Protect the public — ban bump stocks

The plastic device might be just the size of a deck of cards, but it has no place in civilized society. No one needs a bump stock, no one needs to make a rifle fire with the rapidity of a machine gun. Connecticut’s House of Representatives acted appropriately to protect public safety by approving a ban of bump stocks effective this fall. It is surprising, actually, that so many legislators voted against the bill, 114 to 35. But the five-and-a-half-hour debate that stretched to 11:30 p.m. indicates this commonsense issue nonetheless carries controversy.

(See how your representative voted at https://bit.ly/2rf0NkX and remember, come Election Day.)

The bipartisan measure moves to the Senate, where we urge adoption before the session ends at midnight May 9. No doubt Gov. Dannel Malloy, who proposed the ban, would gladly sign the legislation into law. As Malloy said, “I cannot see one legitimate reason why anyone needs to own a bump stock other than for the mass shooting of people.”

Bump stock devices were on at least a dozen rifles used by the Las Vegas shooter last October who opened fire at concert-goers, killing 58 and injuring 851 more. How could anyone seriously believe that the shooter’s “right” to own a trigger-enhancing device supersedes the right of those 58 people to live?

House Bill 5542 would make it a felony in Connecticut to own, use or sell bump stocks and other means of fire enhancements as of Oct. 1. Those with a gun permit would be guilty of only a misdemeanor on a first offense until July 1, 2019.

People moving into the state would have 90 days to turn in their bump stocks, as would military members returning from deployment. An adopted amendment would allow licensed firearms manufacturers who make trigger enhancements to do so for military contracts.

When this bill becomes law — and we hope it is

when, not if — the state needs to be thorough in notifying the public of the change so that bump stock owners who thought they were lawful will not be caught unaware. A written notice on the Emergency Services and Public Protection website would not be enough.

Opponents argued that citizens’ rights would be infringed if they were banned from owning certain products. Nonsense. Nowhere in the Second Amendment does it say civilians have the sacred right to modify weapons for mass killing.

On the federal level, the Justice Department proposed a regulation change in March to ban bump stocks. The NRA has not objected.

States — such as Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida, California, Vermont and Washington — already have banned bump stocks; Connecticut is not breaking new ground. State Rep. Rob Sampson, R-Wolcott, who received the NRA Defender of Freedom Award in 2014, argued that “It is not our role as legislators to be the overlords of our constituents and tell them what they can and cannot do.”

He is wrong. Legislators have an obligation to pass legislation to protect the public. The Senate must pass the bump stock ban.

Nowhere in the Second Amendment does it say civilians have the sacred right to modify weapons for mass killing.