Amid the rash of gun violence that has occurred over the last few months, Seattle lawmakers find themselves searching for solutions.
“You can see that many of [the shootings] are related to a belief that it’s okay to carry a gun to solve a dispute,” said Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn in a recent press conference, following a May 30 shooting spree that took six lives.
“It follows on the heels of multiple, tragic episodes of gun violence that have occurred throughout the city,” he said, speaking of the shootings.
On May 30, Ian Stawicki killed five people before taking his own life. Throughout the month of May, several people were killed amid gun violence. In April, there were multiple deaths and serious injuries resulting from drive-by shootings. In February and March, several children were killed in firearm disasters.
Seattle officials are alarmed by the unusually high number of homicides in the city this year, most of which have occurred from firearms.
“We have to look at what our resources are and how we can focus on individuals who are known to be violent, and how we can apprehend people with guns,” said McGinn.
While the mayor stressed the need for community involvement and education in combating the recent gun violence, he also emphasized the importance of altering current firearm regulations. “It’s also going to take a focus on the laws that make it too easy for people to acquire guns,” he said.
Washington firearm permits are managed under the regulation known as “shall issue,” meaning that the state must issue a permit to carry a concealed firearm to anyone who meets the state’s requirement guidelines, even if that person is considered dangerous. Shall issue guidelines include being 21 years of age, having a valid form of identification, submitting to a background check, having never been involuntarily committed to a mental health clinic, and never having been charged with a felony.
Only 10 states operate under a regulation known as “may issue.” As well as meeting many of the basic stipulations that fall under state-specific shall issue standards, may issue states uphold far stricter standards for obtaining firearms. In some states, friends and family members may be interviewed before a concealed gun permit is issued to a firearm applicant.
Some research suggests that shall issue states discourage violent gun acts. According to research done by Temple University’s Public Health Law Research program, shall issue laws reduce violent crime by essentially encouraging citizens to carry concealed weapons, thus deterring criminals from engaging in violent and illegal acts.
For now, the issue of shall versus may is still being debated, but Seattle lawmakers are also examining another issue known as the “gun show loophole” in order to help curb gun violence. This loophole applies to firearms that can be sold privately, without a license, and without any paperwork, even without a background check.
Only six states require universal background checks for each type of firearm purchased at a gun show: California, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island.
Seattle City Councilman Bruce Harrell, chair of Seattle’s Public Safety Committee, reiterated the mayor’s renewed focus on gun laws: “Many of you know about the loophole known as the ‘gun show loophole’ that has been examined. California and Oregon solved that loophole, we have not,” he said at a press conference following the May 30 tragedies. “I think we need to look at that very closely.”
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