RSWC #211, Dick Heller, The Gun Dude

In 2018, I went to hear some friends speak at the Heller 10 Celebration, hosted by the Second Amendment Institute. I got a call from one of my friends and she said, “We’re going to Heller’s house.” I was like, “Who is we? Is she? Am I part of we?” She called back and I got to hang out with the Heller resident. The next day I was asked/told that I would be giving an impromptu speech on the Supreme Court Steps. I’ve seen Dick Heller at a few events and got to film this show when we were on our way to go clay pigeon shooting at the M&M Hunting Preserve in New Jersey. He was the keynote speaker at a fundraiser the night before. We were shooting clay pigeons with John Petrolino (RSWC #093), Gabby Franco (RSWC #), and Eric, who Dick helped get through the weekend.

We’ve all heard of the Heller decision. We all know what happened in the Heller case. It’s been referenced in case after case. It’s referenced in McDonald v Chicago and NYSRPA v Bruen; if you haven’t read that “magnificent Scalia decision,” you need to do some homework.

The Heller case was decided in 2008, but it started years before that. Taking a case to the Supreme Court takes time and money. And a lot of both. A few years before that, Dick had befriended a fighter pilot and instructor and a Vietnam veteran. He was also an Olympic shooter in 1980. Dick rented him a room. So he showed up with a truck full of guns, which were illegal at the time, and told them they were all going to jail. The friend got the guns out of DC and decided he was going to go to law school to fight this nonsense. Heller told him he was going to be a cop and they would give him a gun to protect them, but he couldn’t protect himself. That’s how the case started.

When the case was over, Heller had to sign 12 more papers for another case so that the lawyers would get paid. He points out that the government pays to fight us with our own money in the form of taxes. And we have to pay with our own money to fight the government. Heller’s team of lawyers was able to win the case despite DC’s unlimited funds.

The case went to a federal court because it was a constitutional issue. But the federal court didn’t rule in Heller’s favor the first time. So they appealed to the DC Circuit Court. They won. During one of the trials, the opposing party admitted to the judge that they just didn’t want guns in DC. The lawyer hadn’t seen or heard the news that crime in DC was going up at the time and that it was a very violent city to live in.

Heller also shares that with his 2008 ruling and with Sandy Hook in 2012, he was confronted with the impact his case may have had on that incident. Ultimately, each individual must be accountable for their actions. His ruling should have nothing to do with other actions of bad people, and it didn’t.

Heller has been associated with Gun Owners of America for years because they are the group that does not compromise our rights. He has been to a number of Coalition of New Jersey Firearm Owners and Women for Gun Rights events up and down the East Coast. And he has been to several other national 2A events across the country. If you can see him and hear him speak, you should. He is a national treasure. And you can hear some of his story here.

Favorite quotes:

• “Everyone can do a little bit.”
• “The city has unlimited funding in the form of our tax dollars… with which they can harm us with our own money.”
• “You don’t go to the Supreme Court on a sly way.”
• “In the arrogance of the government, they thought the Supreme Court would vote on their side of the law.”
• “Sometimes you have to pull up your big boy pants and understand who you are and what you do.”

About Ride with Charlie

Riding Shotgun With Charlie is not about guns. It is about an intimate conversation with 2 people talking. You are the fly in the rearview mirror. Many of the passengers are involved in the gun community.

This is a more intimate conversation than a phone, radio or Skype interview. You get to see the passengers. And you see where the road and the conversation take you!

www.ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com.