the knuckles, and that’s the last place you want to get hit."

An all-day pass costs $20 and airsoft gun rental is another $15, although players can bring their own. The airsoft facility is open to the public Friday through Sunday and available for private rental during the week.

Black said airsoft gun battle games appeal to a wide range of people, but especially those who enjoy video games simulating warfare.

“I think the biggest thing is the realism," he said. “What’s popular is the first-person shooter video games. You’re essentially doing that for real, but it’s still just a game."Black said his boss, Rick Kite, first applied for a permit to open about three years ago but was turned down by the city of Wichita, apparently because of an ordinance restricting the discharge of air-powered guns in the city. Then this fall, Kite finally got the go-ahead, Black said.

Kite also owns BB Airsoft World, a shop at 106 S. West St. that sells air-powered guns and airsoft accessories.“At the end of the day, it’s indoor entertainment," Black said of the air-gun battleground. “It’s no different than playing laser tag or indoor miniature golf."

Kids Line Up To Sit With Santa

2011-12-19T09:57:00.000-08:00

With less than a week til Christmas, everyone is busy, finishing last minute shopping. But no one is as busy as the big man --- Santa Claus. Today, we stopped by the mall, where he was taking a break from toy making, to find out what good little girls and boys want for Christmas, and they had their lists ready!

"A big lawnmower," said Robby Kennedy, just 2 and a half years old.

Three year old Braden Skidmore said he wants a monster truck and Madison McDaniel planned to ask Santa for a trampoline.

Gift requests ranged from new sports equipment, to hunting supplies, and even a few toy trucks and dolls. But Santa says this year, the big surprise for him, is the number of little kids asking for big kid gifts.

"The one thing that's really struck me this year was a lot of electronics. Ipods, Ipads, even kindles for kids that's I would think- 'What would you do with this?'," Santa said.

And there were plenty of those requests to go around.

"I wanted an Ipad and a 3DS and a dairy queen blizzard maker," said 6 year old Brayden Marshall.

His 4 year old brother Ben planned to ask fora "toy laptop. And I got my picture made with Santa at my school."

"X-Box360 with connect and an airsoft gun," is what 7 year old Jack McDaniel hopes to find Sunday morning. And Tabitha Yoder told us she wants an X-Box, too.

And for those who give Santa their list...but don't quite believe he's the real thing....

"Of course! I'm here and I feel pretty really and if they wanna check the beard or pinch me to see if I'm real and that usually satisfies most young ones," said Santa.

And if you haven't gotten a chance to give Santa your list yet, don't worry. He tells us he'll be at the mall til it closes on Christmas Eve, when he'll head back to the North Pole and start his busy night!

Police officers help local children finish their Christmas shopping

2011-12-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

Christian Mattson was a teenager on a mission Saturday morning in Longview, darting down aisles and filling his shopping cart with gifts for his parents and two brothers.

With the help of Castle Rock police reserve officer Chris Koehler and a $125 donated gift card, Christian scanned aisles and double checked prices, replacing items when he found a more thrifty alternative during the annual Shop with a Cop program.

"My mom's really good at bargain shopping so I'm trying to do that," the 13-year-old explained.

And only after all of his family's presents were safely in the cart did Christian look for anything for himself, finally selecting a hat and T-shirt after deciding an airsoft gun and a coat were both too expensive.

"That's the way it is with most of the kids," said Sgt. Scott Neves of the Castle Rock Police Department, who said he had to almost twist Troy Werly's arm to get the Castle Rock 12-year-old to get something for himself. "That's why I like doing this so much."

Ninety local children from Vader to Woodland received the extra help with their purchases this year thanks to the programs organized by police Chaplain Steve White and, new this year, the police departments in the southern part of the county.

The Shop with a Cop program matches children from lower income families with a police officer to shop for Christmas gifts. In addition to helping with the kids' shopping lists, organizers like to give the children exposure to police in a friendly, non-threatening setting. And the officers say they have a blast playing Santa with the kids.

"It's really fun for us," Castle Rock Police Officer Charlie Worley said. "We get to show them we're human too and that we like to have fun and joke around."

Longview and Kelso police officers shopped with elementary students from their towns — Longview at the Seventh Avenue Walmart on Friday and Kelso at Target on Saturday. Castle Rock Police Department and Cowlitz County sheriff's deputies visited the Ocean Beach Highway Walmart Saturday with middle school students from Castle Rock, Toutle and Vader. Those three shopping sprees were paid for with $12,000 in donations, including $2,000 each from the two Longview Walmarts, White said.

Further south, officers from the Woodland, Kalama and Ridgefield police departments and representatives form the sheriff's office held their first Shop with a Cop program Saturday as well.

They helped 30 children shop at the Woodland Walmart, thanks to a $3,300 donation from the Woodland Walmart, as well as donations from General Mills and the officers. Shoppers also donated money after witnessing the event, according to Woodland police. Each child had $100 to spend and organizers are already planning next year's event, Woodland Police Chief Rob Stephenson wrote in a statement.

As the children rang up their purchases in Longview on Saturday, officers said over and over again how impressed they were to see the children forgoing extra gifts for themselves in order to share with their families. The children, though, said being able to give gifts was a present in itself.

"It's fun to be able to buy something for them," Troy Werly said. "Usually I just make cards."

"I think it's going to be really fun to see the expressions on their faces when they open these up," said 12-year-old Justise Anderson of Castle Rock.

Man arrested for shooting kitten

2011-11-25T10:50:00.000-08:00

TAVERNIER, Fla., Nov. 25 (UPI) -- Authorities in Florida said a man was charged with animal cruelty after he admitted to shooting a kitten with an airsoft rifle, killing the feline.

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said a guest at Ocean Point Condos in Tavernier was watching a mother cat and two kittens below his balcony Monday night when he heard a "pop" and one of the kittens shook, twitched and died, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported Friday.

The guest told deputies he saw an airsoft gun barrel protruding over the edge of a nearby balcony, where investigators found Kenneth Ellis, 68, of Naples.

Ellis, who had an airsoft rifle with a scope attached inside the condo, admitted to shooting the kitten, deputies said.

Ellis was jailed on a cruelty to animals charge.

The key reason why Airsoft might Smash Paintball

2011-11-18T09:08:00.001-08:00

Equally airsoft and paintball really are both hobbies in line with replica
guns and wargames. Will this be this unsafe? That depends more so within the
individual themselves rather than the hobby. A need for seeking an activity
that includes weaponry mainly gets detrimental if it come to extremes — which
is true of most ideas in living. Paintball and airsoft may not be morbid
hobbies in support of run chance of it being risky and damaging people.
Airsoft is really a somewhat numerous sport. The airsoft guns included in an
airsoft game tends to be both discussion pieces as well as practical sports
‘weapons’. Airsoft guns and airsoft pistols are designed for firing equally
small naff pellets and additionally paint filled pellets so it can be useful
both in the sport itself and even for outdoor property target procedure.
Airsoft guns come in a huge range of styles along with models. They can
range from a Glock handgun to a sniper rifle for a CAR15 invasion rifle.
Airsoft guns are utilized equally at home hanging in your livingroom or perhaps
at use relating to playing and participating in field. You can even go in terms
of buying the airsoft minigun. Many airsoft supporters simply get hold of the airsoft
guns without having to get involved in airsoft wargames in any way. This will
be quite similar as various sword extractors – many people display this weapons
at home but will not go playing around waving them all at people today.
Paintball itself is mostly an additional mobile or portable activity. It
requires a specifically better standard of physical health, mobility and also
skill – if you happen to play paintball then you definitely got to have the
ability to move swift. The paintball guns by themselves usually are useful
consequently as they are only created to serve the aim of the paintball sport
versus looking wonderful. Paintball rifles are created to take a true beating
concerning their utility. Paintball fans fall into the ‘extreme sport’ category
and luxuriate in the genuine adrenaline of each and every paintball match as
they are driven from the desire to win.
The significant difference stands out as the power within the guns itself.
Paintball paints are driven by big powered petrol cylinders, unlike airsoft
rifles that fire projectiles possibly through arises, electronic heating mechanisms
or perhaps with pressurized gas. The catch is that the majority of airsoft
weapons lack accuracy of the larger paintball guns simply because were never
built with long range fire at heart.
Regardless about whether that you are a paintball buff or a good airsoft
fanatic, it’s required to take correct safety precautions in using these sport
firearms. Proper eyes protection as safety goggles should always be used, and
desirable protective clothing to hide your the neck and throat and superior
torso also need to be distressed. Even though a lot of people see these sport weapons
as gadgets, they are capable of causing injury either with an accident or maybe
deliberate malice.
If ever the purpose would be to accumulated guns like a leisure process, Airsoft
benefits. Airsoft is good for collecting and playing. However being a hobby,
paintball is in fact the foremost worthwhile. Paintball is usually a sport that
can actually get evaluated, be upgraded, and. made available to the common
people.
This is precisely why paintball will probably end up being crushed by airsoft.
This survey might be rude to a few paintballers available, yet I really believe
the actual report holds true.
The fact is that neither airsoft nor paintball is superior. They’re both a
case of exclusive preference. For everybody who is enjoys the extreme sports
form, then paintball should suit you will more. If you might be more of a
collector, then airsoft.

'Free-range kids' benefit from safe streets

2011-11-14T10:02:00.000-08:00

Six children armed with Airsoft guns rush through a stand of poplars
as they advance on an unseen enemy, yelling, laughing and waving their
airsoft weapons in the air.

A 10-year-old boy falls to the ground dramatically, as if he's been mortally wounded. Then his friend, also 10, collapses nearby. They try to remain still, but giggles convulse
their supposedly maimed bodies.

It's a beautiful fall afternoon in Inglewood, where the group of five boys and one girl has gathered to play Airsoft, complete with airsoft guns, eye protection and airsoft biodegradable
pellets. On any given day after school, a number of neighbourhood
children get together to do battle, or play pick-up football or hockey.

Summer days bring them down to the south bank of the Bow River, where
they swing from a rope into a deep pool on the river's edge.

What's striking about the group is they're on their own. No adults are supervising. No parents are imposing limits on the fun.

"I like going out on my own because there's not as much supervision, so
you can be a kid," says 11-yearold Josh Leacock. Some of his earliest
memories are of being outside with friends playing street hockey and gun
wars (a game with wooden guns that don't shoot) when he was four or
five years old.

He is one of Inglewood's "free-range kids," children who are living a version of childhood similar to what their parents experienced, but one that is becoming rare. In today's
safety obsessed world, it seems a generation of kids is being encouraged
to play indoors or in fenced-in backyards.

Many Inglewood parents, however, are bucking the new parenting order in favour of fresh air, exercise and independence.

So what is it about this Inglewood group of families that are rejecting
mainstream ideas about childhood safety? Is Inglewood built differently? Do these parents have different skills? Do the kids know something the rest of us don't?

Experts say the answers to those questions are both yes and no, and they contain insight into safety in all neighbourhoods. While Inglewood is unique, the lives of these families
highlight many of the factors that experts say go into building safe, engaging neighbourhoods for children and their families all over the city.

"The most visceral fear, the one that taps deepest into our evolutionary hard drive, is the fear that our children are in physical danger," writes author Carl Honore in Under Pressure: Putting the Child Back in Childhood. The 2008 book, his follow-up to the acclaimed In Praise of Slow, advocates "slow" childhoods instead of those in which kids are micro-managed and overprotected.

Modern parents, he writes, fear everything from open toilets to sharp coffee table corners,
"hazards" that can be kept in check by vigilant baby-proofing. Outside the home the multitude of perils are out of parents' control: speeding cars, high playground equipment, even fast snowballs.

"The upshot is that the 21st-century child is raised in captivity, cooped up indoors and ferried between appointments in the backseat of a car," Honore continues.

Keeping children under lock and key all but eliminates risk, and prevents the most-feared threat from materializing: being grabbed off the street by a predator.

"Creepy people," "weirdos" and "scary dudes" are what give Josh and his friend Bowen Tompkins pause as they discuss the pitfalls of freedom on this fall afternoon. Even Bowen's mom Liz Tompkins and her friend Rebecca O'Brien worry that a story on child-safe neighbourhoods could attract oddballs to the community.

This line of thinking is what Lenore Skenazy calls "worst first" - thinking of the most terrible thing that could happen instead of considering the positive effects; that it could convince parents in other neighbourhoods to let their kids be footloose too.

"Predators aren't reading the newspaper to find out where the kids are," says the writer and mother of two who coined the term "freerange kids" with her 2009 book of the same name.

"You have to come to grips with the fact that even though things feel scarier than when we were growing up, they're actually safer," she says by phone from her home in New York City. She rattles off some stats: Since the 1980s, child abductions have gone down and the number of children hit by cars has decreased.

Even having a child die from cancer is less of a risk than it was 25 years ago. But parents are more terrified than ever.

We're scared, says Skenazy, because every time something happens to a child, the story goes viral through media channels and gives parents another reason to lock their kids indoors. She refers to the recent story of three-year-old Keinan Hebert, abducted from his home in Sparwood, B.C.
and returned, unharmed, four days later.

The Hebert's saga sucked in media watchers from across Canada and the United States because it
epitomized every parent's worst nightmare."It's sort of like a carnival ride. It's thrilling and terrifying at the same time," says Skenazy.

It also aligns with the popular culture messages we consume through television shows like CSI, Dexter and Law & Order. Namely, lurking in every alley is a predator that might target your child.

"On TV, there's always a child murderer. In real life murder by stranger is extremely rare . . . . In real life, the vast majority of crimes against kids are committed by people they know," says Skenazy, who was called "America's worst mom" for letting her nine-year-old son ride the New
York City subway alone (he was, and still is, doing just fine).

"There's also a risk if you keep your kids inside. There's a price to be paid that no one thinks about."

She lists off the hidden costs of a sedentary lifestyle: increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and depression, lack of socialization. Skenazy says seeing children outside, playing or walking to school, is a sign of a healthy neighbourhood.

By her measure Inglewood is healthy, in large part because many neighbourhood parents aren't buying in to the new norm. They gladly kick their kids outdoors to play, secure in the knowledge that the environment they're setting them loose in is safe.

"It all adds up to a sense of safety in our community," says long-time Inglewood resident Tompkins, whose two sons, Hollis, 15, and Bowen, 10, have been playing outdoors unsupervised for years.

"What I think it boils down to is everyone seems to know everyone in Inglewood. I feel we're in
a small town with a twist," says Julie deBoer, whose sons Adam, 11, and Luke, 8, are part of the neighbourhood posse.

Daughter Joy, 6, doesn't yet run free - unless she's with her big brothers."It's just a tight web of parents that know each other and trust each other," she adds.

Parents meet through the community school, which many children attend and walk
to. They also meet by volunteering on school council or with the Inglewood Community Association.

Both Tompkins and deBoer have setout clear boundaries for their boys, so the kids know which parts of the neighbourhood they're allowed to venture to, and which parts are offlimits. The boys let their moms know where they're going, and what time they'll be back.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, these children are street smart - they watch out for cars and creeps, and they almost always travel in a posse.

"Street smart means being able to cross the street safely," adds Rebecca O'Brien, whose
10-year-old son Freddy is part of the Airsoft patrol.

Indeed, for most Inglewood moms, their biggest isn't the fear of abduction that rattles their kids, it's the risk they'll fall into the Bow River or get hit by a car.

Community involvement, neighbourliness and parental lessons on strangers, open water and cars help keep kids out of harm's way. What else makes a community safe for children?"

There's not something as simple as a formula, but there are lots of things that come together for safety," says Byron Miller, an urban political geographer and associate professor of geography at the University of Calgary. He mentions density, walkability and ample park space as crucial
components.

"Part of what goes hand in hand with (those) is making the streets safe for kids to play in," he says, adding that if he has to choose one culprit limiting kids' ability to own their
neighbourhoods, it would be the automobile."The single biggest danger to children is traffic," says Miller.

He points to Vauban, a suburb of Freiburg, Germany, as a child-dense and kid-friendly utopia that was designed to minimize car use. Multi-family buildings do not have garages (cars must be parked on the outskirts of town in community parkades). All housing features windows that enable parents to keep an eye out on their kids who are playing outside in the surrounding parks.

"Once people are out walking, they see each other. They know who belongs and who doesn't. It forms a stronger community," says Miller.

It makes for more "eyes on the street," a concept made famous by AmericanCanadian urban planner Jane Jacobs, and one that's acknowledged by Inglewood moms who feel their kids are safe because there are so many trustworthy adults watching the community goings-on as a form of natural surveillance.

While Inglewood is quite a bit different from Vauban - cars zip up and down busy Ninth Avenue, and many residents own cars and park them in back alley garages - the community is very pedestrian-friendly, ranking 19th on the Project Calgary's list of walkable communities.

It's also unique in that more than 40 per cent of businesses are owned by Inglewood residents who have an interest in the community. What's more, many of the neighbourhood children grow into teenagers who get jobs at the local franchises and businesses.

"I don't think it's the norm," says Inglewood BRZ chair Brian Imeson, who owns Circa vintage art glass on Ninth Avenue and walks to work. "It still maintains a really small-town community feel here."

Miller lives in West Hillhurst and practices free-range parenting when he shoos his son out to the local park. But Miller knows there are few risks: his son doesn't have to cross a street
and he's there with friends.

"When you say to your kid, 'Go be free-range,' you have to consider the environment you're turning them loose in.""Know your neighbourhood," says Julie Freedman Smith, co-owner of Parenting Power, a Calgary business that counsels parents on everyday challenges.

She says residents are best equipped to identify community threats facing the youngest members."It's not doing it without thought. It's taking the time to teach," she says.

"If we wait for our kids to be 15 or 17 before we let them out (alone), they're going to make big mistakes."Inglewood mom Liz Tompkins admits her boys have occasionally darted in front of traffic, or forgotten to tell her where they were going to be, but she believes letting her boys play outdoors on their own has done more good than harm, she says. Expanding their boundaries in increments, as they proved responsible, has taught them independence and helped them develop good judgment.

Conversely, parents who keep kids under their thumb are "doing a grave disservice to them. Not only are they not learning independence, they're not learning how to make good decisions on their own," says Tompkins.

Safe in their community and street smart from years of walking and biking to school and negotiating the back alleys after school, this group of Inglewood children love their freedom and
think their 'hood is unique in Calgary.

"All the kids are either home or out with kids . . . you can find them really easily," says Bowen Tompkins.His friend, Josh Leacock, contemplates his freedom more philosophically, with wisdom beyond his 11 years.

"I think that if your parents don't let you go out and experience life, then you're stuck inside all day playing video games or watching TV.

It's like my dad would say: 'It rots your brain.' "Instead, he spends his free time outdoors."There's no wasting a day."

Man points toy gun at deputies, begs to be shot

2011-11-14T09:55:00.000-08:00

KANNAPOLIS — A Kannapolis man pointed an Airsoft pistol at a Rowan
County deputy Sunday afternoon and threatened to shoot the officer if he
did not kill him.

According to the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office, 56-year-old Michael
Harrison was arrested in his 1303 Stone Ave. yard after deputies
negotiated with him to place the believed-to-be pistol on the ground.
Airsoft guns look like real weapons, but shoot airsoft pellets or airsoft BBs.

Harrison and his wife, 47-year-old Sarah Harrison, got into a domestic
argument earlier that day, the report said, and Michael Harrison choked
her and threw her across the living room couch.

The report said their 16-year-old son intervened in the fight and
Michael Harrison left the property in one of the family’s vehicles.
As Deputy M.L. Shrewsbury took statements from Sarah Harrison and her
son at the house about 1:25 p.m., Michael Harrison returned to the home
with an Airsoft handgun and pointed it at the officer.

The deputy took cover behind his patrol car with his weapon drawn and asked the man to lower his weapon.

The man begged the officer to shoot him and, at times, put the Airsoft gun to his head.
Deputies took the man in to custody after negotiating with him to drop his (airsoft) weapon in the yard.

As Michael Harrison was being cuffed, Shrewsbury found a small razor in his possession and a cut mark along his right wrist.

Michael Harrison was transported to the Magistrate’s Office and charged
with assault by strangulation and assault on a law enforcement officer
with a firearm.

While being processed at the office, Michael Harrison withdrew a “broken
crack pipe,” the report said, and began trying to cut his left wrist
with a fragment of the smoking device.

EMS was called and the man was treated at the scene and taken to the Rowan County Detention Center.

“Officer Shrewsbury acted very professionally and used a lot of
restraint especially with having the weapon pointed at him,” Rowan
County Sheriff’s Office spokesman John Sifford said. “Had Officer
Shrewsbury not exhibited that restraint, it could have been very
different.”

Michael Harrison was in jail on Monday with no bond.

A Lady Holds a Resident Evil Pistol. Capcom Copyrights a Cake.

2011-10-31T10:19:00.000-07:00

It's Halloween. What better day to talk about overpriced Resident Evil food? So, let's do that! Then, let's talk about a[n] [airsoft] gun.

To promote Resident Evil's fifteenth anniversary, Capcom is teaming up with a Japanese restaurant company to roll out Resident Evil food. There are T-virus drinks that change colors and themed dishes.

Capcom even created a Resident Evil premium cake, which has a
copyright logo on it. Meaning, Capcom actually put a copyright mark on a
cake because it has the anniversary logo on it, because some lawyer
probably told Capcom people might see the cake and then decide it was
okay to copy the logo. In my time, I've seen lots of game cakes, but
never one with a copyright mark on it—probably because that's totally insane.

RE goods were also shown off. In the above photo, model
Reiko Mirashi does a fine job of showing off the Samurai Edge airsoft
pistol and doing so without apparently threatening. There's a right way
to show off an airsoft pistol. This is it.

There's also a right way to make a game cake. This ain't.

Battlefield 3 - Wellington Launch Party

2011-10-27T09:21:00.000-07:00

EB Games hosted a midnight launch party for the hotly anticipated Battlefield 3 in Lower Hutt last night, and we were there. Expecting great things - after attending previous launches run by the team - we were not disappointed.

Sure, it was wet and windy, but if anything that only added to the drama. After all, the EB guys had gone all-out for this one, partnering once again with Army-surplus suppliers Comrades, and the airsoft guys from Capital Team Airsoft (CTA) were there - complete with combat fatigues - to add an air of authenticity to proceedings.

Take a look at what went down...

The EB guys, dressed in Army fatigues, kill some of the time leading up to the midnight release, while gamers mill about in preparation for the main event

One of the airsoft CTA guys, resplendent in his (rather serious-looking) kit. We're 99.99% sure that [airsoft] gun's not real but, dangerous or not, we don't want that guy pointing at us.

This guy, on the other hand, looks a little out of his depth...

... just kidding! D:

If not for the shelves of games in the background, you'd swear you were looking at a couple of fresh recruits! Maybe not, but it's a damn good effort, anyway.

How good is this guy? If it wasn't so cold and wet, I'd totally think I had been transported into the middle of desert storm.

The gear you need! But are they referring to the [airsoft] guns or the games in the background?

Clearly an amateur, this one; hiding behind a barrel? My jacketed parabellum's are going to cut through that like a hot knife through butter!

Everyone gathers up for a briefing - operation Release Battlefield 3 At Midnight is about to kick off

Mike, nearly lost in the crowd, gives the mission briefing. We'd tell you what he said, but then we'd have to kill you.

Ok, ok, what he said was "go outside" - so they did, as evidenced by this photo.

Oh Wellington! Is Wonderful! We've got the wind, the rain, and the Phoenix (that chap there in the center)!

Uh oh... looks like some of the "talent" have gone rogue... the chap in the middle started making threatening gestures and mumbled stuff that, while in Russian, sounded like bad news...

The GIs, true to form, looked non-plussed. "We can take you", they suggested by body language alone

The first to buy the game enter the shop but what's this?! The insurgents are blocking their passage! It's war, in Lower Hutt!

Out of nowhere, the good guys turn up and rescue the shoppers from what can only be described as certain doom. Or a well staged stunt. Either way, it was awesome.

One of the first to buy the game escapes into the night, clutching his hard-won copy in his hands.

Did you go along to a midnight release? Have you picked up the game this morning? Let us know in the comments!

Gamers dress in military garb for release of 'Battlefield 3'

2011-10-25T09:33:00.000-07:00

BRANDON --"Battlefield 3" has been called one of the most anticipated
first-person shooter video games of 2011. And looking at all the folks
lined up at the GameStop on East Brandon Boulevard for its midnight
release Tuesday, it's easy to believe that's no exaggeration.

While this particular store had several hundred pre-sales of the
game, the worldwide pre-sale of EA's "Battlefield 3" reportedly hit 2
million a week ago while another 12 million people took advantage of a
limited "beta" or test version of the game earlier this month.

At GameStop in Brandon, some of the people waiting in line looked as
if they had walked straight out of the online warfare game that, offers
breathtaking visuals and hair-raising audio where you can hear every
bullet whizzing by your head and feel buildings crumbling around you.

The game's big rival, Activision's "Call of Duty 3," will be released
in two weeks. But the hardcore gamers in the midnight crowd – ones who
dressed in military garb and carrying Airsoft (BB gun) replica weapons
so incredibly real-looking they made sure to have clearance to carry
them from the local authorities – say "Battlefield 3" is superior in
nearly all aspects of gaming.

" 'Battlefield 3' is team-based tactics with so many different types
of vehicles involved in the game play with these massive maps (battle
areas) and destructible worlds," said Matt Farmer, owner of Battlegrounds, an indoor Airsoft arena in Tampa. "To me, 'Call of Duty'
is more of an individual, fast-paced, tournament-based game where score
matters. But in 'Battlefield,' there's multi-player objectives where you
have to work with other players as a team to achieve them. I just think
that's a lot more entertaining and challenging."

By the time GameStop began selling the game for $60 at midnight, more
than 100 buyers were lined up down the sidewalk waiting for their copy.

To contrast Farmer and his friends decked out in military garb, two
unarmed waitresses from the new Wing House in Brandon, Allison Bowsher
and Allison Gates, served up samples of their wings to those waiting in
line.

Apart from the Wing House women, everyone in line wanted a copy of
"Battlefield 3," either on Xbox, PlayStation 3 or PC. The big advantage
of the PC version is the ability to have as many as 64 players in a
single online campaign, as opposed to a maximum of 24 on the other
platforms.

No matter how they planned to play it, most of the people who bought
the "M" (mature rating) game Tuesday night say they were planning to go
home and play it throughout the night. And many of those were teenagers
and even pre-teens.

So if you don't see someone at work or school today, there's a chance they're at home right now playing "Battlefield 3."

Hackettstown brings in several new businesses

2011-10-18T09:23:00.000-07:00

HACKETTSTOWN – In the last month,
Hackettstown has experienced a surge of new businesses coming into town.

Three new businesses have opened on Main Street, said
Hackettstown Business Improvement Director Jim Sheldon. Another business has opened
on Route 57 and a fifth business recently moved from Main Street to Valentine
Street.

The new businesses are: Hackettstown Mitsubishi located on
100 Main Street, Stryker Airsoft located on 13 Route 57, Hackettstown Health
Foods located on 199 Main Street and Treasure Trove, a vintage items store,
located next-door to the Hackettstown Health Foods at 201 Main Street. Heart
and Sohl Photography is now located on 126 Valentine Street.

Sheldon was optimistic about some of the town’s vacancies
being filled. “It just really shows that people are starting to find
Hackettstown as a good place to do business. I think they see that Hackettstown
is invested in its streetscape and they see that as a very positive sign. There
is tremendous potential in town,” Sheldon said.

Uzma Kazmi, the manager at Hackettstown Health Foods, also
saw the potential in town. “People are more health-oriented and progressive in
Hackettstown,” she said.

Kazmi said the store is offering 20% off the marked price on
all items – ranging from organic frozen food, body care products – in the store
and 30% off on all body building items, like muscle milk. Kabeer Abro, owner of
Hackettstown Health, also owns a health food store in Washington.

Stryker Airsoft is an indoor Airsoft facility. Airsoft is
like paintball, but without the paint. It is a recreational game played with
replica Airsoft firearms that shoot very small plastic Airsoft pellets.

Owner Connie Smetana says that what separates Stryker
Airsoft from other Airsoft facilities is the arena itself, which has been
described by Airsoft players as an “urban battlefield” and a “mini close
quarter battle city.” “We wanted to make something that was very exciting for
people to look at,” she said.

Treasure Trove is a vintage item store and its hours are
Wednesday through Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Owner Judy Walker has
owned several other antique stores in Hackettstown. “I thought I would try it
again,” she said. The store sells antiques, collectibles, dolls, furniture,
china, linens, jewelry and vintage items, Walker said.

Drew Picon, owner of Hackettstown Hyundai, opened
Hackettstown Mitsubishi on Oct. 1. “We love the area and love the people,” he
said.

Sheldon also commented on the new dealership. “The
Hackettstown Mitsubishi is the perfect location for someone to come in and sign
a lease – it’s a continuing use car dealership,” Shelton said of the new
dealership. “It’s just a home run.”

