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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 25, 2008 9:36:55 GMT -5
OMG!! He's got a gun!!www.denverpost.com/news/ci_10292097Man arrested carrying weapons at Pelosi hotel By P. SOLOMON BANDA Associated Press Article Last Updated: 08/24/2008 07:38:34 PM MDTU.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (The Denver Post) DENVER—House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefly evacuated from her downtown Denver hotel on Saturday when a man carrying two hunting rifles and two pistols tried to check in to the hotel. Secret Service spokesman Malcolm Wiley said 29-year-old Joseph Calanchini of Pinedale, Wyo., faces a charge of unlawful carrying of a weapon after police officers at the Grand Hyatt hotel noticed him carrying a rifle-type case while checking in. Calanchini did not have a concealed weapons permit, said Lance Clem, spokesman for the Colorado Department of Public Safety. Wiley said authorities were not releasing information about whether the weapons were loaded because the case remained under investigation. Wiley said the charge is the same whether the weapons were loaded or unloaded. Pelosi and other guests briefly evacuated the hotel but were never in danger, Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly said. Calanchini told KUSA-TV it was bad timing. "I didn't even know the DNC was in town. I don't watch the news," Calanchini told the station from jail before he was released on $10,000 bond. "If I had known, I would have done things differently. It was a simple mistake." Calanchini told KUSA he had the weapons because he was getting ready for a hunting trip Aug. 28. Authorities were investigating a report that Calanchini was in town on business and had had the weapons worked upon, including mounting of site scopes, to prepare for the trip. "The speaker was never in any danger and she appreciates the quick and professional response of the police," said Daly. Translation - Calanchini didn't have any silver bullets with him.. 
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Post by Hawkeye on Aug 25, 2008 9:56:08 GMT -5
I don't think the guy was on a witch hunt.
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Post by kevin1 on Aug 25, 2008 10:17:09 GMT -5
Since when is a concealed carry permit required to carry a gun case? What are you supposed to carry your gun in, a gunny sack?  |
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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 25, 2008 11:05:07 GMT -5
Since when is a concealed carry permit required to carry a gun case? What are you supposed to carry your gun in, a gunny sack? I'm going to say it is probably the hand guns that got him in trouble. For both Wyoming and Colorado it is residents only issue. www.usacarry.com/ |
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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 25, 2008 11:32:13 GMT -5
9NEWS.com | Colorado's Online News Leader | Hunter apologizes for Pelosi scare
KUSA - A Wyoming hunter who accidentally caused a security concern at the Grand Hyatt hotel Saturday says he's sorry for the problems he caused and didn't know the Democratic National Convention was in town.
When Joseph Calanchini walked into the Grand Hyatt hotel with 2 rifles and 2 pistols Saturday around 4 p.m., Denver Police evacuated House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) from the hotel until they arrested Calanchini and made sure it was safe for Pelosi to return.
"I didn't even know the DNC was in town. I don't watch the news," said Joseph Calanchini from the Denver City Jail where he's being held on bond. "If I had known, I would have done things differently. It was a simple mistake."
Calanchini, who talked to 9Wants to Know from the Denver City Jail, says he had the weapons because he's getting ready to go on a hunting safari trip in Limpopo Basin, South Africa on August 28. He plans to hunt warthog, impala, baboon and jackals with a friend there.
He says he had just picked up his rifles from the Sportsman's Warehouse and had them in a locked gun case when he checked in at the Grand Hyatt. The clerk checking him in noticed the rifle case and called security.
"I'm amazed. It's not like they were illegal weapons, they were all registered to me," said Calanchini. "It was bad timing."
Police say Calanchini had permits for the rifles, but did not have concealed permits to carry two pistols that were found in his luggage. Calanchini says he forgot they were in there.
He was charged with unlawfully carrying weapons, a misdemeanor. Calanchini is being held on $10,000 bond at the Denver City Jail.
"I didn't mean to cause any problems," said Calanchini. "I'm sorry, it was not intentional."
Calanchini, who is registered as an independent, says he doesn't know who he's going to vote for yet.
"Would this affect my choice as a candidate? No. There's more important issues than this," said Calanchini.
The 29-year-old man from Pinedale, Wyoming, has never been arrested before. He says he's hunted for several years in places like Canada, California and Wyoming. He planned the safari to South Africa with a friend in June.
He says the U.S. Secret Service interviewed him for an hour and a half on Saturday to make sure he's not a threat.
"They know I'm not trying to do anything," he said.
Calanchini, who sells drilling tools across Colorado and Wyoming, says he is a frequent guest at the Grand Hyatt.
But the Grand Hyatt General Manager says he was not a registered guest at the hotel.
"We don't know why he was walking through our hotel," said General Manager Ed Bucholtz.
After police searched and towed Calanchini's car, they allowed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) back into the hotel.
"The speaker was never in any danger. And she appreciates the quick and professional response of the police," said Brendon Daly, Pelosi spokesman.
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Post by Sasquatch on Aug 25, 2008 12:30:53 GMT -5
I think you have to assume that when in a city, any weapon can get you arrested.
It is obvious from the quotes that you read that city cops tend to only think of guns as a threat, not something you have as a tool, so there is a good chance they are not going to comprehend a guy on a hunting trip. I suppose you might run into some big city police who are from the country, but I sure wouldn't count on it.
Urbanite sheep and the ordinances they allow to be passed only deepen my desire to stay out of town.
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Post by swilk on Aug 25, 2008 13:14:09 GMT -5
He had my sympathy right up to the "I forgot the handguns, that I dont have a permit to carry, were in my bags" part.
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Post by tenring on Aug 25, 2008 14:07:34 GMT -5
And it's so easy to get a concealed permit. 3 of us checked into a Holiday Express in Canon City, Colorado a couple of years ago, ask the clerk if it was okay to take rifles [in cases] up to the room for security, no problem. Place was full of guns. Same thing last year. Can't fix stupid! Maybe Denver ceded from the state? And BTW, our permits are good in Colorado.
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Post by Sasquatch on Aug 25, 2008 14:39:31 GMT -5
And it's so easy to get a concealed permit. 3 of us checked into a Holiday Express in Canon City, Colorado a couple of years ago, ask the clerk if it was okay to take rifles [in cases] up to the room for security, no problem. Place was full of guns. Same thing last year. Can't fix stupid! Maybe Denver ceded from the state? And BTW, our permits are good in Colorado. Sometimes it's easy! I had to go to the BMV twice and the courthouse three times.  |
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Post by drgreyhound on Aug 26, 2008 9:47:03 GMT -5
The whole thing sounds like an overreaction from a misunderstanding. I feel bad for the guy. I have a special five-letter word to describe Nancy Pelosi...  |
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Post by Sasquatch on Aug 27, 2008 9:38:04 GMT -5
The whole thing sounds like an overreaction from a misunderstanding. I feel bad for the guy. I have a special five-letter word to describe Nancy Pelosi... Fugly? |
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Post by drgreyhound on Aug 27, 2008 13:48:18 GMT -5
The whole thing sounds like an overreaction from a misunderstanding. I feel bad for the guy. I have a special five-letter word to describe Nancy Pelosi... Fugly? I also use the word to describe my golden retriever named Molly... |
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