Category Archives: Wisconsin

No Gun-Selling license? Not a Problem

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel published a MUST-READ article on June 5th about the appalling lack of effective regulations on gun sellers. This brilliant article was written by the Sentinel’s John Diedrich, one of the country’s most professional and gifted journalists writing about the gun industry and violence in America. (Photo: Rick Wood: A clerk works behind [...]

Accused Milwaukee Gunman Charged With Murdering 2 Men Now Out Of Jail, Still Allowed To Carry Gun — Prosecutors Argue Gun Should Be Temporarily Revoked

According to Milwaukee ABC (WISN) Channel 12 reported on May 26th: MILWAUKEE — A gun rights activist is free from jail and is still allowed to carry a gun despite charges that he shot two men. Jesus Gonzalez was released from jail on a $100,000 cash bond. He’s not allowed to have contact with the [...]

Chicago Family Massacred By Family Member: 3 Children, One Adult Killed In ‘Horrendous’ Shooting, 2 Others In Critical Condition

According to the Huffington Post on April 14th: Four people–including three children–were fatally shot early Wednesday and two others were critically injured when a family member from out of state showed up at the South Side home and began shooting–reportedly because “Allah” told him to kill his family. About 4:25 a.m., police responded to a [...]

Must Watch This Brilliant Video About Buying Guns Without Going Through a Criminal Background: “Meet Wayne”

Meet Wayne This video was produced by the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. TAKE ACTION: Click here to sign a postcard to demand that criminal backgrounds are conducted on all gun purchases.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Dramatically Reverses Longstanding Editorial Position, Now Supports Carrying Of Hidden and Loaded Handguns In Public “With Restrictions” — Can You Say “Naive” Anyone?

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote an editorial on Jan. 30th, “It’s time to reconsider concealed-carry law. In response, we are pleased to post the following letter to the editor to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Feb. 2nd from the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort: No Good Reason For Journal Sentinel to Dramatically Change Its [...]

Pennsylvania Leads Nation in Per Capita Rate of Black Homicide Victimization

(We are pleased to post the following press release from the Violence Policy Center). For Immediate Release: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 Contact: Mandy Wimmer, Communications Associate, 202-822-8200 x110, mwimmer@vpc.org State’s Black Homicide Victimization Rate of 36.36 Per 100,000 is Nearly Seven Times National Overall Homicide Rate of 5.30 per 100,000 Washington, DC–Pennsylvania leads the nation [...]

Carrying Hidden and Loaded Handguns In Public Is Dangerous – Public Safety Must Be Top Priority For Communities

Peggy Schulz wrote a brilliant column in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on Nov. 2nd that is worth reading. The overall safety of the general public as we move through our lives on a daily basis is – or at least should be – the top priority for lawmakers, both local and national. We live in a [...]

NRA Launches Deceitful Calling Campaign: Should Third World Dictators — And Hillary Clinton — Dictate Our Gun Rights?

According to Talking Points Memo (TPM) on Oct. 16th: The National Rifle Association is in the field with a call campaign asking recipients a rather leading question — “Should third-world dictators and Hillary Clinton dictate our gun policy?” – according to several TPM readers who have reported receiving the call. While TPM has not been [...]

Gun In Shooting Of Officer Traced To Badger Guns, an Infamous Milwaukee Dealer For Selling Guns Traced To Crimes

According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on Oct. 4th: The handgun used to shoot a Milwaukee police officer last week has been traced to Badger Guns, making that store the sole supplier of all the guns used to wound six officers in two years, police said. Detectives traced the 9mm Hi-Point used in Wednesday’s shooting to [...]

New National Study Says Background Checks On All Gun Sales Will Prevent Gun Violence

(We are pleased to post the following press release from Freedom States Alliance affiliate, Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort). For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Vogel, scott@freedomstatesalliance.org Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort: The State Legislature’s Failure to Close the Existing, Gaping Loopholes Amounts to a State-Sanctioned “Guns For Criminals Program” (Milwaukee, WI) – A landmark study released today by the [...]

