DECEMBER 23 • 2021 | 19
before beginning the Michigan Giffords
chapter, the Novi resident was the victim of
a shooting while investigating a drug sale,
has lost friends to self-inflicted gunshots
and knew victims in the 2016 Orlando
Pulse nightclub mass shooting. He said
most of the country’s gun owners want to
see common sense gun control reform to
avoid yet another mass or school shooting
as witnessed in Oxford, but Republicans in
Lansing are impeding legislation from mov-
ing forward.
“The Republicans in Lansing will not let
policy reform on guns get out of commit-
tee,
” said Gold, 51, of Novi. “They will not
let them be heard on the state floor, and
we are talking about common sense things
like making sure weapons are locked and
kept away, and those who are convicted of
a domestic violence felony should not be
allowed to purchase a gun.
”
Examples of such legislation, which have
been proposed by the Michigan Firearm
Safety and Violence Prevention Caucus
since 2016, include requiring guns to be
properly stowed and locked, barring those
convicted of domestic abuse from purchas-
ing a gun, and implementing in Michigan
the Red Flag law, which allows courts or law
enforcement to confiscate guns from own-
ers if there is proof the gun owner could be
of danger to themselves or others.
Red Flag laws exist in civil courts to
temporarily take away the firearms of a
loved one in a mental health crisis who may
harm themselves or others. According to
Pew Charitable Trusts, as of 2021, 19 states
and the District of Columbia have adopted
Red Flag laws. Fourteen of those laws came
after the 2018 school shooting in Parkland,
Florida.
In further efforts, the Michigan Firearm
Safety and Violence Prevention, chaired by
Sen. Rosemary Bayer (D–Beverly Hills) and
Rep. Brenda Carter (D-Pontiac), announced
the introduction of more bills that might
help prevent future gun violence and trage-
dies on Dec. 9.
Senate Bills 785 and 786, intro-
duced by Sens. Bayer and Jeremy
Moss (D-Southfield), respectively, and
House Bills 5627 and 5628, introduced by
Reps. Cynthia A. Johnson (D-Detroit) and
Carter, would prohibit selling or possessing
a magazine capable of holding more than 10
rounds of ammunition, beginning on Jan. 1,
2023. Currently in Michigan, semiautomat-
ic firearms with high-capacity magazines
can be purchased without any background
check or sale record.
GUN OWNERS SPEAK OUT
According to the Centers for Disease
Control, in 2020 more than 45,000 people
were killed by guns, a 15 percent increase
from 2019. In 2019, the CDC reported
38,826 gun-related deaths nationwide; in
Michigan in 2019, there were 1,187 gun
deaths. About 60 percent of these deaths
were suicides.
“Responsible gun owners have to come
out and come to the table to clean up the
mess that has been created by irresponsible
gun culture,
” Gold said. “
As responsible
gun owners, we believe that the public
safety is just as important as our Second
Amendment rights, and that means han-
dling and storing guns in a safe responsible
manner. It also means that it is not accept-
able to open carry a weapon to the grounds
of a state capitol or to a protest to intimidate
politicians or those expressing their First
Amendment rights. That’s not what it is
about.
”
Gold said he is averse to gun rights
advocates who believe that the Second
Amendment cannot be infringed upon,
though it is written as such in the
Constitution.
“There is not one Amendment in the
Constitution that has not been interpreted
or regulated,
” said Gold. “For example, one
cannot practice their freedom of speech by
yelling fire in a crowded theater. No child
should fear for their lives when they are at
school. The tragedy in Oxford, Michigan,
was preventable. As responsible gun own-
ers, we must stand up to protect children
from the devastating effects of gun violence.
“Giving a child access to guns, without
proper supervision, endangers that child
and those around them and possibly the
entire community. Responsible gun owners
must fight for comprehensive gun safety
laws that save lives. Michigan deserves
better, our children deserve better and
America deserves better.
”
For more information on upcoming events in
Michigan with Giffords, go to www.giffords.org. or
email gunowners@giffords.org.