It was just after 1 a.m. when at least three people kicked in the door of a mobile home m rural Henry County, Va. Inside the residence, the homeowner took up arms to protect his wife and child, and exchanged fire with a pistol-toting thug. While none of the family was hurt in the incident, one home invader was struck in the head and subsequently held in custody at a nearby hospital in serious condition. At press time, the wounded man's accomplices were being sought by police. No charges were brought against the homeowner, and police declined to release his identity. (Martinsville Bulletin, Martinsville, VA, 04/21/05)

Eighty-year-old storekeeper Clarence Cochran keeps a Taurus .38 Spl. revolver where he can reach it in his neighborhood grocery store in Crawfordsville, Ark. A shotgun rests nearby. Friends sometimes tease the wiry, 150-lb. octogenarian about his guns, but his preparation proved to be a lifesaver one day last winter. After a man who was "acting real strange" entered and went directly to the rear of the store, another would-be robber burst through the door brandishing a pistol. The stick-up man fired four times and hit the grocer once, but the stick-up man's life of crime was terminated when the shop owner shot him in the head. The second assailant took a round to the shoulder, then fled the premises. After recuperating for a few months, Cochran returned to his business, working every day as before. "If it hadn't been for that gun, he'd be dead," Cochran's son said during an interview. "They came in the store with three things on their mind: kill, kill and kill." (.Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Little Rock, AR, O5/14/05)

A second-generation Boston pharmacist-beloved by regular customers for his friendly banter-stopped an armed robber attempting to steal a supply of the prescription drug OxyContin. Police said just before 3 p.m. a man wearing a ski mask, ball cap and hood walked into the drug store with a gun drawn. "He came in ready to rob the store," said Lt. John Serson. "The owner drew his gun and between [them] three and four shots were exchanged. The robber left, without the OxyContin." Lawrence Maida, Sr.'s pharmacy is just one of dozens in the area hit in recent years by armed robbers seeking the so-called "hillbilly heroin" drug. Maida is licensed to have the gun, and police said it was not the first time he has used it to thwart a robbery. He will not face charges for the shooting. "What do you want me to charge him with-being a victim?" asked one officer. (Boston Herald, Boston, MA, 05/06/05)

A North Bellport, N.Y., man was alerted by his girlfriend that she had heard a noise at the front door about 1:30 a.m. When Cheyenne Ray went to investigate, he saw a hand holding a pistol striking the glass storm door. Ray went into the kitchen, retrieved a shotgun and defended his home by firing a shot at the door. The burglar dropped his handgun and ran off, but was later spotted in the area and arrested. The perpetrator, who had a prior record for first-degree burglary, had suffered a gunshot wound to his shoulder. (Newsday, New York, NY, 03/06/05)

A pizza delivery driver answering a late-night call walked into an apparent ambush when he was directed to the rear of a residence in Niagara Falls, N.Y. Two men waiting in the alley behind the house accosted the deliveryman, but their criminal acts didn't net them any money or even pizza. One attacker was killed during the confrontation, while the second fled immediately. A gun, believed to belong to one of the two culprits, was also recovered at the scene. A police spokesman confirmed that the deliveryman possessed a pistol permit and was authorized to carry. (Niagara Gazette, Niagara Falls, NY, 04/21/05)

Judith Kuntz was awakened by a sound no homeowner wants to hear: glass breaking during a forced entry. Fortunately the 64-year-old woman from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., had previously come to grips with the possibility of such an event, and she had a revolver in hand when the intruder entered her bedroom. Her shot struck and killed the man from 10 ft. away. "I'm doing fine under the circumstances," Kuntz said later. "I don't take any joy in somebody being dead. My self- preservation instinct took over." The case is being treated as a lawful shooting, said the Brevard County Sheriff's Office. The Florida Legislature recently passed a bill that allows people who feel threatened in their homes and elsewhere to "meet force with force," to defend themselves without fear of prosecution. (Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 05/31/05)

Being fired is a traumatic, tragic experience, especially in an area where jobs are scarce. So, when 12 employees of a Weyerhaeuser pulp mill in rural Oklahoma were fired because they had legal firearms secured in their locked vehicles in a public-access company parking lot, the outrage among citizens of that state was palpable-so intense that the legislature moved to right the wrong by overwhelmingly passing a law in March 2004, making company parking lots a sanctuary from corporate gun bans.

