Oklahoma debates handgun purchase age amid high gun violence rate
TULSA, OKLA. (KTUL) — Oklahoma ranks amongst the top 20 states experiencing a high rate of gun violence.
But are tighter gun laws the answer to stop it?
According to everystat.org, Oklahoma has the 13th-highest rate of gun violence in the US.
NewsChannel 8's Rian Stockett spoke with one lawmaker who is trying to find middle ground when it comes to gun control.
According to an online report by everystat.org, 766 people die and 1,244 are wounded by guns in Oklahoma in an average year.
However, a decision on whether Oklahoma lawmakers should loosen or tighten gun laws is not an easy one.
Senate Bill 1218 was introduced by Senator Bullard and would make it so that no person 18 years or older within the state could be denied purchasing a firearm based on age unless otherwise prohibited by law.
Representative John Waldron says this bill would enable 18 to 20-year-olds to purchase handguns in Oklahoma.
"I don't see how you can make that change because that's going to have to be a federal law," said Robert Jerome, the Assistant Manager at 2A Shooting Center.
The Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibits people under 21 from buying handguns.
"A West Virginia federal judge recently ruled that just barring handgun purchases by 18 to 20-year-olds was age discrimination," said Representative John Waldron.
Waldron says he’s expecting this federal ruling to be appealed, but Oklahoma is already acting to remove the requirement for people to wait until they’re 21 to buy a handgun.
He says he voted no on this bill in committee.
"Lost that vote 9-1," said Waldron.
Last week Waldron submitted an amendment to that bill.
"My amendment would require a reasonable safety training requirement before an 18 year old buys a gun," said Waldron.
Under the bill, 18-20-year-olds would have to submit proof of the successful completion of a firearm training course before they purchase a gun.
"Gun safety education can help us prevent problems of accidental discharge, teach lessons about safe gun storage, and prevent the unintended use of firearms," said Waldron.
"I believe in training, but for the government to step in and, and to interject something between people's rights is a terrible idea," said Jerome.
Jerome says offering a tax credit for completing training would be more effective.
"$100, $200 tax credit for people to go get handgun training, to go get, firearms training," said Jerome.
NewsChannel 8 spoke with another gun range that believes everybody should get firearm training, saying it sees 18 to 20-year-olds who don’t know how to handle guns, and credit their training to YouTube.