LANSING, Mich. (WZMQ) – Gun reform advocates flooded the capitol today to talk with lawmakers about a long list of bills they would like to see pass. More than 10 bills currently exist in Michigan’s legislature surrounding gun reform, the legislation covers everything from gun disposal to ghost guns.
Advocates with Moms for Action and End Gun Violence Michigan are hoping to decrease the number of victims of gun violence and make it easier to get justice for those impacted.
House Bills 6144 through 6146 would require the Michigan State Police (MSP) to fully destroy, rather than recycle or re-sell parts of firearms that are retired or surrendered to MSP. A practice already followed in the state, but that lawmakers wanted to guarantee would continue. One of the authors on the package, State Representative Felicia Brabec (D-Pittsfield Township), said they have been working to stop gun violence and advocate for better mechanisms that will save lives.
“The clock is ticking this term — we must be optimistic that we can and will get these bills across the finish line. We all have a part to play in making Michigan safer,” said Brabec, “I will tirelessly seek to diminish gun violence and advocate for better mechanisms that will save lives. Gathering today with fellow lawmakers, stakeholders, and others who are dedicated to common sense reforms demonstrates the commitment by so many to do the same.”
The group Moms Demand Action was a part of the coalition that gathered today. Denise Wieck shared her story about her son who was shot accidentally by a firearm his friend had purchased online.
“Do not sit back idly and think ‘This did not happen to me, this could not happen to me.’ because that’s what I thought, and I got a phone call at 3:30 in the morning saying it did happen to me,” Wieck said. “My son, who was 17 at the time, was shot in the head through the eye with a ghost gun by his 17-year-old friend who ordered a kit online and put it together in less than 30 minutes.”
Wieck spoke out in favor of Senate Bills 1149 and 1150. The bills would ban ghost guns by requiring all firearm parts, including those sold in kits, to be serialized and subject to a background check. The bills are scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Wieck’s son survived the shooting, though he now lives with a traumatic brain injury and a chronic seizure condition. Gail Duncan’s daughter, Rachel, did not. Duncan is an advocate who worked with the Brady Campaign after her daughter’s death. In 2018, Rachel was killed while at work by an ex-boyfriend who used a stolen firearm from a local gun range.
Two bills in Michigan’s House (HB 6183 and 6184) would reform the state’s liability laws so businesses like the gun rage can be sued for damages.
If passed, these bills wouldn’t be the only gun-related legislation signed into law since the first round of major reform last March. In October 2023, a law was passed that made it illegal for individuals convicted of domestic violence to own a firearm. Just this Tuesday, Governor Whitmer signed House Bills 4127 and 4128 into law, making it illegal to possess a firearm at polling locations across the state.
Other bills waiting in the legislature would work to use Medicaid funds to pay for hospital-based Community Violence Intervention Programs, and introduce materials to inform parents every year in October about Michigan’s safe storage law, as well as where to obtain free gun locks.
All of these bills are waiting on committee hearings in the state House or Senate. They’ll have to pass a vote in both chambers before December 19 or they’ll need to be reintroduced next year.
