Gunreference1
08-03-2010, 09:24 AM
Gun foes cheer bill to revamp CORI law
By Alex Katz
Globe Correspondent / August 3, 2010
After being defeated on a bill that would further limit firearm purchases, advocates for stricter gun control are celebrating a bill passed by the House and Senate that would let prosecutors request dangerousness hearings for defendants charged with felony firearm offenses.
The bill, which also includes measures to reform the state’s Criminal Offender Record Information system, known as CORI, was passed late Saturday and is expected to be signed by Governor Deval Patrick.
Patrick called the provision on dangerousness hearings “a critical tool’’ in helping law enforcement curb the use of illegal firearms, said Kyle Sullivan, the governor’s communications director.
The measure restores to prosecutors the opportunity to seek special hearings against defendants charged with gun felonies. If they are found to be dangerous, defendants can be held for 90 days without bail, which forces prosecutors to proceed with the trial within that time span.
In a May 2009 ruling, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that illegal gun possession is a “passive and victimless crime’’ and that those charged with having illicit firearms cannot be held without bail as a danger to society.
Bristol District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter, who pushed to overturn the SJC’s ruling, said he was elated after the bill’s passage.
“I think that what took place Saturday night is going to help me and my fellow district attorneys do something about this terrible scourge of gun violence,’’ Sutter said.
Opponents of the bill support efforts to prevent firearm violence, they said, although they felt the measure’s language was too broad and would target the wrong people.
Representative George N. Peterson Jr. voted for the bill when it left the House with provisions that were strictly related to the criminal records law. But he joined 21 other legislators in opposing the bill Saturday after its language had been changed.
“In essence, the bill said a mere presence of a firearm during a routine traffic stop rises to a dangerousness situation in which someone can be held,’’ Peterson said. “That’s just not right.’’
Jim Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners’ Action League, said the bill targets gun owners who exercise their right to bear arms under the Second Amendment.
“Dangerousness hearings are supposed to be reserved for the worst of the worst,’’ he said. “This bill leaves a lot of open area for the potential abuse of civil rights.’’
But advocates point to the numbers to prove the necessity of the bill.
Sutter said more than 90 percent of gun violence in Bristol County is being committed by those using illegal firearms.
Still, in 2004 the Bay State had the nation’s lowest rate of gun violence, with approximately 3.22 firearm-related deaths for every 100,000 people, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
John Rosenthal, president of Stop Handgun Violence and a gun owner, said despite the state’s relative success in this category, the bill will help rid the streets of dangerous criminals.
“These are urban terrorists that wreak havoc on neighborhoods and intimidate neighbors,’’ Rosenthal said.
The governor introduced a bill in May 2009 that would have limited gun purchases to one a month. That measure, which Rosenthal supported, is still sitting in the Public Safety Committee, which effectively renders it dead for now.
Some believe it will be revived once the legislature comes back into session.
“I think it will be refiled and it merits a healthy debate,’’ Sutter said. “We’ll see what happens in January.’’
Alex Katz can be reached at akatz@globe.com.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/08/03/gun_foes_cheer_bill_to_revamp_cori_law/
Steve
By Alex Katz
Globe Correspondent / August 3, 2010
After being defeated on a bill that would further limit firearm purchases, advocates for stricter gun control are celebrating a bill passed by the House and Senate that would let prosecutors request dangerousness hearings for defendants charged with felony firearm offenses.
The bill, which also includes measures to reform the state’s Criminal Offender Record Information system, known as CORI, was passed late Saturday and is expected to be signed by Governor Deval Patrick.
Patrick called the provision on dangerousness hearings “a critical tool’’ in helping law enforcement curb the use of illegal firearms, said Kyle Sullivan, the governor’s communications director.
The measure restores to prosecutors the opportunity to seek special hearings against defendants charged with gun felonies. If they are found to be dangerous, defendants can be held for 90 days without bail, which forces prosecutors to proceed with the trial within that time span.
In a May 2009 ruling, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that illegal gun possession is a “passive and victimless crime’’ and that those charged with having illicit firearms cannot be held without bail as a danger to society.
Bristol District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter, who pushed to overturn the SJC’s ruling, said he was elated after the bill’s passage.
“I think that what took place Saturday night is going to help me and my fellow district attorneys do something about this terrible scourge of gun violence,’’ Sutter said.
Opponents of the bill support efforts to prevent firearm violence, they said, although they felt the measure’s language was too broad and would target the wrong people.
Representative George N. Peterson Jr. voted for the bill when it left the House with provisions that were strictly related to the criminal records law. But he joined 21 other legislators in opposing the bill Saturday after its language had been changed.
“In essence, the bill said a mere presence of a firearm during a routine traffic stop rises to a dangerousness situation in which someone can be held,’’ Peterson said. “That’s just not right.’’
Jim Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners’ Action League, said the bill targets gun owners who exercise their right to bear arms under the Second Amendment.
“Dangerousness hearings are supposed to be reserved for the worst of the worst,’’ he said. “This bill leaves a lot of open area for the potential abuse of civil rights.’’
But advocates point to the numbers to prove the necessity of the bill.
Sutter said more than 90 percent of gun violence in Bristol County is being committed by those using illegal firearms.
Still, in 2004 the Bay State had the nation’s lowest rate of gun violence, with approximately 3.22 firearm-related deaths for every 100,000 people, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
John Rosenthal, president of Stop Handgun Violence and a gun owner, said despite the state’s relative success in this category, the bill will help rid the streets of dangerous criminals.
“These are urban terrorists that wreak havoc on neighborhoods and intimidate neighbors,’’ Rosenthal said.
The governor introduced a bill in May 2009 that would have limited gun purchases to one a month. That measure, which Rosenthal supported, is still sitting in the Public Safety Committee, which effectively renders it dead for now.
Some believe it will be revived once the legislature comes back into session.
“I think it will be refiled and it merits a healthy debate,’’ Sutter said. “We’ll see what happens in January.’’
Alex Katz can be reached at akatz@globe.com.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/08/03/gun_foes_cheer_bill_to_revamp_cori_law/
Steve