(WND) In an incident that is being repeated all across the country far more frequently than is reported, a retired Navy veteran in Glendale, Arizona, has had his gun collection confiscated by authorities after an irate neighbor filed a harassment order.
Rick Bailey, 56, is a disabled retired software-systems engineer who has slowly accrued a collection of 28 firearms, with an estimated worth of about $25,000. The collection was seized after a neighbor claimed Bailey threatened to shoot him, an accusation Bailey calls “bullsh-t.”
The dispute between the neighbors started several months ago regarding dump trucks used in a landscaping business. Bailey said his neighbor would park two “large, smelly” dump trucks in the small cul-de-sac where they reside.
Eventually, Bailey filed a complaint with the city to remove the dump trucks and other work-related vehicles from the private residential area. Although initially the neighbor complied, Bailey said he would sometimes bring the dump trucks back on weekends when the city was closed, “just to irritate us.”
The situation climaxed on March 16 after Bailey called police because he smelled what he thought were “toxic chemicals” coming from the neighbor’s property. “I spend my days sitting out on my patio relaxing,” Bailey said in an interview with the Blaze. “The smell got so bad, I had to come back to my patio and use my inhaler – so I called the police to see if anything could be done.”
When the police arrived, Bailey said he was told by police officers that the neighbor alleged he had threatened to “shoot” him, a claim Bailey says is false. The next day, March 17, the neighbor told authorities that Bailey had threatened him and filed for an “injunction against harassment.”
Bailey denies threatening his neighbor, and says his physical disability renders him incapable of harming the man. He said he fully understands the implications of threatening to “shoot” someone, even as a joke, and says he made no such threat.
A judge not only issued a protective order to the neighbor, but also issued a separate order to confiscate Bailey’s collection and revoke his right to purchase firearms.
The Second Amendment Foundation announced Tuesday it has taken on the funding of Bailey’s case and is working to get his firearms collection returned.
“We seem to live in an environment when someone’s life can be turned upside-down on an allegation that should have been thoroughly investigated before any action was ordered by a court,” said SAF Founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb. “Sadly, this kind of hideous gun confiscation flies below the radar and it is happening more frequently to gun owners across the country.”
A GoFundMe account has been set up to assist in Bailey’s legal bills.
Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/all-of-veterans-guns-seized-after-false-allegation/#CCf5ygAtATlvix4M.99