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BY BILL DOLAN
Times Staff Writer | Monday, July 26, 2004 | (No comments posted.)
Big shots in the national gun-control debate may party or hang out black crepe paper Sept. 13, when a 10-year ban on assault weapons is expected to end.
Area law enforcement officials expect it to be just another day on the streets.
"I think it makes most police officers uncomfortable knowing the amount of fire power that is out there and available to the percentage of the population that would use it for evil purposes," said David Lain, chief deputy of the Porter County's Sherrif's Department.
"But I don't see that, ban or no ban, that it's going to affect what weapons the bad guys are able to get ahold of."
The ban, enacted by former President Clinton in 1994, made it illegal to sell 19 semiautomatic rifles, pistols and shotguns. They hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition and, once fired, instantly reload the next round.
Clinton said such weapons were attractive to criminals because they could expel large amounts of bullets with extraordinary speed to overwhelm armed targets such as rival criminals -- or police officers.
The law exempted guns manufactured before the ban and others that lacked military configuration attachments. It was designed to expire, or sunset, after 10 years unless the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives and President George W. Bush approve its extension.
That is unlikely, Katherine Bensen-Piscopo, a spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Ind., said. "The Senate did pass the extension, but it doesn't look like it's going anywhere in the House now."
Federal law still bans fully automatic weapons that fire as long as the trigger is depressed or until empty. A number of states have bans on assault weapons that will remain in effect after the Sept. 13 sunset deadline for the federal law.
Indiana, which is considered a permissive state as far as gun regulations are concerned, doesn't have such a ban. Illinois is a more restrictive state, and the city of Chicago bans most privately held firearms.
Earl Westforth, owner of Westforth Sports Shop in unincorporated Calumet Township, said only a tiny percentage of these firearms end up in the hands of killers.
"(The ban) takes away from the guys who really enjoy it, like a car capable of going 140 or 160 mph," Westforth said. "You don't need (the speed), but some people just want it because they have the money to afford it."
The Brady Campaign, a gun-control lobbying organization, protested the ban's demise, saying it represents "mass produced mayhem," and that the ban's "loss would be a serious blow to public safety."
The view from local law enforcement is less passionate.
"I haven't seen that the ban has made much of a difference," Jeff Wells said. He is a 15-year veteran of the Lake County coroner's office, which processes about 80 homicide scenes each year in which firearms are involved.
He said the number of victims riddled by semiautomatic weapons are rare. "I remember one case three years ago where three kids were killed in a van in Hammond. There were a lot of bullet casings at the scene," he said.
Gary police say an SKS-type assault rifle firing 7.62 mm shells was used to kill four people last January. That weapon and those shells have the capability to penetrate body armor used by police officers, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. However, SKS assault rifles are not covered by the ban.
Hammond Police Chief Brian Miller said gun manufacturers also quickly got around the ban by modifying the military configuration of the banned guns and marketing them as sporting weapons.
"Our SWAT team has them. I have one in the trunk of my car. We've gotten them from off the street, too," Miller said.
Mike Higgins, a spokesman for the Lake County Police, said officers occasionally will confiscate a Tec-9, a banned semiautomatic pistol that carries 10 to 50 rounds of ammunition.
"The Tec-9 is easier to conceal than an assault rifle, but we probably (see) one a month, some months." He said most firearms found at crime scenes are single-shot handguns.
Visclosky supports keeping the ban, Bensen-Piscopo said. "He also supports the right of hunters to have guns and he has a lot of friends who are avid hunters, but he has never met a hunter who needs (an assault weapon) to hunt deer," Bensen-Piscopo said.
Mark Leyva, a union carpenter running against Visclosky in the fall general election, said, "I want this to end. I believe a ban is wrong because of the Second Amendment-protected right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms."
Kelly Hobbs, a spokeswoman for the National Rifle Association, couldn't agree more.
"We have seen in every study conducted ... that this hasn't had any impact on crime and these firearms were barely used in crimes before the ban," Hobbs said.
"This was a political issue rather than anything constructive. For people outside the Beltway, this is not a top priority for them and members in Congress realize that."
Bill Dolan can be reached at bdolan@nwitimes.com or (219) 662-5328.
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