Gone Postal: SCOTUS Refuses to Consider Post Office Gun Ban

2nd Amendment – R2KBA Authors Current Events S.H. Blannelberry This Week
SCOTUS passes on a case that could have removed

SCOTUS made a big mistake!  Gun-free zones are murder magnets.

SCOTUS turned down an opportunity earlier this week to hear a dispute over whether guns can be forbidden from post offices, upholding a U.S. Postal Service regulation that bans guns from post office property, the Associated Press reported.

The Obama administration argued that the constitutional right to keep and bear arms does not apply in areas the government deems “sensitive,” such as schools, government buildings, and the parking lots of those facilities.

The plaintiff in the case, Colorado concealed carry permit holder Tab Bonidy, sought a court order striking down the post office regulation after learning he would be prosecuted for carrying his gun while picking up mail at his local post office or leaving it in his car.

The appeals court ruled against him and the Supreme Court has refused to hear the case, which means Bonidy will face federal charges. The Court’s decision also sets a tough precedent against future cases looking to lift the gun-free zones in potential terror targets like schools and government buildings.

The administration’s case would make more sense if gun incidents were common at post offices. But, as K.I. Jamismon, Esq., over at the U.S. Concealed Carry Association points out, there have been remarkably few incidents at post offices involving permit holders:

The fact that there have not been a number of cases on this point shows that the great number of concealed carry licensees who stop at post offices carry discretely and do not create problems. This is significant. When concealed carry was first proposed, and every improvement since, we were told there would be blood in the streets and citizens being terrified by licensees brandishing guns. These threats are still heard, are always wrong, but are treated as valid commentary by the media. The shortage of post office cases indicates the efforts of concealed carry licensees to carry lawfully and discreetly; yet, it happens.

Concealed carry holders are among the most responsible, law-abiding citizen in the country—it makes no sense to restrict their constitutional rights just because they want to check their mail.

Of all the places Americans should expect permission to exercise their constitutional rights, federal property should be the first. The Constitution (supposedly) dictates how the federal government is allowed to operate—the freedoms it guarantees should first and foremost apply to areas under direct federal control.

The Court’s decision also disarms law-abiding American citizens when the threat from terrorism has never been higher. The recent attacks in Brussels, Paris, and San Bernardino demonstrate that federal officials are often powerless to stop smart, well-funded terrorist networks. A legally armed American might be the only barrier between a minimal casualty event and a bloodbath. The high court has now removed that defense in one of the areas terrorists are most likely to target: federal property.

(Editor’s note: This article was a submission from freelance writer Jordan Michaels.)

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  • Max July 13, 2018, 1:28 pm

    If I remember correctly I was taught to never carry concealed in any government building. Permissible to carry in a church with permission from church leadership.

    Am I misinformed?

  • Paris Ruff September 2, 2016, 2:57 am

    My colleagues wanted USPS PS 1508 last month and were made aware of a company that has a ton of fillable forms . If others need to fill out USPS PS 1508 too , here’s http://goo.gl/naonix

  • JAQUE BAUER August 11, 2016, 8:05 pm

    My post office has no notice prohibiting arms on the front door or anywhere else in the post office. Until the court case, I was not aware of the ban, or the penalty. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse” is an often used term, but in this case I am in good company. I wonder if post offices have metal detectors at the entrances? If so they would be triggering so often they would become a nuisance and turned off. In carry states I would bet that a whole lot of post office customers are breaking the law daily. Congress should eliminate this law, but Congress should nullify many laws that serve only to entrap the common man.

  • Jay Warren Clark March 25, 2016, 10:35 pm

    I’m not sure who wrote this Blannelbery or Michaels but my question is why do so many gun writers, presumably supporters of the 2nd Amendment, keep on using the terrorism story as part of their arguments in defense of the right to bear arms?
    Do they not know, can they not see, can they not even imagine, that every time they use this tactic they are aping the official-media-created-story that a great many, including myself, know to be U.S. operations designed precisely to create fear of guns and especially to create mistrust for any guns in the hands of anyone who is not military or law “enforcement?!”
    For example, in San Bernardino, which this article mentions as if it is a dead issue, early media reports from witnesses said that there were three (3 not 2) shooters who were big military looking guys (not petite women) involved. Soon, however, these people dropped out of the news and were conveniently forgotten. And this Muslim woman, who they executed in the street with her husband before they could ever see a lawyer, was petite and not some big commando type!
    So, why would writers, who presumably want to inform, keep on repeating these highly questionable narratives as if whatever the main stream media says is the Gospel? Do they not know that the vocation of the writer is a sacred task and that it is TRUTH, and not the official narrative of the official media, that will set us free?
    In terms of effectiveness, this terrorism narrative is like taking one step forward and two steps backward. It does not help the Second Amendment at all! ‘Nuff said. JWC

    • Tedd March 28, 2016, 12:38 am

      That Muslim woman who was shot was not executed. That terrorist bitch fired an AR15 Rifle through the rear glass window of the SUV her terrorist bastard husband was driving, at the Police. She fired on the Police and the Police respond in self defense. After the Police nuetralized they scene it was discovered that the couple had an small arsenal and several thousand rounds of ammo with them. Later at the terrorist home it was discovered there were several active pipe bombs and the components to make additional bombs. Their neighbor (who bought and sold the semi-auto rifles/firarms to the terrorist couple) was also involved as an accomplice and had aided this terrorist couple. The 3rd shooter was reported by several witnesses but has never been identified. However, authorities are still investigating and are actively looking for a 3rd shooter. Often victims and witnesses have difficulty providing an accurate description of the attacker/criminal. I can vouch for that as well because last June 2015 I was robbed with a gun to my head at work by a young black man. I was threatened several times that he was going to kill me, luckily he didn’t as I asked him to “please don’t shoot me because it isn’t worth it, be calm and relax you have what you want, please leave me alone”. That’s all I could do was try and talk him down to relax him. My employer prohibits it’s employee’s from having possession of firearms on Government property (I work for a government office) but had I had my GLOCK on me I could have stopped this armed robber before he even drew his pistol because he telegraphed his intent with his eye’s and I knew immediately that it was SHTF time before he drew his pistol. There has been over 50 armed robberies at Government Offices over the past few years, including some that ended with the employee(s) being killed. I was lucky to survive the armed robbery incident. Back to my point about victim/witness accounts and descriptions. Three days after the event I met with a FBI Trained/Certified Sketch Artist who is also a sworn Police Officer in my city. I explained that I didn’t think I could give her an accurate description even though I was confident I would recognize him if we were ever face to face again. I learned a lot that day about what happens during an incident like what happened with me and the tragic events in San Bernardino. It’s not like what we see on TV or at the Movies. The vast majority of victims/witnesses cannot give accurate descriptions of criminals nor the events that actually took place before them. However, the subconscious part of our mind does record everything we experience in our lives and that recording can be played back with a little guidance. We worked for 3.5 hours before we could agree on a sketch. It’s damn close to the actual suspect. The media often adds more cloudiness to the matter because they “sensationalize” stories because it’s good copy and it generates ratings, viewers, etc…

