Uphold Washington, D.C. Gun Laws, Oppose S. 1414

We, the undersigned, strongly oppose S.1414, the so-called 'District of Columbia Personal Protection Act,' and urge the Senate to reject this legislation.

S. 1414, as introduced by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), would repeal the District's ban on handguns, end strict registration requirements for ammunition and other firearms, and lift prohibitions on the possession or carrying of weapons at homes and workplaces. It would also repeal the District's ban on semi-automatic firearms, allowing military-style assault weapons back into Washingtons neighborhoods.

Mayor Anthony Williams, Chief of Police Charles H. Ramsey, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and many other District officials adamantly oppose the bill. Congresswoman Norton has described it as an attack on D.C. home rule, stating that "The District is being targetedbecause we are helpless without senators and the full panoply of legal rights to protect ourselves." The District's gun laws have stood for 27 years, and have been upheld by the courts whenever challenged.

Senator Hatch claims that S. 1414 is needed to restore the right of law-abiding citizens to arm themselves and to defend their families against "murderous predators." We, the undersigned, believe that the free, unrestricted, flow of guns into our community would result in more violent crime, not less, and primarily benefit criminals who actively seek firearms for illicit purposes. As Congresswoman Norton has said, "The only thing that would cause more murder and mayhem in this city is allowing freer access to guns."

Nearly all of the guns used in crimes in the District come from outside states. If the U.S. Senate is sincere about reducing gun violence in Washington, D.C. and saving lives, we, the undersigned, call on them to: (a) provide the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with additional resources and manpower to enforce federal gun laws and target the firearms traffickers who bring guns into the District, and (b) enact stronger federal gun laws so that traffickers cannot exploit states with weak laws to buy guns that are then resold in the District in violation of local law.