House approves bill to hit straw buyers

HARRISBURG - Nearly a week after a controversial gun-control bill was defeated in the state House, the chamber unanimously approved legislation that supporters say will help achieve the same goal: curbing the illegal sale of weapons.

The bill (HB 1845), which now goes to the Senate, contains a number of amendments targeted at so-called straw buyers, who purchase guns for felons. One amendment would increase the statute of limitations for prosecuting straw purchasers and for gun dealers charged with being complicit in the crime. Another would create a registry of lost and stolen weapons. The penalties for falsely reporting a weapon lost or stolen would also be increased.

"This is the first meaningful legislation regarding the restriction of illegal firearms to pass the House in decades," said John P. Sabatina Jr. (D., Phila.), the bill's sponsor. "We need to continue advancing these types of bills to catch criminals and improve safety for Pennsylvania residents."

The vote came on the same day that several hundred pro-gun activists rallied in the Capitol - a number of them checking their guns at the door - to celebrate the victory over the more restrictive mandatory-reporting proposal and pledged to block any future attempts to advance "gun grabbing" legislation.

Supporters say yesterday's bill - which passed 200-0 - will close the loopholes that existed in the mandatory-reporting proposal and eliminate the unintended consequences for law-abiding citizens who fail to report their missing weapons.

The mandatory-reporting measure would have imposed penalties for not reporting a lost or stolen handgun within 72 hours of the discovery of its loss. The bill that passed focuses on those who knowingly commit crimes involving illegal weapons. "The approach is to affirmatively address someone who is doing something wrong, as opposed to criminalizing inaction," said Mike Schwoyer, legislative director for House Speaker Dennis O'Brien (R., Phila.).

O'Brien was the only lawmaker from Philadelphia who did not support the mandatory-reporting measure. O'Brien, who called the reporting language "flawed," said the current bill will survive legal challenge.

"This law will withstand appeals," said O'Brien yesterday.

Gun-control advocates praised the bill as a step in the right direction on gun violence, but said the mandatory-reporting legislation would have been far more effective.

"None of the amendments rise to the level of our lost-and-stolen language that was proposed," said Johnna Pro, spokeswoman for Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Phila.), who has championed tougher handgun restrictions for years.

"We're encouraged legislators, a year and a half after being unwilling to have discussions [about gun violence], are now tripping over themselves to try to find ways to slow down the flow of handguns into our communities."

Yesterday morning, gun owners crammed the Capitol Rotunda for their annual "Right to Bear Arms" rally and lobby day, vowing to launch voter-registration drives ahead of the November elections and to defeat pro-gun-control lawmakers.

Dressed in NRA caps, camouflage jackets and even Revolutionary War uniforms, about 200 sportsmen and firearms owners cheered speakers, among them Rep. Daryl D. Metcalfe (R., Butler), who assailed Gov. Rendell and his "gun-confiscating conspirators," urging participants to "fire" lawmakers who supported gun-control measures.

"Pennsylvania, birthplace of the Declaration of Independence . . . also has a legitimate claim to fame as the birthplace of the Second Amendment," said Metcalfe. "The right of citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the state shall not be questioned."

Former presidential candidate Alan Keyes, the featured speaker, took aim at gun-control advocates for, as he put it, claiming to defend life.

"You cannot defend life if you give up your means of defense," said Keyes.

Rendell's press secretary, Chuck Ardo, called Metcalf's comment about gun confiscation untrue.

"Gov. Rendell has not taken a single step toward confiscating guns and has absolutely no plans to do so," he said. "This is just another example of a partisan legislator with a reputation as a loose cannon taking aim at the wrong target."

The rally ended with a raffle of a Smith and Wesson handgun donated by a sporting-goods store.

"This is the only legitimate 'one gun' we're interested in," said Metcalfe, in a sarcastic reference to a defeated gun-control bill limiting the purchase of handguns to one a month.

Joe Grace, executive director of CeaseFirePA, said raffling off a handgun in the state Capitol was insensitive to victims of gun violence.

"It's unfortunate considering the hundreds of victims of handgun violence in this state," said Grace. "It makes light of such a serious issue."