Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Virginia’s Anti-gun Politicians Put Politics Before Fighting Gun Crime

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Virginia’s Anti-gun Politicians Put Politics Before Fighting Gun Crime

Virginia’s anti-gun politicians are serious about attacking law-abiding gun owners, but are indifferent about actual gun crime. As highlighted in a recent report in the Washington Free Beacon by Stephen Gutowski, the Virginia Department of Justice Services (DCJS) has chosen to forego almost $700,000 in federal grants to combat gun violence in order to make a political statement about U.S. immigration policy. 

According to a U.S. Department of Justice memo, DCJS formally declined $665,673 in federal grant funding to avoid complying with 8 U.S.C. 1373 and 1644. The statutes makes it so that in order to receive certain federal funding, the DCJS is required to share pertinent information with federal immigration authorities.

The money had been allocated for use in Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). Started in 2001 under President George W. Bush, PSN is a collaborative effort, utilizing the resources of federal, state, and local law enforcement, prosecutors, and community leaders to target violent crime at the local level. Specific priorities are identified based on the local environment, and solutions are developed, with the primary objective of going after the most violent offenders and putting them in prison.

Following a high-profile shooting in Virginia Beach in May, embattled Governor Ralph Northam said violence perpetrated with guns was “an emergency here in Virginia,”and called a gun control-focused special session of the General Assembly. Northam later admitted that none of the gun control proposals he supported would have stopped the Virginia Beach shooting. 

The irony of the PSN grant refusal, given the governor’s professed concerns, wasn’t lost on House of Delegates majority leader Todd Gilbert. Gilbert told the Free Beacon, “Attorney General [Mark] Herring and Governor Northam have said the loss of lives in Virginia to guns is an emergency, yet they’re willing to walk away from grant funding for a program that has been proven to work”Gilbert added, “They’re willing to put politics above saving lives. These programs work. They save lives.”

Unfortunately, the glaring hypocrisy of Virginia’s executive branch wasn’t the only news to come from the state’s anti-gun politicians this week. Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney continued to flout Virginia’s firearms preemption statute by announcing that he will propose an ordinance forcing law-abiding gun owners to report lost or stolen firearms at the upcoming City Council meeting on October 14.

Virginia has a strong firearms preemption statute. VA Code Ann. §15.2-915 provides, in part, 

No locality shall adopt or enforce any ordinance, resolution or motion, as permitted by § 15.2-1425, and no agent of such locality shall take any administrative action, governing the purchase, possession, transfer, ownership, carrying, storage or transporting of firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof other than those expressly authorized by statute.

At the very least, Stoney’s proposed ordinance would implicate the “possession”and “ownership”of firearms. 

Moreover, lost or stolen reporting laws re-victimize law-abiding gun owners who are unfortunate enough to be the victims of a property crime. To place an additional burden and the threat of prosecution on crime victims in a moment of adversity is the ruthless act of a callous state that exhibits no regard for the hardship victims face as they put their lives back together.

A 2018 survey of firearms studies conducted by the Rand Corporation found no research demonstrating lost or stolen reporting laws produce desirable outcomes. The think tank noted that “We found no qualifying studies showing that lost or stolen firearm reporting requirements decreased any of the eight outcomes we investigated.”Those outcomes included, “Officer-Involved Shootings,”“Mass Shootings,”“Suicide,”“Unintentional Injuries and Deaths,”and “Violent Crime.”

With this week’s events, the Old Dominion’s anti-gun politicians have once again shown that they have little interest in targeting actual violent crime or respect for the rule of law.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Virginia gun control
TRENDING NOW
Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

In a temporary reprieve for Colorado gun owners, the semi-auto ban HB24-1292 has been removed from the calendar. But we cannot let our guard down as gun control advocates can bring it up for a vote at ...

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

Much of the attention this past week in the United States Supreme Court was the oral arguments in National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo, No. 22-842, a First Amendment case on whether government officials ...

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

On March 19, the city of Chicago filed suit against handgun manufacturer Glock. Seeking to shift responsibility for the city’s woeful governance, Chicago’s lawsuit blames the popular firearm manufacturer for the third-party criminal misuse of ...

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Today, Governor Inslee signed five anti-gun bills into law that were recently passed by the Washington State Legislature. The bills include:

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Yesterday the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on House Bill 24-1292, the semi-auto ban, that lasted over 12 hours where hundreds of patriotic Coloradans overloaded the committee with opposition testimony. The hearing concluded with an ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

News  

Second Amendment  

Monday, March 25, 2024

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

In response to the NRA’s victory in Bruen, which secured every American’s right to carry arms, NY passed the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act,” severely restricting carry throughout the state. The 2nd Circuit upheld many of ...

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

On Wednesday, the Senate Game & Fisheries Committee voted 7-4 to pass Senate Bill 67 to the Senate floor for a vote. 

California: DOJ Proposes Emergency Rule that Reauthorizes NRA Instructors

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

California: DOJ Proposes Emergency Rule that Reauthorizes NRA Instructors

On Monday, March 25th, the California Department of Justice published an emergency rulemaking package proposing to amend the Carry Concealed Weapons DOJ Certified Instructors regulations. Under the proposed rulemaking, NRA Certified Instructors would once again ...

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

Take Action  

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

It's been a busy start to the year in the Wolverine State, as the Michigan NRA-ILA Grassroots Team has been out alerting and educating members and supporters on the critical changes in gun laws and working to stop ...

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Today, Governor Andy Beshear let HB 357, the Merchant Category Code ban legislation pass into law without his signature. Your NRA would like to thank Representatives Derek Lewis (R, H-90), Michael Meredith (R, H-19), and Senator ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.