Milwaukee attorney to challenge banning silencers for handguns

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A suburban Milwaukee attorney will tell a judge today that a state law banning silencers for handguns goes against the constitutional right to keep-and-bear arms. Wauwatosa lawyer Thomas Barrett was arrested almost a year ago, after he allegedly bought a handgun with a silencer from a police informant. In a request to drop his charge, the 52-year-old Barrett said thousands of Americans use noise suppressors for quote, “perfectly harmless activities” like target shooting and animal control. His attorney, Allison Ritter, said the law against silencers was quote, “an unreasoned act of the 1991 Legislature.” She said it was hidden in the last pages of the massive budget bill that year. Since then, Wisconsin has amended its Constitution to include a state right to keep-and-bear arms. Also, the state has passed a concealed carry law, and the U-S Supreme Court has ruled in favor of gun owners in two major cases. But Milwaukee County prosecutor Megan Williamson said a silencer is not a firearm – and it does not carry the same rights as the weapons themselves. And she said the Supreme Court pointed out that not all gun laws are suspect in the wake of its major rulings. Georgia gun rights attorney John Monroe tells the Journal Sentinel that Wisconsin allows silencers for those who pay a 200-dollar fee, and comply with federal gun registration laws. A trial in Barrett’s case is scheduled to start October 29th.

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A man is thinking about withdrawing his guilty plea, after he struck a plea deal in a 2010 crime spree in Jackson County that included a murder. A judge has given 25-year-old Aaron Powers until August 10th to file a legal request to take back the plea. Powers was given another defense attorney, after he accused his first one of not giving him all the reports and other investigative items in his case. Authorities said Powers broke into three houses in rural Jackson County before killed 56-year-old Terrance Stoen of North Bend, who lived in the final house. Prosecutors said Powers slept overnight in the second house he burglarized, before busting into Stoen’s home. Powers reportedly stole a computer, a cell phone, and other items before shooting Stoen and stealing the victim’s pickup truck. Powers was originally charged with intentional homicide, but he pleaded that down to reckless homicide. He also pleaded guilty to vehicle theft as a repeat offender. Five other charges were dropped in the plea deal, including three counts of burglary.

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