Heart and Sohl Photoraphy, owned by Sean and Jessi Sohl,
moved from Main Street to a larger space on 126 Valentine Street. “We kept
getting bigger, this is absolutely perfect,” Jessi said of the 1,000 square
foot studio space. She said that the larger space gives them more flexibility
when shooting family portraits and professional headshots, the studio’s
specialties.

Weapons testing facility to close next year

2011-10-18T09:22:00.000-07:00

LEE COUNTY, FL -
Companies make and sell hundreds of less lethal weapons for law enforcement agencies that are meant to stop a criminal, not kill the criminal. Those weapons are tested at the Weapons and Equipment Research Institute at FGCU, but the institute will close because its funding is about to dry up.

Charlie Mesloh's passion comes from his experience on duty.

"I was a law enforcement officer back in a time when we had a night stick and a radio and that was pretty much it," said Mesloh, the Director of the Weapons and Equipment Research Institute at Florida Gulf Coast University.

He and his staff members use grant money to buy less-lethal weapons like tasers, airsoft guns and batons – and test them for their reliability and safety.

"We try to determine where you can stand and deploy a weapon and accurately hit the person and yet not kill them," said Mesloh.

Tuesday, Mesloh's team recorded how well a new long-range taser performs.
It's a one of a kind facility that uses less than $100,000 a year to support law enforcement.

Officers and deputies come to the research institute to learn how to safely use new weapons, like the Taser x2. They practice their shooting at this facility.
After April 30, that free training comes to an end.

"I'm concerned, I'm concerned. I want my tax dollars to be spent properly," said Mesloh.

Without funding to continue research, agencies may make bad purchases on unsafe weapons and his students will miss out.

"Anybody can pick up a book and read but nobody can pick up a taser and test it, and that's what they're taking away," said student assistant Jo Ann Werbalis.

"That experience is going to be lost. We're not going to be a pipeline like we have been for these high levels of federal law enforcement," said Mesloh.

Mesloh's team hopes to finish two more weapons projects before their money runs out next year.

Firearms training: Supplementing live-fire drills

2011-10-17T11:29:00.000-07:00

Patrol officers
may not be the most “tactical” members of a department, but they should
absolutely be the most formidable pistol fighters

On average, at least one law enforcement officer is murdered
every week in this nation. Most of these officers are assigned to patrol
and are attacked without warning while handling “routine” calls or
self-initiated enforcement contacts. No clearer example of this can be found than the first two of the four officers murdered in Oakland,
California in March, 2009. These officers were conducting a traffic
enforcement stop and had no prior warning of the assault that would end
their lives and change their family’s lives forever. As in so many
cases, neither officer was able to return the fight to the suspect
before being murdered. Patrol officers are more likely than
others — including SWAT officers — to be involved in a sudden and
unexpected close-quarters attack. Because of this fact, patrol officers
should be given consistent training specific for the types of assaults
they most often encounter. In addition to being mentally prepared for
such an assault, patrol officers must master the skills necessary to
quickly and effectively fire hits into a suspect suddenly attempting to
murder them. Having served on a SWAT Team for 13 years, I
absolutely understand the need for tactical operators to train as
frequently as possible. However, statistics show that very few SWAT
operators are murdered each year. There are a number of reasons for this
statistic, but the most obvious reason to me is deterrence. Very few
suspects are willing to attack a team of eight to ten operators knocking
down their door sporting balaclavas and AR-platform firearms. Even
violent suspects faced with this situation will usually choose to live
and fight (perhaps one of us at a time) some other day. Patrol is
the law enforcement assignment in which the officer is tasked with
seeking out or responding to the worst and most unpredictable in society
on a daily basis. They usually do this work on their own, or certainly
without the built-in deterrence of a tactical team as their cover.
Therefore, patrol officers must receive the most effective firearms
training available, particularly firearms training with their handgun.
Patrol officers may not be the most “tactical” members of a department,
but they should absolutely be the most formidable pistol fighters. My
philosophy is great in theory, but when I make these points to classes
around the country, I frequently hear the same replies. Instructors want
to offer better training and patrol officers wish to train more often.
However, cuts to the training budget have made it impossible to offer or
obtain additional training. Certainly, the current economic
environment required budget cuts and perhaps even future cuts for many
agencies. But as the recent 30 percent increase in law enforcement
assaults and homicides makes clear, there has been no matching reduction
in assailants willing to murder police officers. Reducing already
inadequate or infrequent firearms training is a gamble that no agency
should take. Rather than argue that point any further in this
article, I will instead suggest that effective firearms training — at
least training aimed at the development of skills necessary to prevail
against a sudden close-quarter attack — can be affordable and effective.
Effective and Inexpensive Dry-Fire Practice Boxers
spend a majority of training time outside of the sparing ring — their
version of live-fire training. Skills are developed with the use of a
heavy bag, speed bag, or at times, open space for conditioning, foot
work, and perhaps shadow boxing. Law enforcement firearms training can
and should develop a similar training model, one in which a great deal
of training is provided away from live-fire training. Off-range
training should be a part of every training program and should include
work on the draw stroke, the flash front-sight focus, and even trigger
control. The following suggestions are not intended to replace live-fire
training. Rather, they are simple and cost-effective methods to
supplement live-fire drills. 1.) Training on the draw stroke —
With regard to the close distance of most gunfights, an officer’s
ability to draw quickly and shoot effectively, while moving laterally at
the same time, can be far more important than their shooting skills.
But the speed and skill needed for an incredibly fast and effective
response can only be developed with frequent practice on the draw
stroke. Every officer should have a mastery of the four -or five-step
pistol presentation. They should then drill on this technique often
enough so that if suddenly in a gunfight, they are never more than a
week or two from their last practice session. Every police officer
should train often enough so that their firearm is pointing at the chest
of the suspect in around one second. A time under a second is even
better. There are countless examples of officers murdered while
struggling to get their weapon into a gunfight. Situational awareness is
crucial, but a fast and effective draw stroke is equally important.
Inert duty firearms or plastic replica firearms are perfect for these
drills — Plastic weapons can be purchased for less than $40 per unit. 2.) Simunition Firearms —
Simunition and Airsoft “firearms” can take presentation training
one-step further. Valuable both in scenario based and tactical”
training, these airsoft “firearms” are also excellent for speed to target
training. Officers can practice their draw stroke, flash front-sight
focus, and even their combat shooting skills, without the use of a
firearms training facility. Simunition systems can be expensive for some
agencies, but you can purchase a great deal of Airsoft equipment for a
few hundred dollars.3.) Shooting Simulators —
Shooting simulators are another excellent (albeit more expensive,
training tool. These systems are primarily used by agencies to provide
use-of-force and decision-making training. However, these simulators are
also excellent for developing an officer’s reaction to a sudden assault
through speed to target drills. A number of companies now offer
portable simulators that are reasonably priced and that can be set up
just about anywhere in your department. If Not Now, When? It
will be years before law enforcement agencies will be back to enjoying
surplus budgets. Perhaps those days are gone forever. In the meantime,
the recent rise in law-enforcement homicides tells us that we don’t have
the time to wait for more money, more support from agency leaders, or
even more live-fire training. Fortunately, agencies can help an officer
to greatly improve their ability to prevail in an armed assault through a
supplemental program of dry-fire practice.

Pistol Drill Skills

2011-10-13T09:39:00.000-07:00

I started an article about the need for actual live-fire
firearms training versus just shooting the agency qual course over and over,
but it started to turn into a rant and I am in a good mood. Instead, I am going
to post some challenging [airsoft] pistol skill drills that you can use on your own to
improve your shooting.

First of all, standard disclaimer. Know the Four Universal Firearms Safety Rules and follow them every time. Also knowand follow the regulations on the range where you are shooting. Know your own skill level and stay in your lane. You are accountable for every round that you
fire, and if you ever get into a real world shooting, every round you have ever
fired will end up in the same place – in court. Like any physical skill,
only perfect practice makes perfect, so when you begin to get tired and sloppy
or fool around, it is time to be done for the day. Finally, the best way to
practice these drills is with a partner who can keep time, call the course and
critique your form and hits. For live fire, a shot timer works better than a
stopwatch and whistle, but use what you have.

Some tools for pistol skill drills; snap caps, Airsoft
pistol, CO2s.

Dry fire is the best training you can get, and it is almost
free. Some additional safety rules apply when conducting dry fire. All live
ammo must be secured in another part of the building. Training partners should
then check each other for live ammo. No “I trust you, Dude” – actually check to
make sure no live ammunition is present. When conducting dry fire, have a
backstop capable of stopping whatever round your weapons fire. Remember that
sheetrock and 2x4s stop almost nothing. Old body armor, hung behind the dry
fire targets, is ideal. You want to do 70-80% of your training dry, and 20-30%
live fire. Focus on the fundamentals – Solid grip, aggressive forward stance,
and a smooth trigger press while maintaining sight alignment/sight picture.
Start off slow and concentrate on good form. Smooth is fast.

I am a huge believer in Airsoft as a training tool. My
preferred training progression for these drills is Dry Fire – Airsoft – Live
Fire. Another advantage is that Airsoft allows you to shoot these drills if you
are prevented from shooting them live by range configuration, lack of access to
live ammo or weapons, the cost of ammo, or cranky old guy Armory Staff.
Remember to ALWAYS wear eye pro when shooting Airsoft. Don’t be that kid from
“A Christmas Story”.

My all-time favorite [airsoft] target is the plastic lid
from a Folger’s coffee can. They can be stapled or taped up almost anywhere,
take up next to no space in your range bag, will take a bunch of [airsoft] hits from live
rounds before they fall apart, and can also be used with a sharpie to make a
reasonable “A” zone on a TRANSTAR target. The coffee can lid is about 8″ in
diameter, perfectly sized for practicing [airsoft] center mass chest hits, and they make
a satisfying SMACK when you ding them with Airsoft – almost like shooting steel
reactive targets with live fire. The best part is that I have yet to see an
agency that doesn’t have those red Folger’s cans in abundance. If it’s free,
its for me!

Now for the drills;
Hackathorn Standards ([airsoft] Pistol)
Course Designer: Ken Hackathorn (Contract SFOD-D and FBI-HRT Firearms
Instructor)
Source: Larry Vickers (former SFOD-D Lead Firearms Instructor)
300 Points 60 Rounds No Make Up Shots
IPSC Target (or sub an 8″ round target for the “A” zone/head):
A = 5 C = 3 D = 2 Entire Head = 5
All stages start holstered unless otherwise noted.
250+ Expert
200-249 Acceptable
Below 200 Needs Improvement
Overtime shots do not count for score
Targets: 3 IPSC, 1m spacing, staggered medium-high-low
height
#1–5 yards–1 rd on each head from draw freestyle–3 sec
#2–5 yards–1 rd on each head strong hand–4 sec
#3–5 yards–1 rd on each body strong hand–3 sec
#4–5 yards–1 rd on each body strong hand–3 sec
#5–8 yards–2 rds on left target freestyle–2 sec
#6–8 yards–2 rds on center target freestyle–2 sec
#7–8 yards–2 rds on right target freestyle–2 sec
#8–10 yards–El Presidente; start facing uprange w/6 rds in gun, turn and draw,
2 rds each target, slide lock reload, 2 rds on each target–10 seconds
#9–10 yards–weak hand pickup; gun on ground, butt to strong side, start
standing, strong hand in small of back, retrieve handgun, 1 rd on each target–5
sec
#10–12 to 8 yards–2 rds each target while moving forward from 12 yds–5 sec
#11–15 yards–transition drill; start with hands at shoulder level as if holding
rifle (Holding an empty rifle or Blue Gun is better), 1 rd on each target–4 sec
#12–20 yards–start standing; drop to prone, 2 rds on each target–10 sec
#13–25 yards–start behind barricade; 2 rds on each target standing, perform
tactical reload under cover(retain/stow partial mag), 2 rds on each target
kneeling–24 sec

Hackathorn 3-second Head Shot Standards ([airsoft] Pistol)
Range: 5 yd
Target: 3 IDPA or IPSC Targets, shoulder height, two foot
seperation
Rounds: 9Par Time: 3 Sec All Strings
1. Fire one (and only one) shot at the head of each target,
left-right.
2. Fire one (and only one) shot at the head of each target,
right-left.
3. Fire one (and only one) shot at the head of each target,
middle target then outside targets in any order.
Hits after Par count as misses. Minimum 7 hits to
qualify.

CSAT Pistol Instructor Standards
Course Designer/Source: Paul Howe, SFOD-D Veteran of
Mogadishu, Owner/Lead Instructor of CSAT
All shot at 7 yards except for string 10.
1. Ready, 1 shot, 1 target- 1 SEC
2. Holster, 1 shot, 1 target – 1.7 SEC
3. Ready, 2 shots, 1 target – 1.5 SEC
4. Ready, 5 shots body, 1 shot head, 1 target – 3 SEC
5. Ready, 2 shots x 2 targets – 3 SEC
6. Ready, 2 shot weak/2 shots strong, 1 target – 5 SEC
7. Ready, 1 shot malfunction drill, 1 target – 3 SEC
8. Ready, 2 shots, reload, 2 shots, 1 target – 5 SEC
9. Rifle Up, Dry fire/transition 1 shot, 1 target – 3.25 SEC
10. Holster, 1 shot kneeling, 1 target, 25 yards – 3.25 SEC
Total: 25 Rounds
Must Pass 8 of 10 standards to receive a “go”

Too easy? Try them again low-light with your
flashlight.

Like anything else worth doing, challenging ourselves to reach the next level of proficiency with a pistol is hard work. It takes a commitment to putting in the reps and pushing beyond
“minimum standards” both from a personal and agency perspective. Bad guys will
not pro-rate the effort that they put into killing you based on your CDI
factor. Can you imagine? “These guys are only patrol, they aren’t SWAT- I am only
going to try 50% to kill them.” A gunfight is a gunfight, and your worst has to
be better than the bad guy’s best. Train for it.

Airsoft outdoor war game provides exercise and excitement

2011-10-11T09:45:00.000-07:00

Alright. We might be in the autumn woods, but mushroom picking this is not. Instead, we are picking enemies off one by one with airsoft bullets whistling through the air.
Near the Lahnus shooting range in Espoo, a group of 73 men and two women has gathered to be divided into two teams by the airsoft game leader.
The aim of the game is to raise the team’s flag at a strategically important location - and to liquidate as many members of the opposing team as possible in the process.

The recreational activity in question, for which a substantial outdoor space is needed, is called airsoft.
In airsoft, non-metallic airsoft pellets are fired using realistic-looking replica guns.
In the capital area there are only a couple of locations in which playing airsoft is permitted.
These locations are in Helsinki’s Paloheinä district and in Lahnus and Korpilampi in Espoo.
In Helsinki’s Mustavuori (out east in the suburb of Vuosaari) there used to be an official airsoft area, but it now lacks a valid permit from the Public Works Department.

Pekka Gröhn from Espoo has brought his 15-year-old twin sons Juho and Henri to take part in the airsoft fighting, but the father, too, rather enjoys spending the afternoon dressed in a green camouflage outfit.
“I am probably the one who is most excited about [airsoft]. At first my wife was averse to the idea, but nowadays she may ask me if the boys are not going to go and improve their fitness in the woods.”

The relative shortage of legitimate airsoft battlegrounds tempts people to play the game also in residential and outdoor areas and even in playgrounds.
The airsoft sport’s image has been tarnished somewhat by mostly underage players who have flouted the rules.
“The wild groups of [airsoft] players running around with [airsoft] guns have caused fright among outsiders, resulting in several police alerts. Lately there have been fewer such incidents but each breach of the rules harms us and the discipline”, says airsoft enthusiast Tero Salmela.
The Pääkaupunkiseudun airsoft-yhdistys (”Greater Helsinki Airsoft Association”) that Salmela administers tries to get the youngsters to practice the airsoft activity within organised settings.
”We engage in cooperation with stores selling airsoft guns and equipment, but more responsibility could be put on the shoulders of the parents who purchase the [airsoft] guns. The airsoft guns cannot be sold to persons under the age of 18”, emphasises Ville Hietikko, a board member of the association.

The youngest members of the airsoft group gathered in Lahnus are 12 years of age. The oldest ones are in their 50s.
The area’s rolling landscape, with lots of bushes and scrub to provide cover, is to everybody’s liking.
“The out-of-way location is an advantage. It allows the [airsoft] players to immerse themselves fully in the activity without having to worry about giving an outsider a heart attack in the process. The Espoo airsoft playing areas, however, are not easily reachable”, Salmela explains.
The situation is worst in the city of Vantaa, which has not allocated any playing areas for airsoft enthusiasts.

In Lahnus, the airsoft game leader announces the end of the day’s first game.
Antti Puskala, 19, of Espoo, emerges onto the dirt road from the bushes.
He wipes sweat from his forehead. Some of the black war-paint on his face sticks to his hand.
How did it go?
“My friends and I decided from the start to go round behind the enemy. For us the main thing was not the flag, but to get to shoot as many of the enemy fighters as possible. I managed to take out quite few of them.”
In the next airsoft game, Puskala took a hit and was among the fallen.

Airsoft originates from Japan. In the game, plastic or biodegradable airsoft pellets are fired. The bio airsoft pellets decompose in 1 to 3 months.
The game can be based on imaginary or actual historic fight situations.
An unprotected airsoft player may sustain minor injuries.
Protective eyewear and a mouth guard or a mask are a must.
In the capital area there are only a few places where airsoft can be played.
According to the Public Order Act, the airsoft guns, which bear a striking likeness to real firearms, must not be displayed in public places.

"War Games": Airsoft Growing in Popularity

2011-10-09T13:49:00.000-07:00

David Higgins II stood authoritatively, clipboard in hand, one foot resting on a bench, and shouted out a list of rules to the large group gathered around him — many in camouflage, most bumping up against either side of puberty, all but one male.

"Call your hits… no grenades of any kind, this is all [airsoft] guns… if you use auto, you get one warning, then your team dies."

Shifting their airsoft firearms and their feet, energy drinks surging through their bodies, the youths nodded, eager to start the airsoft OPS Team Shootout. It was 4:15 p.m. and a long night of airsoft was about to begin.

In the last 10 years, airsoft — a recreational activity that involves shooting plastic airsoft pellets from battery or gas-powered replica firearms — has built a steady following in Connecticut (many airsoft fans are young and male, but it's neither exclusively young nor male). A cousin to paintball, airsoft games are structured around team objectives like taking a village, rescuing a hostage or locating and diffusing a fake bomb, achieved with basic military techniques like flanking and diversion. Although many of airsoft's early fans were culled from the ranks of paintball, airsoft is now flourishing in its own right.

"There were about 1,400 people on the Airsoft CT site [the major online forum for Connecticut players] about 1 year ago. Now it's up to 1,600." said Higgins, a 32-year-old stay-at-home dad who started playing airsoft after reading about it online and kept on playing because he fell in love with the airsoft community.

"The older [airsoft] players help younger players," he said. "It's built off the honor system [as opposed to paintball, where hits are obvious]. The people that you're playing [airsoft] with, you have to trust them."

"I just liked the idea of going out and trying to outsmart other people trying to do the same thing," said Jason DeConti, who has run the Airsoft CT site since 2005. "Like being able to make a plan to protect what we have, then get it back without losing."

The number of indoor airsoft facilities, outdoor fields and stores is increasing around Connecticut — the East Windsor Airsoft Academy, an airsoft store with plans for a future playing field, opened this summer, joining, among other airsoft venues, Ground Zero in Wolcott, Strategy Plus in East Hampton, and Cromwell CQB, where Higgins led the airsoft OPS Team Shootout this September. Now, low-end airsoft guns can even be purchased at Dick's and Walmart (prices can range anywhere from $20 to over $1,000).

Many airsoft players belong to teams — groups that prefer similar styles of play and meet for practice on a regular basis, including one at the University of Connecticut that plays other college teams around the country. Airsoft games can last anywhere from a few hours to more than 20.

"From 2000, growth has been exponential — at least tenfold, massive growth," said Ground Zero owner Lester Bastenbeck, who started carrying airsoft equipment at his die-cast car and hobby shop about 11 years ago, after seeing the airsoft guns on a trip to Florida. Bastenbeck turned the shop into a full-time airsoft venture in 2005, opening the airsoft playing field around the same time.

Airsoft began in Japan in the 1970s, gained popularity on the U.S. West Coast in the 1980s, according to Bastenbeck, then spread slowly across the country during the 1990s.

Now Bastenbeck is trying to open an indoor airsoft facility in Waterbury and working with others to start a national association that would offer airsoft rules, regulations and maybe some additional recognition for players tired of telling the uninitiated that it's "like paintball with plastic [airsoft] pellets."

"Paintball is messy," said William Rodriguez, co-owner of the Airsoft Academy in East Windsor. "People who play airsoft spend a lot of money on their gear… they like it because it's more authentic. People like realism."

It's hard to overstate the importance of realism in airsoft, with players seeking verisimilitude in everything from games to clothing (which ranges from historical to military simulation, aka milsim) and most especially, guns. With the exception of an orange tip for safety purposes, airsoft weapons look, feel and sound like the guns after which they're modeled, with identical weights and sometimes recoils. Variety is also increasing rapidly, with players requesting new airsoft models, especially historic ones, from manufacturers — who typically license production specifications and logo from gunmakers.

At New Britain-based Stag Arms, which licenses its guns to an airsoft manufacturer called Mad Bull, president Mark Malkowski said that sales of airsoft guns have gone up about 10 percent each year, although they remain very small compared to sales of actual firearms.

"It's not a major part of our business… but we've seen an increase in sales [of airsoft items] year after year," he said. "It's a good way for younger enthusiasts to get familiar with the brand."

The Cromwell CQB is located in a quiet strip mall on Main Street, and though open every day, sees the most airsoft action on weekends, when airsoft players arrive in the late morning and stay into the night — fueling up with snack bar foods, power bars and the contents of the vending machines (sample quote: "Do I need a third candy bar?"). Cans of propane litter the tables, plastic airsoft pellets are always underfoot, and a sign hanging over the scene reads "Your mother doesn't live here. CLEAN UP!!! after yourselves."

During the airsoft OPS shootout in September, some 45 people followed Higgins' rules as they "killed" opposing teams stationed around the shooting area — a kind of makeshift village with structures, piles of debris and alleyways — during timed trials, a fake bomb retrieval and a hostage situation.

Some airsoft teams were quiet and calm, efficiently eliminating their opponents as, fittingly, the theme from Mission Impossible sounded faintly through the wall. Others were less expert — spraying airsoft pellets blindly or not at all, reluctant to leave the safety of the entrance area.

One of the airsoft teams took so long that enemy's lone surviving player finally stepped into the open and asked "Do you want to just kill me already?" He was swiftly dispatched.

Standing outside after the first round of play, 12-year-old James Mazzarella talked about the difficulty of facing the "major league [airsoft] players," in their late teens and early 20s. "It's scary when they all charge at you," he said.

"I like the thrill," said his 13-year-old airsoft teammate, Sam Lindblom.

Higgins also credited the thrill, the adrenaline rush with keeping him interested — that, the teamwork and the satisfaction of improving.

"At first, I used to go straight into firefights," said Higgins. "Now I try to find ways to sneak up on people, be very tactical. It's a big release from the everyday."

Maritza Lebron, the sole woman playing at the Cromwell airsoft game, said that stress relief is a big part of airsoft — she does clerical work for four attorneys in her real life.

"You don't think about work when you're here," she said, laughing as she hoisted up her airsoft M-4 and prepared to re-enter the war zone.

Airsoft Battle Days: A Checklist

2011-10-04T09:49:00.000-07:00

Part of what makes airsoft guns
so popular is their authenticity and preparation for airsoft skirmishes
is just as realistic. Getting ready for an airsoft skirmish is
exciting, nerve-wracking and strategic - and we want to make sure you
don't miss a beat before heading out to the airsoft battle field. Here's a quick
checklist to double (or triple) check before each airsoft battle.

Airsoft gun(s)
It's pretty obvious, but you don't want to forget your airsoft gun on a
battle day. Many airsoft fanatics like to clean their airsoft gun the night
before or morning of, an airsoft skirmish so they can ensure its
functionality; if your airsoft gun has any kinks, you want to find out before
you're on the airsoft battlefield with limited supplies and options. If you have
[an airsoft gun], stow away your airsoft gun in an airsoft gun bag for safe and easy
transport. The airsoft bags are big enough to fit your other airsoft gear as
well as your airsoft gun, so if you pack it all in there, you only have to grab
one bag as you walk out the door to the airsoft skirmish.

Airsoft ammo
Next to your airsoft gun, bringing along ample airsoft ammo is crucial
to your ability to outlast on the airsoft battlefield. Eject your airsoft magazine and
load it up pre-skirmish with quality airsoft bbs. Make sure that you
choose quality airsoft ammo that won't jam up your airsoft gun or airsoft pistol
during game
play. Even if you don't have a high capacity airsoft magazine, as long as you
bring extra airsoft bbs you can outlast the competition. Toss a bag of extra
airsoft ammunition into your airsoft gun bag and you'll be ready to engage
without worrying about running out of airsoft bbs.

Airsoft safety goggles & face protection

Just like real the deal, in a milsim game like airsoft, safety and protective gear is vital. The small, dense airsoft bbs
are a huge safety concern; therefore, make sure you have impact
resistant airsoft goggles. Another recommendation for safety is to
protect yourself with an airsoft mesh full-face mask.

Ghillies or other camouflaged gear/attire
Talk with your airsoft team to discuss a uniform to wear on battle day.
Typically airsoft players will individually equip themselves in
camouflaged gear to match the battlefield. Be sure to think about the
area where you'll be playing airsoft: is it more green-hued like a
forest or woods or is it more neutral like open plains or a desert? Wear
airsoft gear that reflects the environment in which you'll play. If you have a
particularly competitive or intense airsoft skirmish, be sure to think about a
head-to-toe tactical ghillie suit.

Random airsoft supplies to fix guns and parts

Come prepared for your airsoft skirmish with tools to fix a simple airsoft gun error: electric tape, oil, cleaning patches, multi-head screwdriver and a rod to fix airsoft ammo jams. Don't allow
for surprises on the airsoft field and over-plan for problems you may
encounter.

Nourishment

Airsoft skirmishes will get your heart
rate up, so avoid sugar crashes or low energy when you're playing on
the airsoft field by packing granola bars, trail mix, water bottles and
electrolyte-packed drinks. Bring more nourishment than you think you'll
need in case a fellow airsoft team member is running low.

Review strategy
What kind of airsoft role do you have in skirmishes? Review milsim
strategy with fellow airsoft enthusiasts before a big game and talk airsoft
tactics. If you know the opposing players, your airsoft team can discuss their
strengths and weakness and possible areas for domination.

Additional supplies
Depending on your airsoft gun and your type of game-play, you may need to toss a
few extra supplies into your airsoft gun bag. If you plan on battling
with an airsoft electric gun, bring an extra battery or two. If you're
playing the sniper role, think about bringing binoculars or an airsoft rifle
with a scope for a higher shooting range. You may want to bring along
some green gas if you have a gas or CO2 airsoft gun. Once again, you can never
be too prepared for an airsoft battle.

If you have a special pre-airsoft skirmish ritual, make sure to add
that to this checklist. Head out early to the battle, get a map of the
territory to learn the airsoft battlefield (if you can) and talk strategy with
your airsoft team. You are now fully equipped to dominate in an airsoft
skirmish.

Manager defends opening imitation firearm shooting range in Edgware Road

2011-09-07T11:27:00.000-07:00

The manager of a new imitation firearm shooting range in Paddington has moved to reassure residents and traders of its safety.

The Range opened in Edgware Road last month, offering people the chance to practice shooting plastic pellets from 'airsoft' firearms on an 8.5-metre range as well as selling accessories such as holsters and belts.

The shop does not sell 'airsoft' guns, as they require the holder to have a licence.

Manager Benny Sootho said: "The most these guns can do is make a hole in a piece of paper or, if you shot it at a person, he might have a mark that resembled a pimple.

"We don't have anything to do with real shooting and we would not be able to do this if we were using live ammunition, especially in a busy city centre like London.

"People can come here to practice shooting using plastic pellets.

"We don't sell airsoft guns, but if someone comes in and has an airsoft pistol, they can come here to see how the sight works and they can try it out.

"If you were to purchase an airsoft gun, which we don't sell, you would have to have a licence because these are replica firearms."

He added: "If somebody was to use an airsoft gun in a public area, that's a crime.

"I can understand that there's always a fear whenever people mention anything to do with guns.

"But shooting is an Olympic sport and it has been around for a long time before we opened."

Edgware Road trader Asif Sheikh, of Pharmacare, said he did not think the shop was appropriate for the area.

He added: "This is right in the middle of the community and it would be better to have a separate area for this type of businesses.

"We will not be going there."

Kurt Frances, of The Cooker Centre, in Edgware Road, said: "I don't think it will make a huge difference to crime in the area because it's just a sport.

