http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/05/western_mass_dealers_upset_by.html
Western Mass. dealers upset by bill that would target illegal guns by capping legal gun sales
by The Republican Newsroom
Sunday May 31, 2009, 2:00 PM
File photo by Dave Roback / The Republican
David A. Stewart, owner of AAA Guns in West Springfield, holds a Smith & Wesson gun in his shop. He and other gun dealers are upset about Gov. Deval L. Patrick's new bill, titled "An Act to Reduce Firearm Violence."
By PATRICK JOHNSON
[email protected]
An anti-violence bill that targets illegal guns by capping the number of legal gun sales is such a bad idea that it does not even rise to the standard apples-to-oranges comparison, says one Western Massachusetts gun dealer.
"It's apples to bananas," said David A. Stewart, owner of AAA Guns at 738 Main St. in West Springfield.
Stewart and other Second Amendment supporters are up in arms, so to speak, over Gov. Deval L. Patrick's bill, titled "An Act to Reduce Firearm Violence." The bill, which must be approved by the Legislature, was sent to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary for review. A hearing is set for July 14 at 1 p.m. in Gardner Auditorium at the Statehouse.
"It is such a great insult to us that it is incomprehensible," said James L. Wallace, executive director of the Attelboro-based Gun Owners Action League.
The bill proposes new regulations that allow district attorneys authority to request no bail for felony firearm arrests, give licensing authorities access to the mental health records of firearms applicants, and bar anyone except people properly licensed from handling machine guns.
The machine-gun provision is a direct result of the fatal self-inflicted accidental shooting of a 9-year-old boy at an automatic weapon exhibition at the Westfield Sportsman's Club in October.
But what has Wallace, Stewart and others most steamed is a proposal in the bill to ban anyone from purchasing more than one gun in any 30-day period.
Patrick, in his summary filed with the state Legislature, said the bill combats gun violence and illegal firearms by reducing the number of guns in circulation.
"It shrinks the supply of illegal guns by limiting gun buyers to one firearm per month," he wrote. The bill includes any type of firearm, including handguns, shotguns or hunting rifles.
The penalty would be a fine of up to $1,000 or up to 2 1/2 years in jail for buyers, and up to $5,000 and 2 1/2 years in jail for licensed dealers.
The bill should be renamed to "The Lawful Citizens Imprisonment Act," Wallace said, "because that is what it does."
"If you buy two guns in one month and keep them locked up in your home, the government wants to put you in prison," he said.
Stewart said it is a meaningless, feel-good measure that punishes the law abiding while doing nothing to lawbreakers.
"It's akin to saying that because I'm a drunk, you can only have one beer a week," he said.
Also it will add to the already high amount of state and federal paperwork he is required to keep for his business, and as an added bonus, it will require him to turn away some regular customers, he said.
But other than that, what's not to like?
"It's the same old crap," he sighed.
State Public Safety Secretary Kevin M. Burke, at a recent meeting with the editorial board of The Republican, said the one-gun-per-month proposal takes aim at "straw purchases."
A "straw purchase" is one in which people not authorized to own guns, such as minors or convicted felons, arrange for a middleman, also known as "a straw man," to purchase guns on their behalf. "Straw purchases" are already a federal crime, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
"The biggest problem is the flood of guns coming onto the marketplace," Burke said. "Most of these guns used in crime in Massachusetts come from out of state."
Burke said the bill is admittedly "around the margins," but said it is a step in the right direction, especially "if we take a dozen or 20, 30 or 50 guns off the street."
By limiting gun sales, it means fewer of those guns will make it into the hands of people who should not have guns, he said.
Burke, a former district attorney, also questioned where anyone could have "a legitimate need to purchase more than one gun a month."
Stewart said that if the state wants to curb gun violence, it should not go after people who follow the law but people who break it.
"Put them in jail!" he said. "I guarantee you there'll be less criminals on the street if you put them all in jail."