Video: After Arming VA Tech & Northern Illinois University Killers, Green Bay Gun Dealer Eric Thompson Sold 30-Round Ammunition Magazine To George Sodini Who Gunned Down 3 Women At LA Fitness Gym In Pittsburgh

From the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort: On Aug. 7th, Fox Channel 11 interviewed Jeri Bonavia, Executive Director of Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort, in response to the disturbing revelations that a Green Bay gun dealer, Eric Thompson, enabled and armed yet another rampage killer for the third time since April 2007. Eric Thompson’s company, TGSCOM Inc., sold a [...]

Three Times, Same Wisconsin Gun Dealer Has Helped Supply Killers — CCW Permit George Sodini Latest Rampage Shooter To Purchase High-Capacity Ammunition Magazines From Eric Thompson’s Online Gun Store

(We are pleased to post the following press release from the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and our Freedom States Alliance affiliate, the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort). For Immediate Release Friday, August 7, 2009 Contact: Peter Hamm, 202-898-0792, phamm@bradymail.org Jeri Bonavia, Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort, 414-351-9283, jmbwave@aol.com Washington, D.C. – Eric Thompson, the arms dealer from [...]

Time For U.S. to Ban Assault Weapons Once and For All

A commentary by Lois Stark was published in The Northwestern on May 5th and sources our Freedom States Alliance affiliate, Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. Why don’t we have better gun control in this country? We had a federal ban on certain semi-automatic assault guns passed in 1994. When the 10-year ban was set to expire 1,100 [...]

The Gun Lobby’s Trojan Horse: Carrying Concealed Weapons Bill Dupes Illinois Sheriffs To Back Legislation, With Limits

The Illinois Sheriff’s Association should know better than to listen to the radical agenda of the gun lobby when it comes to carrying concealed weapons. In a desperate attempt to peel off law enforcement officials into supporting a dangerous bill to permit the carrying of hidden and loaded guns into child daycare centers, hospitals, nursing [...]

Gun Lobby Suffers Major Defeat In Election: Wisconsin Citizens Join the Rest Of the Country In Saying, ‘Thanks, But No Thanks’ To the Gun Lobby’s Extremist Agenda

(We are posting the following press release from Freedom States Alliance affiliate, the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. Note: GunGuys.com does not endorse candidates for office). NRA Endorsements and Money Are, Once Again, Meaningless in Election The citizens of Wisconsin won another overwhelming victory against the extremism of the gun lobby this election. “Commonsense, democracy, and Wisconsin [...]

Real Gun Mistaken For a Toy; 11-Year-Old Girl Shoots Brother, Now In Critical Condition

The Salt Lake Tribune reported on Oct. 29th, an unintentional shooting by an 11-year-old girl that may have paralyzed her 14-year-old brother as he is listed in critical condition. When will parents who own guns learn that what they were told by the gun industry — that firearms would make their lives safer — is [...]

Edgerton, WI Police: Recently Married Young Couple Found Dead In Likely Murder-Suicide

According to the Associated Press on Aug. 18th: EDGERTON, Wis. – Investigators in Edgerton are probing an apparent murder-suicide. Police Chief Tom Klubertanz says officers went to house around 8 a.m. Monday. They found the bodies of Shaun Vodermann and his wife, Jennifer Vodermann, in the home. Both apparently died from gunshot wounds. Klubertanz says [...]

Authorities: 3 Killed, 1 Injured By Man In Camouflage Using An Assault Rifle Near Wis.-Mich. State Line

The Associated Press reported on Aug. 1st a shooting in Niagara, Wis: Authorities were searching for a man wearing camouflage clothing and carrying a rifle on Friday after four people were shot, three fatally, near the Wisconsin-Michigan state line. Chief Deputy Jerry Sauve of the Marinette County Sheriff’s Department said his office got a call [...]