"They're not using real firearms."

Juvenile probation managers on leave over photos

2011-08-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

FARMINGTON — The chief and a supervisor of the Farmington juvenile probation are under investigation after three photographs taken in 2009 surfaced last week showing them holding handguns and flashing gang signs in the Farmington office of Juvenile Probation and Parole.

Chief Heather Faverino and Supervisor Krista Lawrence were placed on administrative leave Friday after Children, Youth and Families Department officials were made aware of the pictures.

"Our initial understanding is that the guns are soft-pellet guns," said Enrique Knell, spokesman for the department. "The photos were likely taken during a light moment in the office in a joking manner. However, given the serious nature of our work at CYFD, the photos are, at the very least, inappropriate."

One photograph depicts Faverino mugging for the camera while making a gang sign with her right hand.

Another shows both Faverino, who is holding what appears to be a black gun, and Lawrence flashing a gang sign. The third includes both women holding what appear to be handguns. A Raiders pennant hangs in the backdrop of two of the pictures.

The investigation will determine what discipline is appropriate, up to possible termination, Knell said.

Knell was unclear if any agency policies were violated, but said the agency will continue to investigate. He was unsure how long the investigation will take.

"This is nothing but a training tool that has been blown way out of proportion by some disgruntled employees," Attorney Steve Murphy said speaking on behalf of Faverino and Lawrence.

The employees, Murphy added, "are trying to get their job back and discredit these two hard working probation officers by sending around this photograph that they were using for training purposes."

Part of their work with the department includes giving presentations to kids, families, community members and teachers.

Both Faverino and Lawrence contend that they were taken for the purpose of being used as training.

"These were light-hearted pictures for our purposes in teaching gang awareness," Faverino said. "Not only do we use humor, but we show graffiti and gang signs."

By depicting themselves looking ridiculous holding guns and flashing the gang signs, "it opens the door to discuss the perception of how photographs stay with you and stereotypes you," Faverino said.

The point was to teach the kids so that they could discourage them from posting similar pictures on Facebook and Twitter, she said.

The pictures, however, never made it into a presentation.

Both Lawrence and Faverino believed they were immediately deleted.

"We have done nothing wrong," Faverino said. "There is nothing illegal about these pictures."

The pictures were taken by an employee who no longer works for the office, she said.

The two women questioned how the photographs surfaced, two years after they were taken.

No children or families were present at the time.

The airsoft guns were confiscated from juveniles in the probation system.

"Our protocol is that any ime a weapon is found, the police have to be called to take custody of the weapon," Knell said.

The women confirmed that any illegal item confiscated from children — probation officers often conduct in-home searches — are handed over to the police.

Legal items such as an airsoft gun, however, is kept by officials and likely released back to the child or family once the child is off probation or parole, Faverino said. Records are kept of all confiscated items.

These particular guns were confiscated sometime in 2006 or 2007 and juvenile probation employees, at the time the photographs were shot, were in the process of clearing out such items.

Faverino has worked for Juvenile Probation and Parole for 15 years, having started as a probation officer and working her way to supervisor and eventually chief. She is the chief for the 11th Judicial District, which encompasses San Juan and McKinley counties.

Lawrence has worked in the agency for 10 years and also began as a probation officer, Lawrence said.

"They have a good reputation in CYFD and they don't have a history of being disruptive or getting in trouble on the job," Knell said.

Scott Darnell, press secretary for the governor's office, issued a statement late Friday:

"The activities of the employees in these photos are completely inappropriate and will not be tolerated," Darnell said. "This is a facility and agency that is charged with projecting a positive example for our kids and families. Employees will be held to the highest standard in this administration. This situation will be investigated quickly and wrongdoing will be punished.

Both Faverino and Lawrence said that they are invested in the families and kids they work with daily.

"We're passionate about the work we do here," Lawrence said.

Heritage Elementary School program’s lockdown reflects area’s growing gang problem

2011-08-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

Centered in the heart of Lodi’s gang territory, Heritage Elementary School shows scars of the area’s epidemic. Campus custodians regularly clean up broken beer bottles and paint over gang-related graffiti on the campus that serves roughly 600 students. Gunshots are routinely heard in the blocks surrounding the school.

Heritage’s location in the most violent part of Lodi was highlighted when employees of an afterschool program locked down the campus Friday afternoon because of a drive-by shooting in the area.

Alicia Montantes, leader of Heritage’s Bridge Program, heard several gunshots in a four-way stop across the street from the school’s main office and rushed students into the cafeteria shortly before 5 p.m.

Although the situation could have been lethal, the students did not panic, she said.

“They practice lockdown drills quarterly at the school and (the Bridge Program conducts) them monthly,” she said. “Even though they knew there was a shooting, they handled it well.”

More than 100 children participate in Heritage’s afterschool program, and roughly 50 were at the school at the time of the shooting, Montantes said.

The Bridge Program is an afterschool enrichment program funded by Proposition 49 grant funds.

After informing other employees on campus of the lockdown with a walkie-talkie, Montantes and others directed children into the cafeteria or classrooms and had them hide under tables. The children remained there until police came to the school and informed them it was safe.

On Monday, the school’s principal lauded the quick reactions of the Bridge workers, but said the situation is the symbol of larger problems in the area.

“Every school in the district has an action plan for how it handles a lockdown,” said Maria Cervantes. “Our staff did an excellent job Friday. But the violence in the area is starting to become overwhelming.”

The lockdown

Friday’s incident took place around 4:45 p.m. as teenagers standing at the southwest corner of Eden and Garfield streets were fired at from a vehicle heading north, police said. Several vehicles were struck with bullets, but no one was injured in the shooting, police said.

After workers received news of the shooting and rushed the students to safety, employees began calling parents to inform them of the situation and have them pick up their children. All students were collected by their parents before 6 p.m., said Kevin Harkin, vice principal of the district’s Bridge Program.

Friday’s lockdown was the first in several years for the school, but Cervantes said the incidents of violence and vandalism in and around the school have exploded over the past year.

“Every Monday when we come here, there is new graffiti on the walls and gang symbols etched into the windows,” she said.

The last time Heritage experienced a lockdown with police involvement was when juveniles were firing Airsoft guns at street signs near the school in 2009, Cervantes said.

Unlike Friday’s lockdown, the 2009 event took place during school hours.

When do lockdowns take place?

Lodi Unified School District schools may experience a lockdown for a number of reasons, according to Catherine Pennington, assistant superintendent of primary education.

Typically, the lockdown includes locking all doors, closing the blinds and keeping students and staff inside. In serious situations, students might be directed to shelter under their desks, according to Pennington.

Most often when lockdowns occur, the police notify district staff that something is occurring in the neighborhood.

It can range from gunfire in proximity to the school, as occurred Friday at Heritage, to police exploring a domestic dispute in a home two blocks from the school, Pennington said.

The site administrator or person in charge gives direction to staff on the lockdown and then informs their supervisor.

The district’s Connect-Ed system can also be used to notify parents. Depending on the situation, parents may receive special direction to wait until the all-clear has been given and to pick up their students, as they did Friday.

Launched in 2006, Connect-Ed is a phone system that sends recorded messages to student’s homes.

Pennington did not have the date of the last lockdown at a district school.

“There are usually several a year, but most often for things not directly affecting the schools,” she said in an email Monday.

Officer Jim Pendegrast is the school resource officer for Heritage. He handles six other schools in addition to Heritage and routinely checks the campus as part of his patrol, said Cpl. Val Chaban of the Lodi Police Department.

What can citizens do?

In an effort to curb crime in the area, the department could crack down on trespassing at Heritage during the evening, Chaban said. The campus has a no trespassing ordinance, and adults are required to sign in and out during school hours if they are visiting a classroom, Cervantes said.

A “zero tolerance” enforcement on trespassing could cut down on some of the vandalism, Cervantes said, but people will still find a way to enter the campus late at night.

“Unless you put 10-foot high walls all the way around the campus, trespassers are going to get in,” she said. “If someone wants to get in badly enough, they will.”

The department has increased its patrols in the areas receiving the highest concentration of violent crime, but residents in those areas must remain vigilant and assist police, Chaban said.

“We need them to be our eyes and ears,” he said. “We rely on them to help us because we can’t be everywhere at once.”

A meeting between campus employees, district officials and police was held Monday afternoon at Heritage. The forum focused on discussions on how to improve communication between the entities, said Grover Davis, Bridge supervisor for the district.

While he wouldn’t offer specifics about what was discussed at the meeting, Davis said the meeting was productive.

Should realistic toy guns be outlawed?

2011-08-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

ALBANY, Ore. - Police locked down a community college campus after reports of a man in camoflage carrying a gun last week.

The man turned out to be a boy playing "Army" with his cousin, carrying a toy gun painted black to look for real.

This isn't the first time toy guns have been confused for the real thing in Western Oregn.

Five Bethel School District buildings locked down in 2007 after a Eugene teenager was seen waving a pellet gun near an elementary school.

And in 2003, a Salem police officer shot and killed a man who pointed an airsoft gun at an officer.

Critics of realistic toy guns say they look too real.

In Oregon, the City of Beaverton banned airsoft guns in 2009.

A California lawmaker proposed a bill requiring toy and pellet guns look like toys.

The law would have banned having toy guns painted black and required that all pretend guns be white, or bright red, orange, yellow green, pink or purple.

The bill never got out of committee.

In the Albany case, the father of the one of the boys said he painted the toy gun black - and now said that probably wasn't a good idea.

"My son likes it to look make it real, so it was painted black," said Peter Hargett. "That was a step too far."

Police did not cite the boys, ages 8 and 11, but did tell them not to play with realistic gun in public.

Teens caught brandishing toy gun while driving

2011-08-15T10:58:00.000-07:00

Two Muskegon teens are in trouble with the law after they were observed brandishing an Airsoft gun at 5 p.m. Thursday near Beacon Boulevard and Taylor Avenue in Grand Haven.

Police said a vehicle driven by an 18-year-old was observed by another motorist who thought the front-seat passenger, 17, was brandishing an actual gun, said Capt. Rick Yonker of the Grand Haven Department of Public Safety. About a half-hour later, a GHDPS detective was behind the suspect vehicle; and, according to Yonker, officers initiated a stop of the vehicle just south of Robbins Road and positioned their vehicles for a felony stop.

“It’s the most cautious way we’d stop a vehicle,” Yonker said, adding they do those types of stops on belief that a weapon is in the car.

Yonker said the two passengers were asked to leave the vehicle one at a time. After a search, the Airsoft gun was located, as well as a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, Yonker said.

One of the suspects admitted to brandishing the toy weapon and said they didn’t intend for it to be done in a threatening manner, Yonker said.

The driver of the vehicle was issued a citation for possession of a plastic bag of marijuana, and the passenger was cited for possessing drug paraphernalia and displaying an Airsoft gun in a passenger compartment of a vehicle.

The two suspects, whose names haven’t been released, are due to appear in court later this month.

Fundraiser held in honor of killed San Gabriel teen

2011-08-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

ALHAMBRA - Friends and supporters of deceased San Gabriel teenager Bo Feng will host a fundraiser this morning at Tac City Airsoft in South El Monte.

The all-day event begins at 10 a.m. and is designed to help her family and promote pedestrian safety in the San Gabriel Valley.

"We want to make it safe for everyone," said Selina Feng, whose 17-year-old daughter was hit and killed by an unidentified driver July 15. Feng was struck by the vehicle while crossing the street at the intersection of Shorb Street and New Avenue in Alhambra. She died from her injuries the following day.

While city officials said they need time to conduct studies of the intersection, Alhambra and San Gabriel residents argue that the crosswalk is unsafe.

The fundraiser titled "CQB DAY" will include a free lunch. Airsoft products from Echo1, Socom Gear, and Madbull Airsoft will be raffled off. Tac City Airsoft is located at 2208 Edwards Ave.

One of the fundraiser's organizers, David Eng of San Gabriel, said the tragedy has struck a chord in the community.

"Her funeral service was packed with people from all over," he said. "And there were grown men crying."

Eng said that Feng's untimely death highlights pedestrian safety problems in the San Gabriel Valley.

A 2009 study by the California Office of Traffic Safety found that San Gabriel ranked seventh out of 104 California cities that reported accidents involving pedestrians. That's the highest in the San Gabriel Valley.

Alhambra and South Pasadena were tied for 16th on the list, followed by Rosemead at 17th and Monterey Park at 39th.

Led by Feng's Gabrielino High School classmate Kimiko Nishitsuji, a group presented more than 1,000 signatures Monday at the Alhambra City Council meeting.

The group wants Alhambra and San Gabriel to work together to add reflectors and a button-activated crossing sign to the crosswalk at New Avenue and Shorb.

Both cities would have to agree to the changes. About two-thirds of the intersection is part of Alhambra and one- third is San Gabriel property.

"It shouldn't take a tragedy like the death of Bo Feng for the city to make a change and unfortunately she isn't the first," Nishitsuji said.

Alhambra City Manager Julio Fuentes said the city is looking at the petition and is empathic to the pedestrian safety concerns.

Mary Chavez, Alhambra's director of public works, said the city is waiting to review the results of the ongoing police investigation to see what caused the accident.

Before the city can make changes to any intersection or crosswalk, she added, it must conduct a traffic engineering study that would look at historical data, traffic counts and field observations.

Eng insisted the crosswalk is obviously unsafe.

"Drivers, they just blow by to try and catch the green light," he said.

Read more: Fundraiser held in honor of killed San Gabriel teen - Whittier Daily News http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_18673072#ixzz1V7sN7ri0

A blast of friendly fire

2011-08-03T11:17:00.000-07:00

A Sunderland backyard was transformed into the set of a special operations video game as teams of boys, some of them dressed in camouflage clothing, maneuvered around barriers shooting at each other in the first Sunderland Airsoft Gun Tournament last Wednesday.

Marc Hood, 12, created invitations for the tournament on a computer and sent them to his friends at Windy Hill Middle School and to the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, said Mark Hood, a U.S. Capitol Police canine officer.

About 20 boys signed up for the elimination tournament that had teams of three shooting Airsoft guns at each other. Hood gave a safety talk before the tournament, which he wants to make an annual event, and made sure all the boys wore facial shields with ear protection and understood that they were not allowed to shoot at someone within 20 feet of them.

“We try to stress safety,” he said.

“It’s almost like paintball,” Hood said, mentioning that they are air powered guns that shoot plastic BBs that “will sting” a bit when someone gets hit.

“It feels like someone’s tapping you,” said 13-year-old Jackson Drum of the pellets hitting.

Hood, who didn’t charge anything to participate and provided lunch for the boys, said, “I want the kids to have fun,” and have the event be a success for his son. Hood even corralled a friend to video tape the tournament and gave each boy a DVD.

“It was a lot of fun,” said Christopher Van Deventer, 13, who said he got upset when he got shot and had to lie down, but he understands it’s just a game. Cody McCarley, 13, said he likes the competition, and seeing the boys’ enthusiasm, it was obvious they were all having fun.

The playing field was down a path in the woods behind the Hoods’ home, and it had 6-foot tall hay bales, 55-gallon plastic barrels and pieces of plywood large enough for two people to hide behind scattered around the approximately 100-yard field. Michael Williams, 13, said, “I like how the stage was set,” mentioning that he liked all the barriers that were made to hide behind during the games because normally when he plays they use trees to hide behind.

“[Mark Hood] did a great job setting up,” said George Harting, whose son Daniel, 13, played.

“He’s been talking about this for months,” Harting said.

Members of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Team, Cpl. Figueiras, Dfc. Cox, Dfc. Sloane and Dfc. Jones, along with a Calvert County Detention Center’s Ofc. Flynt, who was the on-site medic, all spent the afternoon being tournament judges, ensuring that the rules were followed, and, on occasion, giving the boys tactical instructions as they worked the field.

“You got two men down, you’ve gotta move, go, go,” yelled out Figueiras during the championship game as the boys were holed up behind a barrier. The deputies also made sure that the boys who were hit held their hands up signaling they were hit, and then laid down until a teammate placed a gold police sticker on their shirt, which indicated they were hit. They could then play again until they were hit a second time, and out of the game.

Prior to the tournament, the deputies checked each boy’s gun and made sure they were working properly. Some of the boys just had rifles, while others had both a rifle and a pistol, which was allowed in the tournament. The battery-operated rifles the boys used are considered automatic and carry about 300 rounds in the magazine, and cost anywhere from $100 to $300, said Ronnie Flynt, who knew a great deal about different types of Airsoft guns and said that some guns cost much more.

Playing in tournaments gets them outside away from TV and video games and teaches them about sportsmanship, following rules and winning and losing, Jones said. And when asked of what he thought about the boys’ special operation techniques of dodging behind the barriers and peeking around corners, he said, “They play a lot of video games.” Hood acknowledged that the boys do learn moves from playing the “Call of Duty: Black Ops” video game.

The championship game called for a two-game loss elimination, and the team of 13-year-olds of Cody McCarley, Jozeph Lunczynski and Kevin Clarry won two games in a row, winning the tournament and garnering small trophies. Although the tournament was over, all the boys still wanted to play, so they regrouped on teams and took turns throughout the afternoon.

Tacoma man charged with robbing two banks

2011-08-02T15:20:00.000-07:00

A 20-year-old Tacoma man pleaded not guilty this afternoon to two counts of first-degree robbery for allegedly holding up two banks in four days.

Jacob Scott Brooks was arrested Monday night shortly after a U.S. Bank in the 17300 block of Pacific Avenue in Spanaway was robbed at 6 p.m.

Brooks entered the bank with a handgun and demanded money from two tellers before fleeing, according to charging documents.

Pierce County sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene and learned a suspect had fled on a nearby Pierce Transit bus. The deputies stopped the bus to speak with Brooks and the other man.

After a short foot pursuit, Brooks was arrested.

A backpack with cash and an airsoft pistol that had been tampered with to resemble a real handgun were found on the bus, Pierce County sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

Brooks is also charged with a July 30 robbery at a U.S. Bank branch in Tacoma.

In that case, he allegedly wore a bandana over his face, carried a handgun and forced a teller to fill two bags with cash. He told her “Thank you” and “You did a good job” before fleeing.

design draft test

2011-07-27T09:56:00.000-07:00

Jury finds teen did not try to kill officer

2011-07-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

SANTA ANA – Believing that a teenager involved in a shootout with Fountain Valley police officers was mentally ill, an Orange County jury has found him not guilty of charges that he attempted to kill a policeman in the December incident.

The panel of three men and nine women found David Vinh Dinh not guilty Friday afternoon of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, burglary and false imprisonment.

Jurors instead found Dinh, who was 17 at the time of the incident but was charged as an adult, guilty of lesser charges, including attempted voluntary manslaughter and assault with a firearm.

Superior Court Judge Gary Paer will sentence Dinh on Sept. 9, when he faces anywhere from 4½ years to 16 years in prison, his attorney said.

Had he been convicted on the greater charges, Dinh was looking at a minimum of 45 years to life in prison and would not have been eligible for parole for more than 40 years, defense attorney Lew Rosenblum said.

"This means the potential that he could be out in five to seven years as compared with looking at the rest of his life; that's huge for me," said Rosenblum on Monday. "The fact that he could still have a life rather than having to go through parole hearings is a major accomplishment."

Deputy District Attorney Lynda Fernandez could not immediately be reached for comment.

The defense offered a "potpourri" of defenses, hoping something would stick with jurors, she said in her closing argument in the case.

Rosenblum told jurors in closing arguments that the prosecutor "gambled" in a case that was not provable. She gambled with his client's life, he said.

"There's just so much doubt in this case that you cannot find him guilty of anything except of false imprisonment," he told the jury.

His defense: Dinh was a bipolar 17-year-old and on the day of the incident thought he was on a CIA spy mission.

An exchange of gunfire at an apartment complex in which Dinh fired four shots – one as a warning and the other three into the ground – from an AK47 occurred not because he wanted to kill anyone, but because he felt threatened and wanted to get away.

The prosecutor told jurors that Dinh, now 18, knew exactly what he was doing, was lucid, armed himself with the assault rifle to shoot and kill a police officer, was not mentally ill and just because he did not hit an officer does not mean he's not guilty.

"Defendant's actions and words prove he intended to kill when he shot at (Fountain Valley police) officer (Richard) Nilos," she said. "Just because they're throwing up this bipolar flag doesn't mean ... you have to buy into a bunch of baloney. ... Bipolar does not equal not guilty, it's not a get out of jail free card."

"Nobody is asking for get out of jail free card, all I am asking is for a fair trial," countered Rosenblum, saying from a police radio transmission and prior contact with his client, officers knew they were dealing with someone with a mental illness. "The prosecution had a trial strategy here, but it backfired on them ... to keep this mental health issue from you."

Police said at the time Dinh fired a weapon at them after threatening a resident in his home.

The exchange of gunfire took place while officers were responding to a burglary in progress report at the Corte Bella apartments in the 9600 block of El Rey Avenue.

Officers met with a resident who reported that the teen had forced his way into his apartment and was armed with a handgun, which turned out to be an airsoft gun.

Inside the home, Dinh found a weapons cache and picked out the biggest gun, the assault rifle, and contemplated his situation, prosecutors said.

He opted to engage officers, Fernandez said, because he told investigators in an interview he figured at that point he had already committed a felony by breaking and entering and brandishing his airsoft gun and would end up in Juvenile Hall for six months.

Officers set up a perimeter around the complex. Before they could contact the teen, he came out of the apartment with a rifle and ignored officers' demands to drop the firearm, police said at the time.

The prosecutor said he fired at least four shots at police, including Nilos, who thought he was going to be killed.

Four officers were involved in the shooting, police said then, but the teen fired only at one of them.

"The jury believed and understood my client thought that the person hiding behind the tree (at the complex) wasn't a police officer and was the occupant of the house," Rosenblum said.

Dinh underwent surgery for multiple gunshot injuries – he was struck by more than 30 shotgun pellets. No officers, neighbors or bystanders were injured.

"The jury understood that his mental illness was legitimate and it impacted his ability to form the intent that the prosecutor alleged, the intent to commit the crime of murder" and other charges, Rosenblum said.

For safety reasons, town bans BB guns except in back yards

2011-07-15T11:31:00.000-07:00

Tin cans, glass bottles, robins, lizards and other such small targets can heave a tiny sigh of relief. The Payson Town Council just banned BB guns and airsoft guns.

Well, not completely. To be specific, stick to your own back yard if you want to pop off any kind of pellet, airsoft or paintball guns in the town limits.

And make darn sure that those airsoft BB's don't cross the property line.

Last week, the Payson council adopted Ordinance 805, which bans any “air, gas-operated, electric, or spring-operated gun, commonly referred to as BB guns, pellet guns, airsoft guns, paintball guns, or similar instruments.”

The law recognizes two exceptions.

You can fire off the aforementioned deadly weapons on private premises with the permission of the “person in lawful possession of the gun” — so long as the “projectile fired or discharged does not leave the grounds or premises.”

The law also makes an exception for an organized meet or shooting match on private “grounds or premises” with the permission of the “owner or controller” and a note from the chief of police.

Oh. Yeah: One more exception.

A “government agent” can still plink away any darn place he wants in “furtherance of his duties.”

The council held two hearings on the proposed airsoft BB gun ban before voting unanimously to approve the new law last week.

The only citizen to testify supported the prohibition, saying plinking kids with airsoft guns in her neighborhood had created a major problem.

So much for Wild West airsoft plinkers in the home of the World’s Oldest Continuous Rodeo.

Good thing the council didn’t go after Colt .45s and deer rifles.

And a good thing they didn’t ask the Arizona Legislature for permission.

After all, this year the Legislature approved laws that would overturn city ordinances banning hunting in the city limits, make it easier to get a permit to carry a concealed firearm, allow firearms in national parks and wildlife refuges, and make it easier for people with a history of mental illness to regain their right to carry a gun.

The Legislature said colleges can’t prevent faculty members from bringing a gun to work and insisted towns can’t ban guns from public buildings unless they provide metal detectors, a guard, and a lock box for people to drop off their guns while they visit with the town council.

But at least Payson’s got the whole airsoft BB gun situation under control.

California SB 798

2011-07-01T15:10:00.000-07:00

SB 798 UPDATE – Raise Your Hand If You Trust Kevin de Leon

On June 29, Senator Kevin de Leon altered Senate Bill 798, performing a legislative maneuver aptly referred to as a “gut-and-amend.” The “gutting” involved completely deleting the language of the proposed legislation we in the airsoft community had so vehemently opposed, and amended it by simply replacing it with the following language:

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1. Section 53071.5 of the
Government Code, as amended by Section 1 of Chapter 607of the Statutes of 2004, is repealed.
SEC. 2. Section 53071.5 of the Government Code, as amended by Section 35 of Chapter 178of the Statutes of 2010, is repealed.

That’s all of it; just two apparently redundant lines. But, as the old expression tells us, “the devil is in the details.”

The California Government Code section being repealed by SB 798 says, in relevant part:

53071.5. By the enforcement of this section, the Legislature occupies the whole field of regulation of the manufacture, sale, or possession of imitation firearms, as defined [in the California Penal Code], and that section shall preempt and be exclusive of all regulations relating to the manufacture, sale, or possession of imitation firearms, including regulations governing the manufacture, sale, or possession of BB devices and air rifles described in . . . the Penal Code.

In plain language, this section currently prevents local governments such as counties and cities from making their own regulations “relating to the manufacture, sale or possession of imitation firearms,” reserving that right to the sole jurisdiction of the California Legislature.

By repealing Government Code Section 53071.5, SB 798 would open the door for cities and counties to make their own rules regarding “BB devices and air rifles.” Interestingly, this could include paintball markers, since one of the sections referenced by Government Code Section 53071.5 (and therefore defining what devices fall under its purview) is Penal Code Section 16700(a). In that section, “imitation firearm” is defined to include BB guns and any “other device that is so substantially similar in coloration and overall appearance to an existing firearm as to lead a reasonable person to perceive that the devices is a firearm.”

I’m not an attorney, but that certainly sounds like a description of many paintball markers currently being sold.

By the way, contrary to what some are reporting, the repeal of this section does not appear to affect firearms, which are covered under Government Code Section 53071 (only non-firearms are listed by reference in the “point five” section targeted by de Leon for repeal).

So what is Senator de Leon up to? Was he inspired by the June 21 hearing at which Assemblyman Curt Hagman asked him why Los Angeles couldn’t just make its own ordinance and leave the rest of California alone? Or is he setting the stage for something else?

The bigger question: do you trust his intentions? Unless you can answer that with anything but “NO,” you need to continue calling the members of the California Assembly.

California SB798 defeated

2011-06-30T11:43:00.000-07:00

• SB 798, which would have required that all BB and pellet guns — including those legally used for hunting wild turkey and small game — be manufactured with brightly colored exteriors to help identify them as “toy” guns.

This bill was defeated in the Assembly Public Safety Committee by a 2-5 vote.

Passage of the measure would have resulted in a loss of hunting opportunity and wrongly encouraged children to treat air guns like toy guns, creating significant safety issues

CA Senate Bill 798 Does Not Pass Out of Committee

2011-06-22T15:19:00.000-07:00

Chris Raehl of the NCPA noted in an email to 68Caliber (and in a comment below) that the inclusion of the NCPA in the list of organizations opposed to SB 798 is incorrect. The NCPA currently has no formal position on the bill. (Best guest is that the name was not removed from the list as it should have been prior to publication.)

(Original article begins here)

Yesterday the public safety commission voted on the bill and it failed to pass out of committee on a vote of 5 to 2.

That was the amended version of SB 798, which had exempted paintball guns from the legislation, leaving only airsoft in potential trouble.

Airsoft agitators were pretty miffed when the California Paintball Safety Coalition (KEE Action Sports, Tippmann, DYE, Kingman, Giant Paintball/Hollywood Sports, and Mercury Public Affairs) got the bill’s sponsors to exempt paintball guns (projectiles over 10mm), proclaiming that paintball had thrown airsoft under the bus (and threatening not to assist paintball in the future in retaliation).

Yesterday, the 21st, the CA committee voted on whether to pass the bill (as amended) out of committee. From the pictures provided on PyramydAir blog, it looks like about almost a dozen airsofters showed up to protest (so much for grassroots organizing on that end).

The bill did not pass, but is scheduled for a future hearing. Most pundits suspect that legislators are waiting in the hopes that opposition will grow tired. (With only two major airsoft sites, a couple of blogs and a couple of facebook pages agitating, those legislators may very well be right.)

What is most interesting is that there appears to be a rift within the paintball opposition, a rift that was presaged by a message from the CPSC requesting that any interested paintball parties should work through them instead of approaching the California legislature on their own.

