Activists want gun ban extended
Thursday, February 19, 2004
By TOM WROBLESKI
Assemblyman John Lavelle and an anti-gun group targeted Rep. Vito Fossella yesterday for failing to sign onto a House bill that would expand and extend the federal assault weapons ban.
Fossella (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) would vote to extend the existing law, but he has yet to review the new legislation, a spokesman said.
About a dozen anti-gun advocates, including some children, held signs as they protested across the street from Fossella's district office on Amboy Road in Eltingville.
"Cops are being outgunned by these weapons," said Andy Pelosi, executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence.
The assault weapons ban was enacted in 1994 and prohibits the manufacture and distribution of certain rapid-fire guns. It is set to expire in September.
Fossella is the only member of the city congressional delegation who has not signed onto the new bill, which was introduced by Reps. Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.) in May. Democrats make up the rest of the city delegation.
The bill would broaden the definition of "assault weapon" and would close loopholes in the existing law, supporters say.
Pelosi pointed out that two undercover detectives murdered in Tompkinsville almost a year ago were killed while investigating a case involving an assault weapon.
Lavelle (D-North Shore) said it was "a disgrace" to the detectives' memories that Fossella does not support the new legislation.
"I'm not against hunting," said Lavelle. "But you don't need assault weapons to hunt deer and bear."
While most of the protesters yesterday were from Brooklyn, one of them was West Brighton resident Lila Levey.
"Assault weapons have no purpose except to kill as many people as quickly as possible," she said. "Hunters don't need them. Nobody needs them. They're used solely for criminal purposes."
Fossella had supported a number of measures aimed at enforcing existing anti-gun laws, spokesman Craig Donner said. The congressman also obtained a $360,000 federal grant allowing the borough district attorney's office to hire three staffers dedicated to firearm-related crime, he added.
Fossella supported a bill, which passed the House, to provide $100 million to states that could prove they prosecuted gun criminals. He also supported another multi-part gun measure that did not get lawmakers' approval.
"These are concrete examples of how you go about stopping gun violence through a more comprehensive approach," Donner said.
Pelosi said his group had sought a meeting with Fossella through his Washington, D.C., office but had been rebuffed. According to Donner, there was no record of any such request.
"It's telling that they chose to stand 20 feet outside our office and never chose to come in," Donner said of yesterday's protest.
He said it was "regrettable" that the group decided to put on a "roadside political show" with Lavelle, who is the county Democratic leader. He added that the memories of the slain detectives should not be used for political purposes.
Lavelle said he attended the rally as a lawmaker at the gun group's invitation. But he added that he asked Democrat Frank Barbaro, who is running against Fossella, to attend as well. Barbaro, however, did not show.
Tom Wrobleski covers politics for the Advance. He may be reached at wrobleski@siadvance.com.
