MA - Bill proposed to ban 'cop killer' handguns

[FWiedner]

Bill proposed to ban 'cop killer' handguns

By Lauren Head

A bill that aims to prohibit the sale and possession of "cop-killer" handguns and rifles that will soon be on the market sparked criticism from gun advocates, who said at a hearing at the State House on Tuesday that banning firearms will not reduce the crime rate.

The bill, proposed by Sen. Jarret Barrios (D-Cambridge) and Rep. Cheryl Rivera (D-Springfield), would ban the 0.05 BMG rifle as well as the .50-caliber rifle, a hunting collecting item that is used in competition.

According to Sen. Stephen Brewer (D-Worcester), the 0.05 rifle should be banned in Massachusetts because of the threat it poses to the police forces.

"[This gun] could take out an airplane," said Brewer, vice chairman of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee. He added that the gun could definitely penetrate police protective armor.

Nancy Robinson, president of the Massachusetts Million Moms March, testified in favor of the bill, claiming there are no legitimate civilian uses for any kind of gun.

Thirty thousand people die from gun violence every year, Robinson said.
"The [National Rifle Association] never met a gun protection law it liked," she said referring to the NRA's opposition to the bill.

John Orwell, an NRA representative, testified against the bill.

"The state of Massachusetts is moving away from the rest of the country," he said. "They should focus on the criminal, not the firearm."

He argued that the NRA does support gun laws that are effective in reducing crime, but that "getting funding for programs that prosecute criminals is the only thing that will bring a reduction in crime."

"Criminals are the ones using guns, not law-abiding citizens," Orwell said. "It's a matter of keeping criminals off the street."

Joe Rich, an emergency medical technician and paramedic, said a man with an unlicensed hunting rifle had shot him. Such an incident, he said, demonstrates that confiscating firearms will not make the public any safer because criminals get their guns illegally on the black market.

"Criminals do not give a damn about the law," he said. "They don't hold up people that are going to be armed."

http://www.dailyfreepress.com/media/paper87/news/2005/10/26/News/Bill-Proposed.To.Ban.cop.Killer.Handguns-1034328.shtml

*FW Note:

Perhaps this is a radical statement, but considering the intent of the Second Amendment, the most important kind of guns sold to law-abiding citizens are specifically the "cop-killing" kind.

Fight these political schemes.  This is nothing more than officers of the state trying to ensure that The People cannot effectively fight a tyrannical government when, and if, the time comes because The People's weaponry will be insufficient to the purpose.

 :x