Western Mass. dealers upset by bill that would target illegal guns by capping legal gun sales
by The Republican Newsroom
Sunday May 31, 2009, 2:00 PM
File photo by Dave Roback / The Republican
David A. Stewart, owner of AAA Guns in West Springfield, holds a Smith & Wesson gun in his shop. He and other gun dealers are upset about Gov. Deval L. Patrick's new bill, titled "An Act to Reduce Firearm Violence."
By PATRICK JOHNSON
[email protected]
An anti-violence bill that targets illegal guns by capping the number of legal gun sales is such a bad idea that it does not even rise to the standard apples-to-oranges comparison, says one Western Massachusetts gun dealer.
"It's apples to bananas," said David A. Stewart, owner of AAA Guns at 738 Main St. in West Springfield.
Stewart and other Second Amendment supporters are up in arms, so to speak, over Gov. Deval L. Patrick's bill, titled "An Act to Reduce Firearm Violence." The bill, which must be approved by the Legislature, was sent to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary for review. A hearing is set for July 14 at 1 p.m. in Gardner Auditorium at the Statehouse.
"It is such a great insult to us that it is incomprehensible," said James L. Wallace, executive director of the Attelboro-based Gun Owners Action League.
The bill proposes new regulations that allow district attorneys authority to request no bail for felony firearm arrests, give licensing authorities access to the mental health records of firearms applicants, and bar anyone except people properly licensed from handling machine guns.
The machine-gun provision is a direct result of the fatal self-inflicted accidental shooting of a 9-year-old boy at an automatic weapon exhibition at the Westfield Sportsman's Club in October.
But what has Wallace, Stewart and others most steamed is a proposal in the bill to ban anyone from purchasing more than one gun in any 30-day period.
Patrick, in his summary filed with the state Legislature, said the bill combats gun violence and illegal firearms by reducing the number of guns in circulation.
"It shrinks the supply of illegal guns by limiting gun buyers to one firearm per month," he wrote. The bill includes any type of firearm, including handguns, shotguns or hunting rifles.
The penalty would be a fine of up to $1,000 or up to 2 1/2 years in jail for buyers, and up to $5,000 and 2 1/2 years in jail for licensed dealers.
The bill should be renamed to "The Lawful Citizens Imprisonment Act," Wallace said, "because that is what it does."
"If you buy two guns in one month and keep them locked up in your home, the government wants to put you in prison," he said.
Stewart said it is a meaningless, feel-good measure that punishes the law abiding while doing nothing to lawbreakers.
"It's akin to saying that because I'm a drunk, you can only have one beer a week," he said.
Also it will add to the already high amount of state and federal paperwork he is required to keep for his business, and as an added bonus, it will require him to turn away some regular customers, he said.
But other than that, what's not to like?
"It's the same old crap," he sighed.
State Public Safety Secretary Kevin M. Burke, at a recent meeting with the editorial board of The Republican, said the one-gun-per-month proposal takes aim at "straw purchases."
A "straw purchase" is one in which people not authorized to own guns, such as minors or convicted felons, arrange for a middleman, also known as "a straw man," to purchase guns on their behalf. "Straw purchases" are already a federal crime, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
"The biggest problem is the flood of guns coming onto the marketplace," Burke said. "Most of these guns used in crime in Massachusetts come from out of state."
Burke said the bill is admittedly "around the margins," but said it is a step in the right direction, especially "if we take a dozen or 20, 30 or 50 guns off the street."
By limiting gun sales, it means fewer of those guns will make it into the hands of people who should not have guns, he said.
Burke, a former district attorney, also questioned where anyone could have "a legitimate need to purchase more than one gun a month."
Stewart said that if the state wants to curb gun violence, it should not go after people who follow the law but people who break it.
"Put them in jail!" he said. "I guarantee you there'll be less criminals on the street if you put them all in jail."
![[rolleyes]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/042.gif "Roll Eyes [rolleyes]")
