Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 30, 1993 TAG: 9301300125
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUGLAS PARDUE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
WILDER GETS A NEW ALLY ON GUN LAW
Gov. Douglas Wilder as gained another key ally in his effort to end Virginia's reign as a major supplier of handguns for criminals.Montgomery Tucker, The U.S. attorney for the Western District of Virginia, said Friday that he strongly supports Wilder's proposal to ban individuals from buying more than one handgun a month.
Tucker, a Republican appointee, said his office and federal firearms agents have been chasing gunrunners for years and have not been able to stem the flow of Virginia guns to criminals in cities from Washington, D.C., to New York.
Existing laws just aren't enough, Tucker said. "We've got to take whatever steps we can do, whether state or federal."
Tucker said he and Richard Cullen, the Republican U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, agreed earlier to support Wilder's one-gun limit.
On Thursday, however, Cullen indicated he might be willing to loosen the limit to three guns a month if that would get the General Assembly to approve a handgun limit.
Tucker agreed that compromise might be necessary. He would prefer a one-gun limit, he said, but would support a three-gun limit if necessary.
"The cap is the key issue," Tucker said.
Tucker said he hasn't had a chance to study a Republican proposal that would replace a cap with a requirement that anyone buying more than one handgun a month get a certificate of identity and residency from police.
However, Tucker said, he is concerned that proposal would create a lot of bureaucracy. And, he said, whatever is done, "the less bureaucracy the better."
Jim Silvey, head of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in Roanoke, said he believes a limit on handgun purchases is necessary. Silvey, whose agents enforce federal firearms control laws, said the present laws are not sufficient to stop the flow.
Despite what the National Rifle Association says, Silvey said, he doubts there are many honest gun enthusiasts or owners who have a real problem with a one-handgun-a-month limit.
"How many do you need a month anyway? . . . A gun lasts a lifetime," Silvey said.
He said he believes opposition to a limit is fueled mainly by gun manufacturers and dealers who stand to lose money if they can't sell as many handguns as they want. The opponents are after money and "sail under the false flag of the Second Amendment," he said.
Silvey said that since October his agents have charged 22 people in nine separate gunrunning rings. Many of the guns involved were Uzis and 9mm semiautomatics, weapons popular with drug dealers and street gangs.