AUGUSTA, Maine — Once again, arguments for and against gun control filled the State House on Friday, and brought hundreds to take part in the debate.
A legislative committee heard from the public on 11 different gun bills. Ten of those bills impose new requirements or restrictions on gun owners, and one bill would reaffirm a person’s right to defend themselves — a version of “stand your ground” laws in other states.
Many of these issues have come up in the Legislature before. During the LePage administration, there wasn’t much chance for gun control measures to pass. Now Democrats are in charge of both the Legislature and governor’s office, and supporters are hoping to get some gun measures through.
There are bills to require guns be stored in safes or other locked containers in homes with children. There are bills requiring background checks on private sales. There is a bill to ban high capacity magazines and another to ban “untraceable” guns made with 3-D printers.
The bills about safe storage promoted considerable debate. Pearl Benjamin, a high school student from the Camden area, said she is part of a student group working for gun control, including safe storage.
“Here in the U.S., eight children are shot every day with firearms in the home Every day, eight members of my generation find a loaded gun lying around the house and it goes off,” Benjamin said.
Other supporters spoke of the risk to children of loaded, unsecured guns in the home, and said a state law was needed to force people to lock up guns if there are children in the house.
But gun rights supporters opposed the safe storage measures, arguing that guns kept for protection might not be quickly available in an emergency if they were locked up.
And Bruce Ashmore said responsible gun owners don’t need a law to do the right thing.
“People who own firearms who are responsible, we already are practicing safe storage,” he told the committee. “That law isn’t going to make anybody else more responsible.”
Gun rights advocates say the other bills also are unnecessary and interfere with Second Amendment rights. However, they are supporting the bill from GOP Rep. John Andrews, to “reaffirm” the rights of Mainers to self defense.
Andrews says the current law imposes a requirement for people to back away from a threat. He says they should be able to stand their ground and defend themselves with deadly force if needed.
All these bills-along with the so-called “red flag” bill previously heard by the committee - will be debated and voted on by the Criminal Justice Committee in the next few weeks.