Miller aiming to help Beretta navigate law
http://www.gazette.net/200405/montgomerycty/state/198816-1.html
by Thomas Dennison
Staff Writer
Jan. 28, 2004
For complete coverage of the 2004 legislative section, go to
www.gazette.net/annapolis2004/.
ANNAPOLIS -- Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. has promised to sponsor legislation that would help local handgun manufacturer Beretta USA comply with the trigger lock provision in a landmark gun safety bill passed in 2000.
Miller (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach said Accokeek-based Beretta has not been able to sell its handguns in the state because of a controversial trigger lock provision contained in the gun law championed by Gov. Parris N. Glendening (D). Miller made no bones that he wants to help Beretta -- which is in his southern Prince George's County district -- comply with the law and sell its handguns to Marylanders.
"Beretta is a very valued employer and very valued industry in Maryland," Miller said. "Because of the law's unintended consequences, Beretta can't sell guns in Maryland that are manufactured right here in Maryland. ... I'm looking for a way to ensure that the guns will comply with the locking requirement and allow Beretta to compete with its overseas gun competition."
Miller emphasized that his bill will not weaken the provisions of the bill, dubbed the Responsible Gun Safety Act of 2000. It is intended only to clarify the definition of the locking device that has to be built into new handguns.
Glendening's gun bill, which required "integrated mechanical safety devices" and other provisions aimed at improving safety, even prompted President Clinton to come to Annapolis and praise Maryland's governor and General Assembly.
The National Rifle Association and gun rights organizations, which fought the trigger-lock bill vigorously, have been saying for the past year that the law has imposed a de facto handgun ban in Maryland. Many manufacturers -- Beretta and Browning in particular -- have said the law prevents them from selling handguns in the state.
"We're delighted that somebody is trying to look at the present situation and solve the problem of availability of good, quality handguns for law-abiding citizens," said Jim Purtilo, publisher of pro-gun newsletter Tripwire. "Right now, manufacturers like Beretta can't comply with current law."
Purtilo and other gun enthusiasts are cautious in their support for Miller's bill because they wonder if it will be loaded with anti-gun legislation, such as an assault weapons ban. A strong effort is under way to ban assault weapons, and Purtilo said he is worried that the trigger lock problem could be corrected in exchange for an assault weapons ban.
"I'm real concerned that there may be some bartering going on, and legislators may feel like they can trade a vote for the Beretta bill in return for a vote on an assault weapons ban," he said. "Our concern is there may be a connection between the bills."
The assault weapons bill would ban not only the semiautomatic Uzis, AK-47s and other guns included in the federal assault weapons ban set to expire this year, but also copycats and other assault weapons, such as the Bushmaster rifle used in the 2002 sniper rampage. The bill seemed to gather steam earlier this month when Miller blasted Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) for opposing previous bans while he was a member of Congress.
Senate Judicial Proceedings Chairman Brian E. Frosh (D-Dist. 16) of Bethesda said he had not been briefed on Miller's bill and would not comment.
Leah Barrett, executive director for CeaseFire Maryland, said she was unaware of Miller's bill, but at first blush, her organization is likely to be opposed.
"I don't think it sounds promising at all," Barrett said.
Paul E. Schurick, Ehrlich's communications director, said the governor applauds Miller for taking on the trigger-lock issue and would be very supportive of the measure. But he stressed that there will be no deal if there is horse-trading with an assault weapons ban.
"It would go against everything in the governor's soul to sign an assault weapons ban and make a deal like that," Schurick said.
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Proposal Tackles Law on Gun Locks: Miller's Plan Would Drop State's Requirement for Internal Mechanisms
by Kimberly A.C. Wilson; Sun Staff
The Baltimore Sun
Category: News Center
March 1, 2004
State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller wants to loosen Maryland's pioneering gun-lock requirement, a measure enacted four years ago over the objections of Italian gun-maker Beretta, which has a U.S. headquarters in Miller's district.
A bill introduced by Miller would allow gun manufacturers to sell weapons in the state without the internal locking mechanisms required bythe Responsible Gun Safety Act of 2000, a change hailed by gun dealers and bemoaned by the state's gun control advocates.
"We were against it from the beginning, because careless gun ownerswill be careless with or without a lock," said Sanford M. Abrams, proprietor of Valley Gun in Parkville.
One the other side, Leah Barrett, executive director of CeaseFire Maryland, worries that passage of the bill "would gut a huge part of thegun safety act."
The gun law, signed by Gov. Parris N. Glendening with President Bill Clinton in attendance, was the first in the nation to require manufacturers to equip their handguns with built-in locks. Another groundbreaking provision of the law required firearms makers to provide "ballistic fingerprint" information about each handgun to the state police to helpthem solve crimes.
Senate Bill 547 is set to be considered Wednesday, but its fate could intertwine with another Senate gun bill, which is aimed at enacting a state ban to go into effect when the federal assault weapons ban expires in September.
"My bill has been overshadowed by the assault weapons bill," said Miller, a Democrat who represents Calvert and Prince George's counties. "Liberals don't really care for it. The pro-gun people like it, but not enough to see it wedded to an assault weapons ban."
Del. Neil F. Quinter, a Howard County Democrat who introduced the House version of the assault weapons ban, said conventional wisdom suggested that Miller's bill and the ban might cross paths.
"The fear has been for a while that the Beretta bill would be the cost of advancing the assault weapons legislation. Now it may be the vehicle for advancing the assault weapons legislation," said Quinter, adding that he supports "a compromise to allow Beretta time to comply [with the safety act of 2000] in order to get a state assault ban in place."
Current law requires internal locks in all new handguns sold in Maryland. Guns with the locks - typically made of a set screw installed flush in the gun that is opened and closed with a tool - can be found on Abrams' shelves, stamped with the names of manufacturers such as Smith & Wesson of Massachusetts, Taurus International of Florida, and Springfield Armory of Illinois.
But Valley Gun hasn't sold a Beretta in nearly a year, because the Accokeek-based manufacturer hasn't produced models with the requiredlocking mechanisms.
"We ran out of the ones that were available before the law went into effect on Jan. 1, 2003," said Abrams. "Officers, security guards,merchants, just average people, we just have to turn them away. 'Sorry, I don't have any compliant Berettas to sell to you.'"
Maryland State Police and Montgomery County officers made up a large segment of Beretta's in-state market. Those officers are required to carry Beretta 9000s when working off-duty, but can no longer buy them because the company is not compliant, Abrams said.
"It injures other gun manufacturers that aren't compliant, but there's only one Maryland manufacturer of firearms and that's Beretta. They're losing sales and losing money - and I don't think they had that in mindwhen they enacted the law," Abrams said. "It's an unintended consequence."
CeaseFire Maryland's executive director was unmoved.
"I think Miller's trying to do a constituent a favor, but it's going to harm Maryland for many, many years," said Barrett. "It's just not worth it."
and i'm not even a fan of Berettas
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