Bay to Bay News | by Joseph Edelen and Matt McDonald
After Tuesday’s school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, took the lives of 19 students and two teachers, Delaware lawmakers are pondering the best course of action regarding gun control.
Efforts to thwart gun violence and prevent mass shootings will likely come to the forefront during the General Assembly’s final 12 session days, beginning June 7, according to Rep. Tim Dukes, R-Laurel. He said it will be a priority to address all the factors that contribute to mass shootings, both now and in the future.
To that end, there are three current bills that have seen increased support from lawmakers as a result of recent mass-casualty incidents involving firearms.
The first is Senate Substitution 1 for Senate Bill 3, a bill that would create an application process for a permit to purchase a firearm. The proposal, sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman, D-Wilmington, passed in the Senate on April 1, 2021. But since being assigned to the House Appropriations Committee, it has yet to receive a hearing.
SS 1 for SB 3 would also mandate that licensed importers, manufacturers and dealers require individuals to present their permit, also known as the handgun qualified purchaser card, before selling a firearm. Additionally, it would necessitate permit applicants to complete a firearms-training course within five years before they apply, a rule that already pertains to the state’s concealed-carry permit law.
Many lawmakers and state officials have advocated for this legislation to be passed, including Attorney General Kathy Jennings, who said it was long past time to reduce the number of homicides, suicides and trafficking attributed to firearms.
SS 1 for SB 3 also received support from Rep. John Kowalko, D-Newark. He noted that, despite there being only 12 legislative days on the schedule, the time to act is now.
“I think this bill should be a priority, especially after this recent batch of mass shootings. It should be a priority for one reason: our out-of-control gun-regulation goals that we have. We should consider lessening the availability of guns, lessening the availability of guns to certain people who shouldn’t have them. What I think should happen is that leadership should put this bill right on the floor for a vote,” he said.
Alternative ideas
Despite the support of SS 1 for SB 3 from some, others favor different alternatives.
Rep. Ruth Briggs King, R-Georgetown, said she does not endorse the permit bill as it stands.
“Senate Bill 3, as it was written, infringes upon certain rights. As a matter of fact, there’s some legislation that would tighten up background checks in the state, and there’s other things that we were already thinking of that are very important that go into that process. I’d like to see some of those things that we were working on progress through the House and in the Senate,” she said.
Rep. Briggs King referenced House Bill 423, which would appoint the State Bureau of Identification to oversee the background check process for those intending to purchase a firearm. The bill, which has been assigned to a House committee, would revive the Delaware Firearm Transaction Approval Program, an initiative that was revoked in 2011 in favor of the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
Senate Minority Whip Brian Pettyjohn, R-Georgetown, said he does not support SB 3 either; he voted against it last year, and his position remains the same. He is opposed to the bill because he believes it would violate Delawareans’ gun rights under the state constitution, where those rights are broader than those afforded by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Further, he said, the permit-to-purchase bill would not stop those who are determined to harm others. They will always find a way to do so, he added, whether that’s with a gun, a vehicle or something else.
“We need to be investing in mental health and behavioral health,” Sen. Pettyjohn said. “We need to address the root cause of these types of incidents.”
Senate Minority Leader Gerald Hocker, R-Ocean View, said he believes HB 423 would do more to keep guns out of the wrong hands than SS 1 for SB 3. He is listed as an additional sponsor of it, with Rep. Larry Mitchell, D-Elsmere, the primary sponsor.
Sen. Hocker said it was a mistake for the legislature to rely on the federal NICS for background checks rather than the state’s program, which he said was more accurate. At the time, he and Sen. Dave Lawson, R-Marydel, warned their colleagues.
“We had the personal experience (with selling guns), and they didn’t listen to us at all and did away with it. Hopefully, we’ll never pay the price, and we’ll get it back,” he said.
Both Sen. Hocker and Sen. Lawson have backgrounds in gun sales. The former is the owner of Ocean View’s G&E Hardware, which markets firearms and ammunition, while Sen. Lawson previously owned Shooter’s Choice, a firearm distribution center in Dover.
School ‘hardening’
Though Sen. Hocker said HB 423 would keep the wrong people from acquiring guns, he also advocated for school “hardening,” specifically adding armed guards in all educational facilities. He said that, since the government spends billions of dollars a year, officials should be able to find enough funding to protect students the same way its elected leaders are protected.
HB 388 addresses just that, as it would give schools the monies to fund hardening — or making physical improvements to promote safety, like adding school resource officers, improving surveillance and monitoring equipment, installing security systems and more.
The act, sponsored by Rep. Kevin Hensley, R-Townsend, would create the Delaware School Safety and Security Fund to provide such safety funding. Rep. Dukes backed the bill, saying, “The greatest protection that we can offer kids is to have an officer in the school that is valued, that has a relationship with them, someone that they can trust. They feel safe around that person, who is armed to protect and deal with any intruder,” he said.
One of HB 388’s co-sponsors, Rep. Briggs King, added that, as the academic year winds down, it is important to address security in learning facilities. She noted that it’s key for each school district to receive the proper funding for hardening should the legislation pass. It currently sits in a House committee, awaiting a hearing.
Further, Rep. Briggs King said she remembered attending an active-shooter training at a school in her district about five years ago, recalling that many parents and grandparents took part. She applauded the Indian River School District, which she largely represents, for being proactive about student safety.
House Appropriations Committee member Steve Smyk, R-Milton, also expressed that he does not support SS 1 for SB 3 because legislation signed into law in 2018 already deals with the “red flags” that often present themselves in mass shootings.
“By contrast, SS 1 for SB 3 is misdirected, establishing a new process that will only be complied with by those who are legally responsible,” he said in a statement to the Delaware State News.
“In fact, the proposal amounts to a regressive tax, potentially adding hundreds of dollars in compliance costs for citizens seeking to exercise the rights granted to them under the state constitution to possess and use firearms — a burden that will fall heaviest on Delawareans with modest incomes.”
The previous legislation Rep. Smyk referred to consists of two bills, House Substitute 1 for HB 302 and HS 1 for HB 222. The first aims to keep firearms out of the wrong hands and focuses on providing care to those who suffer from mental illness and who have been deemed “dangerous” to themselves and others. HB 222 allows Superior Court to issue a lethal-violence protection order to those who pose a danger to themselves or others by owning a firearm.
House Minority Leader Danny Short, R-Seaford, said these bills show that Delaware’s lawmakers have taken steps to reduce such violence. He added that legislators can push to protect children by improving school safety, while also maintaining the rights provided by the state constitution.
“Additionally, we have allocated millions of dollars for renovations to make local schools more secure from intruders. State and school district officials regularly conduct cooperative training of personnel on ways to make schools safer and handle active shooter situations,” Rep. Short said in a statement.
“Our caucus has cooperatively worked with our colleagues across the aisle to improve school security while upholding our obligation to honor the rights granted to all Delawareans under the state constitution to own and use firearms.”