Local senators split on gun safety measures that passed Michigan Senate

Michigan Democrats moved one step closer Thursday to putting in place new gun safety measures after Senate lawmakers advanced a trio of proposals to expand background checks as well as establish gun storage requirements and a new "red flag" law.

The votes came about a month after a gunman went on a deadly rampage on the Michigan State University campus. Michigan Senate Democrats passed gun safety measures that previously stalled in Lansing the last time a mass school shooting at Oxford High School rattled the state.

Lenawee and Monroe counties' senators split on the legislation. Sen. Joe Bellino Jr., R-Monroe, voted against the bills, while Sen. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, voted for them. Bellino represents most of Monroe and Lenawee counties. Irwin's district includes Milan and the northeastern corner of Lenawee County.

The legislation taken up Thursday would subject all those purchasing firearms to a background check, allow law enforcement officers and family members to petition a court to temporarily take away guns from those deemed dangerous, and establish penalties for those who fail to keep their guns out of the hands of children.

State Sen. Rosemary Bayer, D- Beverly Hills, who leads the Firearm Safety and Violence Prevention Caucus, called the votes on the bills the most important ones lawmakers will ever take and said they had the Michigan public on their side.

"Today, today we are finally going to do what the people of Michigan are overwhelmingly demanding that we do," she said ahead of the votes.

The Democratic-led bills passed on party-line votes with the exception of a pair of bills to temporarily exempt firearm safety devices from sales and use taxes which had the support of two GOP lawmakers: state Sens. Mark Huizenga, R-Walker, and Michael Webber, R-Rochester Hills.

Republicans said that they want to see better enforcement of laws currently on the books instead of passing new gun laws. They noted that the MSU shooting suspect was charged with a crime that would have likely precluded future legal gun ownership before he and prosecutors agreed to a deal on a lesser charge.

"Could these bills have stopped the MSU shooter? No, they couldn't," Bellino said.

“These bills are a serious infringement on the Second Amendment rights and privacy of law-abiding Michigan residents, and they will not alleviate future violence — because criminals intent on doing harm don’t care about the law,” Bellino added in a news release. “These overreaching bills will give people a false sense of security — while restricting everyone’s right to own a firearm, to hunt or even to defend themselves and their family.”

Irwin said people complaining about these bills had years to do something about gun safety, mental health and school safety and "neglected that responsibility."

"I'm hearing a lot of support from Michigan citizens who say, 'Finally, finally in the wake of these tragedies the Legislature is doing something to reduce gun violence," he said in remarks from the Senate floor. "I'm particularly proud to be standing here to be voting for bills that have proven to save lives in other states."

Regarding arguments that these bills wouldn't address the MSU shooter, Irwin said in committee meetings law enforcement told legislators they needed tools to be able to take guns away from people who were known to be dangerous, and the MSU shooter "was waving red flags all over the place."

"This legislation … would have given his father, who expressed concerns, the opportunity to do something, to say something," Irwin said.

Former congresswoman Gabby Giffords attended the Senate session Thursday, a day after she appeared alongside Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to champion gun safety legislation.

Saylor Reinders, a sophomore MSU who serves as president of MSU Students Demand Action, advocated for gun safety measures before the shooting on her own campus left three students dead and five injured.

"I never thought it would happen at my school, but once I got the email that there were shots on campus, I realized I'd been preparing for this my whole life," she said. Before the votes Thursday, she called passing the legislation a first step.

More:Michigan Legislature opens debate on gun safety bills following MSU shooting

More:House votes to expand background checks on gun sales

Universal background checks

While federal law currently requires background checks for gun sales by licensed dealers, Michigan law only requires first obtaining a license for purchasing pistols from private sellers. Senate Bill 76 would expand state law to cover all firearms.

Background checks "keep guns out of the hands of individuals who should not have them," said bill sponsor Sen. Kevin Hertel, D-St. Clair Shores.

The state House passed similar legislation last week on a party-line vote. The two chambers will have to agree on which version to send to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for her signature.

Safe storage requirements

Another bill would establish penalties if a minor gets their hands on a firearm because a gun owner failed to store and secure it.

For instance, if a minor obtains an unsecure firearm and uses it to kill someone, the individual who failed to store the firearm to prevent the killing would be guilty of a felony punishable up to 15 years imprisonment and/or a $7,500 fine.

Extreme risk protection orders

Senate Democrats also approved legislation that would allow family members, mental health professionals, law enforcement officers and others to petition a court to bar someone from possessing or purchasing a firearm if they pose a risk of hurting themselves or others.

State Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, said her bill — by allowing extreme risk protection orders in Michigan — will help save lives.

Bellino said the bills are "severely flawed."

“They force a gun owner to surrender his or her firearms if flagged as a risk — without any due process,” Bellino said in a news release. “This red flag could be started by a family member — but also from an ex-girlfriend or boyfriend without any recency requirements.”

The safe storage requirement and extreme risk protection legislation head to the state House next where lawmakers could take up the Senate bills or similar bills Democrats in the lower chamber have introduced.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Michigan Senate OK's gun safety proposals on background checks, more