From:
http://www.trivalleyherald.com/Stori...468915,00.html
Sunday, March 17, 2002 - 3:47:49 AM MST
Sheriff says 'gun nut' concealing the truth
Being in the Posse doesn't guarantee weapons permit
By Dwight King-Leatham
STAFF WRITER
Jim March is a self-described "gun nut," frustrated because the Contra Costa County Sheriff's office won't give him a concealed-weapons permit.
The towering redhead from Pittsburg has taken his beef with the sheriff over the permit to federal court, saying county Sheriff Warren Rupf and a few police chiefs in 2000 violated his constitutional rights.
Last September a federal judge ruled March had no case.
Last month, March stood before the county Board of Supervisors, unloading some of his frustration. He said he believes that membership in the Contra Costa Sheriff's Posse pretty much guarantees someone getting a concealed weapons permit.
For those not in the Posse, however, a permit is harder to come by, he said.
"He's one of those people who once he grabs onto a fact, he builds a fantasy around that," said Sheriff Warren Rupf. The longtime sheriff who is head of the auxiliary group, the Posse, said fewer than half the 380 Posse members hold concealed weapon permits.
In preparation for court, March said he researched county elections records and looked at who had made campaign contributions to the sheriff. He also looked into the sheriff's practice of issuing concealed weapons permits.
March concluded membership in the Posse seemed practically to guarantee getting a permit, he said.
"The real problem is the law," said David Beauvais, a Berkeley lawyer who brought March's unsuccessful suit. "All the unfettered discretion is with the sheriff to issue or not issue a permit," he said.
Beauvais said he believes the permits are granted without applying any standard. "They're issued for (Rupf's) supporters, his boosters or to wealthy and connected people," Beauvais said.
"There's enough there to be concerned how even the process is," he said.
The lawyer said his own politics "are not centered around ever having a gun. I am sympathetic, however, with people who see this system working in a way that is not really appropriate."
"The harm is really driven by patronage, where people who have connections can get a permit, while others can't.
"If you live in a nice area with a lot of money, and occasionally travel to Richmond, you can get a permit. But if you live in Richmond, forget it," he said.
Federal District Judge William Alsup threw March's claim out before it got to trial, noting that March had also been denied permits by the cities of Richmond and Pittsburg.
The judge called March's research "opinionated" and "not appropriate for consideration."
"Nor do these records demonstrate on their face a causal connection between wealth, employment status or donations to Sheriff Rupf's campaign and issuance of a concealed weapons license."
The way Rupf's office handles concealed-weapons permits is not that unusual in the state, said state Department of Justice spokesman Michael Van Winkel.
He said attorneys with the California Department of Justice have described the power the law gives sheriffs and police chiefs as "unfettered discretion."
Still, applicants must first pass a background check -- the same one used on anyone wanting to buy a gun, and then must still win the approval of the police chief or sheriff with the permitting power, Van Winkel said.
Van Winkel said he knows nothing about the Contra Costa Sheriff's Posse.
"Without saying it hinges on joining a particular group, there's total discretion after passing the background check -- it's totally up to them," Van Winkel said.
That freedom accounts for some of the variation in permit numbers, he said.
For instance, San Francisco issues five to 15 permits a year, while "in Kern County -- little Nashville -- the law enforcement heads, the sheriff or police chief, grant about 4,000 a year. Shasta County issues 3,000 in any given year.
"I think Los Angeles County with all its millions only approves 1,000 a year," he said.
Van Winkel provided a list of concealed weapons permits issued county-by-county that showed Contra Costa County's permits dropped from a total of 314 in 1987 to 163 in 1999, the last year complete records are available.
During the same period, Alameda County's permit totals dropped from 158 to 143; Kern County's, from 3,943 to 2,961; San Diego's, from 2,042 to 1,268; and rural Shasta County's from 2,958 to 2,377.
Five years ago the former police chief of Isleton was typically issuing about 1,000 permits a year to residents from all over Sacramento County -- at a charge of $150 apiece. That brought in about $150,000 -- "that's $150,000 -- the whole city budget was about $300,000," Van Winkel said.
The Legislature soon thereafter amended the law to limit the fee to the reasonable cost of administering the program, he said.
Meanwhile, Contra Costa County currently has a total of 179 concealed- weapons permits outstanding, said Contra Costa County Sheriff's Lt. Dale Varady.
Varady, who heads the professional standards unit and administers the permits program, said his office takes applications only from those living in contract cities like Danville and San Ramon along with those in unincorporated parts of the county.
He said applicants must pass a background check, which can include a psychological review and are tested on gun handling and gun safety.
About 80 permit-holders are reserve officers, working as reinforcements doing certain types of police work, he said. Other permit-holders include judges or former law enforcement officers -- for whom the usual $265 fee is waived.
"There's no profit in it, it's all to cover the administrative process," Varady said.
Varady said he knows little about the Sheriff's Posse. "It's a private organization, much like the Elks or Lions, and is separate from the office of sheriff. I believe Sheriff Rupf is the president."
"I don't know what their makeup is, I don't go to their functions. Membership in the Posse isn't considered in applying," Varady said.
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Jim again:
Hilarious sidenote: Rupf is adamant about "less than half the Posse having CCW". We also learn there's 380 Posse members, and 163 CCW permits as of '99.
Do the math
. Rupf might as well have admitted what's up.
What caused all this freakout was paper copies of this at my local board of supes meeting:
https://www.keepandbeararms.com/march/posse.asp
