Lawmaker has new support for bill that would introduce state penalties for guns converted into automatic weapons
Authorities are still searching for the people responsible for the Birmingham mass shooting Saturday night.
One state lawmaker has new support for a bill that introduces penalties for possessing guns that have been converted into automatic weapons.
Dozens of states across the country – including Alabama’s neighboring state of Mississippi – have banned devices known as switches because they are commonly used in mass shootings. The Birmingham Police Department says Glock switches were used in the mass shooting on September 21st that killed 4 people and injured 17 others in the Five Points South entertainment district.
For the second year in a row, Rep. Phillip Ensler has pre-filed a state bill that would make it illegal to possess a pistol that has been converted to an automatic weapon using a switch. Â “There is a need to have this legislation in Alabama because right now district attorneys don’t have a state crime that they can charge individuals with for having these machine guns. It’s a pistol that all the sudden is turned into something that sprays bullets within seconds. It’s very hard to control, said Rep. Phillip Ensler.
Ensler says this year he has four co-sponsors for the bill – three are Republicans. “Just to be clear this in no way infringes on the second amendment. It doesn’t take away people’s constitutional rights. It’s simply a public safety measure to give law enforcement one other tool to try to make things a little safer,” said Ensler.
Four major law enforcement organizations including ALEA, the Fraternal Order of Police, the District Attorney’s Association, and the State Sheriff’s Association support the bill. “This is not a partisan issue. This is a humanitarian issue. We need to step forward and be collective on trying to prevent additional loss of life,” said Huey Hossmack, Executive Director of the Alabama Sheriff’s Association.
Recently, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms demonstrated several converted weapons to show the dangers of these simple plastic switches. They can be made at home in an hour and installed in 60 seconds to switch a semi-automatic handgun into an illegal machine gun.” A lot of times when these people are picking up these guns they’re often firing them for the first time. They don’t go to the range and train with these weapons. They obtain these weapons and often times they’re firing them for the first time,” said Hossmack.
In just the past three months, the Metro Area Crime Suppression Unit seized 83 firearms – 17 of those had switches on them. Â “I know it’s not going to stop all of these tragedies. It’s not going to stop every horrible situation, but it can stop some. It can prevent some people from possessing these really really deadly and really really dangerous killing machines and if it can save one life, then it is worth it, so this is not some magic solution that’s gonna all the sudden end gun violence it’s not going to make everything safe but it can make things a little bit better,” said Ensler.
The proposed bill is a little bit different than the one passed in Mississippi. That bill banned the device itself. House Bill 26 says that the device has to be attached to the firearm in order for it to be illegal. There is currently a federal law that bans switches. The FBI and CrimeStoppers together are offering up to a $100,000 reward for information in the Birmingham mass shooting case.
