Finally a little common sense is prevailing, but why did it take this long. The man who used his gun to save a boy who was being attacked by three pitbulls will not be facing criminal charges after all. Well, he will still need to pay a $1,000 fine and register his guns, but that’s the how things go in our nation’s capital.
Back in January, GOPUSA reported on Benjamin Srigley, a 39-year-old man who lives in Washington, DC. Srigley saw three pitbulls attack 11-year-old Jayeon Simon as the boy rode his bike. Srigley ran into his house and grabbed his handgun. He shot one of the three dogs. A nearby police officer heard the shots and once arriving on the scene, shot the other two.
Rather than being treated as a hero, an investigation was opened into Srigley’s “offenses.” As reported by the Washington Times, “Possession of an unregistered firearm or ammunition in the District is punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine, and prosecutors said Mr. Srigley could have faced up to seven criminal charges in the case.” Seven criminal charges? For saving a boy’s life?
As an update, the criminal charges will be dropped, but the fine will remain.
In addition to paying a $1,000 fine, which was submitted in full Wednesday when the case when to court, the charges against Mr. Srigley— who police noted has no criminal record — will be dropped on condition he is not charged with any other crimes in the next two months.
While investigating the case, police seized Mr. Srigley’s pistol, which he said he purchased legally in Virginia when he lived there, and close to 100 rounds of ammunition from his home. Mr. Srigley told investigators that he owned two other guns — an antique M-1 rifle and a Mossburg 12-gauge shotgun — which were in a storage space in the District.
Police also seized those guns, but authorities have agreed they will return the firearms to Mr. Srigley when he registers them in Maryland, where he plans to soon move.
This whole idea of a fine and jail time is simply ridiculous. The man saved the boy’s life, and he has to pay a thousand bucks?
Just look at what happened when NBC News’ David Gregory broke the same laws as Mr. Srigley. On his “Meet the Press” program in January, Gregory waved a “high-capacity ammunition gun clip.” It was unregistered. But Gregory was not charged at all. No jail time and no fine. As the Washington Post reported at the time, “D.C. attorney general Irvin B. Nathan announced his decision Friday afternoon by releasing a letter to an attorney for NBC. Nathan wrote that though the device Gregory held up ‘meets the definition’ of the criminal statute, he wrote that prosecution ‘would not promote public safety in the District of Columbia nor serve the best interests of the people of the District to whom this office owes its trust.'”
So Gregory gets a pass, and Srigley pays a fine. Give me a break. If DC is going to have such stupid laws that do nothing for public safety, then enforce them. Otherwise, they should realize just how dumb they are and get rid of them.
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