What made the firings most egregious was that they came under an unannounced policy that reversed 37 years of a written agreement that permitted employees to keep their guns in locked cars.

The NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund gave support to the employees' legal efforts to get their jobs back. And we worked hard at the grassroots level to help Oklahomans enact their landmark laws to stop this corporate gun ban. We had hoped the new laws would serve as an affirmation of existing public policy, render the legal battle moot and provide reinstatement for the wronged employees.

Those hopes were short-circuited when Weyerhaeuser, joined by other corporate giants, such as ConocoPhillips and Halliburton and supported by the state Chamber of Commerce, filed suit in federal court, successfully stopping enforcement of the new gun-owner protections. Much of their claims had to do with civil liability questions.

In the meantime, except for two union members, the fired employees and contract workers were still fired, without incomes. These were "model employees"-some with 20 and 30 unblemished years with the company.

With the courts moving at a snail's pace and ignoring existing and long-standing public policy on firearm ownership, the legislature again acted-with total grassroots support from NRA and Oklahoma gun-rights groups. Just weeks ago, legislation passed by a 90-5 margin in the House and 44-0 in the Oklahoma Senate, which strengthened the parking lot gun-ban sanctuary and immunized businesses from civil liability. It was signed into law by Gov. Brad Henry.

Whether the injustice done to the remaining 10 fired employees and contractors will be rectified is still an open question. They are still in court, creating a record that shows they never had a clue that a gun ban had replaced the 37- year permissive firearm policy.

And the record shows that the firings were as brutal as they were surprising. Employees were told they had to open their vehicles for a random drug search or be fired. When they did, and firearms were found, they were dismissed on the spot. All the guns were legally owned.

Oh, yes. This nightmare began on October 1, 2002, the opening day of deer season in Oklahoma, when employees were most likely to have guns in their cars and trucks.

All this injustice mirrors an attack plan cooked up by the Brady Campaign's legal arm-the Brady Center, which is pressing suits to kill the firearm industry. The Brady Center's nearly 100-page manifesto-"GUNS AND BUSINESS DON'T MIX, A GUIDE TO KEEPING YOUR BUSINESS GUN FREE"-is a how-to manual designed to ban and criminalize the otherwise lawful exercise of state right-to-carry laws and Federal law protecting the transport of firearms. It's a vicious campaign that goes to the heart of the Oklahoma case telling businesses to:

"... prohibit concealed and other weapons, whether carried on a customer's or employee's person, brought into the company parking lot, or hidden in a vehicle brought on the company's premises. The policy should expressly state that despite the state's 'shall-issue' CCW law (right to carry), the company is allowed to prohibit concealed weapons on its property.... Failure to abide by the terms of this policy may result in discipline up to and including termination... (and) will be considered an act of criminal trespass...." (Emphasis added).

Although the Brady gun-ban manual repeatedly raises the specter of civil liability owing to "workplace violence," everything it proposes is aimed only at peaceable employees and citizens on public grounds.

Under a section entitled "Enforcing a gun-free policy," the Brady Center tells business owners and managers, "A simple notice that persons carrying concealed weapons must leave their weapons outside will prevent law-abiding citizens from carrying firearms onto business property."

Law-abiding citizens? What about violent criminals? To that, the Brady Center says:

"Companies should also not be concerned that by adopting a gun-free policy they are legally guaranteeing the safety of all customers and employees should a criminal bring a gun onto company property and shoot someone."

So there it is. Just like all other forms of gun control, this big-business gun control-this Brady Center private gun. ban-only applies to the law abiding. We are the victims.:

And as this corporate trend spreads across the nation, you or someone you know could be next.

Winning in the Oklahoma legislature, which has spoken twice in overwhelming bipartisan votes, is extremely important. It shows the power of the people versus the power of big multinational corporations. It shows the Second Amendment and Oklahoma's state constitution cannot be trumped by corporate power.

In the coming months, we will be carrying this fight to other states to assure that the protections guaranteed to Oklahoma gun owners against the Brady Center's corporate gun ban will apply everywhere. It's not only your Constitutional rights the ban crowd is after, it's your job, your career and your livelihood.