The Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice (SDARJ) strongly supports Senate Bill 3, creating a permit system to govern the sale and other transfers of handguns in Delaware; House Bill 125, banning possession, manufacturing and distribution of “ghost guns”; and Senate Bill 6, banning possession of “large-capacity magazines,” defined as “an ammunition feeding device with a capacity to accept more than 17 rounds of ammunition.” Last February, Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings listed 10 legislative priorities for 2021, the first three of which are addressed in these bills.
Studies show that licensing laws, such as SB 3, can lead to significant reductions in both gun homicides and suicides. When Connecticut passed a licensing law, its firearm homicide rate decreased by 40% and its firearm suicide rate decreased by 15%, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Licensing laws also ensure that potential gun owners pass a meaningful background check before they purchase a gun. Under SB 3, permits would be obtained from Delaware’s Department of Safety and Homeland Security, providing safeguards against fraud or inaccuracies that could allow dangerous individuals to obtain handguns. SDARJ urges the General Assembly to add Delaware to the list of states and the District of Columbia that already have such laws.
“Ghost guns” or “homemade gun kits” are unregulated firearms that anyone, including minors and prohibited purchasers, can buy online and build at home. According to President Joe Biden, “We are experiencing a growing problem: criminals are buying kits containing nearly all of the components and directions for finishing a firearm within as little as 30 minutes and using these firearms to commit crimes. When these firearms turn up at crime scenes, they often cannot be traced by law enforcement due to the lack of a serial number.” SDARJ urges lawmakers to close this loophole in the regulation of gun ownership/possession by enacting HB 125.
The third bill, SB 6, deals with the recurring problem of mass shootings, in the forefront again with the recent incident in San Jose, California. The Gun Violence Archive reported that there had already been 231 mass shootings in the U.S. by the end of the fifth month of this year, many involving use of large-capacity ammunition magazines. On June 12, 2016, a shooter killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a shooting inside Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. In less than five minutes, he fired approximately 200 rounds, pausing only to reload. A little over a year later, a shooter on the 32nd floor of a hotel in Las Vegas opened fire on the crowd attending a country music festival in the street below. Within 10 minutes, he fired more than 1,000 rounds, killing 60 people and wounding 411. Later, law enforcement discovered 24 firearms, a large quantity of ammunition and numerous high-capacity magazines capable of holding up to 100 rounds apiece in the suite.
Large-capacity magazines were designed and intended for use by the military. They serve no positive purpose in the civilian context. SDARJ urges the General Assembly to enact SB 6.
Scott Strickler
Legislative/Advocacy Committee
Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice
Editor’s note: House Bill 125, which bans untraceable and undetectable firearms, is now before Gov. John Carney after it was passed in the Senate Tuesday.
