A Response to the Newtown, CT School Shooting

From Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda 87th A.D.

     On Tuesday, Jan. 15th. I was proud to be a member of the New York State Assembly. We passed a piece of landmark legislation that will keep Bronxites and other residents of New York State safer. The legislation bans assault weapons, closes loopholes and cracks down on the horrific gun violence that’s ravaging our communities and our nation.

   The massacre of schoolchildren in Newtown, CT, and the recent killings in Webster, NY, of first responders were heinous tragedies, but, sadly, terrible gun violence incidents are all too common across our state. This legislation strengthens gun-control measures and safety by prohibiting assault weapons and banning all high-capacity ammunition clips with the capacity to hold more than 7 rounds. It creates a grandfather clause for owners of legal semi-automatic weapons provided they register them with the state police, recertify the registration every 5 years and undergo a background check. The measure also increases criminal penalties for the illegal use of guns. It toughens penalties for drug dealers and violent criminals involved in illegal gun use, and it increases the penalty for having a gun on school grounds and for injuring a child with a gun. Additionally, and in light of the recent shooting in Webster, NY, the legislation also adds first responders to the aggravated murder statute, ensuring that murderers of first responders face a life in prison without parole.

   Lastly, the gun violence that’s been ravaging communities simply cannot be solved without addressing mental-health issues. This measure ensures that those who might be a danger to themselves or others because of a mental illness simply do not have access to firearms. There’s no quick fix to end gun violence, nor is there any one approach, but this new legislation takes a comprehensive view and provides concrete measures to begin to tackle the problem.

 

• Specifically, the bill:

 

• revokes and/or suspends the gun license of an individual upon issuance of an order of protection by a court of law;
• establishes a statewide database of handgun licenses to enable the state police to crosscheck the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to determine if any current licensees have been legally disqualified from possessing firearms under federal law;
• creates statewide standards for handgun-license applications;
• requires mental-health professionals to report to law enforcement when they believe a person receiving mental-health services is a danger to themselves or others. Those who possess a firearm license would have their license revoked or suspended and be required to surrender their firearms;
• allows schools to qualify for reimbursement building aid assistance if they choose to add electronic systems and hardened doors to increase safety;
• updates the New York gun licensing statute to ensure those prohibited from possessing firearms on the federal level are not granted a gun license from the state;
• requires re-certification of gun licenses on a 5-year cycle to include current name, date of birth, current address and the make, model, serial number and caliber of all firearms possessed;
• allows counties to keep the names and address of gun licensees confidential under certain circumstances;
• requires all private sales of firearms, shotguns and rifles to be made through a licensed gun dealer to ensure that a proper background check is performed, unless the sale is between immediate family members; and
• requires owners of firearms to safely store such weapons if he/she resides with a person who is prohibited from possessing a firearm under certain provisions of federal law.

 

(Criminal penalties)

• increases the existing penalty for possession of a loaded firearm from 3.5 years to 5 years imprisonment when the defendant is also convicted of a drug sale or violent felony offense as part of the same charge. Additionally, the penalty for possession of an unloaded firearm in this situation increases from a class A misdemeanor to a class D felony;
• increases the penalty for possession of an unloaded firearm from a class A misdemeanor to a class E felony;
• increases the penalty for unlicensed possession of a gun on school grounds from a class A misdemeanor to a class E felony;
• clarifies that an individual can be prosecuted for criminal facilitation for making available, sharing, selling, exchanging, giving or disposing of a community gun which helps another person commit a crime;
• creates a new elevated crime of Aggravated Enterprise Corruption for commission of multiple class B felonies and gun-related crimes, a class A-I felony punishable by a mandatory life sentence with a minimum term of between 15 and 25 years;
• increases the penalty for straw purchases of firearms from a class A misdemeanor to a class D felony;
• increases the penalty for recklessly causing physical injury to a child with a firearm from a class A misdemeanor to a class D violent felony; and
• increases the penalty for failing to report a lost or stolen firearm and ammunition from a $100 fine to a class A misdemeanor.

 

(Mental health / Kendra’s Law)

• requires the evaluation of the need for Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) prior to the expiration of the order;
• requires the county director of community services to notify the director in another county when a person subject to an AOT order has moved to that county;
• extends the maximum duration of an initial AOT order from 6 months to 1 year;
• requires inmates being released to the community from a mental health hospital to undergo review for an AOT order; and
• extends the sunset provision of Kendra’s Law from June 30, 2015 to June 30, 2017.

This was a horrific tragedy; I am pleased that our great state has taken the initiative to see that it doesn’t happen again.

Luis Sepulveda  Assemblyman 87th. A.D.