      I’m not sure were your coming from with your comments as follows… “and this Muslim, who they executed in the street with her husband before they could ever see a lawyer, was petite and not some big commando type!”… I mean WTF does that mean? That bitch and her piece of shit husband got exactly what they deserved. They were terrorist who just killed innocent people and then turned their guns on the Police. I watched this live on the news, both CNN & FOX. With all due respect, it sounds to me like you have your own passive and delusional narrative about recent events and you are in denial about terrorism both foreign and domestic. The 2nd Amendment was designed in part to allow for “We The People” to defend ourselves from an enemy both foreign and domestic. That Radical Islamic Terrorist couple where both domestic enemies of our USA and they again got what they deserved. Their terrorist activities do in fact make the 2nd Amendment one of the most important things that matters to our freedom and our safety, and relevant to any “narrative” regarding terrorist. These terrorist events do help the 2nd Amendment in that it makes everyone aware how important our Constitution is and how vital the 2nd Amendment is to the protection of our Constitution and our USA. Finally, maybe I’ve misunderstood your comments above but it reads like you are sympathetic to that terrorist bitch and her sorry ass husband. Their actions have never made the 2nd Amendment more important than it is now, in fact their terrorist activities put an exclamation mark on it!

      • Jay Warren Clark March 28, 2016, 4:14 pm

        That’s what they say on the nightly news. But you weren’t there and have to take it on faith–and apparently you have.
        When I was a boy they used to say, “don’t believe everything you read in the papers.” That is even more true today when the official main stream media have come out of the closet and have it in our faces that they are no longer doing news but spin 24/7.
        Sorry sir, but you can’t swallow the official narrative whole and at the same time exercise your critical thinking skills. You can’t have both at the same time. My guess is that you are too ready to believe what you hear and what you think you see. In the end trust in what the political elites and the media talking-heads say is very very dangerous and not what will preserve the Republic.
        Thanks for your response. JWC

        • Steve April 27, 2016, 8:38 pm

          Yet you have no problem ignoring the massive amounts of evidence disagreeing with you, and instead choose to have “faith” in a couple of eye witness testimonies (which we know is one of the worst forms of evidence) Instead. Why would you do that? If this is really about evidence, what is your evidence that the government (or whoever) did this? Let me guess, you’re a creationist too aren’t you? Lol.

  • Barry March 25, 2016, 10:02 pm

    FYI – It is also illegal for a cop or any other government employee to carry a gun on Post Office property unless the carrying of their firearm relates to their official duties.

    I looked this up because the property is clearly posted, “No weapons allowed”, and I witnessed a Fish and Game agent enter the post office simply to check the mail. The legal adage, “Equality under the law is paramount” inspired me to check if law enforcement officers had any “special privilege” regarding carrying guns on Post Office property. They do not, and it would be illegal to give them such special privileges.

    Howeverrrrrr….. the law says that the statute shall NOT apply to the lawful carrying of a firearms for a “lawful purpose”. Self defense is such a lawful purpose, and it is not subject to the whims or discretion of the government.

    18 U.S. Code § 930 – Possession of firearms and dangerous weapons in Federal facilities –
    (a) Except as provided in subsection (d), whoever knowingly possesses or causes to be present a firearm or other dangerous weapon in a Federal facility (other than a Federal court facility), or attempts to do so, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.
    (d) Subsection (a) shall not apply to—
    (1) the lawful performance of official duties by an officer, agent, or employee of the United States, a State, or a political subdivision thereof, who is authorized by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution of any violation of law;
    (2) the possession of a firearm or other dangerous weapon by a Federal official or a member of the Armed Forces if such possession is authorized by law; or
    (3) the lawful carrying of firearms or other dangerous weapons in a Federal facility incident to hunting or other lawful purposes.

  • Lightengine March 25, 2016, 9:12 pm

    Gun free zones filter out and incapacitate those with good intentions and cannot possible stop those with bad intentions. Gun free zones are logically insane!

    • garland March 26, 2016, 11:26 am

      gun free zones are a green light to criminals=what an idiot idea=and they post it on a sign

  • DaveGinOly March 25, 2016, 7:30 pm

    Here’s the actual law:

    18 U.S.C., sec. 930
    ” (a) Except as provided in subsection (d), whoever knowingly possesses or causes to be present a firearm or other dangerous weapon in a Federal facility (other than a Federal court facility), or attempts to do so, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both…
    (d) Subsection (a) shall not apply to – …(3) the lawful carrying of firearms or other dangerous weapons in a Federal facility incident to hunting or other lawful purposes.”

    What I find particularly interesting (aside from the fact that firearms carry in USPS facilities is not really banned!), is that subsection (d) does not refer to legal methods of carry (e.g., concealed carry w/a permit), but rather to lawful purposes. Method of carry is irrelevant! Nor does it refer to forms of carry allowed by the State within which the facility is located. Arguably, carrying for self-defense is a “lawful purpose,” so, according to this, even if your method of carry would be illegal in the State that surrounds a particular Post Office, if you are doing so for the “lawful purpose” of self-defense, it’s OK. (When the feds want to control or limit methods of carry, they come right out and specify that carriers are permitted to carry using methods that are legal in the State in which the federal property is located – this is the rule promulgated, for instance, at national wildlife refuges. However, at refuges, they have “no guns” signs posted at the entrances to the buildings that are open to the public, suggesting – probably dishonestly – that federal law prohibits the carrying of firearms into federal facilities. Yet the statute itself does not bear out such a claim.)