The “divide” may (stress may) be revealed by the list of non-governmental organizations that registered as either for or against the Bill:

Supporting:
Alameda Police Department
AFSCME
California Paintball Safety Coalition
Los Angeles County Sherriff’s Department
Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles School Police Department
Mayor, City of Los Angeles
Sacramento Police Department
Women Against Gun Violence

Opposing:

Airgun Information International
California Association of Firearms Retailers
California Outdoor Heritage Alliance
California Rifle and Pistol Association, Inc.
Crossman Corporation
Gamo Outdoor USA
Gun Owners of California
KWA Performance Industries, Inc.
National Collegiate Paintball Association
National Rifle Association
National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc.
San Marino Police Department
SoftAir USA
S/R Industries, Inc.
Umarex USA, Inc.
Velocity Paintball
388 private individuals

Umarex is the company that was a party to the H&K trademark infringement lawsuits against companies like like Tippmann and Empire Battle Tested over MP-5 name and look infringement.
Crosman is mostly out of paintball but used to be in it big; the NCPA is probably under pressure from their constituency (how long before they start a Collegiate Airsoft league?) and Velocity paintball has been very vocal about the negative impact the bill will have on their local business.

The CPSC was formed by some of the heaviest hitters in the industry.

For what it’s worth, it is 68Caliber’s opinion that the CPSC made the correct tactical moves in fighting the bill: their job was to protect paintball and they found a way to differentiate paintball and airsoft, found an opening and used it. Was that throwing airsoft under the bus? Not when you consider the CPSC’s mandate.

It’s not moot; the bill will be under reconsideration in August, but for now, paintball doesn’t have to worry about it.

Airsoft Safety Foundation Casts Paintball As the Bad Guy

2011-06-22T15:04:00.000-07:00

The Airsoft Safety Foundation published a press release regarding CA SB 798 a few days prior to the bill’s failure to pass out of committee. The statement can be read in its entirety here.

Among other things the release said were:

“Federal law requires airsoft type guns to have orange muzzles, only. It completely exempts paintball, BB and pellet guns from any coloration in recognition of the fact that they are relatively powerful and should be treated as being potentially dangerous.

Curiously, SB 798 was recently amended to exempt paint ball (sic) guns from the proposed state coloration requirement while still mandating that the potentially more dangerous BB guns and pellet guns be colored like toys.”

and

“…thus giving the paint ball (sic) industry a competitive advantage in the marketplace…”

and

“Exempting paintball guns from SB 798 would have comparatively little impact on the economic and job losses that would be suffered as a result of the bill”

and

“SB 798 has been promoted as a public safety bill, but in view of the paint ball gun (sic) amendment, it can no longer be touted as a safety measure. It has become, instead, a bill that would favor paint ball (sic) guns in the marketplace by requiring their competitors to be colored like toys.”

Emphasis ours.

You can read the entire missive here.

No big surprise. Now the war is on – which sport can vilify the other the most effectively in front of the CA legislature.

Airsoft can squirm all it wants to, but the fact remains that airsoft guns are made to look like real firearms and most paintball guns aren’t' at least half of the paintball guns out there ALREADY come in bright colors.

There’s also the impression issue to consider: paintball managed to divorce itself from the military wannabe connection in a deliberate bid for public acceptance and managed that admirably (just look at all of the positive mass media portrayals over the past 15 years). Airsoft, on the other hand, seems to want to embrace the connection.

And after all this time, Air Soft Safety Foundation, you’d think you’d learn how to spell paintball’s name right, wouldn’t you?

Hearing On SB798 Today. Will The Politicians Get It?

2011-06-21T15:05:00.000-07:00

The airsoft industry and community in California, together with the paintball community, and the paintball industry (who are crossing their fingers that the exemptions for their own would go unnoticed in the Committee during the hearing), will be gearing up today for the hearing on CA SB798 by the Committee on Public Safety. Last night, the airsoft community had a pep rally to increase the morale and determination of the community that the bill gets defeated.

Why Paintball Got Exempted? Is It Through Good Reasoning or Plain Political and Personal Connections?

One significant story written by Kimberly Dvorak for the Examiner gives us information on how paintball came to be exempted by Senator Kevin De Leon from SB798, which doesn't make sense as there are many paintball markers that look like replica firearms. She writes that former Assemblyman Fabio Nuñez is a friend of state Senator Kevin de Leon. Fabio Nuñez lobbies for Mercury Public Affairs, the lobbying firm that was hired by the Paintball industry to get an exemption from SB798.

This is the same Nuñez who exploited his personal relationship with then Governator Schwarzenegger to commute the sentence of his son for murdering a fellow student.

Paintball fields in California, especially the major ones which also cater to airsoft players are still in support of the airsoft community's fight against SB798. They credit a lot to the airsoft in helping them support the business as one paintball field owner commented at the Save Paintball In California Facebook Page:

As we have written before, the Paintball players are very much in disagreement with how the Paintball Industry's turn-around in their fight against SB798, leaving airsoft hanging in the air after getting the assumption. The Facebook Page Save Paintball In California is dotted with comments by paintball players stating that airsoft and paintball should fight this bill together. Though the admin of the Facebook page thoroughly ignores the posts and have buried their "support the bill" stance in the face of such comments why the Paintball industry "sold out".

Will Brightly Colored Guns Minimize Gun Violence? We Doubt It.

Knowledgeable firearms experts have been pounding in this reasoning: it doesn't work. It will induce law enforcement officers into a false sense of security thinking that bright colored firearms are merely "toys" and would provide any criminal valuable seconds, and for the police officer, a second too late to react. Real steel firearms can be painted bright and thus, can be used to commit crime.

Furthermore, a study made by the Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics in 1990 show that bright colored toy guns did not correlate to a decrease in children being shot by police officers.

In the same Examiner story, this entry goes:

Internationally recognized airgun expert, Dr. Robert D. Beeman Ph.D. concurred and said, “As an independent airgun expert, I oppose Senate Bill 798 because it would create a false and dangerous sense of security concerning airguns capable of serious human injury and death… It would increase accidents and incidents of serious injury and death among both the general public and police officers.” He continued to explain that, “This is primarily a behavior problem, not a product problem. Proper behavior virtually eliminates the danger attributed to such products. In any case, traditional airguns firing metallic projectiles should be exempted from SB 798 for safety reasons.”

Most of us in the airsoft and real steel firearms community know that deadly firearms can be colored bright, and people will want to shoot with duracoated "Hello Kitty" firearms, or whatever cartoon design they want on their firearms. The photo below shows how an AR-15 was turned into a cute and cuddly, harmless looking rifle

The owner of this "Hello Kitty" firearm says that it is 100% legal in California, as it complies with the restrictions in place. But now, some law enforcement organizations around the US have posted the photo of this "Hello Kitty" firearm to warn officers that they might not be able to distinguish the real ones from the "toys" and many officers would rather err on the side of caution, and might just shoot first and determine later if the gun was real or not.

We have already made the arguments on the economics of why a bill such as SB798 would be more counterproductive rather than uphold the protection of citizens. The big question is, would SB798, if signed into law, be in conflict with Federal Law? The Airsoft Industry is determined to go to court if it goes beyond the State Assembly. The Examiner article also mentioned about AB 962 which was a bill to ban mail to order ammunition sales was deemed unconstitutional.

Will this be a long drawn out battle? We hope not. It can be shortened if the airsoft and paintball communities would untiringly continue petitioning the legislators to kill SB 798. With the hearing today, we hope that airsoft and paintball would be able to present their case together to state that SB798 does not serve any purpose above existing laws and that good education of parents and children on the proper use of replica and even real steel firearms would be better. The Airsoft Safety Foundation was established for that purpose.

AirSplat spearheads the fight on SB798

2011-06-21T14:58:00.000-07:00

Help Save Airsoft in California!

SB 798 has been put on HOLD!! BUT THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER!!

On June 21st, dedicated airsofters and airsoft retailers like AirSplat drove to the State Capitol in Sacramento to Speak out against SB 798. The Public Safety committee voted it down NO 5-2. But the author of the bill, senator Kevin De Leon, isnt finished yet. the bill has been scheduled to be reheard soon. The current Laws already provide ample protection and safeguards for players and police. Unfortunately its politicians and politics getting in the way of our honest and fun sport.

Please frequently check our website front page at http://www.airsplat.com/toy-guns.htm for news and possible schedule changes.

What is SB798: The California Legislative is trying to pass SB Bill 798 which calls for imitation firearms, a classification which would include paintball & airsoft markers, to be brightly colored (i.e., orange) in order to distinguish them from real firearms. This is a concern to the paintball/airsoft industry as it would require all paintball/airsoft guns to be painted a bright color.

What You Can Do:

We are asking each of our leaders to please take the time to call AND email the assembly members listed below, as they are the ones in charge of SB798. Remember that YOUR JOB is at risk because of this bill, so we all need to come together as a unit to make our voices heard to the people that have control over the future of our business. Explain to these representatives that your job is at stake, an entire industry is at stake, and that they need to take all of these factors into consideration.

CALL & E-MAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE!

Step 1: Call the numbers below and introduce yourself. â€œHello, my name is _________________, and I am calling regarding bill SB798.â€

Step 2: Explain your position on the matter.

If Youâ€™re Under 18: â€œI have been a paintball (or airsoft) player for ________ years, and I feel that bill SB798 will dramatically change the sport that I love. I wanted torecommend that you please vote to reject or amend SB798.â€

If Youâ€™re Over 18: â€œI am a voter and have been a paintball (or airsoft) player for _______ years, and I am concerned that bill SB798 will dramatically change the sport that I love. I wanted to ask you to please vote to reject or amend SB798. As a voter I will be suggesting this same course of action to my friends and family so that they too may speak up against the bill.â€

If You Reach a Voicemail: Read your chosen statement above and close the message by saying “I would like someone to call me back before June 14th so that I will know that my opinion has been heard and understood. Thank you for your time.”

If you Reach a Live Person: Read your chosen statement above, and be prepared to answer any return questions that the representative on the other line my have. Here are two examples:

Question: Why are you against the bill?

Answer: â€œThe bill is written in a way that it would have a massive negative effect on the sport. Requiring that all guns be brightly colored will take away from the fantasy experience of the game.â€ Note: If you or someone you give this letter to works at a paintball/airsoft company, mention that your own job is at risk, along with the jobs of thousands of other industry members.

Question: Why is coloring the guns such a problem?

Answer: I have already invested a considerable amount of time and money into my personal equipment, plus requiring them to be brightly colored will make the game less enjoyable as it will take away considerably from the fantasy aspect of the sport.

Name	District	Phone	Email
Tom Ammiano – Chair	Dem-13	916-319-2013	Assemblymember.Ammiano@assembly.ca.gov
Steve Knight – Vice Chair	Rep-36	916-319-2036	Assemblymember.Knight@assembly.ca.gov
Gilbert Cedillo	Dem-45	916-319-2045	Assemblymember.Cedillo@assembly.ca.gov
Curt Hagman	Rep-60	916-319-2060	Assemblymember.Hagman@assembly.ca.gov
Jerry Hill	Dem-19	916-319-2019	Assemblymember.Hill@assembly.ca.gov
Holly J. Mitchell	Dem-47	916-319-2047	Assemblymember.Mitchell@assembly.ca.gov
Nancy Skinner	Dem-14	916-319-2014	Assemblymember.Skinner@assembly.ca.gov

For a Full PDF form of the above to email and send to others, click here

http://www.airsplat.com/Save Airsoft No to SB798.pdf

WRITE A LETTER TO YOUR REPRESENTATIVE!!

Letter to use to send to legislators. Please sign this and send to Senator de Leon, and your local district Senator and Representative:

Sample Letter for Your State Representative (See Link below to find your state representative)

Voice your opposition to this bill by calling or writing to your local State Senator and assemblyman and the bill sponsor, State Senator Kevin de Leon:

Locate Your Specific Senator/Assembly Member:

Please go to http://192.234.213.69/amapsearch/framepage.asp

Scroll down the map of California and enter your street address, city and zip code in the appropriate boxes below; click on “Find”. Your senator
and contact information will then be available.

Please take the time to make these calls and emails, as the future of our sport relies on your efforts. Thank you.

Contact Author of AB 798: Senator Kevin De Leon, State Capitol, Room 5108, Sacramento, Ca. 95814; (916) 651-4022.

Sample Letter for Senator De Leon

Sacramento Office:
Senator Kevin de Leon
California State Capitol
Room 5108
Sacramento, CA 94248
916-651-4022

Los Angeles Office:
Senator Kevin de Leon
617 S. Olive St.
Suite 710
Los Angeles, CA 90014
213-612-9566

SPREAD THE WORD!

1.) Contact local City Councils and County Boards of Supervisors. Explain what SB 798 does, why you oppose it and ask them to oppose it, too. Ask them to contact the local area Assembly members and urge them to oppose it.

2.)Contact local retailers that sell Airsoft, BB, and pellet guns. Explain what it does, how it could affect them (loss of sales, etc.), and ask them to oppose it.

3.)Contact local sportsmen’s clubs and organizations. Explain the bill and ask them to oppose it.

4.) Ask your family and friends to oppose SB 798, also, and to take the steps outlined herein to oppose it.

Paintball Industry Now Supports California SB798. Paintball Players Disagree

2011-06-16T15:08:00.000-07:00

The Paintball Industry in California were able to lobby and have CA SB798 amended to exempt paintball markers before it goes into a vote later this month. With this accomplished, they are now in support of Bill, to the disbelief of the US airsoft community. The California Airsoft industry has lost an ally in the campaign against SB798, but they still have the National Rifle Association to count on.

The latest amendments are as follows, courtesy of Jag Precision:

As used in Section 20165, “imitation firearm” does not include any of the following:

(1) A nonfiring collector’s replica that is historically significant, and is offered for sale in conjunction with a wall plaque or presentation case.
(2) A spot marker gun which expels a projectile that is greater than 10 mm caliber.
(3) A device where the entire exterior surface of the device is white, bright red, bright orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright blue, bright pink, or bright purple, either singly or as the predominant color in combination with other colors in any pattern, as provided by federal regulations governing imitation firearms, or where the entire device is constructed of transparent or translucent materials which permits unmistakable observation of the device’s complete contents, as provided by federal regulations governing imitation firearms.

Obviously, airsoft is left to hung in this bill, as it is below 6mm caliber. There are paintball markers that are made to look like replica firearms, such as those made by RAP4, which we can all agree that at first glance looks like a real firearm like the example photo below. Would a police officer distinguish the replica from the real deal? Would he care if it shoots out 10mm projectiles or 6mm if it's carried in public places? I think we all know the answer.

A collective disbelief has set unto the airsoft community and the California airsoft industry. People would accuse that the Paintball industry has sold out to the politicians to exempt paintball from the Bill in exchange for their support. Is it a good move? In a business sense, perhaps, since paintball is in direct competition against airsoft to cater to the recreational shooting and milsim market. Taking out airsoft would leave the big California recreational shooting and milsim market to themselves, which would be akin to selling out for 30 pieces of silver. This made a paintball player react strongly to the turn around by the Paintball industry (with unverified information) as shown by this post at the Facebook page of Save Paintball in California (Update: deleted by the admin of the FB page):

If you know what KINGMAN is, it is a paintball marker company that makes the popular Kingman Spyder Stormer .50. And what do you know? It looks like a real firearm at first glance as shown below:

The good thing is that the Paintball industry's actual customers would have none of it. They are as shocked as the airsoft community for their industry in making such a deal when they believe that both communities are in this together. In contrast with the Paintball companies, the paintball players are taking a stand together with the airsoft community in opposing SB798 since they believe that even if it exempts paintball now, will they be assured that it won't be affected in the future? With the airsoft industry and community gone, who will help the paintball community campaign against bills similar to SB798 that will affect their sport in the future.?

LAPD seeks tighter regulations on toy guns

2011-06-07T15:25:00.000-07:00

Chief Charlie Beck urges law requiring BB guns to be brightly colored to avoid confusion with authentic firearms.

Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck is proposing that the city require BB-gun replicas of actual firearms to be brightly colored so that police officers don't mistake them for real weapons.

The proposal, which the Los Angeles Police Commission will consider Tuesday, comes after two shootings involving officers and people with replica weapons, including one in which a teenager was wounded. Under the new rule, all such toys sold inLos Angeles would have the "entire exterior surface of the device white, bright red, bright orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright blue, bright pink or bright purple."

Guns would also be allowed if they were "constructed of transparent or translucent materials which permits unmistakable observation of the device's complete contents."

"This change will not ban such devices but will aid law enforcement in differentiating real firearms from BB devices and imitation firearms. It will also prevent the sales and possession of BB devices and imitation firearms in the city of Los Angeles that are similar in size and appearance to actual firearms," Beck wrote in a memo.

The guns come in various models that closely resemble real weapons such as Berettas, shotguns and pistols. Law enforcement experts say the toys can easily be mistaken for the real thing, especially in a situation in which an officer must react quickly and decisively.

On Dec. 16, three boys were playing with the guns on North Verdugo Road in Glassell Park when two LAPD officers stopped to investigate. An officer fired at one of the boys, believing the boy's gun was a real weapon, according to an LAPD news release. The boy was shot in the torso and underwent surgery.

Capt. David Lindsay, who headed the Northeast Division when the shooting occurred, said the division had faced several incidents in recent months involving toy guns, and noted that they have been taken from gang members and robbery suspects.

"It's a consistent issue for us. I saw the guns the kids had that night from a distance of 3 or 4 feet; when you first look at them, they look identical to a particular style of handgun, a Beretta 92F," Lindsay said in an interview earlier this year. He has since been transferred to a different position.

Los Angeles City Councilman Greig Smith said the December incident alarmed him and his staff because a local activist warned them about the toy guns several months earlier.

Les Salay, a Vietnam veteran, firearm instructor and father of three, had contacted Smith and presented him photographs of Airsoft guns that his daughter had purchased from ice cream trucks outside two schools near his family's Chatsworth home.

Salay said he had asked his daughter Ashley, 12, to try to purchase the guns because he wanted to see if vendors would sell them to her. She was able to buy several guns from the ice cream trucks, he said, two of which had warnings on them that they were intended for ages 18 and older.

"At an ice cream truck, there is no parent who can say 'no, no, no, you can't have that,' " said Salay, who also teaches gun safety to Boy Scouts. "To sell a 12-year-old girl a gun that looks like a real gun is a tragedy waiting to happen. And now it has happened."

The Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance banning the sale of toy guns from ice cream trucks in 2005, but several distributors interviewed by The Times said some trucks still carry the guns.

"It's a few renegade trucks that do it," said Fred Karamati, owner of Avalon Ice Cream, a distributor in Los Angeles. He said that he no longer sells the guns to truck operators, but that they are widely available at toy wholesalers throughout the city.

Smith, who is also an LAPD reserve officer, said the guns pose a problem for police because officers typically have only seconds to react in a situation in which they believe a subject is armed. He considered a citywide ban of the replica weapons earlier this year.

"If you see something that just looks like a gun, you're going to shoot," Smith said after the Glassell Park shooting. "That's what you're trained to do. Your mind doesn't have enough time to process whether it's a real gun or a fake gun."

His office said Monday that he supported Beck's proposal.

Comments regarding SB798

2011-05-14T11:54:00.000-07:00

The following are comments from a few Facebook fans that oppose SB798. Their fight again SB798 helped spark others into joining the cause.

"This bill doesn't solve the actual problem, which is the improper use of said replica firearm due the the ignorance of one individual. Airsoft guns clearly state on the package not for use by anyone under the age of 18 unless under proper supervision. Even if the gun is colored orange, law enforcement is going to treat it the same way as a real firearm. The difference between a toy gun and an airsoft gun is the same as a garden hose and a fire hose. Anyone can use the garden hose, but the fire hose requires training and must be operated in a controlled environment. Airsoft is an booming industry that creates thousands of jobs especially in California. What is going to happen to all the stock at these stores when they can't sell it? Is the government going reimburse the retailers so they don't go out of business? How about employ those who loose there jobs due to SB 798? What about the airsoft parks and the loss of profits from this bill due to the decline in players? I'd have to admit it seems like their heart is in the right place, but if you plan on breaking the glass, you better be prepared to pick up the pieces." - Jason Vasques

"I think this whole Idea of banning black colored airsoft or BB buns, perhaps even pellet guns is totally stupid and unwarrented. Get real and let be grown ups about this. Depriving those of us who are responsible citizens from exploring fun plinking to some cartoon colored guns is the stupidest thing I've ever heard of. Don't you people in office have something better to do?" John Erickson

The government needs to get its hands off of these sort of issues! There are more than enough laws on the books in regards to airsoft already that address these sorts of issues! Adding this law will change nothing! If anyone pulls ANY type of gun on a police officer, that is reason enough for that officer to do whatever he sees fit to do in order to protect himself and keep the peace! Plus now REAL criminals are just going to paint their REAL guns bright colors...they have painted tips orange already! - Ryan Dodds

CA SB 798 - THE DEATH OF AIRSOFT?

2011-05-11T15:37:00.000-07:00

Rather than focus on something positive today, like Osama Bin Laden's recent departure from existence courtesy of a 5.56mm double-tap TO THE FACE!!! or heck, maybe even something Airsoft-related like a G&G F2000 Review, I have to take another route. Instead, I unfortunately feel obligated to address the fact that Airsoft is under attack. California Senator Kevin De Leon has decided to spoil any celebration of death with his own selfish need for the spotlight. He has decided that he'd like to try and "one-up" the heroic SEAL Team 6 with a little bit of "feel good" legislation for the bleeding hearts out there because back in December 2010, a 13-year-old Los Angeles juvenile delinquent playing with an Airsoft gun in public didn't feel like complying with the demands of an armed, LA Police Department officer. While I'm usually the last person to get involved in big boy politics because I typically have no business doing so, I can't just sit back like a little sheep while a small group of uninformed wolves try and shape the future of our Airsoft world for their own personal gain. I'm a lion & that's not how I roll.

If you're not familiar with the legislation that I'm referring to, do a Google search for "California SB 798" and read up on it before continuing here. I won't post it directly to the blog because I don't want that cheap, legislative smut downgrading all the hard work I've produced here. Open a new browser tab to do your search though, 'cause you won't want to leave the Pyramyd Airsoft Blog just yet. I'm anticipating the ability to produce at least one more entertaining and slightly off-color remark before this blog's end.

From the time I started writing this blog until the time I published it, things went south in a hurry. Apparently, there were 26 people voting in favor of this bill in its third & final reading in front of the Senate Committee on Public Safety who don't have the ability to assess reality and see the potential dangers this bill is going to pose for our public safety officers. And in true U.S. political fashion, these are the people who ultimately hold enough decision-making power to F.S.S.U. in a very bad way for the responsible Airsoft players like you (my favorite reader) and me.

I can't say I have all the facts here, but I do have some harsh words and a blog to plaster them all over, so I'm gonna go with that approach (1st Amendment FTFW).

I didn't know everything when I was 13 (nor do I now), but there were a few things that were pretty clear to me at that age. I will list a few of the more prominent things I knew at that age...

- I was starting to grow hair in places where there was no hair before,
- When it comes to defending yourself against bullies, violence is, most often, the best answer to "silence." (Sorry to all you free love hippies, but it's been proven all too often to refute with me)
- Perhaps most relevant to my discussion here today, I definitely knew that...

It's a deadly stupid thing to point a gun (real or fake) at an police officer in the dark of night or the light of day.

Even before I was old enough to comprehend the sweet, soothing qualities of Airsoft, my parents taught me at an early age not to point anything that looks like a gun at a police officer. I also knew that all it takes is one person, or a small sample (unrepresentative of the total population), to ruin it for everyone, as we are seeing unfold before our eyes. So I guess I can't be too shocked by the emergence of this bill. I've been concerned about this sort of incident occurring in the past and am surprised that in all the years I've been playing Airsoft, this situation hasn't reared its hideous head sooner.

Aside from the thought of having my Airsoft guns look like the neon or transparent fecal matter that gets excreted from the Big 5 & Wal-Mart bargain bins, I think I'm even more concerned for the law enforcement officers who stand to be affected by this situation in the worst way. If you really think about what CA Senate Bill 798 is proposing to do, it's likely to have the exact opposite effect. Coloring the exterior of one's Airsoft gun in bright colors will not be doing our peace officers any favors. The idea behind this is a noble one, no doubt, but it leaves many questions on the table. For example, is Senator De Leon's line of thinking that just because a law enforcement officer (LEO) sees a neon-colored gun, he or she is to assume it's not a real firearm and therefore NOT draw down on the person brandishing it and treat it as if it were real? If that's the case, then consider this scenario: under Senator De Leon's line of thought, the officer sees a person who has a neon-colored gun and then assumes it's not real. So he doesn't draw his firearm or if he does, simply doesn't utilize his/her training on how to react as if it were real, only to have the suspect raise the allegedly fake gun (because it's neon colored on the outside per the proposed guidelines of SB 798) and fire off enough real bullets (because it's actually a real gun that the suspect simply painted to look like a toy) to seriously injure or kill any nearby humans, including the LEOs. While that may not be the most well-written illustration of the serious problem this legislation will create, I think you can at least get a faint idea of the potential disasters we could easily be dealing with here.

Check and mate, Senator De Leon. Coloring Airsoft guns to look like toys STILL makes them look like real guns. Duracoat firearm finishes come in "Hello Kitty pink," too. This bill is a waste of taxpayer money, as Science has now shown.

Regardless of the color of the gun, law enforcement officers are still going to need to treat each and every object that looks like a firearm as if it were real.

So what's the point of SB 798 then? Riddle me that.

I think the root is this issue is the fact that De Leon's Bill is trying to classify items that are not toys...as TOYS! A toy is defined by Webster as "something a child plays with." Airsoft guns are not allowed to be sold in the U.S. to anyone under the age of 18 without parental consent. That's usually a pretty good indication that the item was not meant for use by anyone under the legal age of being considered an adult (children usually fall under this age demographic). Airsoft guns are more like "equipment" or good-looking "training tools." They fit into several areas of use, the primary being for use in military simulation events, or war games. Supporters of De Leon's anti-Clarity-of-Thought Bill would likely argue that because these guns are being used in a game, that it makes them toys. But they're pretty much the same guns, or at least very similar to, the models that government agencies use as "training weapons" to allow for government personnel to train with. Airsoft Manufacturer, Systema, is well-known in the industry for their elite P.T.W. Airsoft rifles. Well, guess what P.T.W. stands for, Mr. De Leon. I'll give you a hint: it rhymes with "Professional Training Weapon." Just like those awful movies that are so cheesy, yet still make it all the way to production and released into the public, CA SB 798 is so bad, it begs the question, "What group of individuals could put forth the large effort it takes to produce something like this, and not, at any point in time during that long process, question whether any of it truly makes any sense?" There wasn't ONE person involved in drafting this bill that said, "Hey, maybe this won't work because reality won't let it"?! Sweet. *fart noise*

Airsoft guns should be treated just like they were a real firearm because they are dangerous if handled improperly and can cause serious injury. The same basic safety principles for firearms are pretty much all applicable to Airsoft guns as well. If they get tossed into the toy category, it would seem pretty logical that any effort to maintain the general public mindset that Airsoft guns can be dangerous if not handled with care will be thwarted and, therefore, lead to more injuries & mishaps because new and/or uneducated users are treating them like toys (which aren't supposed to be dangerous), rather than training weapons or tools. Dumb. Just plain dumb.

It's alarmingly remarkable how little thought apparently needs to go into drafting up these bills that are going to affect not only the people in California, but likely people in other states that choose to follow our states atrocious example of gun control. As long as you quote Wikipedia, it's cool, right?

Here's a novel thought, how about we just enforce the laws & promote responsible practices that are already in place? Haterz gonna hate, and along those lines, law-breakers are going to "law-break" stuff. So why punish the rest of us? This is just S.S.D.D., I know, but apparently some people up at the top, don't seem to get the picture.
- LEOs should simply continue to treat all guns, whether they be real, Airsoft or toys, as real guns. Regardless of whether this law passes or not, they're going to have to do that anyway to keep from getting shot up by a neon-pink Hello Kitty assault rifle chambered with real bullets.
- Responsible users of Airsoft guns should continue to treat them as if they were real firearms and, while they're at it, NOT play with them in public.
- In addition, keep your Airsoft guns in cases with orange tips in place when transporting to and from your house. This is actually a good example of a Federal law that makes sense.

I suppose that rather than pissing and moaning about the ridiculous circumstances of this legislation, I should provide those of you who haven't seen the seemingly endless array of Facebook updates in your news feed with some information on what you can do about this situation.

If you are capable of behaving yourself and representing our industry, please feel free to contact your local Senator's office as possible to let them know that you oppose California Senate Bill 798, introduced by Democratic Senator Kevin De Leon. You can find your district by going here: http://senate.ca.gov/senatedistricts

It would be important to note that you do not have to be a California resident to voice your opinion and I would encourage anyone residing outside our state borders to get involved as well. Especially if your state has a tendency to follow in California's footsteps on matters like this.

As if Charlton Heston were smiling down upon Airsoft with at least one large-caliber weapon in his hands, according to a news update on their website, even the NRA has stepped thrown their hat in the ring and went on record to oppose this bill. That's how you know the bill is lame, not just for law-abiding California enthusiasts, but for Airsoft players everywhere.

