For Immediate Release

Chris Van Hollen, Doug Duncan, Kathleen zkennedy Townsend and Glenn Ivey support Maryland assault weapons ban

January 10th, 2004

Please join us - Monday, January 12th, 7.30 – 9.30 pm
4105 Aspen Street, Chevy Chase, MD 20815

Baltimore, MD: CeaseFire Maryland, the state’s leading gun violence prevention group, is joined by key Marylanders in calling for an assault rifles ban in our state. A reception taking place in Chevy Chase, Maryland on the evening of January 12th will benefit CeaseFire Maryland’s campaign to ban these military-style weapons from our communities. Leah Barrett, Executive Director of CeaseFire Maryland, said: “Leading Marylanders are joining with us to demand a ban on semi-automatic assault rifles like the Bushmaster rifle used to terrorize Montgomery County just over a year ago. We hope that state legislators will follow suit and extend our 1994 assault pistols ban to assault rifles in the forthcoming General Assembly session.” Montgomery, Prince George’s and Howard County legislators will be joining over 100 people on January 12th to show their support for a ban.

The 1994 federal assault weapons ban will expire in just eight months on September 13th, 2004, unless Congress passes new legislation. Senator Rob Garagiola from Montgomery County, a sponsor of a state ban on military-style assault rifles along with Delegate Neil Quinter of Howard County, said: “It is unlikely Congress will do the right thing and reauthorize the federal ban. As a result, you will be able to buy AK47s, Uzis and Streetsweepers at your local gun shops in just a few months. These weapons do not belong on our streets. We want to protect Marylanders by extending our 1994 ban on assault pistols to rifles.”

He continued: “Prince George’s County Police records show they are not seizing assault pistols from criminals anymore because they have been banned in Maryland for nearly ten years – the supply has dried up. But they are continuing to seize assault rifles. Our bill would help shut off the supply of these deadly weapons of war to criminals in Maryland.”

Montgomery County Executive, Doug Duncan said: “It would be a fitting tribute to the thirteen victims in the DC-area sniper attacks in October 2002 for Maryland to ban assault rifles. There is no place in a civil society for these killing machines.”

Assault weapons are the guns of choice for criminals and were used to kill one in five law enforcement officers slain during the line of duty between 1998 and 2001, according to FBI data. One of these deaths occurred in Maryland in 2000. Montgomery County Council President, Steve Silverman, remarked: “Assault weapons are designed to instill fear and their lethality has held Kevlar-vested police at bay. Do we really want the guardians of society to be outgunned by the bad guys?”

Barrett said: “Sportsmen will not be denied their firearms. Federal law provides specific protection to 670 types of hunting rifles and shotguns currently being manufactured. And the gun industry admits that assault weapons have limited sporting use.”

Finally, nearly two-thirds of Marylanders support banning these weapons of war. A March 2003 survey by Gonzales/Arscott Research found majorities in support of a ban in every demographic sub-group and across all ages and races.

CeaseFire Maryland is a statewide non-profit organization comprised of thousands of Marylanders working with a common mission – to free Maryland from gun violence.