Thanks to Mary Jane F.
Legislature and gun violence from Gov’s office
More than 117,000 Americans are shot each year, including 6,000 children and youth. Gun violence is now the leading cause of death for kids. Hundreds of police officers are shot every year. Hundreds of mass shootings occur every year. America has the highest rate of gun ownership in the world, and the highest gun death rate in the world among high-income countries (by a factor of four) to show for it.
As the start of the 2023 legislative session nears, Gov. Jay Inslee, Attorney General Bob Ferguson and several legislators announced three bills during a press conference on Monday to help further reduce gun violence in Washington state.
Inslee is requesting legislation to require a permit to purchase a firearm, certifying that the purchaser is eligible to possess a firearm and has completed a state-certified safety training program. Every firearm purchase would be accompanied by an additional background check and 10-day waiting period. Connecticut passed a similar law following Sandy Hook, and observed nearly a 40% reduction in gun violence since.
“This epidemic of gun violence we are facing is unacceptable,” said Inslee. “What might have been a fistfight in a parking lot is now someone dead in the street. We cannot surrender to this epidemic. I refuse to accept that we’re powerless.”
Inslee and Ferguson will jointly request two other bills: a ban on assault weapons, and liability for firearm industry irresponsibility. Victims of gun violence and their families are deprived of legal recourse against gun manufacturers under federal law – the latter bill will allow civil suits for gun manufacturer failures to enact reasonable safety controls, such as chain-of-custody standards and responsible marketing.
Washington voters and legislators have consistently supported substantive, commonsense gun violence measures including universal background checks; bans on bump stocks, ghost guns and high capacity magazines; extreme risk protection orders sometimes known as “red flag laws;” and open carry restrictions in certain public spaces. In 2020, legislators approved creation of a new state Office of Firearm Safety and Violence Prevention that partners closely with community and law enforcement leaders to pursue data-driven solutions to gun violence.