Last week, not only did Oregon's restrictive gun laws fail to stop a shooter intent on killing innocent people, but a passing good Samaritan had to violate those laws to end the murder spree.
asserted
Samaritan → fail → spree
Fortunately, authorities don't appear intent on prosecuting Kaylub Giamanco, father to two girls who attend the school, for ignoring the ban on guns on school grounds to save lives.
asserted
who → appear → lives
But the law is clearly more of a threat to people with good intent than it is to those bent on doing harm.
asserted
it → bend → harm
Such laws should and must be defied, but lawmakers need to remove these legal minefields before they do more damage.
asserted
they → defy → damage
You are reading The Rattler from J.D. Tuccille and Reason.
asserted
You → read → Tuccille
A Hero Dad With a Gun Stops a Murder Spree
"I want to start by thanking and praising the quick thinking and courage of the Silver Rail Elementary School staff and parents—and the first responders who rushed to the scene," Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek commented in a press release after the attack by a 16-year-old shooter at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon.
asserted
Kotek → stop → Bend
"And to the community member who heroically intervened to stop further loss of life, your actions carry a heavy emotional burden—and my thoughts are with you."
asserted
thoughts → intervene → you
That community member was Kaylub Giamanco, who had two daughters at the school.
asserted
who → have → school
He was reportedly driving past when he saw the shooter approaching Silver Rail with a shotgun in hand.
uncertain
shooter → drive → hand
Giamanco parked his vehicle, grabbed his firearm, and followed the shooter, who had blasted his way through the facility's locked doors.
asserted
who → park → doors
The shooter murdered four people, but Giamanco was able to kill him before he did any more damage.
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he → murder → damage
In the incident, the murderer obviously violated the law.
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murderer → violate → law
But so did Giamanco.
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Giamanco → do → ?
Restrictive Laws That Had To Be Ignored
"Oregon gun laws are rated as the 12th strictest in the nation according to data collected by gun violence prevention group Everytown for Gun Safety, but they didn't stop the shooting of four elementary school children and two teachers at a Bend elementary school on Thursday," wrote Lillian Mongeau Hughes of The Oregonian.
uncertain
Hughes → have → Oregonian
(Reports say three children and a teacher were murdered, with two others injured.)
asserted
others → say → ?
The gun-control group Everytown for Gun Safety boasts that "Oregon has passed a broad range of gun safety laws in recent years, including a requirement that guns be securely stored whenever they are not in their owner's immediate control, a prohibition on guns at the state capitol, and a law that gives universities the authority to prohibit guns on their grounds."
asserted
that → boast → grounds
The similarly restriction-oriented Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence gives Oregon an A- for its laws, ranking the state 11th out of 50.
asserted
Center → orient → 50
The group notes that the state "allowed local governments to limit firearms in government buildings."
asserted
state → note → buildings
Of specific interest in this case, the state adopted a law in 2021 that, among other things, says "the governing board of a community college or a district school board" may adopt policies banning guns on school grounds, even for those "licensed to carry a concealed handgun."
uncertain
board → adopt → handgun
Importantly, the Bend–La Pine Schools, which include Silver Rail, mandate that "no person on grounds of the schools controlled by the Board of Directors for Bend–La Pine Schools (including in school buildings) shall bring to, possess, conceal or use a weapon or firearm at any property under the jurisdiction of Bend-La Pine Schools, any activities under the jurisdiction of the district, or any interscholastic activities administered by a voluntary organization (i.e., Oregon School Activities Association).
asserted
person → include → organization
This prohibition includes those who may otherwise be permitted by law to carry such weapons or firearms.
uncertain
who → include → weapons
The prohibition applies to the Silver Rail murderer, though it was unlikely to be a concern to a person already intent on slaughter.
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it → apply → slaughter
It also applies to Giamanco, who stopped the attack and who must now—probably successfully, given the case's high profile—rely on the authorities to not enforce their own laws.
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authorities → apply → laws
A Long History of Defensive Use of Firearms
Giamanco is by no means alone in taking the initiative to stop an attack.
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Giamanco → take → attack
I've written in the past about Jordan Salinas and others in the Twin Falls incident, as well as Elisjsha Dicken at the Greenwood Park Mall in Indiana.
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I → write → Indiana
The actions of bystanders are crucial given the evidence that would-be mass murderers must be countered with defensive force within the first 30 seconds to avoid a double-digit body count.
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murderers → give → count
ALERRT defines an "active attack" as an incident in which "an individual or individuals is actively killing or attempting to kill multiple unrelated people in a public space."
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individual → define → space
Of those, 374 were resolved before police arrived, with 29 concluded by civilians shooting the perpetrator and another 60 attackers otherwise subdued by civilians.
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29 → resolve → civilians
That's certainly not a full count of actions by armed citizens to defend themselves and others.
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That → defend → themselves
The 2026 National Firearms Survey finds that "guns are used defensively by firearms owners in approximately 2.2 million incidents per year.
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guns → find → year
In most defensive incidents no shot was fired (76.3%), about half (50.8%) involved more than one assailant, and in 70.6% of incidents respondents report that the defensive use was successful, such that no crime remained to be reported to the police.
asserted
crime → fire → police
Undoubtedly, many of those incidents aren't reported to the police because people who have just averted a threat to themselves or others don't want to get entangled with a legal system that is all too often hostile to self defense.
asserted
that → report → defense
If all has ended well, why risk arrest for violating a law that would have prevented you from defending yourself or that you may not even have known about?
uncertain
you → end → that
As The Oregonian points out, Oregon's "strong laws" didn't stop the shooting.
asserted
laws → point → shooting
Those laws ban murder, of course.
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laws → ban → course
They also specify that "guns be locked, stored in gun safes or in specialized gun rooms as a way to keep children from accessing firearms," according to the report.
uncertain
guns → specify → report
"Police have not said if those laws were violated."
asserted
laws → say → ?
They also ban guns on the grounds of schools with restrictive policies.
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They → ban → policies
Authoritarian Laws Don't Deter Evil and Should Be Defied
The thing about criminals, though, is that they don't obey laws.
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they → deter → laws
That's especially true of those who plan murder sprees they don't intend to survive.
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they → plan → sprees
…and 7 more, not listed.
The Aporia
