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Fat *' bodyguard arrested on gun charge
Defender
Member Posts: 1,772 ✭✭✭✭✭
Michael Moore's Bodyguard Arrested on Airport Gun Charge
Thursday, January 20, 2005
NEW YORK - Filmmaker Michael Moore's (search) bodyguard was arrested for carrying an unlicensed weapon in New York's JFK airport Wednesday night.
Police took Patrick Burke, who says Moore employs him, into custody after he declared he was carrying a firearm at a ticket counter. Burke is licensed to carry a firearm in Florida and California, but not in New York. Burke was taken to Queens central booking and could potentially be charged with a felony for the incident.
Moore's 2003 Oscar-winning film "Bowling for Columbine" criticizes what Moore calls America's "culture of fear" and its obsession with guns.
Defender
Private investigator licensed in AZ & CA that specializes in self defense cases.
Thursday, January 20, 2005
NEW YORK - Filmmaker Michael Moore's (search) bodyguard was arrested for carrying an unlicensed weapon in New York's JFK airport Wednesday night.
Police took Patrick Burke, who says Moore employs him, into custody after he declared he was carrying a firearm at a ticket counter. Burke is licensed to carry a firearm in Florida and California, but not in New York. Burke was taken to Queens central booking and could potentially be charged with a felony for the incident.
Moore's 2003 Oscar-winning film "Bowling for Columbine" criticizes what Moore calls America's "culture of fear" and its obsession with guns.
Defender
Private investigator licensed in AZ & CA that specializes in self defense cases.
Comments
Does it reminder you of the story from many years ago concerning Teddy Kennedy's body guards carrying illegal automatic weapons as he was spearheading more legislation to remove legal firearms from the possession of law-abiding gunowners?
Guess these guys never heard of "pracice what you preach".
Quote "Somehow government decided that the Constitutional Bill of Rights has become the Bill of "Suggested" Rights and are to be rationed to the citizens as the power elite sees fit"
Our firm employs Patrick Burk.
Fox News has now removed the link for this story from their home page; their original story contained several errors (below). We want to be certain you are aware of the appropriate corrections.
I know that Fox News editors must rely upon others when preparing their stories, and I offer with no judgment that their story titled "Michael Moore's Bodyguard Arrested on Airport Gun Charge" contains several errors, including its entire headline.
Please correct the errors in your story below as soon as possible, because, as you are aware, the errors reach an ever-widening audience with each passing minute - and will predictably be picked up by other news agencies.
Our full-time employee, Patrick Burk, is not "Michael Moore's bodyguard." Accordingly, the headline in the Fox News Web site story is false and misleading.
If you believe Patrick Burk was ever assigned to protect Michael Moore, or any number of other public figures, you might accurately report that "A bodyguard who was once assigned to protect Michael Moore..."
You could as accurately say "A bodyguard that was once assigned to protect President Clinton," because Patrick Burk has also been assigned to protect President Clinton in the past - but you wouldn't be accurate if you said "President Clinton's Bodyguard."
Patrick Burk is not Michael Moore's bodyguard, nor was he protecting Michael Moore or in any way involved with Michael Moore on Wednesday night, when he (Burk) was checking in at JFK for a flight to Los Angeles.
When checking in for the flight, Patrick Burk voluntarily advised United Airlines that he was transporting an unloaded, locked firearm in his checked luggage, precisely as regulations require, and not "carrying" a weapon, as your story inaccurately reports. Advising the counter ticket agent is a routine procedure for police officers and security professionals. In this case, a Port Authority officer decided to arrest Patrick Burk on the charge that he is not licensed to carry a firearm in New York City.
The Fox web site headline contains an error not present in the story. The headline indicates that Patrick Burk was arrested on an "airport gun charge." He was not. The charge involves having a firearm without a New York City License to carry it. On that note, Patrick Burk was not carrying a weapon on his person (only locked in his baggage), and the police do not allege that he was carrying a weapon on his person, as your story implies.
