Virginia Gun Ban for Violent Offenders May Have New Life

Local news reports Advocates for a bill that would ban anyone convicted of stalking, sexual battery or physical domestic abuse of a family member from possessing a gun for five years are trying to revive the effort.
The Senate passed the bill 29-6, but last week a House criminal law subcommittee tabled the bill on a voice vote, then later voted to send a letter to the Virginia Crime Commission for further study. Lori Haas, with Virginians for Responsible Gun Laws, stressed that the bill would mean a temporary prohibition on firearm possession by people convicted of certain violent misdemeanors. “This bill does not impact law-abiding citizens,” she said. Philip Van Cleave, president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, opposes the measure because the convictions that the bill would apply to are misdemeanors and not felonies. “If in the law, something is a misdemeanor, a minor crime, then it should not take away your rights,” he said. “How they draw those lines is up to the General Assembly.”