    In the case mentioned in the article, I have to wonder – Was the defendant carrying for an “unlawful purpose”? Or was his attorney too stupid to look up the law, or to understand it if he did look it up? There is a plain exception for firearms carried for lawful purposes, method of carry and the laws of the State in which the facility is located not withstanding!

    • John O March 31, 2016, 12:21 pm

      Title 18 section 930 clearly states that a “facility” is defined as a building. USPS is strectching the law when they say it applies to a parking lot. Furthermore this law is labled “dangerous weapons in federal facilities”. It calls knives that are more than 3″ in length a dangerous weapon. The Naval Air Station I work at is using Title Code 18 section 930 as a way to prevent us from bringing a weapon aboard the station even if you have a CCW permit. However, 5″ kbar knives and 2 ft. Machettes are sold at the Navy exchange. As previously stated, these are “dangerous weapons” according to Title Code 18 Section 930. In other words, the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing.

  • Kivaari March 25, 2016, 6:28 pm

    Packing a gun in a post office should not be unlawful. Criminal misuse of a gun in a post office should be the thing to worry about. When USPS employees “went postal”, they violated the existing laws. When post office robbers and killers misuse their guns, it is silly to think that packing guns into post offices was the least of their worries. Except for jails and courtrooms, there is no reason to prohibit good people from packing guns anywhere they damn well please. The only risk I pose to others anywhere, are those that want to harm good people. Why do governments fear good people? They should worry about bad guys.

    • John T Land March 25, 2016, 8:20 pm

      I can live with no guns INSIDE of a post office building, although I do not agree with this,but NOT having a gun in my car when I park in the parking lot is stretching it. If the Federal Govt. enforces the “parking lot” provision, there will be several million Texans, Floridians, Pennsylvanians,et al in the Federal courtrooms overnight.

    • grody March 25, 2016, 9:16 pm

      because the government is the bad guys!

    • TJ March 26, 2016, 1:16 pm

      It is all about control! Since the Government chooses to not control the criminal they try to control the law abiding citizen, which makes no sense! I have the GOD given right to defend myself, my family and our property. THE END!

      • Jay Warren Clark March 28, 2016, 5:41 pm

        When things “make no sense,” it is usually because something outside of Reason is at work and/or being served. And that thing, whatever it is, is most certainly kept in the dark, secret. Indeed, it is the very nature of the thing that the very world view, the lens, that we see the world through is itself almost never questioned.
        But as a lifelong teacher in what we call “the academy,” I can tell you that there is an immense body of factual information in history, philosophy, anthropology, archeology, etc., that does not fit the current world view and therefore is kept from the public.* Of course there is Forte’s work, but there is also a book by Barry Fell called “America B.C. that when you read it will rock you back. I was studying anthropology at the time it was printed and no one bothered to tell me or my classmates about it. I had to discover it myself 30 years later after I had left the university where I both studied and taught!
        Why does no one in the academy get excited about things like this? Why does no one even mention such materials? Well, at the top it is about keeping the people pacified. In the ranks it is about keeping one’s career–livelihood (the Bible calls it “bread”) being more important than truth in the very place where we are supposed to cultivate and preserve truth! The entire population of earth has been sold out again, again, and again for 30 pieces of silver and a benefits package.
        * Darwinian evolution is taught as “fact” and yet Harvard light Stepehen J. Gould wrote, “the trade secret among modern paleontologists is the paucity of transitional forms,” i.e., they don’t have the bones to prove the theory. And yet it is taught not as theory but as fact! That’s a pretty good example of this thing at work.
        P.S. and you are right, when the threat comes we had better not be thinking about government laws and regulations! We had better think and act for ourselves and our families. And right now it is not a bunch of rag-tag camel jockies, but our government who is threatening us. And the threat of terrorism is a script written by that same out-of-control government. That’s my take on it. JWC

        • MikeinMaine May 13, 2016, 6:54 am

          That is nuts. Stephen J Gould was an ARDENT evolutionist. He was an evolutionary biologist for gawd sake! He specifically fought against creationism. He had a long standing feud with other evolu tionary scientists about the specifics of whether evolution in biology was an ongoing gradual process or periodic with long stable states punctuated by rapid change (in response to changes in the environment).

          You also don’t understand the whole point of science. a scientific “fact” is simply a piece of data. For example, if the thermometer reads 68, it is a scientific fact that the temperature is 68 because that information was derived from an instrument whose function and accuracy is known and tested through millions of observations.

          A scientific theory is a well-supported (evidence) EXPLANATION of data gathered through scientific means. A REAL scientist understands that no theory is to be believed 100%. Otherwise there would never be any progress in science. Theories (which must be backed by facts) are our best thinking about what’s going on. When new facts are discovered that contradict a theory, the theory must be adjusted or thrown out if it cannot explain the new facts. Thomas Kuhn, in the his book on paradigm shifts explains this very well.

          Remember, something you read in the bible about nature is not a fact. IT IS a fact that the bible says something. The statement “the bible says that the world was created in 7 days” is a fact. It is not a fact that the world was actually created in 7 days because there is no scientific evidence for it. It MAY actually be true, but until there is evidence (facts) it is not a valid scientific fact and hence creationism is not a valid scientific theory. Again, this doesn’t mean it isn’t true. It is held to be true by many people on FAITH. Faith is not science, does not rely on scientific facts (data), is not subject to the rules of sciences such as evidence, experiment, etc. To call creationism a THEORY is an insult to the judeo-christian-islamic religions. It is similar to Jesus’s temptations. You either believe that the bible is true or you don’t. To ask god for evidence is simply not believing.

          • DaveGinOly February 26, 2017, 2:28 am

            Clark probably took that quote out of context. I’ve read Gould extensively (his book Ontogeny and Phylogeny changed the way I look at animal life on this planet) and believe the quote is probably taken from an explanation of punctuated equilibrium – an explanation of why “transitional” forms are so rare in (but not entirely missing from) the fossil record. (BTW, I read Barry Fell’s book when it was first published. Like I said, I read. A lot.)