Police Say Man Shot Lawn Mower That Wouldn’t Start

According to the Associated Press in Milwaukee: A 56-year-old Milwaukee man is accused of shooting his lawn mower because it wouldn’t start. Keith Walendowski has been charged with felony possession of a short-barreled shotgun or rifle and misdemeanor disorderly conduct while armed. According to the criminal complaint, Walendowski says he was angry because his Lawn [...]

Wis. Boy Kills Self After Unintentionally Shooting His Friend In the Head

A double tragedy in Wisconsin leaves a community stricken with grief. According to the Associated Press: Police in Elko say a distraught teenager from Wisconsin committed suicide after accidentally shooting another boy in the head with a handgun. Investigators say the 15-year-old boy was visiting with family and was at another’s boy home across the [...]

Gun Dealer Who Raffled Off AK-47 Assault Rifle As a Publicity Stunt, Rips Off Customers and Closes Business

Maybe there is such a thing as redemption. An article in the Journal Times in Racine, Wisconsin on May 13th stated: RACINE — The local gun shop that briefly gained notoriety with an assault rifle raffle has closed — leaving behind at least a few unhappy customers. Store owner Terry Jackson opened Drop Zone Surplus [...]

Wisconsin Gun Dealer Who Sold To Virginia Tech and NIU Shooters Shows Why Gun Dealers Should Be More Regulated

A gun dealer in Green Bay Wisconsin who became infamous for selling items to both the Virginia Tech and NIU shooters is currently engaged in a reprehensible publicity stunt. For two weeks, he announced to the media, he will sell guns at “cost” to arm more people “to protect” themselves. You can watch Eric Thompson [...]

Must See: “One Milwaukee” Releases Powerful PSA About Gun Violence

“One Milwaukee” is a relatively new organization that is tackling both gun violence and teen pregnancy. It’s a “citywide initiative to help bridge the gap between the haves and haves-not in Milwaukee.” One Milwaukee released a remarkable PSA called “One Shot,” we strongly encourage you to watch it. In response to the PSA, the Milwaukee [...]

Lead Bullet Fragments Found in Donated Venison Meat at Food Shelves

Think twice before you purchase that next cut of venison because you might get a bad case of lead poisoning. We don’t have to tell you that any lead exposure is extremely dangerous. In North Dakota, “a physician found lead bullet fragments in 60 percent of the samples [of venison that were] tested.” According to [...]

Time To Get the Lead Out Of All Hunting and Fishing

GunGuys.com has followed the issue of lead contamination and poisoning for some time. No amount of lead exposure or toxicity is safe, especially to children and pregnant moms. But the problem is growing. For example, we wrote about California Condors nearing extinction due to poisoning from lead ammunition; and highlighted an FBI shooting range that [...]

The Internet Connection Between the Shooters at Northern Illinois University and Virginia Tech

To an Internet gun seller in Green Bay Wisconsin, it’s just one of those quirky things that the shooter at Virginia Tech bought a gun from the dealer’s website and the Northern Illinois University Shooter purchased gun accessories from the dealer’s Internet store. According to a recent article: The online gun dealer who sold a [...]

Green Bay Internet Gun Dealer Sold Accessories To Northern Illinois Univ. Gunman And Sold Handgun Accessories to VA Tech Shooter

According to a local TV station in western Wisconsin: An Internet gun dealer based in Green Bay that sold a weapon to the Virginia Tech shooter last year sold handgun accessories to the man who killed five at Northern Illinois University Thursday. Eric Thompson says that his Web site, www.thegunsource.com, sold two empty 9 millimeter [...]

Hunters Are Rapidly Declining, So What’s the Impact on America’s Politics?

Deer hunting season recently opened in Wisconsin and across the country. Although the statistics of just how many deer and elk are killed each year might surprise you, the “sport” is actually rapidly declining in the United States. According to the Sheboygan Press, “600,000 hunters take to the woods for the annual nine-day gun deer [...]

