A new work that has just been named Conservative Book of the Month answers questions that nag many firearm owners: What if the government came after me just for owning a gun? Is it possible? Indeed, The Blue Tent Sky is a chilling exposé of the legal system gone berserk, the true story of Brian Aitken, a successful communications professional who was arrested while moving his belongings in the wake of a broken marriage. Aitken’s crime: possessing guns he legally owned in the state of New Jersey.
The arrest unleashed blind persecution based on criminalizing guns and a trial that concluded with a seven-year prison term for Aitken after a grandstanding judge refused to allow the jury to consider laws that almost certainly would have changed the outcome. If that sentence hadn’t ultimately been commuted by Governor Chris Christie after Aitken had served four months, very likely he’d still be behind bars. Upon release, however, Aitken had lost visitation rights with his young son and his freedom to own firearms.
At the book’s release on October 2, Aitken said, “… [I]t just felt like enough time had passed that I could really sit down and reflect on what happened and try to make sense out of it all. The real driving force though, was setting the record straight, especially for my son. Many people don't realize that a family court judge revoked my parenting time because he wasn't convinced I couldn't own guns if I wanted to. This was after I was indicted, but months before I even went to trial. In essence, the judge decided parents who own guns are unfit to be parents. It's been five years and I am still unable to see my boy. He turns seven this coming February and one day he's going to want to know the truth about major events that impacted his childhood and altered his relationship with his father for the years to come.
“We like to think ‘it can't happen to me,’ but that simply isn't true,” said Aitken. “What happened to me can happen to anyone. It doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman, what your ethnicity is, or what kind of job you have. It's impossible to fully describe what it's like to feel the prison gates close behind you, but the book will give readers a glimpse into what it's like to become a victim of indiscriminate and draconian gun control laws.”
To order, visit The Blue Tent Sky: How the Left’s War on Guns Cost Me My Son and My Freedom.
