Letter to the Editor - May 31, 2018

Open letter to candidates on gun policy

Before I cast my vote in this year’s SC primary and general election, I want unequivocal answers from candidates on their gun policy positions.

Keeping our children and families safe from gun violence is a priority voting issue for me. To be transparent I will state that I support second amendment rights and I respect the family tradition of firearm ownership in SC. In addition, I support common sense legislative and non-legislative approaches to reducing gun violence.

Dear candidate,

I respectfully ask for your responses to the following questions:

1. Do you support criminal background checks for all gun sales?

2. Do you support improving the expedited sharing of criminal information from SC law enforcement to the federal background check system? (In the SC 2018 legislative session this bi-partisan bill, S.516, failed to pass).

3. Do you support banning bump-stocks?

4. Do you support limiting the number of rounds in high capacity magazines to no more than 10 rounds?

5. Do you support funding to provide a mental health counselor in every SC public school?

Chief Mark Keel of SLED (SC Law Enforcement Division) stated at a hearing during the 2018 legislative session that one of his recommendations to improve school safety would be to provide a mental health counselor in every school. Currently only about half of SC schools have a mental health counselor on staff.

6. Do you support “Extreme Risk Protection Orders” (ERPOs)? ERPOs enable courts to temporarily prohibit a person from having a gun if law enforcement or immediate family members show the individual poses a significant danger to self or others.

I believe the affirmative answers to these questions would keep our children and families safer by focusing on prevention rather than waiting to react to the next tragedy. Furthermore, these policies would not infringe on the second amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.

Do you know how your elected officials or candidates would answer these questions? Primary day is June 12.

Peter Zalka

Board Chairman

Arm-In-Arm SC

South Carolinians for Responsible Gun Ownership (arminarmsc.org)

Daniel Island Publishing

225 Seven Farms Drive
Unit 108
Daniel Island, SC 29492 

Office Number: 843-856-1999
Fax Number: 843-856-8555

 

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