This weekend, Brooklyn resident Zurana Horton, a 34-year-old mother of 12 children, was gunned down while trying to protect her children from a gun battle waging between two local gangs. According to the New York Post, one of the gang members posted up on a roof of a nearby building and then proceeded to fire a 9mm semi-automatic pistol into a crowd of onlookers. One of those shots struck Miss Horton.
The reason I chose to bring up this tragic situation is because I want to shine a light on HR 822, a bill brought forth by Cliff Stearns (R-FL) that would require all states to recognize concealed weapons permits from other states, thereby overriding the states' own concealed weapons laws. This is a huge concern because many states have extremely lax gun regulations.
For instance, in 2005, Philadelphia resident Marqus Hill lost his carry permit after he was arrested for attempted murder. The charges were eventually dropped, but after losing an appeal to reacquire his gun permit, Marqus went on to acquire one in Florida, where the laws are far less restrictive. Soon after, Marqus was booked in Philadelphia for the murder of Irving Santana, an 18-year-old kid who was trying to break into his car.
I do not condone grand theft auto, but neither do I condone what Marqus did. And the truth is that the only reason he had a lethal weapon in his possession to begin with was because of a "reciprocity agreement" that exists between Florida and Pennsylvania. This loophole basically allows Philadelphia offenders to just get a permit from elsewhere.
According to the Philadelphia Daily News, in fact, there are more than 2,500 offenders in Pennsylvania who have Florida permits, though according to their own state's laws, they shouldn't be allowed to carry firearms.
And now, thanks to Republicans like Cliff Stearns (PTUY), offenders throughout the entire country may soon be allowed to carry concealed firearms.
This comes only three months after House Republicans voted to strip funding from an Obama administration policy that would have imposed greater regulations on gun dealers who sell semiautomatic weapons.
Meanwhile, Zurana Horton and Irving Santana are dead . . .
It's too late to stop the deregulation of semiautomatic weapons, but it's not too late to prevent the signing of HR 822. Please take a moment to sign this petition and help to put an end to this sick bill.
Sources: The Sun, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Philadelphia Daily News, The Hill
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