Major Victory For Firearms Owners And Freedom In Louisiana

On Thursday, NRA filed a motion in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana seeking a temporary restraining order to block authorities from confiscating law-abiding citizens' firearms in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.  Today, we are happy to report, the Court sided with NRA and issued a restraining order to bar further gun confiscations from peaceable, law-abiding victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

Federal Judge Jay Zainey granted NRA's motion for an indefinite temporary restraining order and ordered  those in power to cease and desist gun seizures.  The authorities were also ordered to return guns seized by them or their agents to anyone "...who lawfully possessed them, upon presentation of identification and execution of a receipt therefore."

Commenting on the ruling, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre said, "This is a significant victory for freedom and for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The court's ruling is instant relief for the victims who now have an effective means of defending themselves from the robbers and rapists that seek to further exploit the remnants of their shattered lives."

Joining LaPierre in hailing the U.S. District Court decision was NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox. "This is an important victory. But the battle is not over. The NRA will remedy state emergency statutes in all 50 states, if needed, to ensure that this injustice does not happen again."

The controversy erupted when The New York Times reported that the New Orleans superintendent of police directed that no civilians in New Orleans will be allowed to have guns and that "only law enforcement are allowed to have weapons." ABC News quoted New Orleans' deputy police chief, saying, "No one will be able to be armed. We are going to take all the weapons."

NRA also pledges that it will continue its work to ensure that every single firearm arbitrarily and unlawfully seized under this directive is returned to its rightful law-abiding owner.

Although this is great victory, we still need to hear from members who have been a victim of this gun confiscation initiative.  If you have personally had a gun confiscated in Louisiana since Hurricane Katrina hit, please call (888) 414-6333.  Be prepared to leave only your name and immediate contact information so we can get back to you.  Once again, we are seeking contact information from actual victims of gun confiscation in Louisiana only.

For additional information, please visit www.NRAILA.org, or e-mail us at [email protected].