Firearms Industry Calls on Mayor Bloomberg to Follow Lead
and Insist Mayor Frank Melton (Jackson, Miss.) Resign

Following the conviction of Frank Melton, mayor of Jackson, Miss., and member of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's "Mayors Against Illegal Guns" coalition, last week on two misdemeanor charges for carrying a weapon into a church and a park, and a third charge -- reduced from what had previously been a felony count -- for carrying a gun on a university campus, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) -- the trade association of the firearms industry -- called on Mr. Bloomberg to "practice what he preaches" and insist Mayor Melton resign from public office. Melton excused his criminal acts by stating, "I'm not another citizen. I am the mayor of Jackson." In a letter addressed to Mayor Bloomberg, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel Lawrence G. Keane asked, "I write to inquire whether you, as a co-founder of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition, will follow the lead of the firearms industry and demand Mayor Melton resign from public office?"