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4 <br /> <br />Jennifer Woods said she lives on 20 acres in northern Orange County. She said she <br />has not heard anything tonight about guns. She said her family is large, and it hunts for food on <br />her land. She said infringing on this in any way would impact her ability to feed her children. <br /> <br />Dear Orange County Board of County Commissioners, <br />I was present at the meeting last night but did not have the opportunity to speak. Therefore, I <br />am following up in email with my comments as part of the official record. <br /> <br />I am fundamentally opposed to any revision to the “shooting ordinance”. First, per <br />Commissioner McKee’s comments last night, I agree that there does not seem to be a clear <br />complaint of noise versus safety. We are entering hunting season and how will the Sheriff’s <br />department adequately answer every call from citizens who merely hear gun shots? As to <br />complaints of gunfire at night, Coyote hunting is a NC regulated and approved activity as is <br />hunting of other species during defined times (sometimes at night) of the year. <br /> <br />From the minutes of the meeting in June with the initial petition presented to the board to the <br />one citizen last night who spoke about living in a condensed neighborhood and hearing gun <br />shots, no one, at either meeting, clearly stated that they witnessed someone shooting in <br />the condensed area; they merely heard gunfire. With no way to determine where the shots were <br />heard, how can the BOCC amend an ordinance that would be impossible to enforce? <br /> <br />Orange County has noise ordinances and shooting safety ordinances already on the books. <br />Until a determination and clear delineation is made of what the actual issue stems from, it is my <br />opinion that there is no clear path forward to a new ordinance. <br /> <br />I, also, support my husband’s (Kevin Poole), recommendation that Orange County can address <br />these concerns with a County Shooting Range that would be free to the residents of Orange <br />County. This endeavor can certainly be achieved with the funds from the ½ cent tax increase for <br />the rail project that did not materialize. A project, I may add, that does not benefit rural Orange <br />County in any way. <br /> <br />Finally, many of us wondered what brought on this proposed ordinance that was abandoned 3 <br />years ago with pushback from the public. After last evenings meeting and hearing from the <br />Mitchell family, I must ask, does this issue stem from noise or does it stem from the fact it’s a <br />black family exercising their second amendment rights? A family that enjoys shooting and is <br />passing that hobby on to the next generation? As we sat in the meeting last night and they were <br />speaking, my husband and I looked up their property on the GIS and looked at the aerial views <br />of their property. Honestly, we’ve rarely seen such safety measures put in place for recreational <br />shooting on one’s own property. Perhaps many of you are unaware, but should look up, the first <br />“gun control” laws were enacted in the late 1800’s to prevent black people from owning guns. <br />Last night’s meeting allowed us all to hear from the Mitchell’s and what appears to be modern <br />day Jim Crow, illustrating that Orange County isn’t as progressive as they claim to be. <br /> <br />Sincerely, <br /> <br />Melissa W. Poole <br />5620 Kiger Road <br />Rougemont, NC 27572 <br />