Nothing about strengthening the AWB...
WHITE PLAINS — Law enforcement officials from Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties join Republican legislators in supporting tougher gun laws and sentences for crimes against police.
By JONATHAN BANDLER
[email protected]THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: December 21, 2005)
WHITE PLAINS — Law enforcement officials from Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties joined Republican legislators yesterday in supporting tougher gun laws and sentences for crimes against police in the wake of two recent fatal shootings of New York City officers.
Gov. George Pataki has called a special session of the state Legislature for today to address two bills — one that would close loopholes that weaken existing gun trafficking laws and the other that would stiffen sentences for those who injure or kill police officers. Supporters want a mandatory death penalty for anyone convicted of killing a police officer.
"We need to protect the people who protect us," state Assemblyman Louis Mosiello of Yonkers, a retired Mamaroneck police sergeant and former Westchester legislator, said at a news conference at Westchester District Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office. Putnam District Attorney Kevin Wright and Rockland District Attorney Michael Bongiorno also spoke and those in attendance included police Chiefs James Bradley of White Plains, Timothy Bonci of Eastchester and David Hall of Harrison.
The news conference was one of 11 around the state organized by Republicans pushing for the legislation in the wake of this month's fatal New York Police Department shootings.
Officer Daniel Enchautegui was killed Dec. 10 when he was shot while off duty responding to a burglary next door to his Bronx home. Two Yonkers men, actor Lillo Brancato Jr. and his ex-girlfriend's father, Steven Armento, are charged in that case. Officer Dillon Stewart was killed in Brooklyn on Nov. 28, allegedly by a man with an illegal handgun who is also charged with shooting another officer during a robbery a few weeks earlier.
Existing gun laws restrict the number of guns sold in a single transaction, but Pataki's bill adds a provision to stiffen penalties for a quantity of guns sold over a year, not just at one time. It would also make the possession of three or more handguns a felony. It is currently a misdemeanor to possess up to 19 guns.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, has responded by introducing two bills himself. One would stiffen penalties for crimes against police officers but would not include the death penalty. The other goes beyond Pataki's gun trafficking bill by requiring gun dealers to lock their guns at night and train their employees to recognize those prohibited from buying guns.
While Republicans have tried to paint Silver and other Democratic leaders in the Assembly as soft on crime, Silver has accused Pataki and Senate Republicans of working on behalf of the National Rifle Association to protect loopholes that contribute to the illegal gun market.
Pataki called the special session but cannot force a vote, and leaders of the Republican-controlled Senate and the Democratic-controlled Assembly have been negotiating the past two days to reach a consensus. Bills would have to pass both houses.
Assemblyman Ryan Karben, a Democrat from Monsey, said he supported the death penalty for those who kill police officers and would vote for the bills of both Pataki and Silver.
"The important thing is to make our streets safer for law enforcement," Karben said. "However we get there, we should get there."