http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/gunman-vows-continue-carrying-ak-47-parks
Leonard Embody carries loaded pistol in Belle Meade, TN.
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/rex-radnor-lake-rambo-returns
Lt. Robert Ackerman of the Belle Meade Police Department writes the Department of Safety informing them that Mr. Embody is a risk to the public and recommends they revoke his handgun carry permit, which they did. Lt. Ackerman did all gun owners a favor when he wrote this letter. He also did so with the best interest of the safety of the general public in mind.
In my opinion, perhaps Leonard Embody didn't break any laws, but his method is what brings into question his behavior and his mindset which are in fact why his permit was revoked and in a justifiable fashion.
The Government is not in the wrong here, they did not take his Tennessee handgun carry permit because he broke any laws, nor has the Department of Safety or any other Law Enforcement made such a claim that he has broken any laws. They have simply stated his actions and the process in which he has gone about what he has done has shown him to be a safety risk to the general public. His appeals have been rejected by logical, sane reasoning people within the government and they have done so rightfully.
Clearly Leonard Embody wasn't of a sane, rational and logical state of mind when he carried a loaded AK-47 "pistol" into a state park. Just because you have the right to do something, doesn't necessarily mean that you should do it. Any reasonable gun owner would know that the average citizen in the public has a fear of guns because of their lack of knowledge, education, training and experience and because of incidents like the Aurora Theater shooting in July of 2012, Columbine High School in 1999, Virginia Tech in 2007, University of Texas in 2010, the shooting at the High School in Ohio in 2011, the Texas Bell Tower Sniper in the 1960's.
Actions such as those taken by Mr. Embody only serve to further perpetuate that fear and panic, when there is no reason to do so.
Mr. Embody states he is trying to bring attention to the laws surrounding the "right to open carry" laws however, it is my opinion and many other gun supporters and 2nd Amendment rights advocates that he is bringing the wrong type of attention to rights and current gun laws that are already on shaky ground with lawmakers and politicians. Educating people is a grand concept, but the method chosen requires considerable thought as to the manner and the venue in which it is done. Mr. Embody is fooling no one with his ignorance, his arrogance or his fantasy land fairytale mindset that he's trying to educate people about open carry. He simply wants attention, whether good, bad, positive or negative, right or wrong. he craves the spotlight and he will do anything to get into it. He wishes to stir up the hornet's nest, to create debate, to pit people against each other,
If he wanted to educate people, he should have made public notice of a speaking event and advertised it. Rent a church or an auditorium and ask a local Law Enforcement Agency to sponsor the event to "educate" the public. Go talk to the people, bring a few unloaded firearms to be put on display on a table where members of the public can come up, they can talk to you and you can talk to them, they can ask questions and you can provide answers. They can see a demonstration of how the firearm functions then they can work it with your direction and guidance.
Hand out pamphlets on the terminology within the T.C.A. (Tennessee Code Annotated) and the do's and donts. Ask 2nd Amendment advocates to assist you by coming to the speaking event. Ask knowledgeable 2nd Amendment organizations to help, attorneys who are familiar with 2nd Amendment legislation, laws, rights and procedures. Hold an intellectual forum. That's how you educate people.
Educating people does not include inducing them to a state of panic or a state of fear where they call the police and report a man walking around in "combat gear" holding what appears to be an assault rifle. The average citizen can not establish the difference between an AK-47 "pistol" and an AK-47 "rifle" because they have not been exposed to the knowledge or the difference between the two and even if they did they wouldn't care because both are still firearms, both have an aggressive appearance, both are semi-automatic weapons, both carry high capacity magazines and both have been dubbed "assault" weapons by liberal politicians that invalidly demonize such weapons in a frivoulous manner. That's how the majority of average citizens who neither have guns nor have the knowledge or inclination to pursue any knowledge or ownership of firearms and want to see them banned permanently.
I see Mr. Embody's point to his actions, and I while I agree the public does need education, the tactic upon which it was exercised was a poor choice, and in my opinion was deliberately and selfishly done without regard for the rights and privileges of gun owners, simply to draw attention to himself and so he can say "Because I can, it's my right and you can't do anything about it".
Leonard Embody's Handgun Carry Pemit Revocation
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/gun-rights-activist-sues-state-after-carry-permit-revoked
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/radnor-lake-rambo-drops-appeal-handgun-permit-revocation
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/chancellor-dismisses-gun-toting-mans-complaint-against-state
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/court-reverses-decision-case-gun-carrying-man-resumes
http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/radnor-lake-rambo-sees-state-suit-shot-down-chancery-court
Official Civil Court Case Documentation
Embody vs. TN Dept of Safety (Handgun Revocation Appeal)
http://www.nashvillechanceryinfo.org/CaseDetail.aspx?CaseID=3131
