May 9 • 2019 15
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dered, what does it have to take to get
common sense gun violence preven-
tion legislation passed?” Wittenberg
posed at a JAC ii gathering.
On April 30, he said the Poway
murder and mass shooting gives him
further reason to push forward on
his attempts to make changes to the
state’
s policies on gun control. He also
acknowledged that no law, including
California’
s own Red Flag law, enact-
ed in 2014, will stop all gun-related
deaths.
“We know policy change is not the
end all be all and will not stop all gun
violence,
” Wittenberg said. “But there
are multiple proven methods in other
states that show there is reduced gun
violence when common sense gun
control laws are in place … We need
not wait for the next tragedy to act.
We should be [passing gun control
legislation] because it is the right thing
to do.
”
Wittenberg pointed to State
Attorney General Dana Nessel’
s efforts
to get funding for her new Hate
Crimes Unit off the ground, which
is getting pushback in state senate
hearings from Lansing Republicans,
Wittenberg said.
He says 2019 is far different from
2015. Although gun violence con-
trol legislation squarely sits in the
Democratic camp, Wittenberg has
been told privately by Republican
colleagues that they would vote in
support of Red Flag legislation if it
came to a hearing on the State House
floor. However, getting the legislation
to the floor is an uphill battle because
the state speaker of the House controls
what gets heard and debated.
Currently, that post is held by Lee
Chatfield (R-Levering), also serving
his final term in office. Last July,
he was stopped boarding a plane
in a small northern Michigan air-
port with a loaded and unregistered
handgun in his carry-on bag during
a pre-flight screening. In January,
Chatfield paid a $1,960 fine to the
federal Transportation Security
Administration.
Some Republicans have expressed
concerns about gun owners’
rights of
due process in any Red Flag laws.
According to Michigan’
s pro-
posed legislation, a judge must
grant a request before any weapons
can be seized. Wittenberg said he
worked alongside Oakland County
Sheriff Michael Bouchard, a former
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate,
who recommended that penalties for
presenting false evidence be treated the
same as filing a false police report.
“Given this fact, it makes sense to
pass legislation to intervene for those
who are a danger to themselves and
others,
” said Bouchard last year when
Wittenberg introduced the bills.
Rep. Ryan Berman (a Temple Israel
member), Republican
in the 39th District, said
he agrees, in general,
that individuals who
pose a clear threat to
themselves or others
should not possess
firearms for the safety
of the community.
However, he does not think the legis-
lation, as currently written, is the best
route to achieve this goal.
“We must protect the Second
Amendment rights of all law-abiding
citizens to own and use firearms, but it
is also important to prevent acts of vio-
lence,
” Berman said. “My focus is on
the real root cause of this issue, which
is our broken mental health system.
We should remain committed to find-
ing solutions that improve the health
and safety of our state.
”
Since the Parkland shooting, nine
states — including Florida — passed
Red Flag laws allowing police or
household members to seek court
orders requiring people deemed
threatening to temporarily surrender
their guns. Fourteen states now have
Red Flag laws.
As Michigan laws stand now, law
enforcement cannot take away some-
one’
s weapons until a crime has been
committed.
There were 1,223 gun deaths in
Michigan in 2016, which is the high-
est since 1999, when the CDC began
posting data on its website. Almost 60
percent of the deaths were suicides.
While progress on gun control
legislation is slow at the federal level,
Wittenberg and Manoogian are
encouraged there is some traction and
a swaying of public opinion as these
laws get passed by the states.
Wittenberg added that because the
NRA spends more money lobbying
federal rather than state legislators,
there is a bigger chance of “moving
the needle” in places like Lansing over
Washington.
“The needle is moving slowly, but it
is moving,” he said. ■
See related opinion piece on page 6.
Rep. Ryan
Berman
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