Responding to Raleigh shooting, Biden renews call for a change in gun laws
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Raleigh mass shooting in Hedingham neighborhood
On Oct. 13, 2022, seven people were shot in Raleigh, NC, in the Hedingham neighborhood near the Neuse River Greenway Trail. Five were killed, including a Raleigh police officer. High school student Austin Thompson was charged with their murders. Read The News & Observer’s ongoing coverage of the mass shooting, Thompson’s guilty plea and his sentencing hearing.
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President Joe Biden called for a ban on semi-automatic weapons Friday morning after a mass shooting in Raleigh left five people dead and several injured.
“Enough,” Biden said in a statement. “We’ve grieved and prayed with too many families who have had to bear the terrible burden of these mass shootings. Too many families have had spouses, parents and children taken from them forever. This year, and even in just the five months since Buffalo and Uvalde, there are too many mass shootings across America, including ones that don’t even make the national news.”
The Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas, shootings led to Biden signing into law the largest gun bill passed in 30 years. Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, played a key role in creating that bill.
Tillis worked with Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, and a bipartisan group of fellow senators to create a bill that expanded access to mental health care and broadened gun safety by incentivizing states to pass red-flag laws, cracked down on illegal purchases of guns and created a process for background checks to include a person’s juvenile record.
“We must do more,” Biden said, renewing his call for Congress to pass a bill known as H.R. 1808, or the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022. “The American people support this commonsense action to get weapons of war off our streets. House Democrats have already passed it. The Senate should do the same. Send it to my desk and I’ll sign it.”
Police in Raleigh say a 15-year-old boy shot seven people in the Hedingham neighborhood Thursday before being taken into custody, The News & Observer reported.
Details about weapons used in the killing have not been released by police. A 911 caller said the killer was carrying a long gun and backpack.
Tillis’s office confirmed Friday afternoon that he opposes a ban on semi-automatic weapons. Both Tillis and Murphy have previously told reporters that a ban was not included in their bill because doing so would have prevented getting the 60 votes needed to pass the gun reform packages through the Senate.
The bill Biden backs was introduced by Rep. David Cicilline, a Democrat from Rhode Island, passed the House by a vote of 217-213. North Carolina’s five Democrats in the House voted in favor of the bill, while its seven Republicans voted against it.
The bill would make it illegal to import, sell, make, transfer or own what it calls a semiautomatic assault weapon or large capacity ammunition feeding device.
The ban has several exceptions, including for inoperable or antique guns. It would also allow the continued possession, sale or transfer of grandfathered semi-automatic weapons that must be stored securely; a licensed dealer would need to conduct background checks prior to the sale or transfer of these guns between private parties.
Biden also offered his and his wife’s condolences and said he is working closely with Gov. Roy Cooper to help local law enforcement investigate the shooting. He thanked the officers and first responders who worked the investigation over the past 24 hours.
“We are thinking of yet another community shaken and shattered as they mourn the loss of friends and neighbors, including an off-duty police officer,” Biden said. “May God bless our fellow Americans we lost and their families and may He grant the wounded the strength to recover in Raleigh, North Carolina.”
This story was originally published October 14, 2022 at 1:24 PM with the headline "Responding to Raleigh shooting, Biden renews call for a change in gun laws."
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