  • noduty2submit March 25, 2016, 4:44 pm

    The SCOTUS decision not to review this case is because this has nothing to do with firearms.

    It has to do with Federal powers and the powers of Congress found in Article I, Section 8, Clause 17: Congress shall have the power … “To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) … and over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings…”

    POST OFFICES are Federal Building, they belong to the “exclusive” jurisdiction of Congress — In other words, the Constitution FOR the United States does not apply there. Congress is in charge. So there’s Nothing for the SCOTUS to decide.

    • JulioAdolfo March 27, 2016, 4:27 am

      Noduty… When are you and the rest going to finally understand that the Constitution of the United States, DOES NOT GRANT ANY RIGHTS!!!! Those rights are ours, the Constitution only stands as a shield and proscription against Federal intrusion into the God given rights we have. It drives me nuts to constantly hear idiots talk about freedom of religion. Classic error, the first amendment guarantees freedom FROM religion. “Congress shall pass no law..” etc.,etc. A state obliged religion, with tithes and the rest. The puritans, Mayflower and the ill fated Speedwell, fled religious persecution because of the obligation to comply. The 2A, A well reg.Mi..the… RIGHT TO KEEP… SHALL NOT. Under the Lockean theory of government, a person was free to practice his/her faith without any type of persecution or obligation to abide State Religion. In the bill of rights, the first ten of the amendments, the third, possibly the least known of them all, is the one that most clearly spells out how the Constitution stands as a shield against the Gov’t. and in favor of the free citizen. It clearly spells out and prohibits the Gov’t. from quartering troops in your home. I don’t expect a line of Humvees to pull up at my house anytime soon, but the 3A as written makes it clear that the Constitution, all of it, is a set of lines the Fed. can not ever cross.

      • Chris April 7, 2016, 11:19 am

        Hey JulioAdolfo, NICE RESPONSE! All very true and well stated. We have an out of control gov’t that does not abide by a strict view of the Constitution and it is up to us to continue to fight to hold them to their oaths, etc….

    • MikeinMaine May 13, 2016, 7:01 am

      That is incorrect. That statement simply names Congress as the sole LEGISLATIVE body governing DC and federal properties in states. It means that no state LEGISLATURE has the authority to create laws governing those places. It does not say that the third branch of government, the courts, cannot adjudicate the constitutionality of those laws. Otherwise, the law banning guns in DC wouldn’t have been overturned by a court!

  • James Myrtle March 25, 2016, 3:31 pm

    The USPS always has guns in their buildings, in transit from sellers to FFLs for final delivery. My local P.O. has no signs regarding the carrying of weapons. And I thought they went “private sector” years ago?

    CarryOn!

  • Scott March 25, 2016, 3:13 pm

    A caption reads: “Gun free zones are murder magnets.”
    What is the evidence that gun-free zones are “murder magnets?”

    • Bruce Skinner March 25, 2016, 7:25 pm

      Scott…I’m sure you’re probably kidding, but just in case…Sandy Hook elementary school, Columbine, Colorado movie theater and the list goes on. They were all “gun free” and we know how those scenarios played out.

      • Jay Warren Clark March 28, 2016, 5:16 pm

        While I understand your point, still one ought to be careful before using as examples highly questionable “shootings” that if they really happened may have been scripted government operations. Government agencies and agents who will shoot nursing mothers and burn to death several dozens of men women and children living peacefully in Waco Texas are capable of anything! And they certainly are not to be trusted until you get the definite word that they have repented and reformed. They have done neither.
        If out of control big government will violate their own principles abroad they will, indeed they must, do so also at home!
        So, my advice would be to find another way to get your good point across without repeating a very questionable narrative.
        JWC

        • MikeinMaine May 13, 2016, 7:06 am

          Oh come on.. why do you conspiracy theorists give the “government” the credibility to pull off complicated “scripts” when at the same time you say that the “government” is inherently incompetent and the things it does are better done by the private sector?

          Hanlon’s Razor – “Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.”

  • jd March 25, 2016, 3:06 pm

    Doesn’t common sense apply anymore? You can walk into a bank with your CCW. That’s part of reason you have a CCW. Criminals are drawn to banks for some reason. You want to take the $$ you have withdrawn from the bank and buy purchase a postal money order to send it to a relative. But you cannot do that since you have to go home and leave your CCW at home before you can go to the post office. It is the postal employees themselves who go postal. Not the people picking up or dropping off their mail.

    • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 5:28 pm

      Obviously, you did not read that correctly. As stated, Postal employees rarely “Go postal”. It is the Media that helps to blow all of that out of proportion.

    • DaveGinOly March 25, 2016, 7:21 pm

      My bank has “no guns” signs posted at the doors. I wear a cover garment, and ignore the signs.

  • Lew March 25, 2016, 2:40 pm

    Let me get this straight. We aren’t allowed to have guns on PO property? I never even thought of those locations.
    Point….I ship guns through the USPS. I bring a gun up to the counter and hand it to the clerk to mail.
    Is there a distinction between a gun on my hip and a gun in a box? If I intend harm, the box isn’t going to slow me down. Of course when mailing a gun, it would be unloaded, nor any ammo on me or in the box, but it is a gun.

    • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 5:30 pm

      Lew, you make an excellent point here!

      • DaveGinOly March 25, 2016, 7:26 pm

        In Seattle, every person who walks out of a housewares shop with a set of kitchen knives in a shopping bag violates the ordinance against public possession of fixed blade knives.

        • Jay Warren Clark March 28, 2016, 5:44 pm

          Lock em up. JWC

    • dan March 25, 2016, 10:07 pm

      Lew. Working for the USPS, it is unlawful to knowingly ship a firearm to anybody. We always direct the customers to a contract carrier, (FedEx, UPS). There are explicit signs through out the facility about this. I’m not trying to tell you what to do, but those are our instructions. I do know that Smith & Wesson won’t accept any weapons unless they are from the contract carrier. I’m just trying to help you avoid a problem. Good luck.

      • Kevin March 26, 2016, 4:35 pm

        Hi Dan:
        Let me bring you up to date with the Postal Regulations. Long guns and handguns may be mailed under certain conditions. The postal regulation dealing with handguns is 432.23 and states that handguns may be mailed by manufactures and licensed dealers as defined in the ATFE regulations. The form required to mail a handgun is PS Form 1508 and is to filled out by the shipper and presented to the postal carrier at the time of mailing. This is easy to look up. I suggest to you and the Postmaster that you may be in violation of Federal Law by refusing to accept these items for mailing if the proper conditions are met.

