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Apr 14, 2009 6:55 pm US/Eastern
Rendell: Police Across State Are Outgunned
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
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The federal ban on assault weapons lapsed four years ago.
KDKA
Speaking out for the first time since the shooting deaths of three Pittsburgh police officers, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell told reporters, "Our police all over the state are simply outgunned.'
The governor says Pennsylvania and the nation must heed the lessons learned from the tragic deaths of Officers Paul Sciullo II, Stephen Mayhle and Eric Kelly.
"The criminals have too many weapons of high power of semi-automatic nature," Gov. Rendell added. "They have clips that can fire 30, 100 bullets at one time..."
In Harrisburg tomorrow, Rendell is expected to call for the reinstatement of the federal ban on the sale of AK-47s and other automatic firearms.
"Assault weapons were not made to hunt," Rendell added. "No one goes out and shoots a deer with an AK-47 or an M-16. No one does. No one."
Rendell says cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia should be free to institute tougher controls on cop-killing firearms and semi-automatic bullet clips.
"If the city of Pittsburgh wants to enact their own gun laws, we should let them enact their own gun laws. You know, what may be right for Pittsburgh isn't right for McKean County, and I understand that, so maybe we should let local governments enact their own gun laws."
Rendell says that was the law until 1996 when the legislature repealed all local gun laws -- but the governor says the murder of Officers Sciullo, Mayhle and Kelly ought to spur the General Assembly to act.
"How much more of this are we going to have to put with before we get action," Rendell asked.
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