Last Minute Tips & Info for Those Going to Maryland Gun Hearings Tomorrow

Last Minute Tips/Information for Going to Annapolis Tomorrow

Maryland ––(Ammoland.com)- 1. There will be an ANTI 2nd Amendment rally on Lawyer’s Mall tomorrow. AVOID LAWYER’S MALL. Proceed directly to the House building tomorrow morning. Do not be seen with them. Do not engage them. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO COUNTER PROTEST! (do not make their group look larger attending)

2. Parking in downtown Annapolis is always problematic during the work week, but with a large crowd expected for tomorrow’s hearing, it will be especially difficult. We are strongly advising you to forget about parking downtown and instead park at the Navy/Marine Corps stadium located on Taylor Ave. Turn right off of Rowe Blvd. as you approach downtown. Pay $5 to park and then catch a shuttle from there that will drop you off directly in front of the House building. The shuttle costs $2 each way and runs every 15-20 minutes.

The Associated Gun Clubs of Baltimore has an excellent guide for visiting Annapolis available here.

3. The hearing will begin promptly at noon. Witness sign up starts at 8:30AM and will be split into two main locations. There will be at least six House staff with computers to sign you up to testify, hopefully avoiding the lengthy wait that we encountered earlier this month. You will get a number and MSP will escort you based on that number.

4. You will need to pass through a metal detector at the security checkpoint in the House. Please leave pocket knives, multi tools, etc. elsewhere. Do not bring anything that even remote resembles a weapon.

5. We are being told that the sign in sheets for witnesses will remain open all day. This means you can show up after the hearing still become a witness. Still, please plan to sign up early, rather than later, to guarantee that you will be heard.

6. The actual hearing has been moved to a larger space in a neighboring building – we will have police and security escorting you to and from the building where the hearing is taking place (simulcast in the House Office Building) so that no one gets lost and no one gets turned away. We are being told that the committee saying they will go until at least midnight in order to hear from everyone who wants to speak. They may go longer. They think they can outlast us. Let us show them the power of our resolve.

7. MSI will be hosting a number of panels upstairs on Second Amendment topics. These panels will be attended by lawmakers as well. You are encouraged to attend at least one of these panels as we get through the early part of the hearings.

8. We have two buildings available tomorrow, making sure that no one is locked out.

9. You will have one minute to testify, plus any Q&A from the members of the HJC. Keep your testimony short and to the point. This may not seem like a lot of time, but it is more than you think. Focus on themes like the civil right, licensing a civil right, the governor’s comment about profiting off a civil right, the penalties, and how it impacts you as a citizen. Avoid using your minute to quote founding fathers, read the second amendment, “from my cold dead hands” and especially avoid references to Nazi gun control. These have not proven successful in the past.

10. If you want to submit written testimony you can do so in three places, including outside the building. Bring 70 copies.

11. If the building is full and you do not want to wait, you can still get your name on the record against the bills. That will be collected outside.

12. Volunteers from MSI, AGC and NRA will be out in force to assist throughout the day.

13. We cannot stress this enough: be respectful of the committee and your surroundings. Remember that this hearing is a legal proceeding and its chairman, Delegate Joseph Vallario, is effectively the judge presiding over it. All of the committee members are deserving of respect. Please don’t be the person who instantly becomes a sound bite for the other side. No matter how much you may disagree, you must be respectful.

14. Laptops and cameras are permitted, but do not record anything in the main committee room.

15. Dress code is business casual or better. MSI polo shirts are fine, but please avoid jeans, sweats, camouflage, etc. Those that are attempting to rob us of our rights are expecting us to show up looking like the stereotype that is easily dismissed by average folks and very easily exploited by the media. You can count on them searching high and low for someone to put on camera that sticks out like a sore thumb. Please, don’t be that person.

16. Pay attention to MSI’s Facebook/Twitter pages throughout the day for breaking news. If using Twitter, use hash tag #MDgungrab.

Additional Resources:
Associated Gun Clubs of MD Packet. Contains a lot of useful maps and information.
Stop SB 281-HB 294 Packet. Learn the details about SB 281/HB 294.
2nd Amendment Resource Room. Get last minute resources to prepare testimony.

Mission Statement: Maryland Shall Issue is an all volunteer, non-partisan effort dedicated to the preservation and advancement of all gunowners’ rights in Maryland, with a primary goal of CCW reform to allow all law-abiding citizens the right to carry a concealed weapon; and to the education of the community to the awareness that ‘shall issue’ laws have, in all cases, resulted in decreased rates of violent crime.