      • Kevin March 26, 2016, 5:11 pm

        Second try:
        Hi Dan:
        Let me bring you up to speed on the Postal Regulations:
        USPS regulation 432.23 says that firearms may be shipped by firearms manufactures and licensed dealers as defined by the ATFE. The form required by Postal Regulations is “PS Form 1508”. This form is required to be filled out by the shipper and presented to the Postal Carrier at the time of shipping. This is easy to look up. I suggest that Employees of the Postal Service to include local Postmasters may be in violation of Federal Law by refusing to accept a firearm for shipment if the shipper is in compliance with Federal Law and presents proper documentation.

      • JulioAdolfo March 27, 2016, 4:47 am

        Hi Dan. I encountered that same problem at my local P.O., When I tried to return a faulty rifle to the manufacturer. However the ignorant ass giving the instructions had not read the regulations carefully. Best part of the show is that they are posted with photos and color codes, etc. to guide the rest of the idiots at the USPS. I lost my cool and complained until the post master came out. If you look at it, I really think you should, the same poster that warns you about shipping firecrackers, volatile substances, etc. will have a pictogram of a firearm and will explain to whom they may be shipped and how they must be packaged. Any regular Joe can walk into a post office and ship a rifle, handgun, cannon, machine gun to an FFL. In the case of a machine gun, an FFL with a class three license. They need to be very well packed and with no tells as to what is within. Shipping via private carriers is an expensive pain in the ass. The USPS is obliged to carry my mail, so long as I follow the rules.

      • howard March 27, 2016, 12:46 pm

        That is BS and a total fabrication of the truth. Not only do I ship firearms every day from the post office the post office has a standard form that is filled out and reciept stamped by the post office acknowleging the reciept of the firearm if those are your instructions them you are acting under the rules of some self appointed supervisor who is putting his/her views in place in place of the law and post office regulations

  • clear water Randy March 25, 2016, 2:39 pm

    YA HOO Obama is a terrorist in his own right, look how well the no gun zone works in school areas. I wish We the People could get this crap over with. Split the U S in half give the non Americans there half, put a fence around it and tell em all to mind there own dam business!

    • Chris April 7, 2016, 11:30 am

      Hey Randy – I LOVE IT! Let’s do it!!!! Hilary and Bernie can run the asylum…………..

  • Robert March 25, 2016, 1:43 pm

    I wonder how much mail would have been delivered if the pony express were told they couldn’t carry a weapon?

    • William P March 25, 2016, 2:42 pm

      Actually, the Pony Express riders didn’t carry firearms. The romantic western movies made during the 50’s always had the riders getting into gunfights but this was Hollywood fiction. (Surprised?) The Pony Express riders greatest asset was the riders light weight and their well fed horses outrunning the prairie grass fed indian horses.

  • Dwayne March 25, 2016, 1:09 pm

    Moderation? Freedom of speech? Don’t appear so.

    • VINNY March 26, 2016, 6:18 pm

      I agree. Nothing and nobody’s free anymore.

    • VINNY March 27, 2016, 1:07 am

      I agree. I’ve been trying to post comments against the more left-leaning comments here for the last 36 hours and they are deleting them. It’s a crock of leftist bullcrap.

  • Bruce Mangels March 25, 2016, 1:04 pm

    I live in Tombstone Arizona, where the majority of people carry, dozens of us open carry everyday downtown. The credit union, the only “bank” within 25 miles, not only prohibits guns, but wants you to remove your hat and sunglasses before entering. Last week they installed one inch thick bulletproof Plexiglas over the teller windows, yet a potato gun could penetrate the flimsy walls right next to the windows. They could triple their business by recognizing our right to carry, and all of us carry into the post office parking lot, unaware of this ridiculous law. It’s beyond sad, the next emotion in line is also sad, anger.

    • woodchuckwacker666 March 25, 2016, 3:27 pm

      … do you think that the pistol packing boys of the “Tombstone Corral” ever had to put up with this sort of political correct bull shit back in their day… O “Hell No”…

    • SGM ERP March 25, 2016, 3:41 pm

      First…DENVER is a sht hole of ANTI GUN Morons..with a Governor that has sat with Obammy several times – no doubt to ban guns in the State.. Which he tried…and it went down to banning MAGAZINES for firearms that held more than 15 rounds…
      Insanity…. We are being spit on daily by jerks like our president.. (???) How the hell did he ever get elected……when his background and place of birth were “SEALED” from the public..?? Answer that to me.. AND….I guess he never heard of B
      “BAY OF PIGS”…I did…I missed going there by a week… I had to go to BOOT CAMP in Bainbridge Maryland – with the US NAVY. Many of my friend were MURDERED there…stood against a WALL AND SHOT..because after they risked their lives to help CASTRO – they would not accept COMMUNISM.. To open the doors to these pos …. we are creating a doorway for CUBAN Terrorists to enter our County.. Watch….they are STILL Communists…. How Congress let this happen is mind boggling… IMPEACH…IMPEACH…Takes balls..and not one stinking Senator or Congressman has any.. Their SALARIES and BENNIES …and SPECIAL INTEREST DONATIONS is all the care about… I’m fuming…better quit..

  • Mark From Bristol March 25, 2016, 12:58 pm

    So rabidly anti-American, Barrack Hussein Muslim Terrorist is at it again and never stops doing everything that he can do to tear down OUR nation, these United States Of America and OUR Constitution. You know? Had his mother made her Kenyan lover wear a condom the night that she let him have his way with her in the backseat of whoever’s unlocked parked car that they used, when he was done with her he simply could have unrolled Barrack Hussein and tossed him out the window for some stray dog to pickup and chew on like a dirty, stinky toy. But no, she was selfish and now the WHOLE world, not just us, but the WHOLE world is paying for it.