Thinking outside the box, another option is to simply move out of California to a state that doesn't suck. Someplace like Aspen, CO, where the beer flows like wine (name the movie).

I won't sugarcoat this thing to make it seem like there's nothing to worry about, because there's plenty to worry about (haven't you seen Snakes on a Plane?).

However, AIRSOFT SHALL PREVAIL. It always does. But just in case it doesn't this time, it might be advisable to mentally prepare yourself to be engaging the OPFOR with a "toy" gun capable of firing in excess of 500 fps with a .20g BB in bright yellow, pink, blue, green, red or white so that Senator De Leon can further his career without putting any real thought to the people he's going to be affecting. If that doesn't sound like a raging good time to you, perhaps brushing up on your communication skills, contacting your local district Senator's office and letting them know you oppose the bill might be the way to go. Watch Brian Holt's video posted above for a good example on how to do this.

New bill: coloured airsoft guns in California?

2011-04-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

Apparently State Senator Kevin De Leon in California initiated a new bill that would render all airsoft guns that are not clearly distinguishable from real firearms illegal. Therefore each airsoft gun would need to be either completely coloured in bright white, red, blue, green or other neon colours, or be made out of transparent materials to clearly show the internal mechanism.

However in the newest version of bill SB 798 the text regarding these colours have been struck out, meaning that either this bill is now supposed to ban airsoft guns, here referred to as "BB devices", altogether or that this passage is simply not necessary as neon coloured airsoft guns would not be considered as "imitation firearms" anyway.

But either way, if this bill becomes actual law, this means a huge setback for airsoft in generall, especially regarding the possibility that other states might follow.

On Capinsider.com it is mentioned that the bill passed the Senate Public Safety Committee on a 5-2 vote on April, 26th. However as we do not know the american procedures to pass new laws, we are not quite sure about the importance or meaning of said vote, but it looks like this is not the final decision yet.

We will keep you up-to-date as soon as we know more!

By http://www.airsoft2day.com - World Airsoft News - Read full article: http://www.airsoft2day.com/news/86-new-bill-regarding-airsoft-guns-in-california.html#ixzz1TXKbzY00

Say NO to California State SB 798 - The Anti-airsoft Bill

2011-03-26T15:38:00.000-07:00

California Senate Bill 798 passed the Senate Public Safety Committee on March 26. This bill, if passed, prohibits, "...the sale, manufacture, transportation, receipt, or distribution of imitation firearms for commercial purposes," unless, "...the entire exterior surface of the device is
white, bright red, bright orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright
blue, bright pink, or bright purple, either singly or as the
predominant color in combination with other colors in any pattern,
as provided by federal regulations governing imitation firearms,
or where the entire device is constructed of transparent or
translucent materials which permits unmistakable observation of
the device's complete contents, as provided by federal regulations
governing imitation firearms."
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/sen/sb_0751-0800/sb_798_bill_20110413_amended_sen_v97.pdf

This is another attempt to stomp on airsoft, and yet another attempt at the Governemnt parenting us. Please sing this petition and we'll let the California State Senate know that we will NOT stand by idely as our freedoms are stripped from us.

AirSplat Reaches 100,000 Fans, Company Celebrates Milestone

2011-03-16T11:08:00.001-07:00

ARCADIA, CA – March 16th, 2011 - AirSplat.com is the first online airsoft retailer to reach 100,000 fans on Facebook. They’ve achieved this by turning their Facebook Fan Page into a valuable and direct channel for fans and customers to interact with the company. They are the first in the airsoft industry to reach this number, many tens of thousands ahead of the rest. This break away from the pack reinforces them as the major force in this retail sector. Mary Chase, Marketing Director, has this to say about the company’s achievement, "This is a fantastic indicator of how this company is still the leader in this space, and how far this sport has grown in this country." The past year has seen a steady increase in growth and momentum for the company, from around 12,000 subscribed fans in March of 2010 to 100,000 fans in March of 2011.

When one becomes a fan of the AirSplat Facebook page, they receive daily updates of new items in stock, back in stock items, community questions, and the weekly contest. Chase is particularly happy about how those have turned out, "We started the weekly contest about a year ago, and the response was phenomenal. We try to do something new every week, and that keeps a steady stream of fresh and interested people coming to the page."

These Facebook exclusive contests and giveaways directly leverage the various kinds of interactions only possible with Facebook, including photo tagging, sharing links, and friend referrals. The flow of information goes both ways. The AirSplat fan page has not only become a powerful marketing tool for promotion, it’s also become an invaluable source of direct and instant market data. "the response is phenomenal, you can ask a simple question to fans, such as ‘what we should carry that we don’t have already’, and within minutes you’ll get hundreds of thoughtful and insightful replies," says Chase. It shows the fans are checking the page constantly, and the airsoft community is not by any means shy of voicing their opinion, "You get a lot of heated and passionate posts, but you have to take it with a grain of salt," says Mary. AirSplat for their part, has taken on an aggressive policy of transparency. "if a customer voices an issue with an order or an issue, we respond openly and immediately. If it’s a complicated matter we’ll take it offline via email, or phone call. We want people to know we’re not just a big company, we’re one that cares about each individual customer."

The 100,000 fan mark is a milestone for AirSplat. They’re using it as a guidepost to bigger and better things. In the next year they plan on redesigning and overhauling their website with new features. They plan on doing this with a combination of in-house web designers and programmers, as well as feedback from their Facebook page. Everyone at AirSplat is looking forward to the next year of growth, Chase especially, "Here’s to the next 100,000 fans".

Do Not Underestimate Airsoft as a Training Aid for Youths

2011-02-23T09:20:00.000-08:00

My son who is 15 years old recently got into Airsoft and started to amass a collection of replica looking, fully functioning and firing Airsoft rifles and airsoft pistols.

I had planned on enrolling him in a Hunter's Safety course soon as he is of age but the more I watched him and his buddies play Airsoft in the bush like a rag-tag wild bunch I decided to take action. This was a good way to train them to be soldiers. Mostly because it was out of fear of some of the younger children getting seriously injured, since those plastic airsoft pellets hurt [and a great risk of eye injury]s. I told them that I would treat them like soldiers and adults as long as they acted the part. That little bit of respect given them was enough to make them attentive and more mature acting then some of the recruits that I’ve had to deal with in the past.

a) The first thing I did was break them down into two teams that were roughly equal in both ages and sizes.
b) Then, just like instructing recruits it was weapon basics and Immediate Action (IAs) on the airsoft rifle. (Almost all of them had Airsoft M4 look-alikes.) I covered the Load, unload, and make safe, clear weapons for inspection. Then more advanced drills like IAs for obstructions and so forth.
c) After I was confident that the 11 year olds could remedy stoppages as well as the 15 year olds then it was small section tactics. Section sized advance to contact, moving and covering and the final assault of a position. After the advance, I taught them defensive positions and ambushes.
d) In our neighborhood most kids are military brats so they all had Dad’s or Mom’s old field uniforms, I made sure they had ballistic eyewear, Being in Supply it was my gift to them. Then we went into camouflage and concealment.

Now when they wage war on each other there is no such thing as one-sided matches. Some would say that I should not be teaching kids that sort of thing, but I played war as a kid and I believe it prepared me for a life in the military; it has been that way since the dawn of time. Mostly I trained them how to safely handle a weapon and how to perform escape and evasion, valuable lessons if and when the Schumer hits the fan.

In the beginning of summer I took my son on canoe trip, I packed my bug out gear and made sure that he did the same, everything that he would need. All of the equipment was divided equally and even though he is only 15 and not fully-grown, he did a commendable job of keeping up with the old man on portages.

Once we were deep in Algonquin Park I started to teach him actual bushcraft such as fire starting. We did not use a match the entire weekend. It was fire steels; he needed to know that over a long period that matches and lighters would be in short supply. I taught him tracking, or should I say the basics of tracking. It takes a lifetime of experience that makes you good at tracking. What woods to use as kindling, what wood to use for as smokeless as a fire as possible, how to knock off pine knots to burn. We brought our wrist rocket slingshots and he was able to bag both a squirrel and a grouse so I taught him how to skin and clean each plus how to clean a fish. That turned out to be a welcome change from the MREs that we had brought with us.

When we were prepping for our canoe trip, I bought a couple topographical maps and taught him how to read the lay of the land from a map. I got him to research the available crown land surrounding the park to see if there were any viable options for camping on public land. A mini orienteering course was put on for his benefit. I taught him the basics, like how to take a bearing, follow a bearing. Using back bearings to get home. The more advanced stuff will come, like calculating magnetic declination and triangulation on a map to find your location.

I have been a sheet metal worker, plumber, electrician, oil burner mechanic, combat engineer. I worked in a cabinet shop, framed houses and on rejoining the military a Supply technician. Little by little, I have been trying to teach my son that it is best to be a jack-of-all-trades and like many kids whose parents remember the Great Depression and rationing of World War II, I know the value of making a little go a long way. So we work on our bicycles together, I would rather show him once how to do something so he will know how to do it himself. In addition, it is a lot cheaper then paying someone else to do something. Now that he’s in high school his interests have been the shop classes, I totally encourage him to take wood shop, welding and small engine repair seriously and made him aware that home economics is a must. I might have told him that girls dig a guy who can cook.

When my son seen the items coming into the house bought through eBay and his interest peaked when it came to prepping. I made a master list of items we need for long-term survival and when I am not on the laptop he will surf the internet looking for great deals. His best find was a case of food grade 6.5-gallon pails without lids. We promptly went to Mountain Equipment Co-op and bought enough Gamma Seal lids to cover them.

Right now, our goal is to start accumulating ammunition and teaching him how to strip and assemble the weapons, we have at home. Presently, case lots of 7.62x39mm ammo are relatively inexpensive so I’ll be able to get him sighted in on his own SKS and get him to practice using the stripper clips to reload.

The basement is starting to look more like a supply depot but that is all right. It is all about keeping it organized and to know what you have, where it is and how to use it. Right now for his punishment when he does the normal teen angst I make him do the laundry in the new “Wonder Wash”. Some serious hand cranking on a Saturday morning without access to Internet, PS3 or hanging out with his friends is almost in line with child abuse in his mind but it teaches him a couple valuable lessons. 1) Don’t screw up, and 2) Know how to do laundry by hand.

One part of the basement is our home gym. Lots of free weights, being military physical fitness of mandatory and it is great father son time together working out. Because we are living in married quarters on base, going on a rucksack march is nothing out of the ordinary, so out of the 20 to 30 guys doing that at night for PT, my son gets a chance to don his ruck and practice carrying all his gear.

When I began prepping, I kept it a secret but now that he is all in, I feel a lot better about it. It is still our little secret but it is good to know that we are doing everything we can increase our odds when TEOTWAWKI comes. Family is first in my book, but now I know of six kids who are fully weapons trained and have the basics of field craft down.

This winter I have him going with one of my friends who has a trap line to learn more about wilderness survival then I have time to teach him. I should also mention that I have two daughters that are grown up. I did my best by them as well. They know what to do if they get in trouble: run like mad, split up from friends and gather in a pre-arranged Rendezvous Point at a specific time. My oldest daughter is an awesome angler and always shows up her old man when out on the river. When they were little I always had them going out with us deer hunting and they have watched us field dress and skin many deer without the slightest hint of squeamishness. They are "girly girl" now but I know they have a solid foundation to build on.

So all of you parents out there, it is never too early to start your children off on the right foot. Even if it is just exposure to new things. Get them to help in the garden, or to go on an evening walk…do fun things like identify trees and plants and tell them what they are used for or feed them venison, or muskrat or beaver once to make them aware that not all food has to come from the super market.

JWR Adds: As I've mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, Airsoft and paintball are fine for learning some aspects of camouflage and small team tactics. The fatal flaws of both, however, are that:

1.) Since Airsoft pellets have hardly any penetration beyond five yards, players start to subconsciously equate concealment with cover.

2.) Because Airsoft pellets and paint balls only have limited range, people start to subconsciously think of anything beyond that range as "safely out of range" (for maneuver in the open.)

If you can regularly remind yourself about those shortcomings and adjust your training regimen accordingly, then you'll find that they provide somewhat worthwhile training. But it is essential that you integrate high velocity ballistic realism. This means declaring anyone that blatantly stands up in the open at 50+ yards "dead meat." Ditto for anyone that mistakenly takes "cover" behind bushes or small trees. Always remember: concealment is not cover!

Elementary kids most expelled over fake guns

2011-02-14T14:40:00.000-08:00

Elementary school students toting fake airsoft guns to campus made up the largest group of public school children in each of the last two school years expelled for firearms violations, a trend that's spurring educators to redouble efforts to warn younger kids about bringing replica airsoft guns to school.
The issue has also prompted lawmakers to consider a measure that would ban the sale of toy or replica airsoft guns to minors.
Over the past five years, the Department of Education has dramatically decreased firearms expulsions thanks to a statewide campaign educating students on the big consequences for bringing a gun — real or fake — to school.
But although the number of firearms-related expulsions at elementary schools is down from a five-year high of 32 in 2005-06, expulsions have gone up over the past three years — to 17 last school year from eight in the 2007-08 school year.
By comparison, there were only four expulsions at high schools for firearms violations last school year, according to a recently released annual report to the Legislature.
Officials emphasize that almost all of the expulsions — across grades — were for fake guns. (Last school year, there was one expulsion statewide for a real handgun and one expulsion for explosives.)
Although the guns are fake, the punishment is real. Breaking the rules means a yearlong expulsion, regardless of age.
Ronn Nozoe, DOE deputy superintendent, said the number of firearms expulsions at elementary schools is a concern — and evidence that more work is needed to warn parents and kids about the punishment for bringing a fake gun to campus.
"With the younger kids, they may not be fully aware of the ramifications," he said. "I'm sure they know they're going to get in trouble, but they might be curious. They might be modeling behavior.
"At the same time, they've got to know, if they make a mistake there's quite a consequence attached to it," Nozoe said.

Firearms ExpulsionThe Department of Education expanded its definition of a firearm in 1997 to include pellet and airsoft guns. The penalty for bringing a firearm to campus is a one-year expulsion. Here's how the DOE defines a firearm:» Any weapon including, but not limited to, a starter gun, shotgun and air guns, which include BB guns, pellet guns and paintball guns.» Any other instrument that will or is designed to be converted to expel a projectile.» The frame or receiver of any such weapon.» Any firearm muffler or firearm silencer.» Any destructive device, including explosives, grenades, rockets, missiles, mines or similar devices.
Source: Department of Education
THE NEW FIGURES on elementary school expulsions for firearms come amid rising popularity for replica guns that, principals say, look real and could be dangerous.
At the start of this school year, two eighth-graders were expelled from Washington Middle School — one for bringing a replica gun to campus, the other for pointing it at a classmate.
Principal Mike Harano said the student who brought the gun to campus purchased it for $10 at a store near the school. The gun, he said, looked real and shot plastic pellets.
"It could take your eye out," he said. "I really think we can't be too careful."
After the incident, the school asked the store not to sell its fake guns to kids. Harano said the guns are still for sale there, but aren't displayed as prominently.
The incident prompted lawmakers to introduce legislation that would ban the sale of toy guns to minors, a measure critics call too vague and unnecessary.
Rep. Scott Saiki (D, Moiliili-McCully-Kaimuki), who authored the House version of the proposed ban, said lawmakers will have to decide how to define "toy gun" or what shouldn't be sold to minors.
As the law is written, he said, toy guns would include anything from a water pistol to a BB gun.
"I'm not sure how you draw the line," he added.
But, Saiki said, the intent of the bill is to make sure replica guns that look real don't get into the hands of children without a parent's permission.
"The primary concern is the safety of children and students," he said. "A student could have a toy gun that looks real, be playing with it at night and a police officer" could be called.
"It could end in disaster," Saiki said.
Chris Baker, president of the Hawaii Defense Foundation, argues the bill isn't needed and won't stop any kid from bringing a fake gun to school.
"If they're worried about bringing them to school, this is really not going to prevent that," he said.
MEANWHILE, vendors of a popular kind of replica called airsoft guns say they don't sell the items to children anyway and don't let kids play at events without a parent's permission.
Airsoft guns fire nonlethal plastic airsoft BBs and are hot-ticket items for youths.
As in paintball games, groups gather to play with the guns in indoor and outdoor areas, donning safety masks and helmets. But unlike paintball guns, the airsoft guns are lifelike — so much so that a 2003 city ordinance banned carrying one uncovered on a street or public land.
Businesses that sell airsoft guns said when parents purchase them for children, they make sure to spell out how to use them properly and where kids can — and can't — play with them.
Grant Woo, co-owner of Impact Games in Aiea, said the solution to the expulsions problems at schools is not tougher laws, but more parental oversight.
"With some of these younger kids, they might not realize how serious it is to play with any kind of replica toy gun," he said. "It's very important for the parents to really reinforce with the kids."
Randall Omoto and his 15-year-old son, Avery, play together with airsoft guns and follow strict safety protocols.
"At home, we treat them like real guns," Omoto said.
He agreed that it's up to parents to drive home for kids that replica guns need to be treated with respect, and shouldn't be taken to school.
"I think it's a parental problem," he said.
THE DEPARTMENT of Education said that through bulletins and letters home it is trying to get the message to parents about its firearms policy.
Nozoe added that although schools have made progress on cutting the number of firearms violations, even one incident is too many.
Students who are expelled for a firearms violation get work sent home from their schools, but aren't allowed on school grounds until the afternoon bell has rung, when they can get help from teachers and use school computers.
Parents can appeal expulsions, and in some cases children are allowed back early.
Either way, Nozoe said, "it's a big, big imposition" on families.
Schools that have had expulsions for firearms violations say they've used the incidents as teachable moments to reinforce the consequences of bringing a replica gun to school.
Dale Castro, principal at Mililani Waena Elementary School, said that after an expulsion for a fake gun at his campus, he made sure to remind parents and students about the firearms rules.
"It's really important to have effective communication of the policy," he said.
Karen Liu, principal of King Kaumualii Elementary on Kauai, said that after a recent firearms expulsion, staff members spoke to classes on the seriousness of the violation.
"We always follow up," she said.

Student charged with felony for waving gun

2011-02-13T14:20:00.000-08:00

An elementary student was met with more than their typical walk home from school on Thursday afternoon.
The student hadn't ZA.
The juvenile was allegedly in a pickup truck with three of their peers when the younger student noticed what was believed to be a pistol being waved in their direction, according to Berger.
"We take this very seriously," he said. "This is unacceptable and we will not accept any kind of behavior like this in this community."
Officials from the WYPD received a call from victim's parents shortly after the victim told them what had happened.
The victim described the weapon as being a silver and black pistol, but Sergeant Matt Stubblefield and Berger later discovered that the weapon in question was a clear airsoft pistol with black grips after confiscating the weapon from the older student.
Smith and Wesson manufactures the airsoft pistols that shoot plastic pellets instead of metal bullets, but look stunningly real when compared to actual firearms, according to Berger.
The high schooler is being charged with felony assault with a weapon, according to Stubblefield.
"The felony charges come into play because it took place on school grounds. Assault with a weapon is (when someone is) causing reasonable apprehension with a weapon. The weapon is made by Smith and Wesson, who makes handguns. It's a close enough replica to a handgun," Stubblefield said.
A time for the juvenile to appear in court will be arranged through Gallatin County Youth Probation, according to Stubblefield. The juvenile and his parents will meet with youth probation and parole officials.
The juvenile is being charged as a minor, but the crime can carry stronger punishments due to the serious nature of the offense.
"Felony assault with a weapon is one of the crimes that can be tried as an adult," Stubblefield said.
He responded to a similar call while working in Utah involving a boy that had lost an eye from being shot with an airsoft gun.
"People don't realize the amount of damage airsoft guns can do, especially at close range," he said.
Students were released early from school at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday for a scheduled curriculum development day for teachers and staff.
West Yellowstone School Superintendent Lael Calton verified that no weapons entered the school building, but did not take the matter lightly.
"Safety in the school is priority number one for all of our students and our staff and we have very specific rules and policies in place in order to protect them," she said.
The school district has a zero tolerance weapons policy and anyone who violates that policy will be dealt with in a severe manner, according to Calton.
Calton and high school principal Terry Falcon conducted a separate internal investigation of the incident because it occurred on school grounds.
Varying factors are taken into consideration when an investigation is being conducted by school officials, according to Calton.
"As a superintendent I have to be concerned with firearms, weapons, guns or dangerous conduct in or on school property," she said.
Only one juvenile is being charged by police, but Calton and Falcon spoke with all students involved in the matter.
She did not indicate if the student with the airsoft gun had been suspended from school or not, or what possible disciplinary action will be taken against the students.
She was disturbed at how difficult it was to discern that the airsoft gun was not an actual firearm, but regards any weapon as extremely serious.
Like the rest of the nation, West Yellowstone residents aren't immune to turning on their television sets and risking the chance of seeing weapons and violence being cast over the airwaves. The chance of real life violence taking place is also something that can happen just about anywhere.
"Nobody, no school, no state and no town is immune from something like this happening. Fortunately we have a small enough town and for the most part our students respect our rules and have exemplary conduct," Calton said. "But sometimes our kids make poor choices and they are still kids. Hopefully they will learn from their poor choices and they won't make them again."
Stubblefield hasn't dealt with this type of incident at the school in the past, but wants the kids to understand the seriousness of the incident.
"It's very apparent that the kids (involved) don't understand how serious it is and it is likely to happen again if they're not made to understand just how serious it is," he said.
Calton reminded school students what the rules are regarding the weapons policy this week by adding the policy guidelines to the morning announcements that are cast over the PA system at the beginning of each school day.

Federal agents declare popular toy gun a firearm

2011-02-07T16:32:00.000-08:00

Is it a toy or a dangerous weapon?

The KING 5 Investigators have obtained government documents in which federal agents declare that a popular type of toy, an airsoft rifle, is a “firearm”.

Even though agents have reached this conclusion, we’ve found that there is a strange secrecy in the air when it comes to informing the public about this potential threat.

It all stems from the public outcry that started when agents seized a shipment of these airsoft “toys” at the Port of Tacoma last year. The “toys” are airsoft guns, known as airsoft, which are wildly popular with kids. They shoot plastic airsoft BB’s using air or gas.

“The way you tell it's not real is the orange tip,” said 11-year-old Peter Crites, as he played an airsoft game with friends recently at a Seattle park. “It's illegal not to have an orange tip on it."

But now, orange tip or not, federal agents say some airsoft gun replicas have crossed the line from make believe to the real thing.

Internal ATF memo

KING 5 obtained a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms internal memo and other documents under the Freedom of Information Act.

ATF said it "evaluated several of these airsoft guns" and determined they are "firearms", and some even "machine guns," in the eyes of the law.

ATF said thousands of air guns meeting that definition have been imported into the United States.
There was an outcry early last year on the Internet and talk radio when ATF took its first public shots at airsoft guns.

Critics demanded to know why the government was targeting "toys." Records we obtained show that even three United States senators wanted explanations from ATF after agents at the Port of Tacoma seized an incoming shipment of airsoft guns.

The high-end, all metal guns cost about $400 each. Air guns like those seized in Tacoma are produced by a variety of foreign and domestic manufacturers who emphasize the realism of their products.

But could these airsoft rifles actually fire bullets?

Testing the guns

“That looks like a real firearm. If someone pointed that at me I would shoot them," said Wade Gaughran, the owner of Wade’s Eastside Guns in Bellevue. He has a staff of gunsmiths who service AR-15 rifles, which are what the replica guns seized by the ATF are modeled after.

Gaughran agreed to analyze an airsoft manufactured by the same company that produced those air guns.

"I can see where the problem is,” Gaughran said as he looked at the airsoft that KING 5 purchased on the Internet. “They have gone to a level of realism that I have not seen before."

It's what inside that Gaughran found most disturbing.

"This actually looks like an auto sear out of a machine gun," he said. He found internal parts that could allow someone to make a fully functioning lower receiver, the only part of the gun that requires a background check to buy.

"In all firearms, the receiver is the registered or controlled part," said Gaughran. “We could set in the trigger parts with very little alteration and you would get a weapon that would fire."

A converted airsoft receiver could be mounted onto many powerful real guns.

Even worse, it would be untraceable. On a real AR-15 lower receiver, there is a serial number and markings that help law enforcement trace its history if used in a crime. Investigators often use these numbers to link a gun to a suspect. The airsoft receiver is unmarked and untraceable.

While ATF sources and documents cannot point to one incident where an airsoft receiver was used in a crime, documents received from KING 5’s public records requests do list a half-dozen cases in which criminals paid top dollar for untraceable firearm receivers.

At Wade’s Gunshop, we asked the gunsmith to try to fire live rounds from our airsoft. Gaughran said he believes the average person couldn’t do it.

"What we were trying to do is find out how easy it would be for a kid with a drill or a criminal with some common tools and that wasn't the case,” said Gaughran, explaining that his gunsmith could not make the airsoft toy fire with a minimal amount of tinkering.

In its labs, ATF said it did fire rounds from several converted airsoft guns including one of the Tacoma guns.

“If the ATF was able to make this fire, I wouldn't dispute that," said Gaughran.

ATF response

While ATF has ruled that guns like this are firearms, it appears to still be stinging from the criticism.

ATF refused to explain on camera what its ruling means to people who buy or possess these guns. The public records we received are heavily censored. Even those marked "media plan" are blacked-out.

When it comes to airsoft, America's gun police are decidedly gun-shy.

ATF did issue a written statement to KING 5, however, in which the bureau said it has been working with manufacturers to make sure their airsoft guns are legal.

The Taiwanese manufacturer of the guns seized in Tacoma has not been charged, and did not respond to the KING 5 Investigators repeated emails seeking comment.

Jeffco boy facing felony charges in airsoft gun mishap

2011-01-31T14:05:00.000-08:00

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. -- A 13-year-old Jefferson County boy says he knows what he did was wrong, but says it was an accident and he never intended to hurt anyone when he shot his toy airsoft gun at a friend, who was hit in the eye.

His parents say their son deserves to be punished, but believe juvenile felony assault charges for an airsoft gun go too far.

But the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office says they take many factors into account, and when they decide to file charges it’s because they believe it’s in the best interest of the child.

The 13 year old, Jacob Alspaugh, tells Fox 31 News he and a friend were just messing around with a toy airsoft gun, shooting at each other and shooting at targets like cereal boxes without eye protection.

When the other boy said something that made Jacob mad, he did what he calls a “quick draw,” and fired the plastic bead. To his horror, he hit his friend in the eye.

“When it happened I felt sick and I kept saying I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry,” said the teen.

The other boy was treated and is fine with no permanent injuries. Police reports say his family did not want to press charges, and Jacob says he and his friend have made up.

“We just talked a while about me giving him an Xbox 360 and I gave him that one night just as a ‘sorry’ present," Alspaugh said. "He forgave me. He knows I’m sorry, so we’re back to being friends.”

But according to police reports, the treating doctor says the plastic bead could have caused serious bodily injury, and the Jefferson County DA’s office is charging the 13-year-old as a juvenile with felony second degree assault charges.

“The judge mentioned if convicted, he has a mandatory five days in detention and he can be removed from my home for up to a year,” said Jacob's father, Craig Alspaugh.

Jefferson County DA Scott Storey says they can’t comment on any specific juvenile case, but he says they take many things into account. They look at school records, and juvenile experts evaluate the child and bring up any psychological or mental health issues. They also consider what might be going on in the home and he says they do what they believe to be in the best interest of the child.

“We really want to give them the resources to make them successful, in the future, at school, at home, with their friends and everything else,” said Storey.

FOX31 News tested an identical airsoft toy gun and fired it at a piece of notebook paper. Sometimes the plastic beads went through the paper and sometimes they bounced off. Firearms expert and former police officer Rich Wyatt says, “It’s a toy, it’s an airsoft gun that can be purchased in any store. You don’t have to be any age to purchase it.” Wyatt says there was a time when parents, not prosecutors handled this kind of accident.

The father says at a court hearing earlier in the week the DA’s office offered his son a plea bargain, reducing the charge to misdemeanor assault. There would be no detention time, but Jacob would go into a diversion program that would provide counseling on a variety of issues. If he stayed out of trouble, his record would be expunged, and his records would remain sealed, as are all juvenile records.

Alspaugh says they are considering the plea bargain, but he worries any kind of plea would result in Jacob being expelled from school, kicked off the football team and further stigmatize him at school.

Officer from shooting ID'd; man had a fake gun

2011-01-28T14:11:00.000-08:00

SAN DIEGO — The San Diego police officer who shot and wounded a man this week after he pointed a fake handgun at the officer was identified Thursday as Sgt. Robert Wills, a 21-year department veteran who was involved in a fatal shooting in 1999 of a former NFL player.

Wills shot Robert McBride Jr. about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday in the parking lot outside the CVS Pharmacy on Mira Mesa Boulevard near Camino Ruiz, police Lt. Kevin Rooney said. Wills fired one time after McBride, 22, of Mira Mesa pulled a replica weapon from his waistband and aimed it at the officer, Rooney said.

