CNN
—
Three days after Michigan State University was terrorized by a mass shooting on campus, Democratic state lawmakers introduced a slew of bills targeting gun safety — legislation including they have hoped it will become law since the party took control of the legislature and the governor’s office for the first time in four decades.
State lawmakers on Thursday tabled an 11-bill package, which includes several policies that experts say have been proven to reduce gun violence. Michigan Democrats have tried and failed to pass tougher gun regulations in recent years under Republican-controlled legislative bodies. Their efforts intensified after the November 2021 mass shooting at Oxford High School, just outside Detroit, but none of the measures were adopted.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, promised legislative changes just two days after authorities said Anthony Dwayne McRae, 43, opened fire on the MSU campus on Monday night, killing three students and seriously injuring them. five more.
“The time for thoughts and prayers is over”, Whitmer said in a tweet. “We are in a unique position to act and save lives. And that’s exactly what we’re going to be doing in the weeks to come. »
Democrats see this as a great opportunity to pass change. In January, for the first time in 40 years, Democrats took control of the state legislature and governor’s office, fueling optimism that a way forward for critical gun safety measures is close at hand.
Three specific policies included in Thursday’s package have been shown to be effective in reducing rates of gun violence, according to research by Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit focused on gun violence prevention.
These measures would require the secure storage of firearms and ammunition; universal background checks for gun purchases; and creating an extreme risk protection order, or “red flag law,” that allows courts to temporarily seize firearms from anyone deemed a danger to themselves or others.
“It’s better to start implementing these reforms and start having fewer mass shootings than to sit in silence and do nothing,” said Annie Heitmeier, a third-year student at MSU and a volunteer at Students Demand. Action, a movement that campaigns for firearms. control.
“We’ve had bills like this before in Michigan and sometimes they don’t get much traction, they don’t get very far or they die in committee. I hope this time will be different,” Heitmeier said.
Michigan has relatively weak gun laws compared to other states, according to research by Everytown. Under the state’s licensing system, handgun buyers are only required to show a valid license or license to carry a concealed handgun if they are buying from sellers who are not a federally licensed dealer. The state also permits the open carrying of firearms in public.
Some gun policy experts say CNN’s red flag laws can help in cases like the MSU shooter, who previously pleaded guilty to a gun charge in 2019, had issues mental health and was showing warning signs that he could be a risk to himself or others, according to his father, Michael McRae.
Last week’s tragedy happened just over a year after A 15-year-old gunman fatally shot four students and injured six students and a teacher at Oxford High School, which also pressured lawmakers to toughen state gun laws . The shooting prompted US Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat from Michigan, to introduce federal legislation in December 2021 that would require gun owners to shield a child’s gun if there is potential access. to these. This bill failed to advance through Congress.
Legislation that would mandate the safe and secure storage of firearms and create a red flag law are both “highly relevant” in Michigan given the circumstances of the Oxford and MSU shootings, according to Lisa Geller, Director of State Affairs at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School. of Public Health.
Prosecutors alleged that the Oxford shooter’s father bought the gun used in the attack and that his parents gave it to him as an early Christmas present, CNN previously reported. The parents, who each face four counts of manslaughter, are accused of giving their son unrestricted access to the weapon.
“Lawmakers wanted to address access to guns for young people who take them to school to kill other people or kill themselves,” Geller said.
McRae, the accused MSU gunman who took his own life after the shooting, was arrested and charged in 2019 for carrying a concealed weapon without a license – a felony that allegedly prevented him from being able to purchase a firearm if he had been found guilty. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for possession of a loaded firearm and spent a year and a half on probation.
The suspect’s father, Michael McRae, told CNN his son became bitter, isolated and “nasty angry” after his mother died of a stroke two years ago and “no longer cared about Nothing”. Authorities said he had a note in his pocket that threatened more shootings hundreds of miles away in New Jersey.
Michael McRae said his son had a gun several years ago before police took it away from him. He said he believed his son got another gun, but kept it in his bedroom and denied having it, CNN reported.
Michigan’s red flag proposal would allow law enforcement, family members or a roommate to ask a judge to temporarily seize a person’s firearms if they are deemed a risk.
The bill allows people who petition a judge, including family members and roommates, to bypass law enforcement in the process. But he says a petition must prove that the person generally has a history of using or threatening violence against themselves or others.
“With the evidence that has been provided in this case, that family member or law enforcement could certainly seek an extreme risk protection order if they knew that this individual was a threat to the community or to himself,” Geller said, referring to McRae.
Less than a month before the MSU shooting, Whitmer urged lawmakers during his state of the state address to act on gun control bills that require background checks and safe storage and to enact a red flag law.
“Despite pleas from Oxford families, these issues were never even heard in the last Parliament,” Whitmer said during the Jan. 25 speech. “This year, let’s change that. Let’s work together to stop the violence and save lives.
The package of bills introduced Thursday had been in the works for “several weeks” before the MSU shooting, but Senate Democrats had a “critical opportunity” to act last week, according to Geller, who said he discussed with bill lawmakers in recent weeks.
But there is no single gun policy that will reduce or end all gun violence, according to April M. Zeoli, an associate professor in MSU’s School of Criminal Justice.
“What we have are evidence-based policies and programs that reduce the amount of gun violence we have and can save lives,” Zeoli said.
Gun violence is a complex problem that requires a multidisciplinary approach from policymakers, law enforcement and the medical community, experts tell CNN.
“These are gun homicides, community violence, police-involved shootings, domestic violence-related homicides, mass shootings,” according to Geller. “All of these types of gun violence have different policies used to deal with them.”
There is a caveat about whether Michigan’s proposed gun laws can be effective, according to Geller. They need to be implemented properly, with sufficient funding, and people need to be aware of them so they know what action to take when someone shows signs of dangerous behavior, she said.
If the public is not informed of the potential risk, or rejects gun control measures, or if law enforcement refuses to enforce the law, it could be rendered useless, experts have previously told CNN.
“If we let people know exactly when it’s appropriate to use policies like an extreme risk protection order, then we can save lives,” Zeoli said.
cnn
Don’t miss interesting posts on Famousbio
