Tennessee Firearms Assoc. Inc.

.... in Bartlett Park.

WMCTV-5 in Memphis has a story on their website about a guy pulling a gun on a baseball coach. I live in Bartlett so naturally I wanted to find out what happened. At the end of the story, the reporter throws in one line that really pisses me off. The city of Bartlett has no law banning guns in parks. Now I don't know the reporters stance on the whole guns in parks law, but I read this statement as "Had Bartlett had chosen to opt out and restrict guns in parks the way Memphis did, this would have never happened". I plan on emailing this reporter and telling him how this makes me feel.

Here is the letter I just sent him:

Mr. Major,

I just read your report on WMCTV-5’s website and must admit, I’m a little confused about one line you added to your story. The city of Bartlett has no law banning guns in parks. What, may I ask, were your intentions on adding this line to your story? I’m going to be honest and tell you how I interpreted it. I read it as you stating that had Bartlett followed suite and opted out of the “guns in parks” law like Memphis did, then this event would have never happened. It feels like sensationalism and that you are trying to hit on a recent hot topic to stir up controversy. In other words, agenda driven news reporting. Now I don’t really think your agenda is to try an urge people to have the law reversed in Bartlett as much as you are just trying to pour a little fuel on the already burning fire. It’s your story, your job and I am not telling you how to do it but if you feel the need to seed your opinion within a fact, then I feel the need to respond as you are no longer reporting the news, but in fact, trying to create news to report on.

Thank you,
Todd Scallions

Todd, nice job... You kept it polite and professional while making your point very well.

Let us know if you get a reply, and post it if you do.

Regards,
Mike

http://www.wmctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12630625

He pulled out out of his car then loaded it. There must have been some previous bad blood between these two for it to escalate this far.

Based on CA's website this guy doesn't have a TN HCP. So, yes...Bartlett doesn't allow guns in parks for this guy.

It's since been determined that this father does have a HCP.

Elements of this story, if you read the whole thing don't make a lot of sense but as best I can tell, the person had no justification for drawing his weapon and if that's true, he did a great disservice to all of us who carry responsibility.

In the book "In The Gravest Extreme" Massad Ayoob says (and I'm paraphrasing here); that the armed citizen has a greater duty to avoid confrontations than an unarmed citizen. I would suggest that we all need to be willing to "walk away", when we can, to keep something from escalating no matter who is in the "right".

At the very least, it's irresponsible, in my humble opinion, to let an argument over "at bat time" in Little League escalate to the point that anyone needs to draw a weapon - what if someone had actually been shot/killed over such a ridiculous issue.

He needs to be charged if he violated the law, and he will loose his permit if he is in fact a holder and violated TCA Code.