The Luke Burbank Show - 10am on KIRO Radio
 Luke Burbank
Tune in
Tune in to KIRO Radio weekdays at 10am for The Luke Burbank Show.


Most popular
Help us build a Fisher House
Bonneville Seattle is raising funds for the construction of a second Fisher House at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Tacoma and we need your help.
980 gun
Law enforcement is shooting down a deal on a proposed gun control measure in the Washington State Legislature over a disputed database of gun sales. (AP file)

Cops shoot down Washington state gun control deal

March 6, 2013 @ 12:25 pm (Updated: 12:49 pm - 3/6/13 )

What was thought to be a pending deal on a key gun-control measure in the state legislature appears to be getting shot down by a dispute over whether to keep a database of gun sales.

The Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation - a national gun-rights group - had expressed willingness to support universal background checks in exchange for the state eliminating the database and destroying the records that are kept by gun sellers, local law enforcement and the Department of Licensing.

The group's support was considered critical to getting HB1588 passed, and House Judiciary Chair Jamie Pederson supported the compromise after hearing from gun-rights advocates who argued it had little practical use and threatened privacy rights.

But now law enforcement groups have convinced him otherwise.

"There's 140,000 queries per month from law enforcement officers in this state to this database," Don Pierce, a lobbyist for the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, told KIRO Radio's Ross and Burbank Show Wednesday.

Pierce says while far from a perfect system because it only tracks purchases from licensed dealers, it's often an important start.

"If we stop a carload of folks who have been involved in a burglary and they have a trunk full of guns, it's the place where we start to try to track back these guns to get them back to their rightful owners. It also allows us, if we find a gun at a crime scene, to try and track it back to the most recent transfer," he says.

But now it looks like a moot point. Pederson tells The Seattle Times he won't support the background check bill without the backing of law enforcement. And the measure wasn't expected to even get a vote in the Republican-controlled Senate.

A frustrated Pierce argues the database does far more good than harm and there's no reason for gun-rights groups to oppose it.

"One of the basic tenets of gun rights advocates has always been law enforcement should have tools to hold people that commit crimes with guns accountable," he says. "So it's a little bit strange to me that they would be the ones proposing that we do away with this database when it's exactly the message that they've been giving us for decades about what we ought to do about gun crimes."

You might also be interested in:

Even with help of ATF, tracking firearm can lead to dead end

More Luke Burbank

MyNorthwest.com - Purpose of Comments statement
Bonneville Media encourages site users to express their opinions by posting comments. Our goal is to maintain a civil dialogue in which readers feel comfortable. At times, the comments can descend to personal attacks. Please do not engage in such behavior. We encourage your thoughtful comments which: have a positive and constructive tone, are on topic, are respectful toward others and their opinions. Bonneville reserves the right to remove comments which do not conform to these criteria.

Comments (29)


  • Add A Comment

  • mnpat wrote...
    VP Biden tells women, get a shotgun.....
    March 6, 2013 12:05 pm
    http://www.youtube.com/embed/jafkVM-jnbE?feature=player_embedded
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • cw1997 wrote...
    The Same Fool Biden
    March 6, 2013 12:10 pm
    Later instructed them to just fire it through the door......that's smart. Just think he is a heart beat from being dare I say president.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • William Lawn wrote...
    You know, mn, that vid is total BeeS
    March 6, 2013 2:03 pm
    Women don't hunt?

    Sure give a person who has never shot, a 12 gauge, never even considered it, that might happen.

    Go over to some geeky Seattle software factory and line up the boys, you might find the same thing.

    Those woman, obviously, had no instruction, no help.

    A setup to prove a "point".

    Give them a 20 or a .410 loaded with 00, a little instruction and you might find a little different ending.

    Might prove Uncle Joe right.

    But that wasn't the point, was it?

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • William Lawn wrote...
    Oh, on top of that, that was fraking dangerous
    March 6, 2013 2:08 pm
    If it wasn't totally staged. Whoever filmed that is a fraking idiot.

    Give a total amateur a loaded 12 gauge and tell them to fire away, without any instruction whatsoever, you should be in jail.

    Amazing what "gun rights advocates" will do to forward their agenda.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Chrisfrommv wrote...
    will
    March 6, 2013 2:35 pm
    As a gun-rights advocate myself I have to agree with you assesment about the people who give people a 12 gauge and film their often dangerous reactions. I think it was a very poor way to make a very valid point that a shot gun is not easier to handle or use, specially for those who are not experienced shooters and/or are small framed. I admit I had to laugh at the end of it... But scope eye and lost trousers are one thing. Handing a gun to someone who has no training and think it's funny to watch the gun get blown out of their hands is dangerous and irresponsable.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • 770 Sports Fan wrote...
    Still think it's a set up???
    March 6, 2013 3:05 pm
    Try this "TEST" Video, http://www.youtube.com/embed/jafkVM-jnbE?feature=player_embedded
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • 770 Sports Fan wrote...
    How can you say the video is a set up???
    March 6, 2013 3:03 pm
    Biden doesn't say whatever gun you buy make sure you know how to use it, or get some training on how to use a shotgun, No, Uncle Joe said Get a db Shotgun and go out side and shoot it. because it's easier than an AR-15 to aim & Shoot. The video (http://www.youtube.com/embed/jafkVM-jnbE?feature=player_embedded) clearly shows what happens if someone just picked up a gun and shot it.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Chrisfrommv wrote...
    no it wasn't a setup,
    March 6, 2013 3:54 pm
    it was a set of clips put together from peoples facebook and youtube posts. Will I left out the mention that I would not trust a .410 or a 20 gauge, loaded with buck, with me or my families life. A good hand gun or 12 gauge goes a long way with training. Inside my house I prefer my 12 gauge with fore strap with a handgun at side. Over the property, my semi-auto rifles. Since in the past, in regards to protection of my home, I find I have used the AR-15 for protection purposes far more then anything else. I admit coyote's and the occasional large predator were more common threats. An AR-15 is far easier to aim and shoot then a shotgun, just would rather not worry about what happens to the bullet after I hit my target as much inside my house.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • William Lawn wrote...
    Trouble with anything but a shotgun is
    March 6, 2013 6:44 pm
    You miss, you are putting other lives in danger.