McBride, who was on probation, has been convicted of several crimes since 2006, including grand theft and burglary.

Wills thought McBride and a friend were getting ready to burglarize cars in the parking lot near the CVS, police said. The friend went inside the store, and Wills stopped McBride and asked for his identification. McBride ran away and Wills chased after him.

When McBride was about 175 feet away from Wills he stopped, turned and started to run toward the sergeant before pulling out the airsoft gun and raising it, Rooney said. That’s when Wills shot him.

Investigators said McBride’s gun turned out to be a plastic Airsoft replica .45-style pistol that shoots 6mm airsoft plastic BBs.

McBride underwent surgery and is expected to survive. When he is released from the hospital, he will be booked into jail on suspicion of exhibiting an imitation firearm in a threatening manner and for violating probation, Rooney said.

Will is on routine administrative duty while the shooting is investigated.

In July 1999, he was one of two officers involved in the fatal shooting of Demetrius DuBose, 28, an all-American Notre Dame football star who spent four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

DuBose was shot 12 times after attacking Wills and officer Timothy Keating with their own martial arts weapons in Mission Beach. The shooting sparked charges of racial bias because both officers are white and DuBose was black.

The FBI and the District Attorney’s Office cleared both officers, saying the use of deadly force was justified because they believed their lives were in danger. A federal jury also unanimously ruled in favor of Wills and Keating in a wrongful death lawsuit that DuBose’s mother filed.

Three months before the DuBose shooting, Wills was involved in an altercation in Pacific Beach with bicyclist Thomas McHale, a San Diego firefighter, that led to a lawsuit.

Wills used a chokehold on McHale and wrestled him to the ground during a confrontation over a traffic ticket.

McHale was arrested on charges of resisting arrest and assaulting an officer, but they were dismissed. He sued the city over the arrest and a jury awarded him more than $400,000. The City Attorney’s Office had argued that McHale picked the fight and was being profane and uncooperative.

4th-grader suspended for airsoft gun

2011-01-28T14:00:00.000-08:00

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - A Grand Rapids fourth-grader is being suspended for more than 10 days after bringing an airsoft "lookalike" gun to school Thursday, a Grand Rapids Public Schools spokesman said airsoft guns can often look like real guns but fire plastic pellets and are used for play, simulation, and recreation.

The principal at Palmer Elementary did not follow exact procedure in the case and will be reminded of that procedure, spokesman John Helmholdt said. The airsoft gun, which the child's parent said was an airsoft replica, was shown to at least one other student in school Thursday.

Another parent made the principal aware of the incident after school Thursday and Helmholdt said the principal notified Grand Rapids Public Schools central administration Friday.

"In hindsight, the principal should have acted more quickly and alerted us immediately," the spokesman said. "It was after school and she went immediately into a school event that night. These aren't excuses, because we should have got the call, but there wasn't any real and present danger."

Helmholdt said the principal is one of the district's strongest. The district's security chief will let her know the exact process and that "24 hours a day, 7 days a week is when we get phone calls," he said.

Newberry attempting to change city laws that regulate gun usage

2011-01-27T14:09:00.000-08:00

NEWBERRY -- Want to shoot airsoft guns, BB guns or even real guns in the city limits of Newberry?

You can't. Not legally, at least.

Recent agricultural annexations in the city of Newberry revealed that under current law, the city bans all gun use in the city, even airsoft gun replicas, except when used for defense.

So the city is now working on amending the city laws regarding weapons. The first attempted amendment was shown Monday night by city attorney Scott Walker.

No vote was taken on the amendment. Commissioners offered advice at the meeting on how Walker could reword the amendment.

The amendment states that as long as someone is a half-mile away from residential, commercial or industrial property, then he or she can shoot a gun.

Some of the problems with that were identified by gun-owning Commissioners Bill Conrad and Joe Hoffman.

A half-mile, Conrad said, is excessive. It should be reduced to an eighth of a mile or no distance at all, as long as the shooter is on agricultural property. Even airsoft guns only go a few hundred feet at most, and the bb loses a lot of its speed at the end of its flight

Hoffman countered that there might need to be some distance or some exception made, since a rifle can shoot an eighth of a mile. But, he didn't want to eliminate recreational shooting.

"Any man with a rifle, I would hope, is governed by his common sense," he said.

Maybe, Conrad also added, exceptions for hunting clubs can be added to clarify the law.

Commissioner Alena Lawson added her own recommendation that the City Commission should be more willing to err on the side of caution.

After Walker makes the proposed changes to the amendment, it will brought back before the elected officials.

Airsoft On the Rise: Bloggers & Retailers Polish Its Image at the Expense of Paintball

2011-01-24T09:22:00.000-08:00

UPDATE 01/20: Airsofters are tweeting this piece all over the place – must have touched a nerve….

UPDATE 01/19: An additional thought for all of you to ponder. The article (and airsoft pundits in general) like to point the ‘realism’ and ‘military simulation’ inherent in what they do; some go so far as to kit themselves out in regulation gear, but I wonder if any of them have realized that if the average grunt could be carrying a gun that weighs under a pound, could almost fit in their pocket, has 200+ rounds in its magazine and can fire at ungoverned speeds in excess of 24 rounds per second, they’d drop that multi-pounder, cumbersome monster of an assault rifle in a heartbeat. Read on to find out where this is coming from.

Andy Van Der Plaats (Oklahoma D-Day and one of the originators of scenario games – a guy who knows a lot more about a lot more than most of you don’t know) gave me a heads-up to an article comparing paintball and airsoft on the ANSOMMag website.

Ansom is an acronym for Army-Navy Store and Merchandiser Magazine (it’s a website with a pretty big footprint) and as they say themselves, it “is targeted to retailers selling army/navy surplus, law enforcement, work & casual apparel, footwear, cutlery and outdoor products including camping, hunting, hiking and other outdoor sporting goods.”

Make no mistake, that is quite a large and influential segment of the retail business in this country. It is in fact, a key segment of the retail end of things that paintball equipment distributors have courted for years.

Ansom ran this article in response to and as a follow-on to the reports that appeared earlier in the year in Chattanooga TN, where a local paper ran a pre-Holiday comparison of two area businesses, one an airsoft retailer and the other a paintball retailer. We devoted some coverage and commentary to that article here, and we weren’t surprised to find paintball coming off second.

Now Ansom publishes a follow-up as “internet only bonus” content. If it weren’t for the tone of the entire article, I’d put that down to not having much else to offer on a slow news day.

But alas, there is the tone to consider; if you’re the kind of person who thinks airsoft rules and paintball drools, then this piece absolutely qualifies as bonus. (In the real world, this kind of ‘bonus’ is the equivalent of having an ant crawl by while watching the grass grow. Wow! Such pathos! The majesty! The tension!)

Let’s take a look at the few obviously slanted digs thrown into the piece before we move on to the main subject which is, provocatively – why is airsoft eating our lunch at this game? Paintball is supposed to be the bad boy on the block and yet – regional newspapers are cooperating in lauding the wonders of plastic BB games over our wonderful and American – Made sport.

Before moving on though, a word of caution. This post has been tagged with the EDITORIAL category, wherein we (I) get to tell you my opinion about things. Being an editorial, I try to stick to facts, but I am not restricted to doing so. It is here that I get to share my feelings and my feelings are this:

Airsoft can’t hold a candle to paintball. It’s a second rate “game” that former paintballers have taken to for one of a very few clearly defined reasons: they still want to shoot people, but they can’t afford paintball; they were incapable or unwilling to step up to the skills and training needed to play paintball in a rewarding manner or they just never had the chance to learn how AWESOME paintball is before being hypnotized by battery-operated plastic guns from the orient.

Deep down, each of those airsofters really wants to be a paintballer. The only reason that we get articles like those appearing in ANSOM is so they can assuage their feelings of inadequacy. Reading such helps them forget their shame and allows them to actually enjoy a few hours running around in the woods, fifty pounds of unnecessary gear strapped to their backs while they scream and argue with each other about who shot who first. Everyone likes to believe they’re tough. Airsoft lets these folks actually believe it for a little while.

I generally don’t like, nor do I enjoy pointing out the inadequacies of large groups of my fellow citizens, but there you go. And besides, they started it. (It’s pretty obvious that in this game, maturity doesn’t count for much.)

Do I “hate airsofters with a passion”? No. I actually feel sorry for them. Sometimes. Like once every Blue Moon. If I happen to be thinking about them at the time. Which doesn’t happen that often.

OK. Enough (for now). It’s really way too easy to pick on them. On to the article.

The opening mentions the TN article and snidely comments that “One Holiday season does not necessarily a trend make” – and then goes on to treat that one report, in one regional newspaper, about one airsoft retailer’s sales numbers as the trend that will obviously rescue the entire US economy. This is like arriving at the World Cup a week early and assuming the event has been canceled because none of the teams are there.

The article then immediately segues into an FNC trick, quoting an expert from one side of the argument and just never getting around to presenting the other (one begins to wonder if Rupert owns ANSOM too). We hear opinion (presented as fact) from an expert in the field who opines that the reason why airsoft sales are so much better than paintball sales is because “paintball players frequently rent their gear, airsoft enthusiasts are “geardos” who will buy their own equipment.”

You did mean to say that airsoft players are into buying lots of toys while paintball players spend their money on high-end, quality gear, right? No? Hmmm.

The airsoft pundit goes on, discussing the expense of each activity:

“Paintball players spend high just to be in competitions,” Logan writes. “Paintball ammo is also expensive as compared to plastic BBs which are just a pittance, and you save more if you buy in the thousands.”

Right. All 15+ million of us do nothing but play in competitions all year long and NONE of us buy our paint in quantities larger than a ten round tube at a time. Gee, maybe THAT’S our problem. Buy larger quantities and stop playing in tournaments all the damn time. (What’er ya doin in the bathroom all the time! Get out and give someone else a chance!)

Jeez. Paintballers is so dumb they just never thought of buying paint in quantity. No wonder you should play airsoft.

The pundit concludes with this:

“Having a gun culture, the U.S. players would go for realism and exact firearm replica detailing,” the blogger notes, adding that as replicas of real firearms, airsoft guns can be displayed as part of a collection in the home. Nonetheless, prices on the guns generally top out at about $500 per unit, whereas tournament-level paint markers can cost up to twice as much. Meanwhile, law enforcement units are turning to airsoft for training, “giving competition to simunitions and marker suppliers as airsoft helps keep the costs down and still provide a high degree of realism.”

So I guess I can’t put two gold Automags over my fireplace, but I can put a display of toy guns up?

(Is this guy for real? He really thinks someone is going to say “hey, take a look at my awesome gun collection” and take people down into the basement to see his airsoft guns? You do know how that goes in the home of a paintballer, right? “Yeah, these are my paintball guns. Now let me open up the gun safe and show you the real thing.”)

I’m beginning to think that there’s yet another difference between airsofters and paintballers and that difference is the depth of their fantasizing. No paintballer with more than a single game under their belt believes they’re doing anything other than shooting a paintball gun. Airsofters, well, I’m not sure what they’re thinking. Do they make artillery strike sounds in their heads? Pretend their cars are Hueys or Blackhawks?)

And meanwhile, one of Airsoft’s biggest problems (look-a-like) now becomes a virtue.

Here’s the quote that really got me though:

“Generally speaking, paintball appeals to extreme-sport enthusiasts, while airsoft is favored by those who prefer teamwork and strategy over speed of action. Hence, the greater attention to detail and authenticity, both in the airsoft guns and in the particulars of playing the game.”

Tell you what Buddy boy; you get ten of yours, I’ll get ten of mine and we’ll see who’s all about teamwork and TACTICS. Cripes, you people can’t even use the proper terms to describe what you’re writing about. Paintball and Airsoft are TACTICAL level exercises. When the game covers multiple states you can start using the word Strategic, mm’kay?

I really hate having to take wannabes to school, don’t you? Almost makes me feel sorry for kicking ‘em while they’re down on the ground.

On the other hand, the thunk that kick makes every time it connects is just. so. satisfying.

And here I promised that I was going to be all circumspect in my discourse. Ooops.

So. All that piece ends up amounting to is a pile of self-serving, bad-smelling wind – horse-puckey, cow-flop, doody.

But it does bring up a point. A significant one.

Why am I the only one who’s passionately defending paintball against airsoft? Where’s everybody else? You can’t tell me you’re afraid of a tiny plastic BB. You’d never dare to tell me you’re afraid of their players.

But you all are acting like you are. Let me explain something. The reason why Airsoft magazines, blogs and websites are full of favorable (for them) comparisons between them and us is because they recognize that they’re second fiddle right now – but they don’t intend to stay there.

They’ve also recognized that paintball is very weak at self-promotion (very, very bad, actually – some notable exceptions not-withstanding) and they understand full well (unlike ourselves) that one way to grow an audience is to build up a strawman and then knock it over.

They aren’t just converting paintballers into airsofters (good riddance, I say), they are turning non-players into paintball haters. Kids who’d never ever dream of playing that extreme-sporty, ultra-expensive, hide-n-seek thingie that makes such an awful mess.

I don’t like ‘em, but right now, I do have to admit, they’re playing the game better than we are.

Do you all want to LOSE to a bunch of airsofters?

Step it up guys, step it up, or pretty soon the Airsoft nerds will be looking down their noses at YOU

Erie Indoor Airsoft ignites local interest in popular combat game

2011-01-21T11:45:00.000-08:00

The loud popping sound of orange-tipped M4 airsoft rifles rang out.

Somewhere close by, Cody Pamula, 14, kept still with his back to the wall.

All around, men and boys of all ages -- faces obscured by masks -- ran, dodged and dived between plywood walls, industrial barrels and the kind of fake plants commonly found in office waiting rooms.

Someone peeked out of a nearby window cutout, only to jerk his head back quickly before a swarm of bullets hit the wall with loud "thwacks."

Pamula braced himself and sprinted across the field, shooting as he went.

Then he felt a sharp sting. He'd been shot.

Like all the other players in the Erie Airsoft arena who had been tagged, he simply raised his airsoft gun in the air and walked, yelling "Dead man walking," while the rest of the players finished the game.

Airsoft is a combat sport that uses small, round plastic pellets, or BBs, shot from realistic-looking guns. In the last decade, the sport has gained momentum in Asia and Europe.

Erie Airsoft -- located in Forward Hall, 2502 Peach St. -- is advertised as the area's first commercial arena for the sport that's now gaining popularity in the United States.

"When we started, we had one to 10 kids come in on a weekend," said Chris Gerhart, founder and co-owner of Erie Airsoft, which opened after Christmas in 2009. "Now we have about 40. There's just been a lot of enthusiasm.

"It's very affordable," he added. "That's a big plus with this economy."

The floor above Forward Hall's performance space is a kind of war-torn urbanscape that might be found in the virtual worlds of "Call of Duty" or "Fallout" video games.

For $10 each, players can run for six hours in an arena of plywood buildings, stacks of tires and barrels playing airsoft.

In the showroom outside the arena, players can rent any of the airsoft guns and airsoft protective padding displayed on the walls and in glass counter cases.

But as far as strategy goes, players are on their own.

"There are no limitations. You can run, crouch, hide -- do whatever you can to survive," Gerhart said. "It's fascinating to watch a group of 12-year-olds come up with a battle plan."

Injury is a reality, which is why players are required to wear protective masks that cover their eyes and ears, and other padding. Despite the orange tip that marks these replica airsoft guns as fake, they're used as though they were real.

Signs close to the airsoft arena list the rules of the game and a disclaimer: "By entering, you will be responsible for any risks or loss or injury!!!"

"Every sport has inherent danger, and we try to minimize that as much as possible. Treat the Airsoft guns as if they were real guns. It can't be stated enough -- we do a lot of airsoft safety briefing," said Gerhart, who served in Iraq from January 2004 to May 2005.

"Players often have a greater respect for weapons safety after they handle Airsoft rifles," he said.=

Behind a large door is the close-quarter battlefield, crude plywood buildings with painted-on bricks or simply graffiti. The only illumination comes from Christmas lights lining parts of the buildings, casting an eerie glow on the entire scene.

As you walk, stray BBs from past battles are kicked up and sent scurrying across the floor.

"Players like it rough looking. They like it looking like a battlefield," Gerhart said. "This is the physical, real world version of a first-person shooter."

Renovations for a second arena in the basement are already underway, which will add about 500 square feet of new airsoft arena space. While the current upstairs arena can accommodate about 40-50 airsoft players at a time, the new addition will allow for a total of about 75-80 airsoft players.

The new arena, which will be connected to the upstairs arena, will be available to players in about a week, Gerhart said.

As word-of-mouth spreads and signs are posted around the city, more players are showing up each weekend. Pamula discovered Airsoft when a friend had a birthday party at the arena a few months ago. Now he's there most weekends.

"I tried it out and I loved it," he said. "It's just a lot of fun to play with your friends."

On a recent weekend, Pamula came with a group of about 20 people -- including his father, Jay Pamula, 36, who is quickly becoming a fan of the game.

The challenge and strategy needed to play the game -- which also can be used for military training -- adds a level of excitement that can't be found in a video game.

"It's not a game where you put in a quarter every time," Cody Pamula said. "With a video game, you're on your living room couch. Here you're moving, you're breathing heavy and diving around corners."

Although there are safety concerns with Airsoft, Jay Pamula said he likes the indoor setting that's closely monitored by employees.

"I'd rather him play here than on the streets or in the woods where no one is watching and keeping airsoft safety in mind," he said.

Jay Pamula, a staff sergeant with the U.S. Army Reserves, also served in Iraq. The combat style of Airsoft allows for a more realistic experience than paintball.

The biggest threats aren't the big and burly former servicemen in the arena. It's most likely Toby Charlton, a quick and slight 7-year-old who stands only a few feet tall.

His strategy: "Stay in one spot and shoot."

His brother, Tyler Charlton, 8, has the opposite approach: "I'm usually the one who goes 'Let's go, let's go!' You have to get them before they get you. It's really exciting."

Flushed from the excitement of a recent battle, Tyler already has made plans to come back for his birthday party on March 29.

Mistaken identity

2011-01-17T10:09:00.000-08:00

Toy guns can do a lot more than put out an eye, break the window of a home, ding up a car and freak out the neighbor's cats.
If your kid was gifted an airsoft gun over the holidays, beware before letting them head out the door to shoot at targets in suburbia.
"If it looks like a real weapon, don't use it out in public," Sgt. Pete Smith of the Stockton Police Department said of BB, airsoft, paint guns or other toy weapons that appear authentic. "Do not wield it as a hoax or a ruse. Don't flash it around like it's a real gun because if law enforcement comes on scene, we don't know right off the bat if it is a threat, and we would hate to see a tragedy occur."
Airsoft guns are growing in popularity.
Many models are clear plastic, camouflage or even pink. But a growing number of teens prefer the fiercer black airsoft guns that are replicates of actual firearms. Found at sporting goods outlets such as Bass Pro Shops, other big box stores and online, the toys are legal and propel little plastic neon-colored BBs. But when these airsoft guns eerily resemble weapons, it can lead to a 911 call.
A group of north Stockton teenage boys found this out on Veterans Day when they met up to go out to a deserted open space in the Delta and shoot their airsoft guns.
"One of the boys was spotted walking by a middle school dressed in a black trench coat with what looked like a real gun on his shoulder," said Russ Rieber, a dad whose son and friends learned a lesson that day after concerned passersby called 911. "The police came to our house where the boys were (meeting up) and it was quite a scare. One of the friends walked out the door with his airsoft gun in hand as the police were surrounding the house."
Local law enforcement officials say that in such situations they have no choice but to assume they are dealing with a real threat.
Rieber said police thought the toy gun was real and handcuffed the teen. The kids still inside the home were unaware that they had created a scare. They heard some noise and thought their friends were playing a trick on them. One of the boys walked out the front door with two toy pistols that resembled real handguns and yelled "freeze," according to Rieber. Quickly realizing what was going on, he complied with police demands to get on the ground.
"If it weren't for the professionalism of the Stockton PD, this story could have had a very tragic ending," Rieber said, adding that the group of teens ending up being handcuffed while police determined whether they were dealing with a legitimate threat. "After being lectured by the police, (they) learned that they can't walk around the neighborhood with toy guns that look real. They shouldn't even walk out the door with one in their hand."
The Riebers thought long and hard about banning the toys but decided to let their son continue to use his airsoft gun if he followed the advice police issued that day.
For Christmas, the Riebers gave the airsoft gun fans in their family duffel bags so the toy guns can be transported without drawing attention.
"When we get on the scene we will treat it like it's a real threat until we determine otherwise," Smith said of 911 calls police respond to that turn out to be kids playing with toy weapons. "There's a level of responsibility that comes with having a toy gun that looks real."
Smith advises that if the toy guns are realistic, play with them inside, in a private area or in an airsoft gun arena.
"Even driving, don't have it out on the seat of your car," he said. "If you are involved in a traffic stop, the officer could mistake your toy for a threat. Transport that in your trunk."
After learning their lesson, Reiber said the teenagers found out about an indoor airsoft gun arena on Eight Mile Road in Stockton where kids - and adults, too - have 60,000 square feet of space to team up and play search-and-rescue scenarios or even capture the flag. Now, they take the airsoft game inside.
The owner of CBQ City said he originally opened the arena several years ago to give law enforcement officers a place to train. In the past year, it has become popular with kids.
"Police would tell me that I should open it up to let kids and teens have a place to play," Joey Rubio of CBQ City said on a recent Sunday as the rat-tat-tat sounds of airsoft gun fire rattled around him. "They tell me that these guns get mistaken for actual weapons. They look so real that police can't tell right away that they are toys. Plus, you never know, bad guys could paint a real gun to look like a toy version."
Although most airsoft guns have neon-orange tips to differentiate them from the real thing, but some kids paint the tips black to make the guns look more authentic.
On this particular day, scores of camo-clad men, teenagers and even some young boys were shooting their airsoft guns in the warehouse, where there are barriers, wooden buildings, vehicles and other scene-staging structures to resemble an urban area.
"They are playing a scenario where they compete to find a downed pilot," Rubio said. "This is a safe environment. We check out everyone's gun. They have to be wearing the proper safety equipment. And we have referees to make sure no one gets hurt."
Andrew Rodriguez of Stockton watched his 11-year-old son Adrian take part in the action. As the referee signaled a lunch break, a beaming Adrian told his dad thanks.
"This is so fun," he said.
Rodriguez said there were a lot of kids Adrian's age participating that day.
"My son got his airsoft gun for Christmas. We didn't even realize this place was close to our home," Rodriguez said. "We went and watched one day just to check it out. Then we went and he took part. He said it was one of the most fun things he had ever done."
Rodriguez said his son's gun looks like the real thing.
"It might be OK to play with in your backyard, but it's just really unsafe to be out in the street with something like that," he said of the toy. "Even if it doesn't look real, it's just not smart. It's unsafe."
Rodriguez said his son will only be using his airsoft gun at an indoor airsoft arena such as CBQ City.
"It's a really cool place. It's safe and it's supervised," Rodriguez said, adding there is an extra bonus. "Plus, the kids are only shooting at people that are OK with getting hit by a plastic BB."
For parents who allow their kids to play with toy guns outside, Lodi Police Det. Eric Bradley has some advice.
"The first advice is to not have a realistic paint ball gun, BB gun or airsoft gun outside, period. But the second advice is that if you are living in a neighborhood and you are going to play with an airsoft gun, let the neighbors know what you are doing and let them know it's not a real gun," he said, adding that if there are other kids outside - even bystanders - everyone should be wearing protective eye gear. "It's a good idea to have some adult supervision so passersby know that it's kids out having fun with parents watching. And don't be playing with a real-looking toy gun at or near a school, ever."
Police said it's important to think about the consequences of playing with a realistic gun out in public.
"Obviously for our safety and the public safety, we have to treat it like a real dangerous weapon until we prove otherwise," Bradley said. "And that will always be our response."

Five ways to automatic expulsion

2011-01-17T00:03:00.000-08:00

Some offenses are an automatic out — the “big five,” Modesto City Schools administrators called them, dictated by state Education Code and listed in the Student Conduct Code:
• Possessing or furnishing a firearm (Airsoft guns considered firearms in this district)
• Brandishing a knife at a person
• Selling drugs
• Sexual assault
• Possession of explosives (not fireworks)
“Those are the kids you can’t have on your campus,” said Thor Harrison, director of education services grades 7-12.
“It’s very rare, very rare, that a gun shows up at a school,” said Modesto police Sgt. Jason Grogan, who supervises Modesto City Schools’ four campus officers. He said the one incident his officers recalled from last year involved a replica, an Airsoft gun, that the district categorized as a firearm. Regardless of their error, never bring Airsoft guns to school!
“Primarily, it’s knives,” said Grogan. He said there were also several criminal cases where baseball bats were considered weapons in recent years.
Knife sightings are partly a reflection of this area’s agricultural setting, Harrison said. Some students use them routinely on the farm and don’t think of them as weapons.
“They forget … I can’t have this tool at school,” Harrison said.

Oakhurst school incident puts focus on bullying

2011-01-15T10:59:00.000-08:00

OAKHURST -- The controversy over how a teacher and school officials dealt with an 8-year-old accused bully at Oakhurst Elementary School has cast a spotlight on a national problem.
Second-grade teacher Elaine Brown said she was forced to suspend the boy after school officials failed to act on repeated complaints. Among the allegations, said Brown: The boy told a classmate he was "going to bring a gun to school and shoot him."
District officials don't deny that bullying problems have occurred recently at the 334-student school. But they said Brown violated the boy's right to privacy by talking to other parents about the allegations. She was placed on paid administrative leave on Nov. 29.
Many in this small mountain community 45 miles north of Fresno have rallied to the teacher's defense. Nearly 100 people packed a special school board meeting Jan. 6 to talk about bullying and defend Brown.
The controversy has raised questions about how schools deal with bullies, especially when the accused is so young.Bullying
Heath Wood, a clinical psychologist with Soul Shoppe Inc., demonstrates feelings encountered when dealing with bullies during a presentation.Bullying
Teacher Elaine Brown, who was placed on administrative leave from Oakhurst Elementary School, bides her time at home, waiting for the outcome of a hearing. Among the charges against her was her refusal to take an 8-year-old suspended for bullying back into her second-grade classroom for the safety of the other children.Bullying
A sixth-grader offers emotional support to a friend during an emotionally powerful meeting about bullying experiences, held Thursday afternoon in a Wasuma Elementary School classroom.Bullying
Heath Wood, a clinical psychologist with Soul Shoppe Inc., talks to second-grade students at Wasuma Elementary School in Ahwahnee. Wood gave a presentation about bullying Thursday. An incident at Oakhurst Elementary has raised questions about how schools deal with bullies, especially when the accused is so young.Bullying
Second-grade students raise their hands during a presentation about bullying at Wasuma Elementary School.
The link between a victim and a bully
All threats need to be taken seriously, no matter the age, said Peter Sheras, professor of clinical and school psychology at the University of Virginia. Author of the book "Your Child: Bully or Victim?" he is associate director of the Virginia Youth Violence Project.
"Have 8-year-olds brought guns to school? Yes," Sheras said.
Sheras says almost every child has the potential to become a bully or victim. Often, they are one and the same, as victims sometimes turn to bullying.
"A child who bullies, bullies for a reason," he said. "There is no such thing as a born bully -- they learn this somewhere."
In Oakhurst, many think school officials could have avoided the current controversy with earlier action.
The father of the accused bully said his son's conduct has been misunderstood and that the boy -- himself a victim of bullying -- has been unfairly demonized.
Jeremy Mason said the family was blindsided by accusations that he said have been blown out of proportion. For example, one claim is that his son tried to choke another student; in reality, he simply pulled on the collar of a boy who had been taunting him, Mason said.
The reported gun threat referred to an Airsoft gun his son mentioned bringing for show-and-tell. Mason said his son was planning to buy the gun with $100 his mother promised him if he stayed out of trouble in school for two weeks. Similar to BB guns, Airsoft guns use lightweight plastic projectiles propelled by compressed gas or a spring-driven piston.
Mason said his son has been made out to be a monster, and he now fears for the boy's safety, because it seems as if the whole community has turned against him.
"I'm not saying he is completely innocent," Mason said. "But if he was such a problem, why didn't they address it earlier?"
Parents and experts suggest that bullying complaints need to be taken seriously and tackled early on before they get out of hand.
"You have to stop the behavior so it doesn't become part of their character," said Larry Powell, Fresno County schools superintendent. "When you spot something that is inappropriate behavior, you have to act immediately."
Measures being sought
Bullying is a significant problem in the nation's schools. About one in four students report they've been bullied, in many cases frequently, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The U.S. Department of Justice describes bullying as "aggressive behavior that is intentional (not accidental or done in fun) and that involves an imbalance of power or strength." It can take many forms including "hitting or punching, teasing or name-calling, intimidation through gestures and social exclusion."

