‘It isn’t difficult.’ Lexington advocates, victims want ‘common sense’ gun laws in KY
In the midst of a year in which Lexington has reported 16 fatal and 51 nonfatal shootings, concerned residents on Friday called for the community to push for “common sense” gun legislation.
Survivors of gun violence and family members of homicide victims spoke publicly Friday about the trauma they’ve experienced. Among those was Chris Bresman, a man who was once shot at 27 times, with one bullet hitting and critically injuring him in May 2003. He said the shooting had caused a daily battle with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression.
“That day I learned gun violence touches us all, and we really need to stem the tide,” he said. “In 2003, I was a novelty; in 2020, I’m still a headline on the news. But there are more of me. And that’s a real issue. I lost my career in the Air Force due to gun violence. I lost my career in the department of corrections due to the aftereffects of gun violence.”
Others — from high schoolers to grandmothers of victims — said they hope they call attention to preventable violence and spur change. The event, organized by Moms Demand Action, was to commemorate “National Gun Violence Awareness Day,” which Moms Demand Action observes nationwide.
Mayor Linda Gorton told the group Friday she was declaring June 4 to be Gun Violence Awareness Day in Lexington, “both as a supporter of 2nd Amendment rights and as a mayor who recognizes the need to end gun violence on our streets through common-sense gun safety measures.”
Gorton called on residents to work together on stopping gun violence and thanked Moms Demand Action for the solutions they help provide. Moms Demand Action supporters in other states have helped enact background checks and laws intended to prevent dangerous individuals from purchasing guns.
“These are the issues that our community must work together on,” Gorton said. “ ... If we have learned anything during this pandemic, it is that we get so much more done together.”
Acknowledging gun reform, Police Chief Lawrence Weathers said to those gathered Friday that he felt a responsibility to protect “the general welfare” of all citizens above all else.
“If that means we have to have common sense in gun laws, that’s what we have to have,” Weathers said.
2nd Amendment concerns amid gun law reform talks
Weathers said he didn’t have specific legislation he’d like to see implemented and would prefer to leave that up to lawmakers.
But “we at least ought to be thinking, ‘is this good for the community as a whole?’ And to some extent, yeah, you’ve got to worry about individual rights,” Weathers told the Herald-Leader. “But I think the Constitution demands that we also worry about the general welfare of the community.”
Support for “individual rights” has frequently been voiced by 2nd Amendment advocates who worry gun law reform would infringe on those rights.
“Everybody always wants to talk about the Constitution, constitutional rights, and what they’re entitled to,” Weathers said. “And they always talk about specific parts. I want to talk about the part that says ‘provide for the general welfare, to ensure domestic tranquility.’”
Advocates for “common sense” gun legislation on Friday said their push to enact new gun laws is not about taking away guns.
Kathi Crowe, the co-lead of Moms Demand Action in Lexington, said 2nd Amendment rights seemed to be at the forefront of Kentucky legislators’ minds when discussing gun violence. She pointed to the rollback of Kentucky’s concealed carry permit laws.
The rollback removed the requirement for a permit in Kentucky to legally carry a concealed gun. The law applied to residents 21 and older who were otherwise legally allowed to purchase a gun. The law took effect in June of 2019.
“It isn’t difficult,” said Teagan Fowler, a rising senior at Lafayette High School who spoke Friday. “We are not taking your guns ... so many people jump to that conclusion. We ask you to put human life above your right to hold a weapon of mass destruction.”
Slow investigations, prosecutions cause more hurt
Deana Howard’s son Sean was killed at 19 years old in a 2017 shooting. Police charged a 17-year-old with murder just days after Sean’s death. But Howard said the case hasn’t gone to trial after four years, and the slow pace has been frustrating.
“We’re going on four years,” Howard said. “So not only do we deal with this on an everyday basis, and deal with the loss of our family member, deal with the loss of our loved one, missed holidays. We’re still dealing with that part of it, too. And that part of it takes a toll on us.”
Another mother, Tiffany Clark, said she was frustrated with the police because no one has been charged with the death of her son, 20-year-old Zion Clark, who was killed in March of 2020.
“It’s frustrating to have four detectives, and I’m still nowhere after 14 months,” she said. “It’s frustrating to keep getting scripted lines from different officers and detectives.”
Both mothers said their losses and the criminal cases made gun violence more pressing for them. Fayette County Sheriff Kathy Witt, who also spoke at the event, said she has gotten to know and worked with homicide victims’ family members. Witt’s employees provide court security and maintain decorum in the courtrooms.
“I know that although we are bonded together, they’re not going to believe we’re doing better until they see it play out in our neighborhoods and in our streets,” she said. “ ... I understand the frustration that goes on in the courtroom. We are in those trials each and every day. We are passing your messages onto our judges.”
Weathers also addressed the concerns raised by those family members and spoke directly to Clark about her frustrations.
“We are a public service entity, and when somebody complains about the service you provide, we want to make it better,” Weathers told the Herald-Leader.
State Sen. Reggie Thomas, a Democrat representing Fayette County, said he’s concerned frequent gun violence in the United States can cause people to get used to shootings.
“Every week, we wake up in the news, and we see mass shootings all over the country,” he said. “At this grocery store, at this post office, at this place of employment. And we hear it over and over again, and the temptation is that we grow numb to it — that we become desensitized to it. We should never ever lose our sensitivity to these senseless, tragic deaths.”
This story was originally published June 4, 2021 at 3:09 PM.