    • Steve Smith March 26, 2016, 12:48 am

      Google “Frank Marshall Davis” and see if you notice any family resemblance with BO…

  • jim coyne March 25, 2016, 12:05 pm

    There are common sense reasons that firearms and other weapons should be forbidden in certain areas. Being a responsible firearm owner, I stand for the right to bear arms & fully support all of the millions of other responsible firearm owners. But I know that there are lots of irresponsible firearm owners, folks with mental illness who own firearms, and lots and lots of criminals who have no business possessing firearms. So if areas such as courthouses, schools, businesses & post offices say no firearms, that is probably a good idea. The term “going postal” wasn’t invented without a good reason. And I don’t fear the notion that if we prohibit firearms in certain places it just opens the door to banning firearms in lots of places. That’s because I don’t fear. I am a fair-minded, hopeful, positive, caring, smart, strong American, and I believe in America, both the good parts & not so good parts. I all these years, no one has ever restricted my purchase or ownership of firearms, and I don’t see that happening in the near or even distant future. Stop sowing fear & look at how great we have it & how great we are, a country of good people who lead, help, care, invent, work hard, play hard, respect everyone and respect all that God has given us. Strength comes from knowing that you’re a good person and will and do what is right, not from fear.

    • Maura March 25, 2016, 12:30 pm

      You are part of the problem.You’re a perfect example of what’s wrong with the mindset of Americans who vote Democrat. Don’t fear the government of Barack Obama, He was your best interests as a responsible gun owner in mind. If he says that law abiding citizens must be unarmed when the enter a post office parking lot, there must be a good reason. I only hope that your sleep through voiting day and don’t have a chance to vote for Clitler.

      • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 5:43 pm

        Hey Mauron, where does the fellow you are commenting on mention that he is a Democrat? Where does he say he is a supporter of Barack Obama? Wow! You are one of these people who likes to make up your own “facts” as you go along. You know what? People like YOU are the problem here in America!

    • Michael March 25, 2016, 12:41 pm

      And of course we all know that those irresponsible gun owners will follow the law and not go into a federal facility with a firearm. Right?

    • Dwayne March 25, 2016, 1:04 pm

      Know who’s side you’da been on in the Revolution.

  • Michael March 25, 2016, 12:00 pm

    A side bar comment – at the rate the US Postal Service is going, eventually they will be totally out-of-business and their functions taken over by truly for-profit private companies who will be able to dos the job more efficiently, less costly, and quicker than the current operators. We as a people must begin to wean ourselves from this concept that someone in short pants must deliver our junk mail to our door step each and every day and that every little community in every state across this Country must have its own post office. Frankly, the Postal Service has been a money loser for years and years and needs to be done away with. If I had to rely on the postal service for my business or personal needs, my company would have gone under a long time ago.

    • Dwayne March 25, 2016, 12:58 pm

      Yep, rural folk should have to drive 30-40 miles to ship a package. Can we say UN Agenda 21 girls and boys?

    • John R. March 25, 2016, 1:56 pm

      You are correct that the Postal Service has been in the red for the past few years. However the Postal Service is the only federal entity that has to fund, in its entirety, health and retirement benefits for its employees. For all other federal agencies it is a collective funding. Additionally congress has been raiding, I’m sorry borrowing, what profits the Postal Service has made for the last fifteen years and placing non realistic expectations on the Postal Service
      The Postal Service is a not for profit federal agency whose hands are tied by the Postal Board of Governor’s. If the Postal Service was allowed to set rates based on the current market conditions it would be a whole new ball game.
      If you can tell me of another mailing service that will deliver a letter from the east coast to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, Alaska, or Hawaii for less than 50 cents please let me know.

      • DaveW March 25, 2016, 4:51 pm

        It’s clear the inmates have forgotten such things as the origin of the term “going postal”, that criminals are criminals because they do not obey the laws already in place. No law will ever stop a criminal from packing a weapon. In point of fact, the UK banned pretty much all guns unless you had the money for the permits. Jump to present day and the UK reports handguns are becoming common among criminals. In the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, where handguns are not easily obtainable, the sawn-off shotgun was a common weapon in armed robberies during and shortly after the 1960s, and it is this use that most people associate with the weapon. In more recent years, handguns and handgun replicas have been more easily available in the United Kingdom, despite an increase in legal restrictions on civilian ownership of handguns in the area: sawn-off shotguns were used in only 157 out of a total of 3727 robberies involving firearms in England and Wales from 2004 to 2005, while handguns made up 2501 of the weapons used in these robberies. Check out the Legal Restrictions section https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sawed-off_shotgun for Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, United Kingdom, United States, and Others. More police officers in the UK are trained and armed or have access to weapons. Obviously, our system, under leftist leadership is doomed to fail.

        The USPS is a private enterprise which is subsidized by the US Government because they never break even, let alone make a profit. If not for being subsidized, we couldn’t afford to mail a first class letter.

        The employees of the USPS are civilians, who are unionized. They have an excellent benefits and retirement package. There is a USPS retirement community in Florida where retired postal workers have a cost free residence. They pay for their phone and television service. https://www.opm.gov/blogs/Retire/united-states-postal-service/ with more links here: https://www.google.com/search?q=USPS+retirement+benefits&gws_rd=ssl

        I heard, but can not confirm at this time, that when the postman has finished their route, they can leave for the rest of the day. One day they may get a paid hour free, and another day perhaps a paid 3 hour period. This, reportedly, does not apply to those who work as sorters and other positions.

        I’m not ragging on the postal employees. They perform a service. And several of the major private sector businesses like UPS and FedEx are already working with USPS. I have received packages shipped by them and the final delivery was made to my personal mail box by USPS. I rag on the government for not acting on behalf of the taxpayers, for not being fiscally responsible.

    • Mike March 25, 2016, 2:15 pm

      They are loosing money, because they are fully funding the retirement plans of their employees.
      I too think they should stop giving a crap about the people working for them and screw them over like 95% of businesses do now-a-days!

    • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 6:07 pm

      Michael, speaking of “LOSERS”, you are one! You are as misinformed as is most of the American public! The Postal Service has NEVER lost money and I doubt they ever will. What you are referring to as a loss is a major pre-funding of the Postal retirement plan a full SEVENTY-FIVE years in advance! This is the one and only reason the Postal Service has not made huge profits in the past. Let me ask you this—What company or corporation requires that their company pre-fund a retirement plan seventy-five years in the future? Answer: NO COMPANY! We are talking billions of dollars here! We can thank our wonderful government for this astute decision. To further put down your argument, the USPS is closing small Post office facilities every year to cut down on expenses. “Junk” mail that you demonize just happens to pay the bulk of operating expenses for the entire Postal service. Btw, I believe most Americans disagree with you. Most appreciate the man (or woman) in blue bringing mail to their homes six days a week. The letter carrier, or mailman, is not only a public servant but also a keen observer who keeps an eye on neighborhoods and Postal patrons at the same time. Oh, and I know a little bit about this subject. I was a Letter Carrier for FORTY-THREE years before recently retiring. I have never felt more appreciated in my life than by my patrons who I have been told miss me dearly. I miss them too!

  • Michael March 25, 2016, 11:52 am

    Talk, tweet, text, and email all you want, but “We the People” are the cause for our Country’s current state of affairs. After all, the majority of “We the People” elected these anti-Constitution and anti-American representatives and senators (our new “Noble Class and Aristocracy”), and of course, our president. And the president nominates a person for vacancies on the SCOTUS, and so it goes. So how do “We the People” turn this around? It won’t happen overnight (or probably for a couple of decades) but “We the People” can do it. Simply NEVER EVER vote for the incumbent in any election. The incumbents will either be voted out of office or get the message when their re-elections are too tough and too close and either “self deport” or change their evil ways. Eventually the House, the Senate, and the White House will be filled with all new, fresh faces. Until every new session of Congress has all 535 members asking where the restrooms are, “We the People” haven’t done our job! We must take away their inflated salaries, expense accounts, free parking at reserved spaces at the airport , and their retirement and medical benefits, and their future lucrative lobbying jobs after they leave Congress, and then, and only then will we attract citizens who truly want to SERVE “We the People.” I always write my Senators and Congressman and finish my missive with these words, “We watch, We remember, We vote.” You should too.

  • airman March 25, 2016, 11:51 am

    Everyone keeps talking about ccw permit holders and I have seen nothing that in the second amendment that says this right is only for people willing to pay for this and get a permit. I thought this right was paid for in blood by our forefathers many years ago and the second amendment is our permit. My thoughts on this subject is if the authorities want to see a piece of paper to give us this so called permit just carry a copy of the second amendment. ok now I am finished venting my frustrations as an uneducated but common sense hillbilly that served my country many years ago.

  • Bisley March 25, 2016, 11:47 am

    Even a justice who believed the ban should be overturned wouldn’t vote to hear the case now. Without the vote of Justice Scalia, there is no possibility of a majority vote to overturn it, and a 4-4 tie would let the ruling of the lower court stand. Nothing is going to be done to uphold the 2nd Amendment without another conservative justice on the court — and it won’t be a sure thing then.

  • Kalashnikov Dude March 25, 2016, 11:46 am

    This is funny. The federal government has no right to ban our Constitutional right to keep and bear arms. Especially in areas funded by taxpayer dollars. Post offices, court houses, schools, DMV’s, city parks, national parks, are places we all pay for and they are supposed to uphold the laws and values of this nation as written, not how some judges, lawyers or politicians twist it and use it to enforce tyranny. Especially in these places. The good news is we aren’t liable to this travesty of justice and American values. We do not have to follow illegal legislation. Just say no. It works best if everybody does it instead of just me. Get out there and take your rights back. Don’t take no for an answer.

  • Jimmy March 25, 2016, 11:37 am

    And as soon as he is convicted of the felony of possessing a pistol in him car, they will go to his house and confiscate all of his guns because by being a convicted firearm felon, that will probably automatically disqualify him as a firearms owner. Supreme court justice Clarence Thomas recently said, why is it that our second amendment rights are so easily restricted or taken away? He also asked anyone to name another constitutional right that could be taken away for a misdemeanor conviction. Food for thought.

    • captain March 27, 2016, 4:02 am

      Thank you for writing what I think every time one of these people here pulls the old “except criminals” pandering palaver out of his pocket. If he’s too dangerous to have his rights reapected, don’t let him out! If he’s free, gorrammit, treat him as a free person!!

  • WiLLB March 25, 2016, 11:05 am

    The Supreme Court is 4 against 4. Do not expect it to do anything as long as it is deadlocked. That means, this year and likely next year too.

  • jack March 25, 2016, 10:54 am

    I bet this is all a holdover from all those postal shooting from years ago.
    I remember a postmaster being fired in my town for playing with a bullet he kept on his desk
    while being interviewed about workplace violence.

    Its amazing what the GOV will remember and selectively apply when its in their interests to do so.

  • Mark Are March 25, 2016, 10:32 am

    What it boils right down to is that “they” think they can decide what our rights are. “Laws” like this are total insanity put into existence by totally insane people. Seriously folks…WHO NEEDS THEM? FOR WHAT? To put someone in a cage for something as innocuous as this is total foolishness. I just hope he gets some juror who has enough sense to realize or has understood the main reason for a jury is to decide the LAW in cases such as this and the juror either hangs the jury or convinces the other jurors to walk out and say NOT GUILTY your “honor”. PUKES.

    • KIMBER March 25, 2016, 10:49 am

      All gun owners, ccw permit holders, family and friends nation wide need to boycott the postal system! They need to drive home the fact that the post office is a quasi government entity, and are only surviving by their customer base.

  • JEFF MCKEVITT March 25, 2016, 9:29 am

    As the saying goes, “I’d rather be tried by 12, than CARRYed by 6”

  • Rick March 25, 2016, 8:57 am

    Why don’t you run an article asking the people to change there party from Democrat to Republican.
    Its a fact that most Democrat are anti-gun and most Republicans are pro-gun. If that could be done it would scare Washington to death.

  • Capn Stefano March 25, 2016, 8:47 am

    Right to LIFE, liberty and pursuit of happiness?

    RIP, BORs

  • Jay March 25, 2016, 8:40 am

    I thought that a vehicle was considered personnel private property! Why is it that now, this would say if I have my firearm in my possession when I drive onto a parking lot, which is what I thought was public property, to drop something off in a mail box which is considered US government property I am now in violation of federal law! Ridiculous!

