Kim du Toit Returns
"I just had my suspicions about the security of bicycle cable locks validated: a few minutes ago, I witnessed an acquaintance use a diamond wheel on an angle grinder to remove a Kryptonite CC4 cable on one of my bikes in about 2 seconds." -- Russell Whitaker
# Kim du Toit - The Other Side - Mr. du Toit has moved his personal web site away from the Nation of Riflemen site, and re-associated his name with his essays. Changed my links page.
# Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership - Could Science Prove You Guilty of a Crime You Didn't Commit? - lots of people have been linking to the New Scientist article on which this alert is based. It says that gun-shot residue (GSR), often used as "scientific evidence" that somebody recently fired a gun, often provides false proof.
* False GSR can get on a person's hands when they handle fireworks, certain industrial tools, or brake linings. (Apparently mechanics are particularly susceptible to being accused of firearms-related crimes.)
* Even when GSR actually is GSR, traces on a person's hands don't mean they fired a gun or committed any crime. The background amount of GSR found in a crime lab, for instance, may be greater than that found on a defendant's hands!
* One of the best places to get GSR on your hands is -- this is ironic -- the back seat of a police car.
Furthermore, there are no consistent standards for determining whether traces on a person's hands are actually GSR, or what concentrations of genuine GSR are required to prove anything at all.
Finally, the article doesn't say it, but it's probable that virtually every recreational shooter is frequently covered with genuine -- but entirely innocent -- gun-shot residue.