Governor Jim Doyle to Receive Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort’s ‘Creating a State of Peace Leadership Award’

(We’re pleased to post the following press release from Freedom States Alliance affiliate, Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort). Milwaukee County D.A. John Chisholm and Cynthia Martinez Schulz also to Be Honored, as Mayor Tom Barrett Proclaims November 8th WAVE Educational Fund Day When: Thursday, November 8th, 2007, 5:30-8:30 p.m. 5:30-6:30 p.m. Reception & Music — 6:30-8:30 p.m. [...]

Gun Range in Middle School Should Close Now, Not Wait Until 2010

According to the Sheboygan Press a shooting range in a middle school will be closing — but not soon enough. The reason, as Gun Guys has repeatedly noted, is the risk of lead poisoning. The Sheboygan Rifle & Pistol Club will stop operating the shooting range in the basement of Urban Middle School by October [...]

Update: WI Deputy Who Killed 6 Young People Lost Control After Being Called ‘Worthless Pig’ According to Friend

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel releases new information about Crandon Sheriff’s Deputy Tyler Peterson, who murdered 6 young people, including his ex-girlfriend, and wounded another. Tyler Peterson went to his ex-girlfriend’s house in Crandon Saturday with the hope of patching up their relationship, but instead got in a fight with her. And when other people at [...]

Crazy Wisconsin State Rep. Frank “I Wanna Arm Teachers in Schools” Lasee, Just Got a Little Bit Crazier

You remember crazy State Rep. Frank Lasee don’t you? You know, the Wisconsin lawmaker who said in October of 2006 that we should arm teachers and put deadly concealed handguns in our nation’s daycares and schools in the aftermath of school shootings in Colorado, Wisconsin, and of course the tragic and infamous Amish school massacre [...]

Statewide Bipartisan Poll Commissioned by WAVE Reveals Overwhelming Support for Background Checks on All Gun Sales

Press Release from Freedom States Alliance Affiliate: Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort: Release of Poll Highlights Comes on the Heels of International Association of Chiefs of Police Groundbreaking Report Also Calling for Background Checks on All Gun Sales MILWAUKEE, Sept. 20th — Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort Executive Director, Jeri Bonavia, released the following information and statement today in [...]

“A Racine, Wisconsin, Gun Dealer Is Raffling Off An Assault Rifle For Charity” – Or is It Publicity?

Gun enthusiasts love to raffle or auction off high-powered, military style guns. It’s their way of showing their affection for their firearms that shouldn’t be in the hands of civilians in the first place. It’s also a means of gaining publicity for their gun stores or gun advocacy organizations. We won’t question why a gun [...]

Did You Know that Illinois and Wisconsin are the Only States That Have the Common Sense Not to Allow Individuals to Walk Around Packing Heat?

That’s right. Only two states in America have resisted the NRA’s thuggish legislative onslaught when it comes to carrying handguns in public places: Illinois and Wisconsin. It’s hard to comprehend how an extremist, mythic notion of the “Wild West” came to be legally sanctioned in 48 states (although the state laws on carrying handguns vary [...]

Wisconsin Considers Overturning Preemption Law

Finally, here’s a short piece from the Wisconsin Radio Network about a new proposal to put gun laws back in the hands of people most affected by them– the leaders and residents of local communities. The shooting death of a four year old Milwaukee girl last week is evoking anger, frustration and a call for [...]

Nation Joins a Moment of Silence For Victims of Virginia Tech

Finally, at the end of a week filled with chaos, mourning and argument about what to do next, we finish with a moment of silence. On Tuesday, the Freedom States Alliance announced that it was inviting the nation to join in a nationwide Moment of Silence, and today at noon Eastern time, thousands of people [...]

Wisconsin Bill Would Require Background Checks on All Sales

Finally today, Wisconsin is working on finally closing one of the widest loopholes in gun laws in the United States. While most gun dealers are required to, at the very least, do a background check before they sell a firearm, “private dealers” are not, which means that private gun sales, in most circumstances, are completely [...]

