Gun Safety Archives » Lynda Waddington

24Sep 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Concert Across America remembers victims of gun violence

Gazette Column

A national coalition of gun violence prevention artists, activists and organizations are coming together for a second annual Concert Across America. Iowa voices will rise up as part of organized events Sunday, but readers can sing out now. Last year, more than 5,200 artists performed at 350 events across 43 states to call for universal background checks and stronger laws in every state to reduce gun violence. As I write this column, more than 180 concerts across 40 states had been announced for 2017 — including the Iowa communities of Cedar Rapids, Dubuque and Clinton. The events are planned for Sept. 24 because Congress designated the day for remembering murder victims. For this year’s series of events, national organizers hope individuals and groups from coast-to-coast also will take part in a world…

27Feb 2017 by Lynda Waddington

Gun reforms show how close lawmakers can get to no rules

Gazette Column

Let’s say that during the course of your day you are approached by two people. One has a pipe with marijuana residue, the other is carrying a firearm without a permit. Which do you perceive as a greater threat to public safety? Lawmakers, according to House Study Bill 133, believe that while both people committed the same level of offense — a simple misdemeanor — the person with drug paraphernalia should face stiffer penalties. The pipe nets its holder up to 30 days in jail and monetary fines of up to roughly $700, which is the typical sentence for such a misdemeanor. But an in-depth reading of HSB 133 shows that lawmakers hope to establish new sentencing guidelines for these misdemeanors when a firearm without a permit is involved. Under…

03Oct 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Aim higher for Iowa’s gun safety training

Featured, Gazette Column

For the past five years, Iowa law has required citizens wanting a weapons permit to pay for a “safety” class that has no minimum standards. And, based on conversations with the crop of this year’s legislative candidates, no changes are on the horizon. In 2011, when Iowa became a “shall issue” state, removing nearly all discretion in weapons permitting from local law enforcement, the law required most applicants to attend safety classes. The Legislature, however, did not specify the content or curriculum of those classes or give such authority to the Iowa Department of Public Safety. [caption id="attachment_147" align="alignright" width="300"] A display of 7-round .45 caliber handguns are seen at Coliseum Gun Traders Ltd. in Uniondale, New York January 16, 2013. (REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton)[/caption] The result is a patchwork — a…

06Mar 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Reasonable to require gun handling

Gazette Column

Some Iowa senators finally seem ready to require basic gun handling as part of the permitting process. Better late than never. Sen. Steve Sodders, a State Center Democrat, told Iowa Public Radio’s Joyce Russell that if the Iowa Senate takes up a House-approved bill that would make permit renewal easier and keep permit holders’ information private, passage would likely be linked to a requirement that those applying for permits demonstrate basic weapon knowledge. “How to load it and unload it safely. You know, point it downrange, don’t point it at people. All those safety issues,” Sodders told IPR. In 2011, when Iowa became a “shall issue” state, removing nearly all discretion in weapon permitting from local law enforcement, the state mandated most permit applicants attend guns safety classes. The legislature,…

18Jan 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Confessions of an Iowa gun snob

Gazette Column

Have you ever written or said something from a centrist position only to have those on either side of the issue overreact, confirming your centrist stance? Well, I have. This week, in fact. Last Saturday this column detailed my reaction to seeing a man in a local store with a not-so-concealed gun. The narrative, in which I detailed my own shortcomings, was written for two reasons. First, it was the first thing I thought about after reading a guest column we’d published the week before. I simply had to write it; had to get it out of my system before I moved on to other things. (If you aren’t a writer, that may not make much sense. I apologize if that is the case.) Second and more important, for some time now I…

11Jan 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Why your gun makes me nervous

Gazette Column

There’s a mantra quickly repeating in my head: “Please have a badge. Please have a badge. Please have a badge.” It’s a steady heartbeat as I begin a conversation with a shop clerk and reposition myself so I can peer over her shoulder. I’ve already seen the bulge in his jacket, and it’s clear from the size and shape that he has a holstered gun. Now my eyes are quickly scanning, hoping to find a law enforcement badge clipped to his belt. I’m in a local bookstore and there’s a sticker near the door asking patrons not to carry weapons on the premises. My two children scurried off the moment we entered, each in search of their own treasures. The man with the weapon is as interested with the bookstore…