RICHMOND, Va. -- A Virginia State Senate committee advanced several pieces of legislation that would restrict or ban access to firearms while effectively killing two bills aimed at doing the opposite. Along party lines, the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice approved over a half-dozen pieces of gun control or safety legislation on Monday.
"I think it's telling that the Senate is committed to saving lives in the Commonwealth of Virginia and doing more about regulating access to firearms." Center for Gun Violence Solution advocacy manager Lori Haas said.
Haas, whose daughter Emily was injured in the 2007 mass shooting at Virginia Tech, was among those who testified in support of the gun control bills.
She said a bill that would ban assault weapons made after July 1 and a ban on high-capacity magazines would have the most impact.
"We've seen weapons of war. We know that it increases the death count and mass shootings," Haas said. "What it does to the human body and what it does to a child's body. You don't want to know. You don't want to see."
Haas said she was also encouraged by a bill that would require five days to pass before a gun sale could be completed.
"I think waiting periods are very integral to stopping impulsive acts of violence," she said. "That includes self-harm and violence towards others."
Virginia Citizen's Defense League president Philip Van Cleave, who leads the charge for gun owner rights, had opposite feelings.
"I'm very disappointed that the Senate committee had such disrespect for our Constitution, our rights to protect ourselves," Van Cleave said.
He said while the assault weapon ban bill would cover guns made in the future, he worried it could eventually become retroactive and questioned its constitutionality in light of the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court firearm ruling.
"Knowing that a lot of this will not pass muster in the courts. But it could take years to get there so, people's rights will be violated in the meantime," he said.
On the waiting period bill, advocates and Republican lawmakers questioned its impact on people who faced immediate threats and needed self-defense.
"We can't take away everybody's rights because some people might commit suicide," Van Cleave said. " It is a sad, very sad thing. But you know, our rights have to be protected."
Several of the gun control bills passed Monday have had versions in the Democrat-controlled House advancing as well, making it seem likely they would reach the desk of Governor Glenn Youngkin (R - Virginia) before becoming state law.
When asked about his intentions, a spokesperson for the governor said Youngkin would review legislation that reached his desk and pointed us to comments made in his State of the Commonwealth address saying Virginia already had some of the toughest gun control laws in the country.
"Therefore, I’m asking you: allow us to hold accountable those criminals that commit crimes with guns by lengthening and making more severe the penalties in order to keep them off the streets," Gov. Youngkin said in the speech to lawmakers.
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
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