McAuliffe bans firearms in most state offices
RICHMOND — Gov. Terry McAuliffesigned an executive order Thursday to ban guns in nearly all state office buildings and establish a joint task force to prosecute illegal gun sales in Virginia.
The ban on guns in government buildings affects executive branch office buildings, which includes buildings throughout the state such as Department of Motor Vehicles locations and Virginia Employment Commission offices. The new restriction doesn’t apply to the Capitol building or General Assembly offices, where authority lies with the Republican-controlled legislature. Guns already are forbidden in court buildings.
The ban applies immediately to guns carried openly. Banning concealed weapons requires a longer regulatory process, but McAuliffe said he expects the Department of General Services to propose regulations aimed at concealed carrying within 30 days.
The ban doesn’t apply to law enforcement, security or military personnel carrying firearms as part of their duties.
At a news conference in Richmond, McAuliffe also announced the creation of a task force to direct more state resources to prosecuting gun crimes, with a particular emphasis on better enforcing restrictions on gun sales and keeping guns out of the hands of people who are barred from having them.
The task force will be led by Secretary of Public Safety Brian Moran and Attorney General Mark Herring, whom McAuliffe also authorized to prosecute gun cases. Firearm offenses are not among the criminal matters tasked to the attorney general under state law, but the governor is allowed to request a special emphasis on certain crimes.
“Gun crimes are not acts of God,” McAuliffe said. “But for too long, certain politicians and lobbyists have told us that gun violence in America is some sort of natural phenomenon, something we cannot do anything about. Today, we are gathered to recognize that we are not helpless to gun violence. That we can prevent it, and we are willing to act here in the commonwealth of Virginia.”
McAuliffe has pushed for gun-control legislation — including measures to require background checks for firearm sales at gun shows and remove guns from domestic violence situations — but he has been unable to get the initiatives through the Republican-controlled General Assembly.
The announcement by the governor, who said he intends to press for the legislation again in the upcoming session, comes weeks before the Nov. 3 General Assembly elections, which will decide party control of the state Senate.
The Democratic Party of Virginia sent out a fundraising appeal tied to gun-control measures shortly after the announcement, saying “the NRA and Republicans will stop at nothing to attack this action and tear it down.”
In a statement, Republican House of Delegates leaders seemed to welcome some elements of the governor’s announcement, but questioned others.
“For years, we have consistently said the best way to keep Virginians safe is to enforce existing law,” said House Speaker Bill Howell, R-Stafford County. “We will monitor the work of the task force.”
Howell said the House will continue to focus on mental health care as a means of preventing violence.
House Deputy Majority Leader Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County, called the gun ban in state buildings “shortsighted.”
“As we have seen again and again, such policies leave law-abiding citizens vulnerable to acts of senseless violence rather than protecting people from such tragedies,” Gilbert said. “We will review this policy during the 2016 legislative session and take the appropriate action to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens.”
At his announcement, McAuliffe was flanked by about two dozen state and local law enforcement officers as he signed the executive order. Herring and Moran were also in attendance, as was U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.
Kaine recalled the heroism of Virginia Tech engineering professor Liviu Librescu during the 2007 mass shooting on the school’s campus. Librescu, a 76-year-old Holocaust survivor, was gunned down while blocking the door to his classroom to allow his students to escape out the window.
Kaine, who was governor during the Tech shootings, said “we’ve had too many bystanders.”
“We’re not going to be bystanders,” Kaine said. “We’re going to win this fight.”
The parents of WDBJ (Channel 7) reporter Alison Parker, who was shot and killed during a live report in August, stood by the governor during the signing.
The governor’s order also called for judges and prosecutors to use their powers to require gun forfeiture in domestic violence cases, directed the Virginia State Police to request tracing of every gun used in a crime and established a statewide tip line to allow people to collect rewards for successfully reporting gun violations.
Americans for Responsible Solutions, a gun-control organization founded by former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords — who was shot in a January 2011 attack — released a statement saying McAuliffe is “establishing himself as a true champion for common sense.”
“Most significantly, Gov. McAuliffe is showing other governors around the country they don’t have to wait on often stubborn legislatures to fill gaps in enforcement and other key areas of gun safety,” said Peter Ambler, the group’s director.