May God spare this band of cousins

2011-01-01T09:49:00.000-08:00

Someone always fought his battles for him. Still are.

Father: Europe. U.S. Army Air Forces. Survived.
Dead now.

Father-in-law: The Pacific. U.S. Marine Corps. Survived.
Dead now.

Brother-in-law: Vietnam. U.S. Army. Survived.

And there have been so many more, those he knew or knows and mostly those he never knew or doesn't know.The man himself doesn't know the first thing about fighting a battle for himself, other than what he knows from the movies or miniseries or the books they were based on. And the news reports still coming in from the battles that are still being fought on his behalf. About four years ago, he didn't know how to fight an ersatz battle in the woods, an Airsoft game called “Capture the flag.”Two flags, two teams, two bases. From the official rules: “Each airsoft team is trying to retrieve the opposing team's flag and return it to their base without getting eliminated.”“Eliminated” means that you've been hit with a plastic airsoft BB bullet. Positions are assigned: attackers, guards, scouts. An airsfot player carrying the flag of his team who is “eliminated” must drop the flag immediately. Then someone else must fight the battle for him. What surprised the man wasn't the complexity of the game or its rigors. What surprised him was that his grandson, then about 12, knew how to fight a battle and knew how to command the old guy whom the boy called “Peepaw” when he was a lad of about 4, by which time he was already into weaponry — making his own if necessary. The man was on Ethan's team, paired against a team with two other grandsons. Each knew precisely what his role would be. They fought in a six-acre theater of war, on terrain as hilly as central Oklahoma can be, bulging with trees, some big enough to hide behind, to avoid “elimination.”Jacob and Andrew were on the enemy team. The man, Ethan's teammate, was in his early 50s. He didn't know what to do, where to be. Ethan did know and barked commands like E Company's Dick Winters. Dick Winters: U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division. Inspiration for “Band of Brothers.” Survived. Dead now, as of Jan. 2. These children were playing at war and playing to win. They anticipated the enemy's moves. They attacked when prudent and laid low when necessary. It was short, as battles go, and bloodless.Who won doesn't matter. What matters is what the man learned from it: That these boys have leadership skills he didn't know they had. That they have the instincts to survive a battle and also the guts not to run from one.This band of cousins gathered back at the house and the older two talked of real war and how they might one day have to fight in one. They knew the law would require them to register with Selective Service, just as the man himself had done when he turned 18 and there was a real draft and there was a real war. Ethan is 16 now, his passion for weaponry largely drummed out of him by a more recent interest in making music. Jacob is nearly 17, a year from his date with the draft board. He still enjoys playing at airsoft war and would probably make a good soldier.But may God spare all three of my grandsons from elimination while fighting a real battle on my behalf.

Four arrested in Broomfield bank robbery, suspected in 9 others

2010-12-29T08:54:00.000-08:00

FBI: '3-2-1 bandits' found with Airsoft pistols

By Erica Meltzer, Camera Staff Writer

Four people arrested in connection with the robbery of a Broomfield bank Tuesday night are suspected in as many as nine other bank robberies, according to an arrest affidavit.

The suspects, who displayed what looked to bank clerks like a semi-automatic handgun, were found with BB guns in their car.

An FBI spokesman said investigators believe some of the suspects are the "3-2-1 bandits" connected to robberies in Englewood and Aurora and may also have committed two bank robberies in Lafayette, including one earlier Tuesday night.

Those arrested are: Justin Ray Boykin, 26; Audra Boykin, 32; Christy Ann Hull, 28; and Eli Joseph Shortt, 29. The criminal complaint does not specify their towns of residence. Their mug shots were not released because they are being held in a federal facility, and the Justice Department has a policy of not releasing booking photographs.

According to the arrest affidavit made public Wednesday, Audra Boykin entered the TCF Bank, 4100 W. 144th Ave., around 6:35 p.m. Tuesday. She was wearing a black bandanna over her face, a black hoodie and sunglasses. She had what appeared to be a black semi-automatic handgun in her right hand and a white plastic bag in the other, the document said.

Boykin told the tellers, "You know what time it is," and handed the tellers the plastic bag, the affidavit said. Along with $1,418 in cash, the tellers included an electronic tracking device in the bag. Justin Boykin, who was serving as lookout, entered the bank, asked Audra Boykin if she was alright, and then they fled together on foot, according to the affidavit.

Using the tracking device, Broomfield police pulled over a Ford Windstar at Broadlands Lane and Lowell Boulevard. Hull was driving the car, Audra Boykin was in the front passenger seat and Justin Boykin was in the back, the FBI reported. The bag of money was clearly visible on the passenger-side floorboard, the affidavit said. Officers also found two Airsoft pistols under the front seats.

Hull later told investigators she served as a driver in four other bank robberies but did not participate in any of the planning for the robberies. The affidavit said she dropped off the Boykins and Shortt at the Broomfield TCF Bank on Tuesday night.

Audra Boykin told investigators that Shortt used his cell phone to give the Boykins updates on police presence. Shortt denied any involvement, as did Justin Boykin.

Audra Boykin told investigators she participated in nine other robberies in the Denver metro area with Justin Boykin, the affidavit said. According to the document, Audra Boykin told investigators she told Hull where to park, then she and Justin Boykin rode to the bank on bikes. They were trying to find Shortt on Tuesday night when police stopped them.

All four face federal charges of armed bank robbery and aiding and abetting. The charges carry a penalty of up to 25 years in prison.

FBI spokesman Dave Joly said investigators are reviewing pictures and videos from other bank robberies for connections to these suspects. They believe the Boykins may be the "3-2-1 bandits" suspected of robbing the Bellco Credit Union in Englewood and a Bank of the West location in Aurora earlier this month.

Investigators dubbed them the "3-2-1 bandits" because they were heard to say "3-2-1 go" to each other before one of the robberies.

Another TCF Bank at the corner of U.S. 287 and Baseline Road in Lafayette also was robbed Tuesday night around 6 p.m. According to police radio traffic, the suspects in that robbery were a man and a woman with bandannas over their faces. They fled on bicycles, as did the suspects in the robbery of a Lafayette Chase Bank branch earlier this month.

Joly said it's possible the same group carried out those robberies, but investigators are still reviewing the evidence.

AirSoft backer expands search for place for gunplay

2010-11-19T09:29:00.000-08:00

It looks like local entrepreneur Mike Darmody's dream of developing an eight-acre leased site for AirSoft war games in a San Clemente park isn't going to happen.
City parks commissioners declared it isn't an appropriate use of vacant land at Richard T. Steed Memorial Park. The commission's Nov. 9 opinion is to be forwarded to the City Council. Darmody says he won't pursue that proposal further. But he's not giving up.
AirSoft uses replica firearms shooting 6mm or 8mm plastic Airsoft rounds. A plan to set aside part of Richard T. Steed Memorial Park in San Clemente for AirSoft games was rejected by the city parks commission.
"We are pursuing options with much less red tape," Darmody said via e-mail. "The youth of San Clemente are playing AirSoft unsupervised in every street, back alley, empty lot or park they can – a lot like skateboarding 15 years ago. We are not down or out. We will do everything we can to find a safe place for the youth of San Clemente and surrounding areas to play AirSoft."
Darmody said he has no specific airsoft sites in mind but is prepared to look all over south Orange County. Darmody is a San Clemente resident who runs an online business, AirSoft GroundHard LLC, that sells replica airsoft guns and airsoft accessories suitable for airsoft games whose participants wear protective airsoft gear and simulate airsoft battle with small plastic airsoft rounds – sort of like paintball without the paint.

David Vs. Goliath - the anti-American actions of H&K against US toy companies

2010-11-10T09:45:00.000-08:00

ARCADIA, CA – November 3^rd 2010

There’s a strange game afoot with the venerable Heckler and Koch. In the past year, the German firearm company has been on a wholesale crusade to protect anything that even remotely resembles their line of products. The strange thing is that H&K isn’t going after another gun manufacturer copying their weapon designs. This isn’t corporate espionage, where blueprints are secreted away in the dead of night and briefcases are exchanged in airports and shady bars. The target in their crosshairs: toy stores and paintball shops. What makes the matter worse is that no law is actually being broken on the part of the defendants. The actions being taken by H&K can be considered Un-American, extortionist, and detrimental to these small businesses that and their hard earned profits, almost reminiscent of organized crime behavior consistent with RICO statutes.

Paintball guns are well known in this country, and in the past decade the sport of airsoft has been picking up steam in the US. Similar to paintball, airsoft guns are replicas made to look close to real firearms that fire large plastic BBs and are used for training, simulation, and play.

Airsoft has been a boon to local police departments, SWAT teams, and US military personnel for their ability to practice tactics, methods, and maneuvers in a safe yet realistic manner. “The worst that can happen with proper eye protection is a sting and red mark where one is hit,” says David Diblee, A former US Army soldier and two tour veteran of the Iraq War.

On Justia.com (a public listing of dockets and cases), one can find H&K as plaintiff in thirteen separate cases of trademark infringement against US companies, namely distributors of paintball and airsoft supplies. Representing H&K is Continental Enterprises, a company (not law firm) that specializes in intellectual property and trademark law. The sudden rush against the Airsoft industry is spearheaded by a Ms. Darlene Seymour Esq. , legal counsel to CE.

There’s a long established history about CE and their exploits. There’s the example of CE going as far as protecting the copyright of a local high school mascot (so even parents couldn’t print out fan t-shirts on game day), or sending a cease and desist letter to a beverage review website that was going to post a picture of the Monster Energy drink they were reviewing (Which clearly falls under fair use) There’s a website devoted to their less than stellar practices called the “Trademark Extortionists Hall of Shame”, where they colorfully describe CE’s “only source of income is trademark extortion.”

www.tabberone.com/Trademarks/. They make profit by latching onto the success of small American start-ups and entrepreneurs.

Trademark Protection or Trademark Extortion?

Companies like CE solicit a company with a well established brand. Representing said company, they scour for “trademark infringement” of a brand. They find would be offenders, and shotgun out cease and desist letters, demanding payment from the alleged infringers to avoid lawsuits. If the small company pays, CE splits this profit with the company they represent. For the branded company it’s no investment on their behalf, with nothing but profit to gain. This would be well in line with upholding copyright and trademark law, but in fact CE has little disregard to the letter of the law, and is twisting it into a form of predatory extortion.

This isn’t an isolated event, but rather a disturbing trend with large corporations and their intellectual property. In 2008 Professor Kenneth L. Port, of William Mitchell College of Law, wrote a paper titled Trademark Extortion: The End Of Trademark Law. In his paper he outlines the procedure and reason companies are bending their interpretation of copyright law.

“......Today, trademark holders are using this course of conduct to expand their trademark rights, not just to object to truly objectionable uses. That is, some trademark holders send thousands of cease and desist letters….. [these suits], if prosecuted to a trial on their merits, the trademark holder/plaintiff would likely lose because they are not always meritorious claims...Their objective is to raise the cost of market entrance or continuation for the competitor.”

The cost of “market entrance” for a competitor equates to astronomical legal fees for any small business willing to stand up to the funds, resources, and legal team on retainer for H&K. Raising the entry price to start one’s own business is the antithesis of the American dream.

CE sent out various cease and desist letters warning that they would file suit if these airsoft distributors didn’t pay a settlement fee and stop all sales of their products. They claimed H&K’s unalienable right to the iconic design and appearance of their line of products, such as the MP5, G36, USP series of weapons. Because these airsoft companies sold toys that resemble these weapons, they were damaging HK’s image and profiting from their hard earned design. This argument falls short on various grounds.

No Legal Footing

The most amazing thing is H&K’s hands are covered in blood from being disingenuous. In 2004 H&K was contracted by the US Delta Force to create a new weapons platform. They created the HK M4, which was a modified version of the Colt Armory’s iconic M4 rifle. They made some changes, such as the gas cycling system using a piston, and an elongated Picatinny rail for scopes and flashlights. However, everything else, from the trigger group, grip, receiver, stock, and bolt assembly, was a 1:1 scale copy of Colt’s design. Colt Armory filed suit on multiple grounds, claiming infringement upon the name “M4” and copyright of the design of the guns parts.

Colt lost the case. The only change they were able effect was to change the name from “HK M4” to “HK416”. H&K won, because the M4’s function dictates its appearance, and functionality does not claim uniqueness and protection under IP and copyright law. Just like something as a shovel or a toaster can’t be copyrighted, they are shaped around how they function.

Furthermore, Colt’s M4 and M16 have been around for the past 50 years, and that design has been used, copied, and interpreted by dozens of companies over the decades. The length of time on market and its ubiquity makes it public domain. The same exact thing has gone on with H&K’s weapons. The most well known of H&K’s line, the 40 year old MP5, is currently being copied and sold by 4 separate firearm manufacturers. GSG5 Arms, Vector Arms, Coharie Arms, Redrock Arms all make functioning firearm clones of the MP5. It’s common practice by gun companies to take what’s useful in a competitor and integrate if not copy the design wholesale. It strikes false when H&K and CE go after toy companies instead of real gun companies, who don’t even use the same mechanisms as firearms

One of airsoft companies that responded to my inquiries was Airsplat.com , the largest airsoft distributor in the United States. We asked them what the main components of an airsoft gun are. Their CEO Kenneth Woo, was able to lay it out, “you have three main components, the body (outer shell) , the gearbox, and the motor. The motor is the same kind you’ll find in an RC car, the gearbox functions under the same principles of compressed air, like foam dart guns. Nowhere do we use explosives to propel the bb like a real gun. It doesn’t make sense to be sued for copying a design when it’s just the shell that looks the same.”

Since airsoft replicas don’t even function the same way a real firearm does, it rests within the protection of parody and reference, and does not fall under the ‘trade dress ’ and ‘trade function’ argument that CE is accusing companies of.

For example, in another set of suits filed by CE, they represented Jack Daniel Inc. - makers of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whisky. They filed suit against t-shirt print shops and bumper sticker makers that parodied the Jack Daniel’s logo or referenced the Jack Daniel’s name. Most of these are small garage operations, who taking advantage of being able to easily cheaply sell online. Parody or reference is clearly protected under copyright law. The mom and pop shops that CE filed suit against weren’t doing anything illegal. This wide ranging and loose interpretation used by CE highlights their for-profit nature, scaring small business owners who might not know any better for the possibility of a payout.

Also, Airsoft and paintball manufacturers have been creating these similar looking items for past 20 years, with no prior legal action from H&K before Continental came into the picture. This falls under the legal doctrine of laches. According to Black’s Law Dictionary, Laches is to neglect to assert a right or claim after an unreasonable lapse of time, thus the plaintiff loses the right to pursue said claim because of negligence. It would be fair to assume that with airsoft guns, having been 20 years in the market, there was more than enough time for H&K to have taken action.

Goliath vs. David, Goliath can wait it out

When small companies are threatened by a huge corporation, it seems easier to pay off and back away out of fear of long drawn litigation, they often settle by paying the settlement amount. That’s what CE wants. However, there have been many right minded CEO’s and airsoft companies, who know their rights and are fighting back.

Even if airsoft/paintball companies fight, H&K knows that with their large legal stall on retainer, they can wait it out, it doesn’t even have to reach trial, and these small companies bleed dry by legal fees and long waiting periods.

For an example we go back to Airsplat.com and their CEO Kenneth Woo. While unable to give specifics of the proceedings, he was able to comment on the overall effect it’s had on his company. “We’re lucky we’re big enough to stand up to this kind of bullying. They have no real argument to win on, but the formality of legal proceedings and lawyer fees is hurting us when it shouldn’t occur at all. That’s the most egregious thing of this whole affair. A lot of the smaller airsoft startups here, aren’t going to do as well….they have a much larger monetary burden to bear for legal fees in relation to their earnings.” When asked about reaching a possible working settlement with CE, wherein AirSplat settles while still being able to sell their goods, Woo had this to say: “Listen, we’re not doing anything wrong. I started this company a decade ago from a one man operation and brought it up to a 40 employee staff; I earned every bit of it the American way, through hard work and persistence.”

It’s odd that H&K and CE go after toy companies - the distributors - rather than the actual manufacturers overseas. If they were truly protecting copyright and intellectual property, they would go to the source, but nowhere has there been any filing or claim made against manufacturers in Asia. Why? Large airsoft manufacturers have the monetary resources and lawyers to hold their own, they can defend themselves. Because of this, it would be too expensive for CE to even try, with little to no possibility of a payout for CE or H&K. In the end CE and H&K are going after American companies who make an honest living because they’re the easiest targets.

I myself am a firearm enthusiast, and I like to head out to the range every so often. I know all about how gun companies operate, and are “inspired” by each other’s designs. It only makes sense that good designs sell, which is why they’re constantly piggybacking on each other. But next time I go to a gun show, or flip through the newest issues of firearm magazines at the bookstore, I’ll pass over the H&K items. Tim Ellwood, blogger, law enforcement trainer, and one of the earliest proponents of airsoft in the US, explains how companies like H&K are undercutting a huge portion of their potential profits.

“To a lot of airsofters, this is the way they are learning about what they like to use. When they reach 21 and buy their ‘Real Steel’ guns they will have already made up their minds and buy what they have been collecting and using for years.
It is impossible to buy that kind of brand loyalty, no matter how much you spend on advertising. On the same page though, brands that go out of their way to target these potential buyers and their sport [negatively], will be remembered when the time comes for money to be spent.”

Ideas should and will be protected, but Intellectual property in and of itself cannot be wielded as a weapon against other entrepreneurs in the manner that H&K has in their partnership with CE.

Teen turns backyard into war zone for airsoft guns

2010-11-09T11:03:00.000-08:00

NATCHEZ — When Dale and Renee Henderson moved to their Horseshoe Drive house nearly 20 years ago, they never thought it would eventually be a war zone.

But when The Dart landed at the Henderson’s house, a quick tour of the backyard revealed a permanent protection wall, wood pallets used to construct temporary fortifications and bullets scattered across the lawn.

The Henderson aren’t alarmed though. The forts were their idea and the bullets are pellets from their son Dustin’s Airsoft gun.

Dustin, 13, and many of the neighborhood boys have taken over the Henderson’s backyard as their Airsoft battle field.

“On Saturdays there are at least five boys here, and they stage Airsoft wars every weekend,” Renee said. “They really get into it.”

With faces protected by safety goggles and paint ball masks and arms covered in long-sleeves and coats, the boys take sides and take aim against each other. Each Airsoft soldier gets three lives, and more if they can convince the opposing side they weren’t actually hit, Dustin said.

The guns fire up to 1,200 round, plastic pellets per minute, Dustin said. Those pellets can fly as far as 400 feet.

“It isn’t cheap,” Renee said. “The guns can cost as much as $120 when you order them, and we probably buy the bb's once a week.

“We do it because when the boys are here, we know what they are doing. They are having good fun.”

The guns sound remarkably real, but Dustin ensures that the only injuries he has sustained are small scrapes and maybe a bruise or two.

“It doesn’t hurt when you get hit, that bad,” he said. “Well, you get used to it.”

Dustin, a seventh-grader at Adams County Christian School, said he likes the excitement the airsoft games offer. He said standing behind the green and brown fort in his backyard, aiming at the enemy with his electric rifle gets his heart pumping.

“We just have fun,” he said. “It doesn’t really matter who wins. We just like doing it.”

For Renee, she just stands back, watches her son and his friends and worries just a bit.

“It sounds bad,” she said. “For Dustin, nothing too safe is fun. I stay inside and watch them.”

But standing back and observing isn’t for her husband, Renee said.

She said, if Dustin is into something, Dale does what he can to help.

“When Dustin was into skateboarding, they built a ramp,” Renee said. “When Dustin got into the Airsoft, Dale and Dustin built that fort.

“Dale does whatever he can to be involved with Dustin.”

Even if that means dodging flying projectiles, Renee said.

“He’s pretty much our world,” she said. “He’s a good kid, and has good friends. We love having them all here.”

Fourth grader brings airsoft gun to school

2010-11-01T10:29:00.000-07:00

A fourth grade student was removed from class Thursday morning at Oak Hill Elementary after bringing an airsoft pellet gun and pellets to class.
According to Newton County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Lt. Tyrone Oliver, the student brought the gun and showed it to another child in the class. That child told the teacher, who confiscated the gun and removed the boy from class. Oliver said that the boy told investigators that he intended to play with the airsoft gun after school and had no intention of harming anyone.
“The preliminary investigation is that it wasn’t brought to harm anyone and it isn’t a real gun,” said Oliver. “We have not brought charges against him, I am unsure as to what the school system will do.”
A comment from Sherri Davis-Viniard, director of public relations for the Newton County School System, says “the school system is following the procedures listed in the district’s elementary school student handbook.”
The handbook section on weapons reads, in part, “A student shall not supply, possess, handle, use, threaten to use, or transmit any weapon or any other tool or instrument capable of influencing bodily injury and intended for use as a weapon, in a school safety zone, at a school building, school function, or on school property or on a bus or other transportation furnished by the school.” Part of the description on what are considered weapons includes pellet guns, look-alike firearms, or any weapon designated or intended to propel a missile of any kind, whether loaded or unloaded.
According to the handbook, “Any student bringing a gun (including a firearm as defined by federal law) or airsoft gun onto school property shall be referred to the Disciplinary Hearing Officer(s). If the Hearing Officer(s) determines that the student did possess a gun on school grounds, the student shall be suspended for not less than one year.”

Second shooting at Jutland school

2010-11-01T10:25:00.000-07:00

Several young students at Vestervang School in the Jutland town of Viborg were able to provide witness accounts of a man they say shot an airsoft pistol toward the school building today, reports Viborg Folkeblad newspaper.
The incident is the second in two weeks were shots were fired at the school from a local path that goes through the school grounds. On 17 October, a six-year-old at the school was shot in the knee and had to have the airsoft pellet surgically removed.
This time, however, several students got a good look at the man, according to officer John Andersen of Viborg Police.
‘The kids are only 6 to 9 years old, but they gave very detailed descriptions of the shooter,’ he said.
Andersen said the suspect is likely a thin, young man who today was wearing a black hooded-sweatshirt with a white logo on the front. The hood was pulled tightly around the man’s head, however, so the children could not clearly see his face.
The students added the suspect wore blue jeans, had a blue and yellow wristband and wore white sneakers.
School authorities said they were closely monitoring the grounds and advised students to take extra care when coming to and leaving the school.

Should OP girl be suspended over toy gun incident?

2010-10-28T11:22:00.000-07:00

An Overland Park girl has been suspended until January because she reportedly shot a boy with an Airsoft gun while they were playing on a school playground, though it was on a Sunday. (The incident led to a police report, though the boy's parents let the matter drop.) The school district isn't saying much beyond noting that its no-weapons-on-school-grounds is very clear.

Man charged with shooting son with BB gun

2010-10-28T10:21:00.000-07:00

A Tuscaloosa County man was arrested Wednesday after he allegedly punished his 8-year-old son by shooting his buttocks with a BB gun.
A school official at Lakeview Elementary School contacted officials after the boy reported the abuse last week, said Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. John Barker.
The child had several marks on his buttocks and upper thighs, he said. Some of the BBs had broken his skin.
Sheriff Ted Sexton arrested Lewis Terrence Brown Jr., 28, on Wednesday and charged him with torture and willful abuse of a child. He was released from the Tuscaloosa County Jail on $15,000 bail.
Investigators discovered that Lewis used an Airsoft gun that fires plastic BBs, Barker said. He had used the gun occasionally to punish his son.
“This is clearly willful abuse in my opinion. I appreciate the partnership between the county school system, DHR and the Sheriff's Office to bring this case forward for prosecution” said Sheriff Ted Sexton.

WestConn student issued summons in alleged AirSoft pistol incident

2010-10-27T14:18:00.000-07:00

DANBURY -- University police issued a misdemeanor summons to a Western Connecticut State University student after he reportedly shot someone with an AirSoft pistol Tuesday on the midtown campus.
According to police, they received a report Tuesday at 5:23 p.m. to go to the midtown Student Center where a female allegedly had been shot with an airsoft BB gun.
Police said officers checked the area but found no suspect or victim. WestConn dispatch then reported that the alleged victim was at police headquarters, police said.
The woman reportedly told police she had been shot on the inner left thigh by what she believed to be an AirSoft pistol but reported she sustained no serious injury, just a small bruise to the left inner thigh left by an Airsoft BB, according to police.
Police said an investigation revealed that the alleged shooter was Newbury Hall resident Janzen Glahn-Janatka, and that an officer responded to Newbury Hall and seized an AirSoft pistol.
Glahn-Janatka was issued a misdemeanor summons for second-degree breach of the peace and carrying/brandishing a facsimile firearm.
He was released on a promise to appear and given a court date of Nov. 4.

The Academy Airsoft Facility to Become Maze of Spooky Delights

2010-10-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

The Academy, a state-of-the-art firearms training center and Airsoft field that features the Coachella Valley’s only indoor shooting range, is converting its Airsoft and Tactical Training Center into a Haunted House from October 27-31st, with proceeds donated to the Drama Department at Coachella Valley High School and the Coachella Valley Latino Peace Officers’ Association (CVLPOA).
“We’re using a fog machine that will give our facility the look and feel of 19th century London,” says David Chandler, President & CEO of The Academy. “The students in the Drama Department are very excited to decorate and staff the Haunted House, which will have everything from skeletons to an operating room. We’re happy to provide these organizations with a fun way to raise some much-needed funds for their programs.”
Here are the hours and prices for the haunted house.
Hours:
October 27-28: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
October 29: 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
October 30: 12:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
October 31: 12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Prices:
11 and Under = $4
12 and Older = $6
55 and Older = $5
Patrons are encouraged to come in costume.
“Our continued success would not be possible without the support of agencies like The Academy,” says Manuel Lopez, CVLPOA President. “We are able to provide thousands of dollars in student scholarships each year, and are proud to play an active role in the local community.”
The CVLPOA was formed in the late 1980’s and sponsors, supports, and volunteers at numerous community service programs. The organization presents annual awards and student college scholarships, and its members consist of peace officers, retired peace officers, law enforcement personnel and associate members in related fields.
The Academy is located at 38-698 El Viento Road, just north of Interstate 10. The 40,000 square foot facility features 14 indoor firing lanes, a tactical training center, youth programs, self-defense classes and security guard and taser training. Firearms, rentals, uniforms and accessories are available for purchase. Airsoft is an activity where participants work in a simulated urban environment, using replica firearms to shoot plastic pellets for purposes of recreation, teambuilding and training.

Air rifle owners will need licence

2010-10-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

Powerful pre-charged air rifles will be treated as firearms from Friday, requiring a firearms license for their possession. Police say they will take an educative approach on the law change initially and owners will have a three-month grace period (until January 2011) in which to obtain a firearms license or dispose of the weapon by selling it to a licensed person or surrendering it to the police. Airsoft (which fired plastic bullets) and paintball guns were excluded from the law change. Current legislation in NZ is that you must be 16 years and over and have a A-category firearms license to own an airsoft gun, or be 18 years and over. Napier police firearms officer Dennis Hurworth has called for owners of all categories of air guns to act responsibly or they placed themselves in danger from armed police."For Armed Offenders Squad members the law change will make no difference to call-outs," he said."All situations are treated the same until a weapon can be ascertained as to whether or not it posed a threat."On Friday a 25-year-old man, arrested in Napier after an Armed Offenders Squad mobilisation, was found to be in possession of an air gun of the same potency as that used to murder a police officer in Auckland in 2008. In 2007 a seven-year-old Napier girl narrowly escaped death when a .22 calibre bullet from an air rifle lodged in her brain after her father recklessly discharged the weapon.

Contradictions in debate over carrying guns

2010-10-18T14:14:00.000-07:00

t soon will be illegal in South Portland to carry a pellet gun, airsoft gun, slingshot or bow and arrow in public.
It will, however, be perfectly legal to carry a handgun in a holster or rifle slung over your shoulder.
Does this make any sense?
The South Portland City Council voted 6-1 last week to ban those far less lethal weapons at the urging of police Chief Edward Googins, who said the move was necessary to protect the community from "those who are acting unreasonably."
Googins, according to the Southern Forecaster newspaper, says the department has received calls about men in masks with guns, likely involved in airsoft war games with nonlethal airsoft guns. These are replica weapons that fire plastic airsoft BB pellets.
Which begs the question: How can a person carrying an airsoft gun in a public place be acting unreasonably when a person carrying a Colt .45 is not?
The new ordinance also comes on the heels of several recent open-carry events in Portland. These involved people with guns, but without the masks, simply making the point that they can carry their guns just about anywhere they like.
As we have pointed out in the past, just because you can do something doesn't always mean you should.
It is, indeed, legal for people in Maine to openly carry a gun. And nobody thinks twice about this when they see two hunters walking down a rural road with shotguns over their shoulders.
However, the same two men might cause a considerable panic if they strolled into the food court at the Maine Mall.
The chief had actually asked for a complete ban on pellet guns, slingshots, even on private property. The council thought otherwise, still allowing people to use pellet guns there.
The lone opponent to the new ordinance was Councilor Tom Blake, who argued that the city is over-regulating its residents. Blake did not believe the volume of police calls justified the ordinance.
"We're creating a regulation for a problem that doesn't exist," he said.
People with pellet guns, slingshots and bows and arrows do not belong in public areas or even in heavily used urban parks.
If they do not, then why do we think people bearing rifles and handguns do?
The Portland City Council's Public Safety Committee, meanwhile, voted Tuesday to recommend that the council seek legislation barring guns from public buildings.
Councilor Dan Skolnik, who proposed the measure, would like to ban guns from places like City Hall, Merrill Auditorium and the Cumberland County Civic Center.
Guns are already prohibited in schools and in the State House in Augusta.
"Guns in City Hall detract from an atmosphere of democracy," the Portland Press Herald quoted Cathie Whittenburg of Portland as telling the committee. "Guns introduce an element of intimidation that is contrary to the open exchange of debate on controversial topics."
Public meetings do get heated at times. Members of the public have even been removed from meetings for threatening behavior.
Who would feel comfortable sitting on a city council while being screamed at by a man bearing a gun?
Perhaps it is time for the Legislature to rule on whether guns should be allowed in government buildings.
After all, if legislators feel the need to ban guns in their workplace, why should guns be allowed in Portland City Hall?

