Philly bypasses state, OKs gun control
Fri May 4, 11:42 AM ET
PHILADELPHIA - The City Council approved limits to gun purchases with the promise to sue state lawmakers to enforce it, saying the city could no longer wait for the Legislature as the murder rate skyrockets.
Only state lawmakers can enact firearms laws in Pennsylvania. But with 137 homicides in Philadelphia so far this year, Councilman Darrell Clarke said the city had to do something.
"It's utterly ridiculous where we are right now. It's an aberration when somebody doesn't get killed," Clarke said. "We can't wait any longer."
The council approved measures Thursday that would limit gun purchases to one a month and require gun owners to promptly report lost or stolen firearms.
Clarke, who co-sponsored the bills with Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, said the City Council would soon file a lawsuit against the General Assembly to give the city the authority to pass its own gun laws.
Philadelphia gun control "never had the votes to get out of committee, and that hasn't changed," said House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, a Republican.
The bills require Mayor John Street's approval, and he seems likely to sign them.
"We support Councilman Clarke and Councilwoman Reed Miller in their legislative efforts to reduce and prevent gun violence in Philadelphia," Street spokesman Joe Grace said.
