Seattle mayor calls for tightened gun controls in wake of shooting
Dec 14, 2012, 4:55 PM | Updated: 5:12 pm
Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn Friday urged lawmakers to close the so-called "Gun Show Loophole," which allows some weapons to be bought without a license and proper paperwork. (AP image)
(AP image)
Seattle city leaders held a press conference Friday afternoon to call for tighter gun controls in the wake of a deadly shooting at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school.
Mayor Mike McGinn called the massacre a “tragedy beyond words,” and asked the state legislature to respond with meaningful reforms.
He urged lawmakers to close the so-called “Gun Show Loophole,” which allows some weapons to be bought without a license or proper paperwork.
“They could give us more authority in the city to take action, and we have asked for that authority,” he added. “They could fund, instead of as they’ve been doing, cutting funding for support for those that are mentally ill or unstable.”
Mayor McGinn was joined by Seattle Police Chief John Diaz, who said his officers are trained annually to respond to mass shootings.
“It’s unfortunate that we in law enforcement have to train the way we do each year on rapid intervention,” he said. “We have to be ready in case a situation like this occurs.”
Chief Diaz echoed Mayor McGinn in calling for tighter gun controls, saying the country’s “gun culture” needs to change.
