The Jack-Booted Thug of the Week...

... is Osceola County, Iowa Sheriff Douglas L. Weber, for abusing his office's discretion by summarily yanking and refusing to reissue the handgun carry permit of resident Paul Dorr solely because the peasant dared to participate in the First Amendment-protected activities of passing out leaflets and writing letters to the editor of the local paper that were critical of the thin-skinned law-enforcement officer.

Fortunately for Mr. Dorr, Federal Judge Mark W. Bennett on Wednesday not only ordered Weber to immediately give Dorr back his permit but also imposed a unique (and apparently very necessary) sanction on the "sheriff":

"Bennett required Weber take a class that must be a college-level course on the United States Constitution, 'including -- at least in part -- a discussion of the First Amendment.' And Bennett said, Weber must obtain approval from the court before participating in the class. Upon completion of the class, Weber must also file an affidavit with the clerk of court showing successful completion with a passing grade."

Outstanding, Judge Bennett.  You should make sure that passing grade is at least a B, by the way.

Situations like these are exactly why Iowa recently changed its carry law to "shall-issue" instead of "may-issue", in which the local law enforcement head enjoys (and often blatantly abuses) complete discretion in deciding who receives such a permit, which all-too-often resulted in only celebrities, politicians and friends and supporters of the local Roscoe P. Coltrane or Sheriff Lobo-type cop getting them.  The number of states that have such unfair and backward laws is getting smaller all the time, however, to the eternal consternation of the Violence Policy Center and Brady Campaign hacks.

Welcome to the club, Iowans.