Kentucky Made It Easier to Evade Federal Gun Laws Days Before Louisville Shooting
By: Prem Thakker (The New Republic)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Kentucky declared itself a "Second Amendment sanctuary state" and rolled back gun control restrictions.
Luke Sharrett/Getty Images Law enforcement officers respond to an active shooter at the Old National Bank building on April 10 in Louisville, Kentucky. According to reports, there are multiple fatalities and casualties.
Less than two weeks before Monday's mass shooting at a bank in downtown Louisville, the state of Kentucky banned local law enforcement agencies from enforcing federal firearm laws.
The billmakes Kentucky a so-called "Second Amendment sanctuary" and prohibits local, state, or campus authorities from enforcing federal bans or regulations related to firearms, ammunition, or firearm accessories. It applies to any laws or regulations enacted since January 1, 2021.
On March 28, the bill became law after the Republican-led House and Senate overwhelmingly pushed it through, and Democratic Governor Andy Beshear neither signed nor vetoed the legislation, allowing the bill to become law.
And on Monday, at least five people were killed and another eight injured in a mass shooting.*
Kentucky's law could counter regulations in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, passed in the aftermath of the Buffalo supermarket and Uvalde elementary school shootings. Some of the regulations in that law include: banning people from buying guns if they had committed a disqualifying crime while under the age of 18; banning anyone from buying guns if they were found guilty of a domestic violence charge in a romantic relationship (regardless of marital status); and banning people from buying guns on behalf of criminals, terrorists, drug dealers, or people who are prohibited by law from receiving a gun.
Kentucky's new law could be weaponized to stop such federal regulations on firearms, as well as any future gun control legislation or executive orders from the Biden administration.
Kentucky Republican Representative Savannah Maddox called the bill blocking even modest federal gun regulation "a step in the right direction" but added that "there is more work that needs to be done by our Republican Supermajority."
So-called Second Amendment sanctuary laws have been deemed unconstitutional by numerous courts, most recently by a federal judge who struck down a similar policy in Missouri.
Meanwhile, the Kentucky legislature has been considering a slew of other pro-gun bills.
House Bill 542, also pushed by Representative Maddox, seeks to prevent colleges from passing any policies that ban people 21 years and older from carrying a concealed weapon on campuses. The bill would have overturned standing policy at every public college in Kentucky. Maddox had quietly tried to sneak the proposal into what was originally a bill about "workforce development." Maddox has conceded the bill likely does not have enough votes for now to advance further, but it may gain future momentum after a similar bill succeeded and became law in West Virginia.
Another bill Maddox helped introduce in January would lower the age requirement for carrying a concealed gun from 21 to 18. And yet another she co-signed seeks to allow people to carry concealed weapons in schools.
Kentucky is not an anomaly. In Tennessee, a mass shooting occurred amid a concerted effort by state Republicans to loosen gun laws. Before a mass shooting left three children and three adults dead at a Nashville school, state Republicans passed a bill allowing people 21 and older to openly carry handguns without permits. Republicans there are now pushing to allow 18- and 19-year-old residents to carry any firearm—including weapons like AR-15s and shotguns—without permits.
The exact motives of the Louisville shooter are not yet clear. But in a society ravaged daily by mass shootings, in every possible segment of the public square, one would hope that there would be at least some movement toward lessening those incidents: making weapons of killing harder, not easier, to obtain; meaningfully increasing mental health and well-being support; creating a society where community and care, not isolation and individualism, are the norm.
But no, even while Monday's shooting in Louisville marks the 146th mass shooting in 2023, Republicans seem to be rolling full-speed ahead on running those numbers up.
* This article has been updated with the latest statistics in the Louisville shooting.
And the people of Kentucky are supposed to be safer now?
Please tell us, exactly and in detail, how all these common sense gun laws could have prevented any mass shootings.
Left wingers love to make these laws to signal their virtue as having "done something" about the problem, while at the same time failing to enforce existing laws and making it harder for the police to do their jobs.
Appears the shooter was another left winger....
What did this have to do with the shooting?
For comparisons sake, how many people were shot in your town by criminals on parole or released without bail? How many people have been shot by people with previous arrests for gun crimes who are free because of "equity?"
That hardly makes someone a "left winger". There are countless "moderates" who cant stand Fox News, Trump or the alt-right.
Do you think states should be passing legislation requiring local governments to not follow federal gun laws?
Does that actually strike you as a good thing for state legislatures to do?
You have made thousands of posts to this forum by now. I dont recall a single one of them being "in detail". Other people post "detail" , you post right wing talking points.
That doesn't answer my question.
But no, much as I support federalism, states should not be undercutting federal law. But of course, once the precedent was set with immigration sanctuaries it was completely forseeable that it would be applied in other areas. Sadly, consequences are not something progressives seem to care about.
Is this anything like the Piece of shit Obama administration suing Arizona to prevent them from enforcing federal law? you can't have it both ways.
I dont think the article claimed that the recent state legislation contributed to the Louisville killings. Now you have your answer.
also read that the shooter use to work at the bank , so is this a case of work place violence as well?
Im reminded of the Ft Hood shooting .....
So, yet you cannot answer a question or provide an example.
Lol ..... are you really serious or just trying to gaslight the shit outta this one.
Wow .... you have a fantastically convenient memory.
Any person in the USA who can not be trusted with a gun should already be under some form of supervision.
Who decides which folks can and can’t be trusted? What criteria do they use to make that decision. And who establishes the criteria they use?
I mean really, what could go wrong?
Democrats love to make laws- but then refuse to enforce them (Unless it is against someone they consider political "opposition". Then they will rewrite entire laws and legal definitions to gain an indictment).
Try enforcing the gun and criminal laws on the books before requesting any new ones. While you're at it; get Brandon, Mayorkas, and Garland to enforce our borders and immigration laws.
It's such a simple solution to save lives. Put people in jail who've shown a propensity to break laws with guns.
It's insanity. I saw a breakdown of the Chicago mayoral election and those areas of the city with the highest murder rate were those most likely to support Brandon Johnson, who wants to defund the police and not enforce laws in the name of equity.
Yet over the years how many prosecutors made plea deals where gun charges were dropped if the perpetrator would plead guilty to a lesser charge? That's always been so crazy in my mind, dropping the bigger charge just to get a quick & easy conviction that would end with a lesser sentence.
many of these so called sanctuary states already have state laws that mirror federal law , they may slightly differ , but do the same things .
example is federal law states that a person under 21 can not purchase a hand gun from a licd dealer , many states statutes do the same thing , what the law doesnt say is that a person under 21 can not be in possession or own one , and there are a few different ways one can come into possession of and own one .
Here in very blue Wash DC, a 17 year old who pled guilty to assault with a weapon and carrying a pistol illegally, didn't show up for his sentence hearing. He and another teen attempted to rob Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr., who was shot twice. Who wouldn't think that the kid would remain in his home as ordered untill sentenced.
I can't figure out why he was let loose. Good that Robinson recovered and is playing football.