The San Diego County Gun Owners PAC (Political Action Committee) calls the fatal shooting of Minnesota man Alex Pretti by ICE agents “tragic and deeply troubling.”
The executive director of that organization, Michael Schwartz, told NBC 7 he’s calling for full transparency and due process moving forward.
“Both sides, Mr. Pretti and whoever the border agent was involved in the shooting, deserve a thorough investigation,” Schwartz said.
Schwartz says gun owners are loyal to principles, not parties, and believes it’s important to not turn Alex Pretti’s death into a political narrative.
“The Second Amendment has never been a Republican, Democratic or Libertarian or Green or any party issues, it’s nonpartisan. When people no matter their party do something to support the Second Amendment, we sing their praises and when they do something against it, we harshly condemn them. You saw that in this case, you saw Gun Owners of America and the National Rifle Association quickly come out with statements that were bashing certain Trump Administration officials and saying, hey we need to investigate this shooting,” Schwartz said.
On Tuesday, when talking about the most recent deadly ICE shooting in Minnesota, President Donald Trump said, “You can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns.”
Schwartz disagrees with what the Trump Administration has recently said about those legally carrying a firearm.
“I am completely opposed to some of the statements by Trump employees, like Kash Patel and others, who implied that somehow being a concealed carry permit holder somehow makes you more dangerous to law enforcement or implies that you’re a criminal,” Schwartz said.
According to Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, strict regulating of public carry laws are associated with lower rates of firearm crimes. Schwartz believes the rise of physical interactions between citizens and ICE might provide an opportunity.
“I think law enforcement needs to be better educated on who a concealed carry permit holder is. The fact that they go through a background check and training and the fact that as a group they tend to commit fewer crimes than the general public. Educating on who they are and what their motivation is is important to all levels of law enforcement,” Schwartz said.
Schwartz says gun rights advocates have been concerned with government overreach for decades surrounding the Second Amendment and will be closely following how current events play out.
While California has some of the most restrictive gun carry laws in the nation, it’s interesting to note that San Diego County has gone from 11,000 carry permits to over 26,000 in last seven years.