As a gun owner and upstanding citizen, I was disappointed to hear that the U.S.House of Representatives voted in favor of a gun measure that would restrict the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.
I am not denying that gun violence is a problem and my heart breaks for the innocent lives lost and the families torn apart by criminals with a gun. However, it is unhelpful to pass legislation like H.R. 8, that completely disregards the factors contributing to gun violence.
My understanding of H.R. 8 is that it would create a background check requirement that applies not just to sales or changes of ownership but to temporary "transfers" of possession. This means that if I simply hand a gun to another person, I could face a year in prison and a $100,000.00 fine. Rather than making criminals out of law-abiding citizens, we need to better enforce our already strong gun laws.
I recently watched a floor speech by Congressman Pete Stauber, who voted against H.R. 8. Congressman Stauber is a victim of gun violence himself and gave a compelling argument on how H.R. 8 will do nothing to prevent criminals from obtaining a gun because criminals do not comply with the law. He is right to argue that the most effective way to prevent tragedies in the future would be to help law enforcement, at all levels, share information and coordinate responses to threats of violence. I trust his expertise as the congressman was a police officer for 23 years.
I thank Congressman Stauber for his steadfast support of the Second Amendment and for proposing common sense solutions that will actually help prevent mass violence.
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Dan Willett
Deerwood
