Gun rights protest planned at federal courthouse
March 6, 2015
By Mike Faulk / Yakima Herald-Republic
mfaulk@yakimaherald.com
Conservative gun advocates will protest in front of Spokane’s federal courthouse today after a Yakima man was arrested in front of the building last month for carrying a firearm.
Anthony Bosworth, a former candidate for Yakima County sheriff who became known for his exploits with other far-right conservatives promoting their agendas on YouTube and in government office buildings across the state, was arrested Feb. 25 and cited for failing to disperse.
Bosworth argued that he has a right under the Second Amendment to carry the weapon on federal property, even though state and federal laws ban it.
Bosworth’s wife is one of the administrators of the Facebook event page for the protest, dubbed “Our State, Our Rights: The Patriots Answer.” Attendees are being encouraged to bring their firearms.
“Bring your sidearms. Bring your long guns. This is a peaceful rally. But it is an armed one,” the Facebook page reads.
The liberal nonprofit Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights reports on its website that the event will also be attended by Mike Vanderboegh, an Alabama native and longtime activist in gun rights and militia movements. Vanderboegh has attended similar rallies in Olympia.
Gun rights rallies have picked up across Washington state since voters last year approved Initiative 594, which strengthened the state’s law requiring background checks for gun purchases.
On Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Spokane issued a news release reiterating the laws governing the carry of firearms on courthouse property. The release noted recent protests.
On Monday, U.S. Eastern District Court Chief Judge Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson in Spokane signed a general order expanding the weapons restriction to include access areas to federal courthouses in Yakima, Spokane and Richland. That includes sidewalks surrounding the building, plazas, lawn areas and parking lots, U.S. Attorney Michael Ormsby said in an email.
A weekend-long gun rights rally is tentatively planned in Yakima County on June 20 in the Tampico area. The event dubbed the “Arms Expo” is being organized by a network of Second Amendment activists statewide, co-organizer Sam Wilson, of Everett, said.
Not all Second Amendment advocates are supportive of the recent demonstrations, however. In January, a representative of the Second Amendment Foundation told KPLU Radio in Seattle that the “We Will Not Comply” movement is a “clique of gadflies.”
The Second Amendment Foundation is challenging portions of the background check law in federal court. On Thursday, state Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a motion to dismiss the case.
I-594 was approved in November with 59 percent of the vote. According to a news release from Ferguson on Thursday, no one has been prosecuted for violating the law to date.
