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Friday, June 25, 2010 – Daily News – 7A Judge refuses to delay ruling on Gulf drilling ban NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge who overturned a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling imposed after the Gulf oil spill refused Thursday to put his ruling on hold while the government appeals. The Justice Department had asked U.S. District Judge Mar- tin Feldman to delay his ruling until the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans can review it. Feldman rejected that request Thursday. On Tuesday, he struck down the Interior Department’s moratorium that halted approval of new permits for deepwater projects and sus- pended drilling on 33 exploratory wells. Feldman concluded the government simply assumed that because one deepwater rig went up in flames, others were dangerous too. The moratorium was imposed after the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon explod- ed April 20, killing 11 workers. Oil has been gushing from the blown-out well ever since. The Justice Department said in court papers that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has instructed all employees not to enforce the moratorium. Rig operators are getting letters that say suspension notices they received have no legal effect right now. But the Justice Department argues that delaying Feldman’s ruling would eliminate the risk administration is ignoring his ruling. But the judge informed attorneys only minutes before the call that he would rule without hearing oral argu- ments. The hearing would not have been open to the public. Separately, a number of environmental groups asked the court to release additional information about Feldman’s financial interests. The judge’s financial disclo- sure report for 2008, the most recent available, shows hold- ings in at least eight petroleum companies or funds that invest in them, including Transocean Ltd., which owned the Deep- water Horizon. The report shows most of his holdings were valued at less than $15,000; it did not provide spe- cific amounts. The environmental groups want to know whether Feld- man has a financial interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding. If so, he could be forced to disqualify himself from the case. of another drilling accident while new safety equipment standards and procedures are considered. Feldman had agreed to hold an emergency hearing by phone Thursday on a motion filed by several oilfield service companies who say the Obama Feldman said in a court fil- ing Thursday that his most recent financial disclosure report will be released by the federal courts’ administrative office ‘‘as soon as their securi- ty protocol on the release of (the report) has been satis- fied.’’ Gov. Bobby Jindal, at a rally against the moratorium in Houma, La., on Thursday, read from Feldman’s ruling and called it a ‘‘rare instance’’ of common sense from a federal official. CHICAGO (AP) — If the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down Chicago’s handgun ban, the city will likely do what Washington, D.C., did when its own ban was overturned two years ago: Put in place all sorts of restrictions to make it tougher to buy guns and easier for police to know who has them. Prospective gun owners in D.C. now are required to take training courses that include spending one hour on a firing range and sever- al hours in a classroom learning about gun safety. They also must pass a 20 question test based on D.C.’s firearm laws. Chicago Mayor Richard Daley says he’s encouraged by what he sees in D.C. and vows not go down without a fight. ‘‘We’re not going to roll over,’’ Daley told The Asso- ciated Press. While he and city offi- cials would not say specifi- cally what plans they have in mind if the Supreme Court rules against the city next week, observers say that a ruling favorable to Chicago gun rights support- ers will lead to a new round of legislation — and law- suits. ‘‘Just like they did in Washington, D.C., the city of Chicago is going to try to make it as difficult and dis- couraging as humanly pos- sible to keep people from having guns in their homes Chicago mayor won’t ’roll over’ if gun ban lifted ‘Just like they did in Washington, D.C., the city of Chicago is going to try to make it as difficult and discouraging as humanly possible to keep people from having guns in their homes for personal protection’ Dave Workman, Second Ammendment Foundation for personal protection,’’ said Dave Workman, spokesman for the Belle- vue, Washington-based Second Amendment Foun- dation. Since the ban was lifted in D.C., just over 800 guns have been registered in city. The relatively low total comes as the district passed the slew of new require- ments that also include being fingerprinted and tak- ing ballistic tests, which could help police track bul- lets back to specific guns if needed. ‘‘The Supreme Court tore down the wall, and D.C. built up 95 percent of it again,’’ said Richard Gar- diner, who is suing the dis- trict over the new laws on behalf of Dick Heller, the plaintiff in the original case. Daley is one of the nation’s most vocal gun control advocates, and has a reputation for wielding his Dr. Andrew PomazalD.O. 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And he has a reason to stay tough: while the city’s murder rate has dropped in recent years, but it is still one of the highest in the country. Washington, D.C.’s police chief, Cathy Lanier, said the city has ‘‘yet to have a case where someone was about to be the victim of a crime where someone pulled a handgun and saved themselves.’’ However, that isn’t the case in Chicago, and many say that could provide the motivation for more people to purchase guns if a ban is lifted. In May, a retired police officer shot two men, one fatally, after, police say, the men gunned down his son during the theft of his motorcycle. Days later, an 80-year-old Korean War veteran shot and killed a burglar who’d broken into his West Side home after the armed intruder had fired his gun at the man and missed, relatives said. Not lost on Chicago res- idents is the fact that the elderly man shot the intrud- er with an illegal gun and the reason the other man could legally own a gun was because he was a retired Chicago police officer. ‘‘If (the elderly man) didn’t have that gun ... all of them would have been dead,’’ said Charlene Fig- gins, 50, who lives nearby. ‘‘That’s the bottom line.’’ Daley counters such talk by pointing to other cases, including one in which a suburban Chicago man shot and killed a neighbor because the neighbor’s dog urinated on his lawn, as examples of the dangers of handguns in the home. But he said he and others expect gun advocates and manu- facturers to capitalize on the shooting involving the 80- year-old man. ‘‘People will begin to think that since you had a couple high profile cases, they might think (buying a handgun) might be a good thing,’’ said Tio Hardiman, a spokesman for CeaseFire, an anti-violence program in the city. ‘‘They don’t know if they’re going to be the next victim or not.’’ Lanier, D.C.’s police chief, said she believes get- ting rid of the ban has not had an effect on crime. The number of accidental shoot- ings in homes, domestic violence shootings and sui- cides did not go up as a result, she said. Nor, she said, has the homicide rate gone down as a result of lift- ing the ban, a frequent claim by gun rights advocates. ‘‘I just hope that there’s not a thought that allowing people to legally register guns is going to have a big impact on crime,’’ she said. ‘‘It certainly hasn’t here.’’ If the court reverses the ban, Chicago most likely will create a weapons reg- istry and make that informa- tion available to police, fire- fighters and others who respond to emergencies. Gardiner said the pending lawsuit he filed is fighting a similar registry in D.C. The city is also thinking about requiring anyone who purchases a gun to also buy insurance — a step Gar- diner said D.C. didn’t take. But, Daley said, ‘‘It’s com- mon sense.’’ Then there are the gun shops. Though they are legal now in D.C., none have opened, in large part because the city implement- ed regulations both on store owners and buyers. In Chicago, one owner of a suburban gun store said the city would hit anyone who tried to set up shop in the city with a flood of reg- ulations and mountains of paperwork. ‘‘It would be a legal nightmare,’’ said Noel Inca- vo, of Midwest Sporting Goods. There’s also the possibil- ity the city won’t bother with all that. ‘‘We could seek to draft an ordinance that would ban gun shops in the city of Chicago,’’ Mara Georges, Chicago’s corporation counsel, said. Fireworks From the Chamber! Go to Buy your Family www.tntfireworks.com To get your discount coupon! Chamber fireworks locations: Belle Mill/FoodMaxx Shopping Center Antelope & I-5 100% of profits from this location go to pay for the giant FIREWORKS DISPLAY At the TC Fairgrounds on July 4! Red Bluff – Tehama County Chamber of Commerce Working to make Tehama County an even Better Place to Live, Work and Play! sponsorship agreement with the D NEWSAILY Published through a co- RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY