Latest from FNP. A former Cresap member told me Jan Gardner said to his face she is committed to shutting down every range in Frederick. Cresap was just the easiest to go after first. I wish the NRA would be more on this.
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A rifle club shut down down by the city of Frederick over allegations of safety issues has returned fire, accusing the adjacent city range of safety problems of its own.
Cresap Rifle Club filed a lawsuit Sept. 19 saying that a tower at the nearby Frederick Police Department range presents a hazard because its height puts people in the tower and those at the Cresap range in danger of being hit.
Cresap’s attorney, Kurt Nachtman, asked that a judge order the police range at 6420 Plant Road closed.
“We continue to operate in good faith, and we’ve tried everything in our power to resolve this amicably,” Nachtman said in a phone interview, noting that the club pursued its own investigation of safety concerns at the range and offered to make improvements based on the findings.
The improvements are set to be complete next week, Nachtman said.
Cresap, a 60-member, volunteer-run shooting association with a nine-decade history, called in a safety expert over the course of the investigation who, according to last week’s filing, found the tower a danger.
No responses to the request to close the police range had been filed as of Monday, and City Attorney Saundra Nickols did not return a call for comment.
A spokeswoman for the police did not immediately return a message asking if the suit would have any impact on upcoming training.
The request is the second suit the club has filed against the city.
Police ordered the Cresap Rifle Club range shut down on April 26 because of safety concerns. The officer said that bullet and rock fragments created a hazard by entering the police range. The city also said the club did not have procedures in place to remove or contain the lead bullets used on the property.
Cresap responded with the first lawsuit July 18 alleging that when Frederick ordered the range closed it broke its lease and illegally kept the range from being occupied.
Being closed costs the organization around $1,200 in donations each week, according to the complaint, and losses were estimated to be $9,600 as of June 30. The club is asking to be reimbursed $1,200 for each week it was closed in addition to punitive damages of at least $75,000.
The club signed a 20-year lease with the city in 2001 to rent the space at a rate starting at $300 per month, according to the court record.
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A rifle club shut down down by the city of Frederick over allegations of safety issues has returned fire, accusing the adjacent city range of safety problems of its own.
Cresap Rifle Club filed a lawsuit Sept. 19 saying that a tower at the nearby Frederick Police Department range presents a hazard because its height puts people in the tower and those at the Cresap range in danger of being hit.
Cresap’s attorney, Kurt Nachtman, asked that a judge order the police range at 6420 Plant Road closed.
“We continue to operate in good faith, and we’ve tried everything in our power to resolve this amicably,” Nachtman said in a phone interview, noting that the club pursued its own investigation of safety concerns at the range and offered to make improvements based on the findings.
The improvements are set to be complete next week, Nachtman said.
Cresap, a 60-member, volunteer-run shooting association with a nine-decade history, called in a safety expert over the course of the investigation who, according to last week’s filing, found the tower a danger.
No responses to the request to close the police range had been filed as of Monday, and City Attorney Saundra Nickols did not return a call for comment.
A spokeswoman for the police did not immediately return a message asking if the suit would have any impact on upcoming training.
The request is the second suit the club has filed against the city.
Police ordered the Cresap Rifle Club range shut down on April 26 because of safety concerns. The officer said that bullet and rock fragments created a hazard by entering the police range. The city also said the club did not have procedures in place to remove or contain the lead bullets used on the property.
Cresap responded with the first lawsuit July 18 alleging that when Frederick ordered the range closed it broke its lease and illegally kept the range from being occupied.
Being closed costs the organization around $1,200 in donations each week, according to the complaint, and losses were estimated to be $9,600 as of June 30. The club is asking to be reimbursed $1,200 for each week it was closed in addition to punitive damages of at least $75,000.
The club signed a 20-year lease with the city in 2001 to rent the space at a rate starting at $300 per month, according to the court record.
