Momentum builds for gun-control bills
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — In the weeks since the massacre of 17 people at a Florida high school, the Smith Hill gun debate has literally swept every other issue aside.
“What’s it going to take?” asked the governor, gun-control advocate Gina Raimondo. “We have a moment now to stand up and do the right thing to save lives."
Even NRA-endorsed lawmakers agree that some action is warranted, House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello among them. The question: how much?
As of Friday, 40 gun bills had been introduced in the House and Senate, the vast majority by gun-control advocates. Hearings on many of them are scheduled for Tuesday. Especially fast action is anticipated on "red flag" legislation backed by both Mattiello and Senate President Dominick Ruggerio to give judges power to remove guns, at least temporarily, from people who have demonstrated they are an "extreme risk'' to themselves and others.
In a WPRO radio interview last week, Mattiello reiterated his reasons for co-sponsoring the House leadership version of the "red flag" bill to give police, family members and others the power to petition a court to remove guns from a demonstrably dangerous person. (Thirty-four of 36 current senators are sponsors of the legislation, and 43 of 75 House members.)
While Mattiello, D-Cranston, is cool to an assault-weapons ban, he says he is open to passage of other gun-control bills, including: legislation to raise the age to buy any firearm in Rhode Island from 18 to 21 and prohibit the use of the devices known as “bump stocks’’ that, effectively, turn a semiautomatic firearm into a fully automatic one.
"I expect we may do something other than 'red flag' on this issue this year," agreed Ruggerio, citing a bump stock ban as something else he would personally like to see.
An assault weapons ban? The House version is sponsored by 29 of the 75 House members, and the Senate version by 19 of 36 senators.
"Let's study it,'' Mattiello said. "If it helps, we'll consider it. If it really doesn't do anything meaningful except taking firearms away from law-abiding citizens, then that is not something I would be in favor of personally."
"In my mind, it's not what firearm a dangerous person has in their possession. It's get all firearms out of the possession of dangerous people, and that's why I like the 'red flag law.' I think it's practical. I think it accomplishes the goals that we want to accomplish."
Raise the age?
"You have to be 21 to purchase a handgun, so it almost, in my mind, makes sense to raise the age for long-barrel guns."
On bump stocks, he told The Journal: “I see no useful purpose for a mechanism that turns a firearm into an illegal automatic weapon. I believe that is the view shared by my House colleagues and I have not heard from anyone who opposes this bill."
The lead lobbyists for the 2nd Amendment Coalition did not respond to inquiries last week. George Zainyeh, a $3,500-a-month lobbyist for the Everytown For Gun Safety Action Fund, said his group is "very supportive'' of the "red flag'' legislation.
He said the legislature two years ago made Rhode Island the first state in the country to mandate the training of police officers on what he called "mental-health first aid. ... And now we are going to ask them to use it."
An assault weapons ban? "It's not an easy go-to,'' Zainyeh acknowledged. "But I think it has a good chance. I think it's a tipping-point year and I think that legislatures around the country are starting to come to terms with the status quo on gun safety is not working and we have to do something."
The other side
Where does Republican Rep. Mike Chippendale of Foster stand as one of the "pro-Second Amendment" voices at the R.I. State House?
"I don't care what side of the issue an individual happens to be on. We all want real solutions to this,'' he said last week. "I’m sitting here right now in a very big marble dome protected by men with guns and metal detectors. My son is in a public school protected by no one, and I find that to be outrageous.
"So what I don’t want is people making nice for the camera and signing executive orders that mean nothing — which is exactly what the governor did. She signed an executive order that essentially, in layman’s terms, says: 'I am urging the state police to do their jobs.' It will do nothing except get her on camera.
"I think we should be focusing on what the issues are,'' he said. "Emotions are running high ... on both sides, [but] I think there is probably more overlap than people might think.
"Those of us who are pro-Second Amendment are equally as scared for our children and for your children and for everyone’s children. This is not a gun versus non-gun debate in that sense. We have children dying. That is the issue in front of us.
"My hope is that we can sit down, all stakeholders can sit down, can put the hysteria aside because — make no mistake — we are in a period of hysteria ... [and] be rational and deliberative."
At this point, however, he says there is "not a single bill" among the 40 introduced so far that he could support.
He says he supports the "intent'' of the "red flag" initiative, essentially drafted by the state's police chiefs. But he said the way it stands it is "absolutely horrible ... [and] violently unconstitutional."
"Red flag is a great initiative,'' he said. "The devil’s in the details. ... I am very interested in seeing a final product come out that keeps American civil liberties intact, yet [gives] law enforcement another tool to deal with this issue."
Looking back at 2013 debate
Another study commission?
The December 2012 massacre of elementary school children next door in Connecticut marked the last time there was this much talk about guns at the Rhode Island State House.
The headlines were eerily similar. April 9, 2013: "RI lawmakers unveil gun-control package, including ban on semiautomatic assault weapons."
In lieu of a ban or any other dramatic action that year, state lawmakers created a 20-member "Behavioral Health And Firearms Safety Task Force'' — made up of legislators, mental-health experts, gun-rights advocates and law enforcement — to study the issues.
In early 2014, the group issued a final report on ways that Rhode Island could submit mental-health records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System to prevent people with serious mental illnesses from buying firearms.
At the time, Rhode Island was one of only 15 states that did submit mental-health and substance-abuse records to the FBI's national database, used by licensed firearms dealers to determine whether someone is qualified to buy a gun.
Unable to find common ground on any other major points, the members of the task force reached consensus on legislation that allowed a state judge to submit information to the NICS "about people who are involuntarily committed in court for mental health treatment and pose a threat of violence to themselves or others." The new law also laid groundwork for the creation of a review panel.
"Our legislation strikes a delicate balance between public safety, mental health and individual rights," Rep. Deborah Ruggiero, the lead House sponsor, said at the time of passage.
And now by executive order, Raimondo is creating a "Governor's Working Group to study gun violence reduction strategies."
"Members will be drawn from the Judiciary, the Attorney General's Office, state and local law enforcement agencies, gun violence prevention advocates, mental health advocates, public health experts, educators, and other community members, including affected families and youth."
Democrat Ruggiero of Jamestown believes more action is possible now. Why?
"I think there’s a bit of a seismic shift where people are saying: enough is enough,'' she said. And not just the usual gaggle of gun-control advocates.
"Look at corporate America,'' said Ruggiero. "Dick’s Sporting Goods is no longer selling assault weapons." She ran down the names of other companies putting distance between themselves and the NRA.
"When young people say 'enough is enough,' I think we have to pay attention,'' Ruggiero said. "The children become the adults in the room.''
