Texas Veterans illegally arrested, guns confiscated

By James Franklin

On the evening of November 30, 2013 Joey Posey, a veteran of the Army’s 101st Airborne was arrested and jailed by police. He had taken a walk with his children to get ice cream and french fries and decided to openly carry his AR-15 in addition to his legally concealed handgun. Although the open carry of a longarm is legal in Texas, it was for this reason that he and his children found themselves forced to the ground as soon as the police arrived on the scene. For two months now SPC Posey has been in legal limbo. There have been no charges filed yet, his weapons have not been returned and his concealed-carry license has been suspended. What Joey didn’t know when he left his house that night was that he was not the first person whose firearms rights have been suppressed in Andrews.

To show support for Joey Come and Take It Midland/Odessa organized an open carry walk in Andrews in the weeks after Joey’s arrest. As the walk was coming to an end, Andrews police approached the group of demonstrators telling them that if they did not disperse they would be in violation of a municipal code that pertains to motor vehicle operation.

Following that incident, three members of Come and Take It Texas met with Andrews, TX Police Chief Bud Jones to ensure that the rights of Texans would no longer be suppressed by his department and to get permits signed for their upcoming demonstrations in Andrews. In that meeting the Chief assured them that and understanding had been reached. He gave his word that he would do everything in his power to protect the legal rights of gun owners in the future.

At one time, when a Texan made a promise and shook your hand, you could rest assured that he would keep his word. Unfortunately, Chief Bud Jones failed to keep his word, and he failed to honor the oath that he swore to the Constitution.

On January 22nd, 2014 former Army Sergeant Michael Keoughan, one of the CATI members that met with Chief Jones, went to Andrews to survey the approved route for their next open carry walk. Given the multiple reports that Andrews PD had used intimidation to ‘convince’ people not to open carry in Andrews, Michael also wanted to film himself open carrying that day and prove to the members of the new CATI chapter in Andrews that they no longer needed to fear their police department. Sadly, Michael was illegally arrested that day, and his weapons were unlawfully confiscated. CATI recorded their meeting with the Chief, and have posted some of that interview on their YouTube channel but the local media refuses to address this part of the story. It seems the ‘good ol’ boy’ system is still alive and well in West Texas.

As if this story wasn’t bad enough

When a local news station posted a story on their Facebook page about Keoughan’s arrest and the upcoming CATI demonstration to be held in Andrews, a resident of that town made threats against the group in the comments section of the post.

Two of CATI’s members were so concerned by the threats that they contacted Andrews PD to file a report in case the man did make good on his threats. One of the members, an over-the-road trucker, was told that a report would not be taken. The officer went on to inform the caller that the town was full of “rednecks” that would likely shoot members of CATI and that the victims could expect that the person would never be found or brought to justice. After that the officer hung up and did not answer again.

A Sheriff’s Deputy was recorded as he made a similar comment to CATI members while they were waiting for Keoughan to be released from Andrews County Jail.

Another CATI member was told that a report could not be made over the phone but, if she would make the seventy mile drive to Andrews, that a report could be made in person. She immediately drove to Andrews only to find that the entire police department was too busy “in a meeting” to speak with her. A Texas Ranger stationed in Andrews made it clear that no one was going to take a report, calling the posts a “perceived threat”.

Local media has ignored these two cases of dereliction of duty, just as they have refused to report the facts showing that both of these veterans have been victims of Official Oppression.

Come and Take It Texas will be holding another demonstration in Andrews, Texas on February 15th, 2014 as they continue to seek justice for these soldiers. However the struggle is far from over. If you would like to contribute to their legal defense, click on the following links for Joey Posey and Michael Keoughan.  Please help this story go viral! Spread this link and these [one] [two] [three] to everyone you know including other news outlets. You can also contact Police Chief Bud Jones and help us respectfully educate him on the meaning of the oath that he swore to uphold.