Tracing Crime Guns Back to Legal Gun Dealers

Milwaukee’s TMJ4 has done an investigative report on firearms used in crimes in their city. Where do they come from and how do criminals obtain guns there that they shouldn’t have. They traced one firearm purchase in depth, and what they found is more than a little frightening. Arthur Chavarria is with Alcohol, Tobacco and [...]

No Concealed Weapons in Wisconsin

The Wisconsin State Journal has posted an editorial advocating a holdout in that state on concealed weapons. Despite the fact that the majority of Americans think concealed weapons are a terrible idea, the NRA has passed a concealed weapons law in almost every state (thanks to their money-driven lobbying efforts). Yet Wisconsin still holds out, [...]

Gun Guys Claim Politicians Should Pay Out for Not Passing CCW

Oh, now this is rich. The kooks over at the CRKBA have decided that because they’ve chosen to keep their citizens safe from the dangers of concealed weapons, authorities in Wisconsin should start paying for the supposed trouble resulting from it. It’s “time for politicians to pay the price for their decisions,” said Joe Waldron, [...]

Wisconsin Legislature Needs to Help, not Hurt

Finally today, Michael King of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has posted a smackdown on the state’s Legislature, challenging them to adopt a New Year’s resolution to change their ways and actually help the citizens of Wisconsin, instead of hurting them. In Milwaukee, the number of homicides increased 30% last year. While the first six months of [...]

Why We Must Take a Stand Against Gun Violence

Our friend Jeri Bonavia from the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort has a terrific letter in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel today, in which she lays out clearly the reasons why it’s to important to take a stand against gun violence in America. Given the tremendous costs – both human and financial – caused by gun violence and borne [...]

Citizens Confront Gun Violence

All over the country, citizens are dealing with gun violence brought on by a government choosing the gun lobby’s policies over their own, and Milwaukee, it seems, is no exception. The Milwaukee Police Department is studying whether to stop sending officers to certain low-priority calls as the department contends with a spike in violent crime, [...]

Voting the Gun Issue on Election Day

Election Day is just around the corner, and the gun issue is finding its way into ballots all over the United States. First up, Chicago’s Daily Herald has a profile of Dan Kotowski, a local state Senate candidate who’s had an up-close experience with how prevalent guns are in today’s world. Dan Kotowski was 26 [...]

Senate Must Not Pass Anti-ATF Bill

Finally today, Milwaukee’s Journal-Sentinel Online takes a look at Lou’s, a Philadelphia gun dealer that we’ve mentioned here on the site before. It’s a prime example of the type of gun dealer the NRA is trying to protect with its latest legislation currently rolling through Congress: A bill that would make it all but impossible [...]

Lasee is Crazy to Want More Guns in Schools

Even more fascinating than the nation’s reaction to the three school shootings in the past two weeks is the gun guys’ reaction. They accuse those fighting against gun violence of “dancing in the blood of innocents” (another phrase the NRA tells its members to parrot without consideration), when what we’re trying to do is seek [...]

“Sensenbrenner Coddles Gun Dealers Who Coddle Criminals”

A few weeks ago, Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, of the suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, lashed out at Milwaukee’s mayor, calling him a crybaby for asking for stronger gun laws for his community. Sensenbrenner was angry because the mayor, Tom Barrett, had attacked him for supporting a House bill that would make it illegal for police departments [...]

Editorial Letters, Including Bloomberg’s, Make Position Clear Against Sensenbrenner and the NRA

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is sitting in the front seat of the argument between Mayor Tom Barrett, who spoke out against a law that would make it illegal for police to share information about crime guns, and Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, who actually supported the bill (because he’s an NRA congressman). They’ve posted a few letters on [...]

Milwaukee Lashes Back at Sensenbrenner and the NRA

Yesterday we reported that Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, who represents Milwaukee, WI and the areas around it, had personally lashed back at Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett when Barrett criticized him for voting to tie the ATF’s hands with the new gun info bill the NRA is pushing through Congress. Sensenbrenner called Barrett a “crybaby” and blamed [...]