By Rep. Jimmy Gomez
Five years ago this month, a gunman using firearms equipped with silencers went on a 10-day shooting spree in Southern California, in which four people were killed, including two law enforcement officers. Today, I find myself reflecting on the inexplicable tragedy that blanketed our community, even as some of my colleagues in Congress advocate for legislation that would roll back gun silencer laws and make it easy for silencers to end up in the wrong hands.
Silencers distort the sound of gunshots and can make it harder to determine the direction they’re coming from. During active and mass shooter situations, hearing and identifying a gunshot can mean the difference between life and death. Common sense tells us that active shooting situations can be deadlier when innocent bystanders and law enforcement cannot recognize or locate the sound of gunfire and react quickly. But, common sense can be difficult to find in the House of Representatives.
One of the first bills I spoke against when I arrived in Congress last year was the SHARE Act, a sportsmen’s bill that historically addresses use of federal lands for hunting and fishing. However, this year the bill changed dramatically when an NRA-backed gun bill, the “Hearing Protection Act,” was included in the SHARE Act without even a hearing. Rather than a public health measure, the Hearing Protection Act would roll back existing federal public safety laws and make it easy for convicted felons, domestic abusers, and people with dangerous mental illnesses to buy silencers without a background check, simply by finding an unlicensed seller. This bill is a clear risk to public safety.
Despite widespread opposition, the silencer legislation was heading for a vote on the House floor before the Las Vegas shooting occurred in October. Due in part to public outrage, congressional leaders wisely decided to postpone that vote. But just months later they continue to look for opportunities to pass this reckless and dangerous bill.
Five years after the silencer-enabled attack on Southern California law enforcement, and just months after the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history — not to mention the gun violence that kills more than 90 Americans every single day — the last thing Congress should do is dismantle existing federal public safety laws that have been on the books for decades.
Rather than threaten the public safety of our communities, Congress should work to prevent the gun violence that takes such a tragic toll on our nation and that starts with keeping intact existing silencer safety laws. Stopping this disastrous silencer bill will help ensure that no community faces the terror that gripped Southern California just five years ago.
Rep. Jimmy Gomez represents California’s 34th District in the U.S. House of Representatives and is a member of the House Committee on Natural Resources and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
P.S. As always, it is an honor to represent you in the U.S. Congress. Visit my website or contact my Los Angeles office at 213-481-1425 or Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-6235, if we can be of service in any way. To stay connected, join me on Twitter, Facebook, and, if you have not done so already, please sign up to continue receiving my e-alert.
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