    My home defense gun is a Colt King Cobra, 6 inch loaded with .38 so my wife can handle it. But I live out in the middle of nowhere. Nearest neighbor over a quarter of a mile through dense woods. I or she misses we get trees, in Bellevue, maybe not.

    Personally, I think a 20 with 00 works just fine. .410 maybe not ideal but it can be handled by most anyone. And would scare the sheet out of anyone.

    Just my thoughts, the idiots that filmed those videos should be jailed.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Chrisfrommv wrote...
    General rule #4
    March 6, 2013 7:12 pm
    Always know what your shooting and what's behind it. If that is what your comfortable with I cannot disagree with you. Always up to personal preference. You also need to choose a weapon best fit for you environment. This is correct defending your home with a .223 rifle in an apartment complex in urban environment probably not the best choice. Where I live, and AR-15 around my place is a great choice that I am very comfortable and a platform I am very familiar with.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • po_guy wrote...
    Absolutely!!!
    March 7, 2013 11:19 am
    When someone breaks in to rob / kill / pillage, just pull out the shotgun and ask them to let you see what is behind them...after all you ONLY want to hit that person, right? Then once you are sure there is noone behiond them, go ahead and pull the trigger...let 'em HAVE it!!! By the way, I LOVE guns, am NOT a anti-NRA person at all...
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Cigarillo wrote...
    @Billy Turf
    March 6, 2013 9:03 pm
    The mythical "scatter effect" that causes so many to deem the shotgun the king of home defenders is a non-issue at less than 15 yards where the gun is essentially a rifle with a kick. One would have to be willing to shorten the barrel, have a strong right arm and withstand the wrath of state law (in the event of a defensive shooting)to make a shotgun a home defender. Otherwise, your overweight wheel gun with underpowered ammo is probably the best bet.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • William Lawn wrote...
    Except, someone four houses down ain't going to get a bullet through the head
    March 7, 2013 12:12 am
    with a shotgun, in an urban or suburban situation.

    My only point.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • flipper wrote...
    If you use bird shot...
    March 8, 2013 10:31 am
    ....yes. A deer slug, on the other hand...
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Fuego wrote...
    Biden must be getting...
    March 6, 2013 12:12 pm
    a kickback from the NRA cuz every time he speaks their membership increases. This guy is just one heartbeat away from being President? No wonder gun sales are up.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • USMC0311 wrote...
    Playing with our rights
    March 6, 2013 1:27 pm
    What right do these business' and political groups have to negotiate our 2nd amendment rights? And our right to privacy? What we own is no ones business unless we make it their business.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • xplanes wrote...
    Good
    March 6, 2013 1:29 pm
    It was about gun registration and a means of identifying who has a gun should the dishonest anti-gun lobby get enough votes to ban them. "A frustrated Pierce argues the database does far more good than harm and there's no reason for gun-rights groups to oppose it." So... he says because it does good too we should just suck it up and live with the harm. Well, that isn't good enough. It's the honest gun owners that are being told to accept the harm in an empty promise of good. When a gun is found at a crime scene it is infinitely more likely the gun was stolen so tracing it back to the last legal owner is useless in finding the shooter. If the gun was stolen there is an excellent chance other stuff was stolen as well and the legal gun owner has already filed a report on the weapon or will soon do so. Also, if it was stolen it is quite obvious the police are incapable of catching the thief so starting with the last legal gun owner is a ruse! This isn't about safety. It isn't about solving crimes or reuniting loved ones with their beloved stolen guns. It's about knowing who has what kind of guns and where they can go with the Sheriff if those very guns aren't turned in after a ban.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • William Lawn wrote...
    Keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill
    March 6, 2013 1:54 pm
    But make no laws that make it mandatory.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • xplanes wrote...
    We have a registry
    March 6, 2013 2:50 pm
    for the mentally ill and it is checked when gun dealers sell a new firearm. What we need to do is expand what mental illness will keep you from buying a gun. How about people taking those anti-psychotic drugs who aren't currently on the list because of their outpatient status? Of all the mass shooters in the last 30 years I'll bet it's more common that they were taking those drugs than it was that they bought their own guns. Before you guys derail this story bashing each other, remember the issue is should the background check information be stored forever. If you want us 2nd amendment loving folks to submit to your useless checks at least make it so the information can't be used, sold, passed along or in any other way be used against us in the future. Seems fair to me, but that isn't the point now is it?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • hpitantso wrote...
    Who "Enpowered" Tea party crazy
    March 6, 2013 10:14 pm
    group who's support was considered critical to getting HB1588 passed an their for eliminating the database and destroying records. Not bargaining issue.If you don't break the law it won't effect those that belong to "The Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation"
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • DesertRez wrote...
    Here is how it works
    March 7, 2013 6:06 am
    You get arrested for burglery and have a trunk full of guns; you are charged with burglery (and having a trunk full of guns as a fellon)! Crazy right? Who gives a chit where the guns came from.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    Cops shoot down Washington state gun control deal
    March 7, 2013 3:01 am
    I love that "bad"pun for the article.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Rangerhawk wrote...
    Maybe in Dave's liberal progressive "Tommorrowland"
    March 7, 2013 6:51 am
    Everyone will have a government provided Predator drone flying air cover for them to keep the bad men with unregistered guns away. Filibuster that!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }