By Greg Halbleib
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D., Ill.) says any new gun regulations must be federal because there’s too much variety in local laws.
Durbin says that although Chicago has strict gun laws, many gun crimes in the city can be traced to weapons bought at gun shows in northern Indiana.
“They don’t require any background checks whatsoever,” Durbin told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin. “You show an identification card, and even if it’s just a driver’s license from Illinois, good enough. Fill the trunk of your car with guns, drive into the city of Chicago, sell them to the gang bangers and drug gangs.”
Durbin says any toughening of gun laws must occur on the federal level because of so many lax local regulations.
“You could have the toughest gun laws imaginable in your community”, said Durbin, “but if you’re surrounded by a county and other towns where there are no standards? Come on. People just get in their car and drive to where it’s easy.”
Durbin says tougher gun restrictions must be careful not to have the unintended consequence of limiting investigations:
“We want to give to law enforcement the tools to make that critical investigative decision,” said Durbin, “which in some cases may be let that person buy (a gun) and now let us follow that person and find out who they’re talking to.”
Durbin is frustrated that his colleagues failed to pass tougher gun laws on Monday, but he hopes a bipartisan proposal currently in the works gains traction.
Greg Halbleib can be reached at greg@wjbc.com.
