New York Daily News

Wanted: New laws vs. guns

- BY DENIS SLATTERY

MORE PEOPLE than ever want tougher gun laws in the U.S.

A recent spate of mass shooting and fear of more gun violence has led a majority of Americans to favor stricter gun laws, according to a new poll.

But many see change or reform as unlikely.

A full two-thirds of respondent­s to a new Associated PressGfK poll expressed support for tighter laws, with majorities favoring nationwide bans on the sale of semi-automatic assault weapons such as the AR-15 and the sale of high-capacity magazines holding 10 or more bullets.

Many of those polled said fear that they or a loved one could become a victim of gun violence has influenced their feelings on the issue.

“If you live in the United States in these days right now, you have to be concerned,” Milonne Ambroise, a 63-year-old administra­tive assistant from Decatur, Ga., told the Associated Press. “You could be at a shopping mall thinking there will be a mass shooting and you will be in the middle of it. You can’t not think about it.”

While most people said that they support a national approach to gun laws, less than half said they believe any change would be possible in the coming year.

But more than half, 55%, said laws that limit gun ownership do not infringe on the constituti­onal right to bear arms.

The responses also painted a predictabl­e partisan divide: 87% of Democrats support stricter gun laws compared with 41% of Republican­s.

There was some common ground. Strong majorities of people in both parties said they support requiring background checks for people buying firearms at gun shows and through other private sales.

They also would back a ban on gun sales to people on the federal terrorism watch list even if they have not been convicted of a crime.

The poll was conducted July 7 to July 11, shortly after a string of high-profile shootings including the Orlando nightclub massacre that left 49 dead.

 ??  ?? While a new poll showed two-thirds of Americans support stricter gun-control laws, many see reform as unlikely.
While a new poll showed two-thirds of Americans support stricter gun-control laws, many see reform as unlikely.

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