    • Gung Ho March 25, 2016, 9:32 am

      No shit. The federal government is run by idiots and the supreme court is staffed by idiots who are comfortable with violating the U.S. Constitution. Get yourself a BIG can of pepper spray to carry when you go to the post office. At least you won’t be defenseless.

      • Chief March 25, 2016, 10:06 am

        .What if you drove by the box in the parking lot to drop a letter off and you got rear ended .You call the police to write a report and then he asks if you are armed ,then you;re screwed ,How many people do you think know they can’t legally have a gun in their possession in the post off parking lot ? Ridiculous!!

    • AC March 25, 2016, 9:44 am

      What about a post office in a strip mall that shares a parking lot with other retailers? Seems like an open invitation for the courts to manipulate a situation if it were to ever arise.

  • just1spark March 25, 2016, 8:39 am

    How about we just outlaw criminals from carrying into post offices? DERRPPPPPPP

  • Steve March 25, 2016, 8:26 am

    Go back a couple hundred years and the government required gun possession in such places. I think there is still a MA blue law that requires all able bodied men to bring their guns to church. Outside of the idiocy of today’s government logic of not realizing that safe zones are indeed prime targets for killing zones, the case in question is also one of onerous lawmaking and interpretation of the same. There are rulings I believe that a car is same as ‘home’ so when a permit carrier pulls into a parking lot and secures the firearm prior to entering a ‘safe zone’, feet touching the parking lot if you want to take it to the extreme, are they really breaking the law as to no firearms in the building or in the parking lot? Or, are they securing the firearm in their ‘home’ and therefore complying with the law.

  • ron March 25, 2016, 7:38 am

    government officials swore to up hold the constitution and so far they haven’t so they all should be fired

  • Marvin Smith March 25, 2016, 7:25 am

    Irony alert…from Wikipedia:
    The expression derives from a series of incidents from 1986 onward in which United States Postal Service (USPS) workers shot and killed managers, fellow workers, and members of the police or general public in acts of mass murder. Between 1986 and 1997, more than 40 people were gunned down by current or former employees in at least 20 incidents of workplace rage.

  • Mark Tercsak March 25, 2016, 7:07 am

    And Obama wants to push to get his pick on the bench does not need him , he has all the losser’s he needs.
    Having said that The Court should really re-consider allowing Americans to protect and defend themselves when they go to the Post Office, since these mass Murder Spree’s all started with disgruntled Postal Workers, remember the term going Postal !
    In all seriousness now, The Second Amendment does not place limits on a Individual or a Militia on where they can and cannot carry a weapon ! In fact any limits violates the last clause of the Amendment, Shall not be infringed ! “We The People” must do the right thing and get off our lazy ass’s and vote and vote for the right candidate, I urge all Americans to not just look at the Repukes of The Republican Party and esp the Bolsheviks of the Democratic Party, but turn ti the Constitution Party and look at their candidates ! They have Grown-ups running .

  • Pat March 25, 2016, 6:28 am

    Civil servants are not that sharp! That’s why there’s a ban

    • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 6:26 pm

      Really? And you base this on what facts? So civil servants are not that sharp? I was a civil servant (Letter Carrier) and I have an IQ of 145. I would bet I’m a whole lot smarter than you are!!!

  • Terry Costakis March 25, 2016, 6:15 am

    I’m handicapped and have difficulty walking more than 100 feet yet I’m unable to take advantage of handicapped parking at my local post office and I’m forced to park my vehicle in the bank parking lot a block away. I don’t understand the rationale of this ridiculous law. We’ve lost any vestige of common sense in this country.

  • doug March 25, 2016, 5:51 am

    Until Obama’s gone and a “common sense” potus is in place, this phony potus will continue to “chip” away at your God-given rights under the constitution which says NOTHING about “exceptions” to the law.
    If we allow this phony potus to do this, imagine if he manages to get another flaming liberal on the court after assassinating Judge Scalia !!!

  • Mark McKinney March 25, 2016, 3:54 am

    Gun free zones are open areas for slaughter of innocent people. Just like it has been proven in our schools. Besides, I pay no attention to the law about the Post Office!!! We need to keep fighting after we get the communist out of the White House for our God given rights to self protection. There are not enough police, and there are NO police in the Post Office to protect us. Police are there to call the coroner and ambulance for the wounded. Besides I trust my training more than I do theirs.

  • CJ March 25, 2016, 3:24 am

    I just park at the Gunshop across the street from our post office, nice to live in by GOD TEXAS.

  • jaque March 24, 2016, 1:34 pm

    Now how does one who lawfully carrys a firearm get his mail from a post office p.o. box where there is no place to store the weapon before entering post office property ? Must he drive many miles out of his way to his home or shop to store his arm and go back to the post office ? The answer is yes. I bet there are many who carry into post offices out of ignorance of the law. This is a situation that congress should rectify, at least allowing CCW holder to park or drive into post office property while armed, locking their weapon in the car. This federal law clearly infringes on “the right to bear arms” in a way never intended by the authors of the 2nd Amendment. Same for bans of firearms in all other federal properties.

    • thangan March 25, 2016, 1:01 am

      I totally agree here. And what about the Castle Domain states that make your vehicle as part of your domain and you are permitted to have a gun in it without having to have any type of permit?

    • Mark Tercsak March 25, 2016, 6:57 am

      How do you get your mail , you don’t .
      Stop using the Postal Service.

      • Rick Haushalter March 25, 2016, 6:29 pm

        Yeah Mark, good luck with that! You are truly an asshat!

    • srsquidizen March 25, 2016, 8:10 am

      This does present a real problem if there is no other place to park other than Post Office property. Fortunately, most fairly gun-friendly places allow you to leave a gun in your car in public parking (such as city-owned meter spaces) as long as it is locked up and out of sight which anybody with common sense is going to do anyway. Now this still presents a problem for the disabled and often means parking charges that we shouldn’t have to pay for the rest of us, so I’m not saying it’s right. But it is an alternative to driving miles out of the way. I agree the entire issue is a blatent 2A infringement.

      • MikeinMaine May 13, 2016, 7:08 am

        Now THAT’S an interesting argument. One could argue that these restrictions are violations of the ADA because disabled persons are denied the same opportunty because of their need to park close to the post office building.. Hmm… any lawyers out there want to run with this one?

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