However, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims fears there's more to come. "I watched very closely what the President signed the other day and it was just a list, it wasn't demanding anything, it wasn't any executive orders to do anything so we all know the devil is in the details."
So, to respond to those unknown details, Mims wrote a letter. "So I have sent a letter to the White House saying I will not enforce any unconstitutional gun control laws."
For example she said, "Anything that requires anyone going house to house seizing weapons, that's not going to happen in Fresno County."
When told the President has not proposed anything like that, Mims responded: "I hope not but again the devil is in the details."
We showed the Sheriff's letter to former Federal Judge Oliver Wanger, now an attorney in private practice. He said, "It contains a lot of not legal principles in it that appeals quite frankly more to emotion than it does to enforcing the law."
Wanger believes Mims, and other Sheriffs who have written similar letters do raise valid legal questions, but that if they actually refuse to enforce the law in a specific incident they could end up in court. "I would expect the United States Department of Justice to take the case to court immediately if local law enforcement is not applying and enforcing the law."