Police, security professionals, sportsmen, and citizen gun owners who fly on the Nation's airlines are legally bound to advise the airlines of firearms in their checked baggage - and the firearms are transported just like any other baggage.
The Fox News story also says Patrick Burk was carrying "an unlicensed firearm." Please correct that error. Patrick Burk's firearm is legally registered to Patrick Burk - it is not "unlicensed." Patrick Burk is licensed to carry a firearm in several States, and a court will determine if any charge is appropriate for Patrick Burk in this matter, which involves New York City.
Though I realize a Michael Moore connection would be of interest to your web site, Patrick Burk is not Michael Moore's bodyguard, and has never been employed by Michael Moore.
An important note for you is that Patrick Burk is not a public figure and even the smallest inaccurate detail that is widely disseminated could predictably interfere with his ability to pursue his profession. Patrick Burk is a former Marine who served with distinction in an elite and specialized Marine unit, and he protected, among others, then-President Clinton.
Our firm (www.gavindebecker.com) provides protective coverage for public figures and others, and Patrick Burk is a leading professional in his field.
I highlighted in red below the specific errors where they appear in the Fox News story.
Please let me know that you have received this email, and if you need further information or need to reach our firm, please call (redacted), and ask for (redacted).
Sincerely-
Gavin de Becker
Defender
Private investigator licensed in AZ & CA that specializes in self defense cases.
Death to Tyrants!!!
Lev 26:14-39
Those who would offer any interpretation that would relegate Amendment II to "relic" status of a bygone era are blatantly stating that the remainder of the Bill of Rights isn't worth a damn, either.
Luke 22:36.
"Followers of Christ, be armed."
It seems to me that the man, a former Marine, was trying to follow the law and was caught up in the overzealous enforcement of NYC's rediculous gun laws.
That's right. Any time a person falls victim to his own thrust; any time the two-edged sword wielded against me turns on its possessor; any single time where justice is served, I cannot help but smile.
And you're wrong about one thing. If it were a normal citizen (define normal, here) who was a gun kontrol advocate, then the hell with them. All others, then yes, it would be a tragedy.
And yes, the NYC Gestapo is a terrible thing all of its own, but it is a monster of liberals' own creation, so let that beast swallow a few of them and see if the rest get the message.... hypocrits that they are.
Death to Tyrants!!!
Lev 26:14-39
Those who would offer any interpretation that would relegate Amendment II to "relic" status of a bygone era are blatantly stating that the remainder of the Bill of Rights isn't worth a damn, either.
Luke 22:36.
"Followers of Christ, be armed."
Carl Rowan got caught with a handgun while dealing with trespassers at his home after numerous anti-gun columns he wrote. This was a window into the real world for that guy and an end to his preaching gun hatred.
That fat-assed, lesbian, drug addict Rosie O'Donnell had a different agenda when her personal safety was involved and used her considerable wealth to hire a bodyguard who had difficulty obtaining a ccw permit. If anyone noticed, she stopped her very public gun-hating crusade. The fun part about Rosie is that she would be refused the right to buy a gun from any dealer if she truthfully answered the questions on the 4473 form over her well-known drug addiction.
We can always show hate to our detractors, or we could be more willing to help enlighten these people who have real fears that we are better off with firearms than without.
It's unreasonable fear that motivates the gun haters to destroy our rights. Then we add to their fear with our venom and then the gun-haters scream louder. The gun-haters can be miserable to us but we have to be friendly, forgiving and understanding to them.
Some people are gun-haters because their political leaders demand that from them. We must remember that humans and sheep are too similar. Sheep can always be led into other directions especially where the grass is greener.
I know of many former gun-haters. I've never met a gun rights advocate that turned into a gun-hater.
CCW permits holders and their good behavior have gone a long way to show the politicians that concealed weapons don't turn people into killers or in any way increase crime.
Defender
Private investigator licensed in AZ & CA that specializes in self defense cases.
Quote "Somehow government decided that the Constitutional Bill of Rights has become the Bill of "Suggested" Rights and are to be rationed to the citizens as the power elite sees fit"