gun-fucious
October 8, 2003, 11:26 AM
http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/2525412/detail.html
Lobbyists To Push For Gun Laws In Wake Of Sniper Anniversary
Antigun Laws Unsuccessful During Last Legislative Session
POSTED: 6:02 p.m. EDT October 1, 2003
UPDATED: 8:11 p.m. EDT October 1, 2003
BALTIMORE -- The Washington, D.C.,-area sniper attacks sparked heated debates about assault weapons last year, but to the surprise of antigun lobbyists, lawmakers did little to change any gun laws, WBAL-TV 11 News reporter Deborah Weiner reported.
The antigun lobbyist group formerly known as Marylanders Against Handgun Abuse, now known as CeaseFire Maryland, now have only one bill to push, instead of three.
Antigun Advocates Plan Legislative Push
Last year, after the sniper attacks, gun-safety advocates thought they would have the momentum to get three bills passed by Maryland lawmakers.
They were wrong.
"One bill was voted on and defeated?" Weiner asked Del. Neil Quinter, D-District 13, an assault-weapon ban sponsor.
"Right," Quinter said.
"Two others were never voted on?" Weiner asked.
"Exactly," Quinter said.
It was the first year of a new legislative term, and one year later, gun control advocates said they will again try to ban assault-style weapons, like the Bushmaster rifle reportedly used by the sniper suspects.
That rifle has since been renamed by the people at the Valley Gun Shop of Baltimore.
"This is called a homeland defense rifle, not an assault rifle, because it is a semiautomatic version of what our soldiers are using in Iraq," Sanford Abrams, a representative of the Valley Gun Shop, said.
Both names and players have changed in the past year. Gun controls' most visible faces are now working mostly behind the scenes. They include Carole Price, whose son was killed by a handgun, and Ginny Wolf, whose state trooper husband was fatally shot in a traffic stop.
But Quinter, from Howard County, will re-introduce his bill to ban assault weapons in Maryland with the federal ban set to expire next year.
And he'll call again on the sniper incident to make his point.
"It's a pretty fresh memory, a pretty bad fresh memory. I think it points to the need to get a handle on what people do with guns," Quinter said.
But gun supporters said people are at issue, not the guns.
"You can't apply emotions to inanimate objects. This pistol grip doesn't have emotions, it's not good or bad. It's the person holding them that is good or bad, or evil," Abrams said.
The battle continues even before lawmakers return to Annapolis. And just like last year, some of the surviving sniper victims will again be called to testify, Weiner reported.
Stay with TheWBALChannel.com and WBAL-TV 11 News for the latest news updates.
Previous Stories:
* September 15, 2003: Baltimore Officials, Advocates Want Assault Weapons Ban
Lobbyists To Push For Gun Laws In Wake Of Sniper Anniversary
Antigun Laws Unsuccessful During Last Legislative Session
POSTED: 6:02 p.m. EDT October 1, 2003
UPDATED: 8:11 p.m. EDT October 1, 2003
BALTIMORE -- The Washington, D.C.,-area sniper attacks sparked heated debates about assault weapons last year, but to the surprise of antigun lobbyists, lawmakers did little to change any gun laws, WBAL-TV 11 News reporter Deborah Weiner reported.
The antigun lobbyist group formerly known as Marylanders Against Handgun Abuse, now known as CeaseFire Maryland, now have only one bill to push, instead of three.
Antigun Advocates Plan Legislative Push
Last year, after the sniper attacks, gun-safety advocates thought they would have the momentum to get three bills passed by Maryland lawmakers.
They were wrong.
"One bill was voted on and defeated?" Weiner asked Del. Neil Quinter, D-District 13, an assault-weapon ban sponsor.
"Right," Quinter said.
"Two others were never voted on?" Weiner asked.
"Exactly," Quinter said.
It was the first year of a new legislative term, and one year later, gun control advocates said they will again try to ban assault-style weapons, like the Bushmaster rifle reportedly used by the sniper suspects.
That rifle has since been renamed by the people at the Valley Gun Shop of Baltimore.
"This is called a homeland defense rifle, not an assault rifle, because it is a semiautomatic version of what our soldiers are using in Iraq," Sanford Abrams, a representative of the Valley Gun Shop, said.
Both names and players have changed in the past year. Gun controls' most visible faces are now working mostly behind the scenes. They include Carole Price, whose son was killed by a handgun, and Ginny Wolf, whose state trooper husband was fatally shot in a traffic stop.
But Quinter, from Howard County, will re-introduce his bill to ban assault weapons in Maryland with the federal ban set to expire next year.
And he'll call again on the sniper incident to make his point.
"It's a pretty fresh memory, a pretty bad fresh memory. I think it points to the need to get a handle on what people do with guns," Quinter said.
But gun supporters said people are at issue, not the guns.
"You can't apply emotions to inanimate objects. This pistol grip doesn't have emotions, it's not good or bad. It's the person holding them that is good or bad, or evil," Abrams said.
The battle continues even before lawmakers return to Annapolis. And just like last year, some of the surviving sniper victims will again be called to testify, Weiner reported.
Stay with TheWBALChannel.com and WBAL-TV 11 News for the latest news updates.
Previous Stories:
* September 15, 2003: Baltimore Officials, Advocates Want Assault Weapons Ban