Tracking Firearms Owners Who Gave Up On New Orleans

The NRA has hired private investigators in an attempt to track down firearms owners who fled New Orleans for work and new lives in other parts of the nation following Hurricane Katrina.

The NRA says the city seized more than 1,000 guns that were not part of any criminal investigation after the hurricane. Police have said they took only guns that had been stolen or found in abandoned homes. In April 2006, police made about 700 firearms available for owners to claim if they could present a bill of sale or an affidavit with the weapon's serial number.In court papers filed Monday, NRA attorneys say investigators have found few of the guns' owners because the storm has scattered so many residents.

In the lawsuit, which is set for trial in February, the NRA and the Second Amendment Foundation claim the city violated gun owners' right to bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit says the gun owners were left "at the mercy of roving gangs, home invaders, and other criminals" after Katrina.

NOTE: The City of New Orleans has been deceitful in virtually every excuse they have given for: a) illegally seizing lawfully owned firearms; b) claiming they didn't take any firearms; c) claiming they did seize firearms but did not possess them; d) admitting they possessed seized firearms but arguing why they should not be returned to their rightful owners; and e) making owners jump through a myriad of hoops to regain custody of private property that was unlawfully seized in the first place. The judge would do well to grant the delay so that victims can be located.