May 9 • 2019 15
jn

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

Magen 
Davi
d 
Adom 
has 
been 
savi
ng 
l
i
ves 
si
nce 
1
930, 
some 
1
8 
years 
bef
or
e 
Isr
ael
 
became 
a 
state. 
We 
take 
i
mmense 
pri
de 
i
n 
bei
ng 
Isr
ael
’
s 
nati
onal
 
emer
gency 
medi
cal
 
servi
ce 
and 
i
n 
suppl
yi
ng 
the 
bl
ood 
and 
medi
cal
 
car
e 
f
or 
the 
sol
di
ers 
who 
have 
ensur
ed 
Isr
ael
’
s 
exi
stence. 
Joi
n 
us 
i
n 
cel
ebr
ati
ng 
Isr
ael
’
s 
i
ndependence 
on 
Yom 
HaAt
zma’
ut
. 

Save 
a 
l
i
f
e 
i
n 
Isr
ael
.
 
Support 
Magen 
Davi
d 
Adom 
 
at 
af
mda.
or
g/yomha 
or 
cal
l
 
888.
674.
4871.

Saving lives. It’s in our blood.

Ever 
si
nce 
ther
e’s 
been 
an 
IDF 
 
pr
otecti
ng 
Isr
ael
, 
ther
e’s 
been 
 
an 
MDA 
ensuri
ng 
thei
r 
heal
th.