Another Proposed Law to Ban Carrying Airsoft Guns in the Philippines

2010-10-13T14:26:00.000-07:00

Philippine Airsoft Players really are having a bad year. They are prevented carrying airsoft guns to their game sites during the last national elections, now the ongoing campaign for the village and youth council elections, and soon they will have to face the prospect of not being able to play airsoft at all with a law being proposed by people's organisations in that country.
Mainly-led by Catholic Church-influenced organisations, this group is using the country's unique "indirect initiative" where they can directly draft a bill and have it tabled for debate by the Philippine Congress and have it approved to be signed into law. The justification for this proposed law is the proliferation of illegal firearms in the country used by private armies owned by politicians and criminals. The gun ban during elections this year have drastically reduced the number of crimes in the country and the groups advocating for stricter gun regulations have gone to high gear elated by the results of the election gun ban.
While it is understood that such regulation would control the proliferation of dangerous weapons used in crimes, the sweeping proposal also covers airsoft and other replica firearms as stated in Section 3 of the proposed law, called Citizen's Protection Act of 2010. According to the Bill... "Only the following persons who are in the regular plantilla of the PNP or AFP or other law enforcement agencies are authorized to bear, carry or transport firearms or other deadly weapons in public places." Licenced firearms of private citizens should be left at home.
In interviews with the news media, the proponents say that sports shooters can carry their firearms to shooting ranges. The President of the Philippines, Nonoy Aquino Jr., is a gun enthusiast himself and thus can carry firearms only for the purpose of bringing it to a shooting range. But going over the Bill, there is no provision whatsoever regarding such assurance for those who use firearms and replica weapons for sporting purposes. However, a law that gets approved in the Philippines needs Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), which then may define how firearms are to be transported through the issuance of "permits to carry".
Philippine airsoft players already enjoy such privilege through the Philippine National Police Circular No. 11 ("Revised Rules and regulations governing the manufacture, importation, exportation, sale, possession, carrying of airsoft rifles/pistols and operation of airsoft game sites and airsoft teams"). However, since its an IRR, it may be overturned as the PNP will need to issue another circular as based on the Citizens Protection Act 2010, if it does get approved to be a law.
There's an ongoing friction between the Roman Catholic Church and the Philippine President over birth control, and this proposed law might just worsen that friction as the President himself is a gun enthusiast. The proposed law is actually a rehash of the proposed gun ban law in the early 1990s, during the time of the President's mother, Corazon Aquino, which never prospered.
However, airsoft players and responsible gun enthusiasts should not be complacent. The first thing that they need to do is to dialogue with the proponents to clarify what they mean by sports shooters being able to carry their firearms from home to the shooting/gaming areas. Transporting weapons, even if concealed, from one point to another, for legitimate purposes, would still cover "public areas", especially for players who use public transportation to get to game areas. Those who travel by car would be safe as cars are considered private property.
But then, the proposed law is not explicit on their explanation of allowing licenced owners to carry their registered weapons to shooting/gaming areas. If the text is loud and clear, then there might not be something for enthusiasts to be alarmed about and they may just support the proposed law in the name crime prevention.
You can read the proposed law by downloading the "THE CITIZEN PROTECTION ACT OF 2010."

Shootout training prepares campus for the worst

2010-10-12T14:44:00.001-07:00

The question of how San Diego community colleges would respond to a potential school shooting has been thoroughly considered by the administrative and protective services of all three of San Diego's district colleges. With the average response time to most emergency scenarios being five minutes or more, it is a difficult subject for police to address. But some distinguished district officers have come up with an interesting solution to keep costs down, and police training up, by utilizing what some would call a popular kids game; Airsoft. Richard Ferrell, Police Officer and Firearms Instructor for the San Diego Community College Police Department since 2000, has stated that the SDCCPD has conducted mandatory school shooting trainings every six months paid for by the department since 2005. Known as "Active Shooter" trainings, these include 10-30 volunteer 'civilians', visual effects, professional audio equipment, true-to-life 'Airsoft' weaponry, and officers charged with the task of moving through the campus securing frightened students and mainly, eliminating those who are actively killing. They usually occur during the weekends when campuses are empty, and declare the area off limits using police tape.Shootings are a tricky issue because of the time gap between when the shooting starts and when officers arrive. Kristen Gelineau of the Associated Press has said, "Virginia Tech and city police spent three minutes dashing across campus to the scene and broke into the chained-shut building, which took another five minutes." According to several reports, most of the students who died at Virginia Tech died within those first several minutes.When asked about the time gap, Officer Ferrell said, "That gap in time is addressed in all of our trainings. We address breaching techniques and knowing the layout."Ferrell also mentioned how trainings cycle between all four of San Diego's community college campuses so they can stay up to date on the changing landscape as construction progresses to keep response time minimal."We do not wait for help, we do not wait for cover, that's how important this is to us. There are always police officers on all of our campuses," Ferrell said.He also mentioned a new initiative that the Firearms Tactics Unit, consisting of six distinguished SDCCPD personnel who have been working on pioneering as a public awareness campaign that is being shared with the SDCC staff."We have just started educating the leaders of each educational institution because those are the people that students will be in contact with," said Ferrell.If the county promotes the program, we could see teachers being trained by law enforcement on how to respond in a life-threatening situation, and some say that's just the solution that we need.Linda Farnan, a personal instructor of self-defense and the Co-Director of the Mesa Speech and Debate Team advocates training for teachers, saying that "Installing (training) programs is necessary if we truly want to prevent deaths from not just school shootings, but any disaster scenario.""This initial response is what needs to be trained," Farnan said. It isn't arguable that the police trainings are pivotal to student safety, and this highlight calls attention to the student's behavioral role that results in the deaths that occur during a shooting scenario.Mesa College student Andrew Smith, an anthropology major, said that if he heard muffled pops followed by screams on campus and didn't know what was happening, he very well might respond by investigating which could be dangerous."I would probably stop and look," Smith said.And Christian Alvarado; a biology major on campus, when asked if he knew what a gun sounded like, said he had only heard one gunshot in his life.This poses the question of who should be receiving the training, the teachers or the students?And Kim Gerhardt, Co-Director of Forensics and professor at Mesa College says, "We are the front line between the gunman and the students."Officer Ferrell agreed that gunshots can be difficult to identify depending on the location, surroundings, and environment, "We do exercises to train officers on hearing gunshots. It's difficult to identify if they're coming from inside or outside." Ferrell said.It's training programs like Officer Ferrell's and the Firearms Tactics Unit's public awareness initiative that are being looked at as effective safeguards worthy of financial investment.Being on duty during the time of the interview, Ferrell said if he heard a gunshot he would not be afraid to put himself in harm's way.But without taxpayer dollars, not even the training that's happening today would be possible.Robert Paul Frigerio, a volunteer coordinator for 858airsoft, one of San Diego's biggest Airsoft communities and a participant in the Active Shooter trainings says paying for the whole program is pivotal."What it really comes down to is funding. Since Active Shooter does not yet have a prescribed and established funding technique, the department has an issue with who it sends its funds to."Frigerio continued by advocating for Airsoft as a way to keep costs down over other department standards."The Airsoft way is financially more viable. Even using blanks in a real weapon is much more expensive."And that's something that Officer Ferrell was happy to put his name behind,He described one of the districts current standards, 'simmunitions'."Simmunitons are actual bullets with the metal tips replaced by a small plastic paint filled capsules and officers use actual firearms during simulation. The bullets are about $2.50 cents a round and we use roughly 2,500 rounds in a training course."That's $6,250 per training spent on ammunition alone.Officer Ferrell then expressed his approval of Airsoft as a new department standard, saying "The initial cost for training with Airsoft equipment is probably around $15,000, then $100-$200 annually for ammunition and upkeep. Airsoft is chump change compared to everything else."With San Diego's huge budget deficit and the crippled United States economy, it will be interesting to see where the city decides to send its taxpayer dollars.If you're interested in finding out more information or becoming part of the program as a volunteer, contact Officer Ferrell at rferrell@sdccd.edu or visit the forum at 858airsoft.com.According to Rob Frigerio, "We are always looking for volunteers."

It’s kids’ play at the bi-annual Knob Creek shoot in Kentucky

2010-10-12T14:34:00.000-07:00

BULLITT County, Ky. – The machine gun shoot this weekend isn’t all about the adults — there’s really fun for the whole family. Apart from the live music and cotton candy, there were plenty of pint-sized weapons and toys for the kids (or more squeamish adults).
There were blowguns and mini cross bows. And then there were the airsoft guns.
Airsoft guns have been criticized in the past few years for their incredible likeness to real thing, except of course, the bright orange tip.The toy gun shoots a hollow, plastic pellets. Operating usually with a spring mechanism or a battery powered source, the guns are pretty fun toy.
Airsoft designers have taken pains to make the replicas as varied and detailed as the real thing. You can find a toy M4 3181 Rifle with a grenade launcher, a bolt-action sniper and a tactical M515 pump action shotgun. Wooho!
So while other merchants totted heavy artillery and state-of-the-art firepower, one merchant at the machine gun shoot dealt in plastics.

Youth busted for shooting fake gun near school

2010-09-22T10:02:00.000-07:00

Brandishing replica weapons can have dire consequences, including death, because they look very similar to the real deal. In August, a man was shot and killed in Colorado by Denver officers after brandishing a replica airsoft handgun.A Safford juvenile was referred to juvenile probation for disorderly conduct Sept. 16 after admitting to shooting an airsoft rifle near the Safford High School tennis courts. Airsoft guns are typically replicas of real firearms and are either spring-powered BB guns, electric-powered machine guns or gas powered. Airsoft guns are designed to look very realistic and can shoot small plastic pellets up to a range of 25 to 100 meters at speeds of about 75 to 150 meters per second.
The Airsoft gun, top, and the police rifle are similar enough to be mistaken for each other.

Safford Police were called to the school after an employee saw the juvenile shooting the gun. The airsoft weapon was located in the back seat of the juvenile's vehicle, but nobody was in the immediate area.The owner of the vehicle later approached the officer and admitted to firing the replica airsoft weapon.The juvenile said he was shooting the gun in the dirt because it was jammed and not working properly. He said it was his friend's gun and was given to him to paint.The juvenile was referred to juvenile probation for disorderly conduct for disturbing the peace of the employee who reported it and believed it was a real gun.Safford Police Chief John Griffin said officers and civilian gun owners probably would not be able to tell the difference between a replica airsoft weapon and a real weapon, especially in the heat of the moment."(That) could make someone pointing it at the wrong person very dead," Griffin said.

Boys accused in bike path shootings

2010-08-27T10:04:00.000-07:00

Two Blaine County 11-year-old boys might be in trouble with the law for allegedly firing airsoft guns at people using the Wood River Trail bike path north of Hailey.
The Blaine County Sheriff's Office investigated the seemingly random shootings after receiving a complaint in the Cloverly Lane area on the afternoon of Monday, Sept. 13.
Sheriff's Lt. Jay Davis said the boys are accused of "shooting at people going by on the bike path." At least one woman was struck by a plastic airsoft BB fired from one of the airsoft guns.
Davis said Monday that it hasn't been determined if the boys will be charged with a crime, though information from the investigation has been forwarded to the Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

"The parents and victims have discussed it, but we don't know if it's going to be pursued," Davis said.
Airsoft guns are replicas of real firearms that use compressed air or springs to shoot plastic pellets or BBs.
Davis said the sheriff's office and other police agencies commonly use airsoft guns in training exercises.
"You can feel it if you get hit, but they don't hit hard enough to leave a bruise," Davis said. "I guess if you had it pumped up enough it would sting a little."

New indoor airsoft facility allows participants to safely engage in combat

2010-08-09T11:00:00.000-07:00

Wearing a camouflage uniform, Charlie Graham crouched down and aimed his weapon through a small window. Then he opened fire.
But the U.S. Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan was far from danger — as were his targets.
Graham, manager of the Tactical Training Center at The Academy, wasn't firing bullets.
Instead, he shot small plastic airsoft pellets at his colleagues from the firing range as he demonstrated The Academy's new airsoft facility near Palm Desert, which opens today.
“This is kind of like a big playhouse for me,” Graham said.
The 18,000-square-foot airsoft facility is the valley's only indoor range dedicated to airsoft weapons, which are realistic replicas that don't shoot lethal ammunition.
“It's actually weight, shape, size and function identical to what the Navy uses,” Richard Martin, director of the Airsoft Tactical Training Center, said while holding one of the airsoft guns.
“We're going to provide these to law enforcement as well as civilians so they can actually use airsoft replica guns as similar training weapons.”
Because airsoft weapons are so similar to the weapons they're modeled after, they're marked with blue tape and the federally required orange tip, he said.
Participants also are required to wear airsoft safety gear because the pellets can sting or even chip a tooth on a direct hit, Martin said.
One side of the facility is a maze that can accommodate recreational airsoft users, team building activities and training exercises.
“It gives kids something to do,” Martin said. “A lot of kids own airsoft weapons, and they have no place to play.”
The other side of the facility is set up like a house and is designed for law enforcement training. It's outfitted with moving targets and can also provide other challenges to training officials, Graham said.
“We have fog machines that blow smoke in here and we have the ability to provide an intense amount of background noise,” he said. “We try to make these scenarios as realistic as possible.”
David Snellings, The Academy's commander of operations, spoke highly of the experience after suiting up and testing out the new facility Friday.
“It felt you were in combat. At times, I felt like I had to defend my life,” he said as blood trickled down his cheek. He didn't wear a full face mask, which isn't required, but recommended.
“I got pelted a few times, but again, I didn't start to feel the pain until everything was over with. Survival mode kicked in, and that's what it's about.”

Windows shot out

2010-07-27T15:37:00.000-07:00

About 20 vehicles in the Crescentwood and River Heights areas had their windows shot out by someone armed with a pellet or airsoft gun Sunday night, police say.
No injuries were reported and no one has been arrested.
The vandalism occurred on Corydon, Grosvenor and Kingsway avenues about 10 p.m., police said. Someone called police upon hearing the sound of gunshots.
It’s believed the suspect or suspects were in a vehicle when the shots were fired. Police didn’t release a description of the vehicle or its occupants.
Police are looking for witnesses. Anyone with information about the incident or suspects is asked to call the Division 16 crime unit at 986-2877 or Crime Stoppers at 786-8477.

TOO REAL LOOKING

2010-07-27T15:32:00.000-07:00

On June 11, a Sherwood Family YMCA employee called police to report a teen pointing a gun at people in the facility’s lower parking lot. Less than 10 minutes later, three Sherwood police officers, a Tualatin officer, two King City officers and a Washington County sheriff’s deputy headed toward the teen, a patrol car leading the way down the street followed by the officers who had shields, hand guns, beanbag weapons and rifles drawn.
A moment later, Nick Dailey, a 16-year-old Sherwood High School student, and seven of his friends were lying face down on the ground, handcuffed.
What police didn’t know was that Dailey’s weapon was actually an airsoft pistol, a replica of a handgun that shoots hard 6mm plastic pellets instead of bullets. After confirming that the gun wasn’t real, Nick and his friends were quickly released.
However, the incident illustrates a growing problem among local law enforcement officers: Airsoft weapons look real with the exception of an orange tip that can easily be removed or altered to resemble a real gun.
That’s something that worries Walina Dailey, Nick’s mother, who fears that a situation could turn out tragic if police think a teen has a real weapon.
“That’s my biggest concern,” said Dailey, adding that her son never pointed the gun at any of the other teens that night.
Incident was unusual
“The mere fact of owning (an airsoft gun) is not a crime or against our city ordinance,” said Hanlon. He added, however, that it is against the law to fire such a weapon within Sherwood city limits.
Although the majority of Nick’s airsoft gun was transparent, police say they can’t take any chances in assuming it’s a toy gun, pointing out that more and more components of handguns are being constructed with clear polymer plastics.
Hanlon noted that at least one airsoft gun police have previously come across, looks identical to the MP5 weapons Sherwood police formerly carried in their patrol vehicles.
Even the weight of the airsoft products are similar, said Hanlon. That makes police treat such situations as if they’re dealing with someone holding a real weapon.
“A gun is a gun even if it’s fake,” Hanlon pointed out.
While the YMCA encounter was a rare incident, police say the approach was necessary because they didn’t know whether or not they were dealing with a real weapon.
What made it more confusing was that it was a third party calling in the information with the call coming in as “a possible shooter,” causing more concern than normal.

Plea deal reached over robbery charge

2010-07-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

WOODSTOCK - A 20-year-old Cary man accused of trying to steal marijuana and money during a drug deal accepted a negotiated plea today. Erick Blanco, of 750 Blazing Star Trail, pleaded guilty to felony criminal damage to property in exchange for prosecutors dropping a more serious charge of attempted aggravated robbery. Blanco admitted to breaking the rear driver’s side window of a vehicle and was ordered to pay the car’s owner $410.As part of the agreement, McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather sentenced him to two years of probation, 30 days in jail, a $500 fine and 50 hours of community service. He also was ordered to complete any drug and alcohol counseling recommended after an evaluation and to pass at least 10 urine tests while on probation.Police had said Blanco came from behind a bush with an Airsoft gun and approached two people involved in a drug deal in June 2009, at 2709 Crystal Lake Ave. in Cary. He tried to take about 8 ounces of marijuana and less than $300 cash, police said shortly after his arrest.The more serious charge he originally faced was a Class 2 felony, which typically is punishable with probation or up to seven years in prison.

War games centre plan gets council approval

2010-07-27T09:58:00.000-07:00

PLANS for a war games centre have been given the go-ahead by planning chiefs despite objections from nearby residents.
Airsoft Skirmish CentreEast Staffordshire Borough Council’s planning committee passed the application for the Airsoft Skirmish Centre at the former barracks, in Stubby Lane, Marchington, by a majority vote of eight.
The decision on the application, submitted by Shawn Sowter, has been a long time coming after it was submitted in December.
It went before the committee in March but the decision was deferred after it was decided that more information was needed on the noise impact.
In April the application was withdrawn following concerns over the impact on protected species in the area, chiefly bats.
Speaking at the meeting, Ms S Fulford asked the committee not to accept the plans saying she was speaking on behalf of all the residents as there was no independent noise survey carried out.
As well as concerns about noise, she also spoke about protected species living on the site.
Ms Jillian Peto also told the meeting that the plans were totally inappropriate for the area and said that residents’ human rights had to be taken into consideration. She said that vandalism on the site had been exaggerated to support the application.
Mr A Rice, the agent for the applicant, said no further delays would be accepted as his client had agreed to ‘a number of compromises’.
He said that the council’s experts had accepted the plans and had said it would be unreasonable to object on the grounds of noise.
Councillor Robert Hardwick expressed concerns about barn owls and great crested newts that could be living on the site.
Other councillors were also concerned for wildlife living on the site and the impact on neighbours.
Councillor Trevor Hathaway said the games centre would only be used 28 days of the year, which worked out at one day a fortnight, between 10am and 6pm.
Therefore, he said it would not be that much of a disruption to the wildlife and the noise was not excessive.
Councillor David Brookes, chairman of the meeting, said: “We could find better use for this site as I do not think that this is appropriate.
It has been derelict for the best part of 30 years.”
Planning delivery team leader Jo Roebuck said it was a fine balance with arguments on both sides and the five-year approval gave the opportunity for this impact to be reassessed.

The plans were approved with the conditions set out by the planning officers which include pyrotechnics limited to a maximum sound level of 70dB when measured at five metres, no more than 60 people in a game and the submission, approval and implementation of a bat activity monitoring scheme.

Airsoft Handguns – The Perfect Gift For Every Thirtysomething Kid

2010-07-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

They’re not in the same category as toys but airsoft pistols are an ideal hobby for any adult or young adult. Unlike paintball guns or normal airguns airsoft hanguns are designed to look just like the real thing. This has posed a problem for airsoft gun owners over the years due to airsoft pistols being used in “armed” robberies. Believe me when one of these is pointed in your face it looks just like the real thing. To combat this danger airsoft manufactures are now making many of their airguns in clear plastics and/or with an orange flash at the tip of the barrel to counteract this problem.
Your airsoft pistol is capable of firing a 6mm plastic bb at speeds of up to 300 feet per second which while not dangerous to exposed arms or legs could definitely cause damage to unprotected eyes. Always, always use safety glasses when firing an airsoft gun indoors or outdoors. A ricochet can happen quite easily and the results can be horrific. The actual power of your handgun will depend on the firing mechanism used. Your choices are spring, gas and electric. Spring and gas offer the highest power range but the newer Airsoft AEG blowback handguns look pretty neat too.
Bear in mind too that a spring airsoft gun will need to be cocked for every single shot whereas the gas and airsoft AEG models offer fully automatic fire rates. The spring pistols will be cheaper but are a little bit more clumsy to use. The gas blowback models really mimic the real thing – especially when the topslide flies backwards after each shot.
One thing you won’t need to worry about when buying an airsoft handgun is finding your favourite weapon. The choice is truly staggering with all the popular brands making an appearance – Glock,Beretta and the Desert Eagle being amongst the most popular. For the true airsoft nut you can even get the Robocop M93R handgun – although these are getting tough to find nowadays.
Just like the real thing your airsoft handgun needs to be loaded before firing so you’ll need to fill the clip with bbs before you can start target practice. The bbs themselves are available in a variety of colors and styles – including paintball and glow-in-the-dark; so there’s a bb to suit everyones taste.
Indoor or outdoor airsoft handguns offer a fun and entertaining hobby that can be enjoyed safely by just about the entire family. As always these airsoft guns are not really toys and should not be used by children unattended.
Also please do check local laws in relation to owning an airsoft handgun – they are banned in some countries. Check your local, state and national laws to ensure that possessing an airsoft pistol isn’t against the law. There have been several cases of airosft guns being mistaken for real weapons by police forces worldwide – sometimes with tragic consequences.

Paintball Guns VS Airsoft Rifles

2010-06-18T09:46:00.001-07:00

Crucial difference between this two types of guns: airsoft guns shot plastic BBs and paintball guns shot paintballs. This is THE difference, but we cant forget what is inside of those guns, their mechanisms are totally different also.
Lets start with looking into paintball gun: they use either compressed CO2 or regular compressed air. It’s a quite simple mechanism. But it’s another story with airsoft guns… They use gear boxes, electric motors, batteries… Its look like lots stuff is needed to fire a simple plastic sphere.
Inside of an automatic electric airsoft gun is interesting indeed. A number of gears are turned by small electric motor. This part of mechanism is used to cock back a big plunger/spring, which is used to compress air in a airtight chamber. When compressed air reach a certain pressure, a release valve is opened, this allows air under a big pressure to propel out the plastic BB. This process happens very fast and allows airsoft guns to fire around 15 shots per second.
Also, few more airsoft guns type exists. Most popular and notably is airsoft sniper rifle. Sniper rifles are manually cocked, single shot airsoft guns. They don’t have gears inside. They are not for “trigger easy” people, since you need to manually cock mechanism before every shot, but their advantage is superb accuracy and high velocity of BBs.
Paintball guns function on a similar way, with air thank filed with compressed air or CO2. Most common is CO2, since its more powerful (more pressure on the same cubage). Its also last longer then plain compressed air. Most of paintball guns are semi-automatic, which is disadvantage comparing to fully-automatic airsoft guns. Bot types of guns have a similar problem: paintball guns need to refill their gas thanks, and electric airsoft guns need to change their batter fairly oftern.
In the game, main difference is that paintballs leave visible mark of color on the hit place. On the other hand, BBs don’t leave any mark (beside pain) so player have moral obligation to yell “hit” if he’s shot by another player. Small but very important thing.
Game tactics are pretty much the same, used terrain is similar, urban (towers, bunkers, buildings, etc.) and rural (forest, fields, etc.) Since both types of guns fire their ammunition at the same speed (FPS) they are both safe to play indoors and outdoors.
Conclusion: if you wanna mark your opponents with a large paint mark, and cause them fair amount of pain (if needed equipment is not worn) then you should chose paintball. But, if you wanna get trigger happy and fire more then 15 shots per sec, pouring storm of BBs on your foes, then you should try airsoft. Also, price of paintball ammunition is fairly bigger then plastic BBs. My opinion: try them both, and see what type of ammunition you prefer to fly over your head

DA won’t pursue charges against LAH resident: Healy brought air rifle to Gunn High School

2010-06-18T09:37:00.000-07:00

Los Altos Hills resident Weston Healy will not face criminal charges for bringing an air rifle to Gunn High School last month, prompting a lockdown and full-scale police response.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office June 9 decided not to file charges against Healy, a senior at Gunn.
DA spokeswoman Amy Cornell said applicable law didn’t warrant charges.
“The Airsoft Rifle didn’t qualify as a firearm under law,” Cornell said.
Because Healy’s Airsoft Rifle uses plastic ammunition instead of metal, Cornell said, it didn’t violate Penal Code 626.10, which prohibits stabbing instruments, razors, tasers, stun or pellet guns on school grounds.
Weapons charges could have resulted in either a felony three-year maximum prison sentence or a misdemeanor one-year county jail sentence for the 18-year-old Healy.
Healy’s attorney, Los Altos resident Eric Geffon, said his client left the Airsoft Rifle in his trunk a day prior to his May 27 arrest. Healy and a friend drove to a nearby hardware store to purchase supplies for their robotics club. Healy’s friend Mitchell (last name not provided) came across the rifle while putting supplies in the trunk and was “checking it out in the passenger seat” of Healy’s car when they returned to campus.
A city worker spotted Mitchell inspecting the rifle and called the police, who issued a “Code Red” lockdown on campus that eventually lead to Healy’s arrest. He spent one night in jail.
Palo Alto Police Department spokesman Max Nielepko said police cited and arrested only Healy because he was the owner of the vehicle and Airsoft gun.
Cornell said Healy’s young age, acknowledgement of responsibility for his action and “significant punishment” from the Gunn High administration also played a role in his not being charged. School officials suspended Healy, an Eagle Scout, and did not allow him to participate in graduation ceremonies June 9. He received his diploma Thursday.
Cornell said Healy’s family will reimburse the Palo Alto Police Department “a little over $2,000” – the cost of the response, which included dispatching a SWAT team.
Healy has been admitted to Cornell University, and Geffon said he is working out issues with the Palo Alto Unified School District to ensure Healy will be able to attend.
“Cornell (University) knows what’s going on,” Geffon said. “Our goal is to deal with Cornell to make sure they get the info they need. … (Gunn) suspended him with a recommendation of expulsion. The expulsion is still out there. … We’re optimistic about it. It’s been a tough couple weeks for him.”

Police give citation for second fake gun incident in two weeks

2010-06-14T09:17:00.000-07:00

For the second time in less than two weeks, a fake firearm caused disruptions in Silverton.
A woman called 911 Wednesday afternoon to report that a man had approached her vehicle on Oak Street with a "gun and a note."
The Silverton Police Department began searching for the suspect, who was described as a scruffy male wearing yellow and white shorts, a dark T-shirt and fuzzy bath slippers.
Nearby Mark Twain Middle School was placed on lockdown about 2:15 p.m.
By 2:25 p.m., the suspect, Joseph Tobar, 33, of Silverton, was in custody.
Capt. Jeff Fossholm with the Silverton Police Department said officers found Tobar at his home.
He reportedly had gone to get his mail and saw a woman sitting in her car on Oak Street. He went over to ask her what she was doing.
He was carrying an Airsoft gun — a replica firearm that shoots plastic pellets — on top of the mail.
The woman was unable to tell the gun was fake, sped away and called 911.
Tobar was cited for second-degree disorderly conduct.
Last week, six teens and one adult received the same citation after they panicked a neighborhood while playing with Airsoft guns in a Silverton field.