We need not further penalize the law-abiding citizens who have a long tradition of responsibly owning guns. In an effort to protect the 2nd Amendment rights of Minnesotans, while addressing the use of guns by criminals, I have taken several major steps to toughen- up Minnesota's criminal justice system.
In 1992, I developed and signed into law the strongest anti-crime legislation in Minnesota's history. Known as the Safe Communities Act, this bill called for much tougher sentences to keep dangerous criminals locked-up. Prison sentences were lengthened substantially for many violent crimes, and in some cases quadrupled for more serious crimes such as murder and sexual assault.
In 1993, I proposed a "three-time loser" law which calls for locking-up all those who commit a third offense against a person for a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years. On top of that, I have also included a provision that will require courts to report each time a gun is plea-bargained out of a criminal case. In addition, any juvenile using a weapon during the commission of a crime will be treated as an adult.
For several years Minnesota has had a background check requirement in place, quite similar to the Brady Law recently signed by President Clinton. We also have specific laws limiting the possession of guns by minors, restricting the possession of guns by certain felons, prohibiting guns on school property and limiting the use of guns in a wide range of other situations. If all these laws were enforced, and offenders were held accountable by the courts, we could go a long way to ending gun violence in Minnesota.
My aim is to ensure that our law enforcement officers and our courts enforce these laws to the maximum, and that we do everything reasonably possible to remove our most dangerous offenders from our streets for substantial periods of time.
Prepared by the Carlson/Benson Volunteer Committee
Wheelock Whitney & Chris Fritsche, Co-Chairs