Missouri state senator says deregulating guns has cost lives, pushes for legislation
A Missouri state senator warned of the “devastation” brought when Missouri relaxed its gun laws during a news conference Thursday.
Missouri State Sen. Brian Williams, who represents parts of St. Louis County, spoke about the impact of Missouri’s loose gun laws on the call hosted by the national gun safety organizations Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action.
“Missouri has witnessed firsthand the kind of devastation that comes from decades of the NRA and gun lobby using fear mongering and campaign donations to decimate our public safety laws and to deregulate guns,” Williams said. “Now our communities are paying the price with their lives.”
The state’s wave of gun deregulation began in 2007, Williams said, when the state removed the permitting requirement to purchase a handgun.
Since then, gun deaths increased 58% in 2019, Williams said, citing The Star’s recent reporting on the impact of rolling back gun laws.
And then in 2020, both of Missouri’s major metro areas had historic homicide levels with 266 gun homicides in St. Louis and 161 in Kansas City.
He also discussed how a loophole allowing domestic abusers to possess guns still exists in Missouri. Until recently, the only defense was a federal law prohibiting those convicted of domestic violence from possessing guns, Williams said.
However due to the passage of the Second Amendment Preservation Act, which nullifies federal gun laws in Missouri, local law enforcement is unable to work with federal authorities on enforcing certain firearm measures, like the one for domestic abusers.
Williams said while it will be tough, he’s hopeful that the Missouri statehouse could pass gun safety measures.
“I am optimistic that we can work through the process, but it’ll be an uphill battle to make change,” Williams said. “I have already been in conversations with law enforcement who want to be able to take guns off the streets to prevent gun violence.”
Attempts to reach the Missouri Firearms Coalition, a group that has long advocated for loosening gun restrictions, weren’t immediately answered.
Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, said on the call the organization is committed to its mission to pass gun safety measures in statehouses across the country, including Missouri.
“The gun lobby’s agenda of guns everywhere, any time, for anybody, no matter the death toll, has emboldened extremism, widened the partisan divide, and fueled our nation’s gun violence crisis,” Watts said.
This story was originally published December 9, 2021 at 2:07 PM.