By Connie Williams
In the fall of 2004, just before the expiration of the federal ban on assault weapons, I introduced legislation in the Pennsylvania legislature to ban the sale of these types of weapons in the commonwealth. Senate Bill 1216 died for lack of action. It led in 2005-06 to S.B. 533, which also died in committee, and in 2007-08 to S.B. 48, which I'm realistic enough to recognize will never see the light of day.
To date, I've been told there is no need to ban any type of gun, because the gun does not kill; the person using the gun kills. I've been told this is just a Philadelphia problem. I've been told banning any gun is an infringement on the constitutional right to bear arms.
I hear a lot about enforcing the laws that are on the books, but I also think we should reinstate some of the laws that used to be on the books, laws that worked.
Not one of the people opposed to passing gun laws in Pennsylvania has yet to tell me how we can use this constitutional right to bear arms to protect innocent victims of these crimes. Paying for more jail time is a bandage that we place on the wound after it is inflicted.
If this is just a Philadelphia problem, why was the federal ban put in place in 1994? Was that just for Philadelphia?
The federal ban became law after a string of mass killings committed by criminals with assault weapons. The law may not have been perfect, but it was a deterrent. Statistics show that from 1994 to 2001, violent crimes declined by 26.5 percent.
As I said, I'm a realist, and I understand Pennsylvania is firmly on the side of gun rights, which explains why efforts in the state House this year failed. So I issue a challenge to gun advocates:
Come up with some responsible ways to keep guns out of the hands of our children and criminals.
I don't want to hear rhetoric. I want some hard statistics that show fewer innocent victims and police officers killed in Pennsylvania. I want to know your plan to keep guns safely and responsibly locked up so they don't fall into the wrong hands.
And I'd like you to promise families of police officers everywhere that your new way of doing things will protect their loved one when he or she is working in the line of duty to protect you.