R13-018 1
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1 RESOLUTION NO. R13- 0/1
2
3
4 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
5 BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA CALLING ON THE FEDERAL
6 GOVERNMENT TO REDUCE GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICA
7 AND HELP PREVENT FUTURE MASS SHOOTINGS THROUGH
8 PASSAGE OF: THE FIX GUN CHECKS ACT, WHICH WOULD
9 REQUIRE A BACKGROUND CHECK FOR EVERY GUN SALE
10 AND ENSURE THAT ALL CRIMINALS AND OTHER
11 DANGEROUS PEOPLE WHO ARE PROHIBITED FROM
12 BUYING A GUN ARE LISTED IN THE NATIONAL INSTANT
13 CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM; AS WELL AS
14 LEGISLATION THAT WOULD KEEP MILITARY -STYLE
15 WEAPONS AND HIGH - CAPACITY MAGAZINES OFF OUR
16 STREETS, AND WOULD MAKE GUN TRAFFICKING A
17 FEDERAL CRIME; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
18
19 WHEREAS, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is an
20 effective tool to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and other dangerous individuals, and
21 this system has blocked 1.9 million illegal gun purchases and permit applications in the past
22 two decades; and
23
24 WHEREAS, despite this success, the system is undermined by legal loopholes and
25 missing records that enable too many dangerous individuals to obtain weapons they later use in
26 crimes; and
27
28 WHEREAS, it is estimated that state and federal agencies have failed to report more
29 than one million records of persons with dangerous mental illness into the NICS database; and
30
31 WHEREAS, on April 16, 2007, Seung -Hui Cho shot and killed 32 people at Virginia
32 Tech with guns that were legally purchased because records of his mental health status were
33 missing from the NICS; and
34
35 WHEREAS, on January 8, 2011, Jared Loughner, someone with a reported history of
36 drug abuse and serious mental illness who should have been in the NICS database but was not,
37 killed six Tucsonans — Christina- Taylor Green, Dorothy Morris, Judge John Roll, Dorwan
38 Stoddard, Phyllis Schneck, and Gabe Zimmerman — and shot 13 others, including U.S.
39 Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords; and
40
41 WHEREAS, on July 20, 2012, James Holmes, using a semi - automatic rifle and other
42 guns, allegedly shot and killed 12 people and injured at least 58 others in a movie theater in
43 Aurora, CO, using some of the thousands of rounds of ammunition that the shooter had recently
44 purchased online without any background check; and
45
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1 WHEREAS, on August 5, 2012, Wade Michael Page, using a semi - automatic handgun,
2 allegedly shot and killed 6 people and injured 3 others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, WI; and
3
4 WHEREAS, on October 21, 2012, Radcliffe Haughton, using a semi - automatic
5 handgun, shot and killed his estranged wife and two others; and though a restraining order had
6 been issued against Haughton — making him a prohibited person under federal law — Haughton
7 was able to avoid a background check by purchasing the gun from a private seller through
8 armslist.com.
9
10 WHEREAS, in the wake of the Newtown shootings on December 14, 2012, Adam
11 Lanza, using two semi - automatic handguns, shot and killed 27 people, including 20 children at
12 Sandy Hook elementary school.
13
14 WHEREAS, in the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, Virginia and other states have
15 submitted hundreds of thousands of new mental health records into the NICS database, yet 19
16 states have each submitted fewer than 100 mental health records since that massacre; and
17
18 WHEREAS, under federal law licensed gun dealers are mandated to conduct NICS
19 checks before proceeding with a sale, but this requirement does not apply to so- called private
20 sellers who are present in large numbers at gun shows and sell guns over the interne; and
21
22 WHEREAS, it is estimated that 6.5 million guns were sold privately in the U.S.
23 between November 2011 and November 2012, and undercover investigations have shown that
24 many private sellers at gun shows and online will proceed with sales even when they are made
25 aware that prospective purchasers cannot pass a background check; and
26
27 WHEREAS, more than 12,000 Americans are murdered with guns every year, and too
28 many of these crimes are committed by individuals who are barred from purchasing or
29 possessing guns under Federal law; and
30
31 WHEREAS, other tragedies including the 1999 Columbine High School shooting in
32 Colorado, the 2010 attack on law enforcement at the Pentagon, and the 2012 mass shooting at a
33 Pittsburgh psychiatric clinic were perpetrated by individuals who obtained guns through
34 unregulated private sales, with no paperwork required and no questions asked; and
35
36 WHEREAS, the Fix Gun Checks Act has been introduced in the U.S. Congress, and
37 this legislation would address the two major flaws in the nation's gun background check system
38 by improving compliance with federal record reporting requirements, and by requiring
39 background checks for all U.S. gun sales; and
40
41 WHEREAS, 90 percent of Americans and 90 percent of gun owners support fixing
42 gaps in the gun background check database, and 86 percent of Americans, 82 percent of gun
43 owners nationwide, and 74 percent of NRA members support mandatory criminal background
44 checks for all gun sales; and
45
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1 WHEREAS, Boynton Beach has been a strong advocate for common -sense policies
2 that keep guns out of dangerous hands while respecting the rights of law - abiding gun owners,
3 and strongly believes that Congress and state governments should take action to close deadly
4 gaps in the NICS; and
5
6 WHEREAS, more than 50 national organizations support closing gaps in the gun
7 background check database and requiring a background check for all gun sales, including the
8 U.S. Conference of Mayors, National Urban League, National Association for the
9 Advancement of Colored People, and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the
10 International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Major Cities Chiefs Association and the
11 Police Executive Research Forum; and
12
13 WHEREAS, the Fix Gun Checks Act is strongly supported by Mayors Against Illegal
14 I Guns, a national, bipartisan coalition of more than 800 mayors, who represent more than 58
15 million Americans.
16
17 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF
18 THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS:
19
20 Section 1. The foregoing "Whereas" clauses are hereby ratified and confirmed as
21 being true and correct and are hereby made a specific part of this Resolution upon adoption
22 hereof.
23
24 Section 2. The City of Boynton Beach will work to push for increased reporting of
25 mental health and other relevant records into the NICS database; and
26
27 Section 3. The City of Boynton Beach urges immediate passage of The Fix Gun
28 Checks Act in the United States Congress; and
29
30 Section 4. The City of Boynton Beach urges immediate passage of legislation that
31 would get military -style weapons and high- capacity magazines away from our community and
32 especially our schools; and
33
34 Section 5. The City of Boynton Beach urges immediate passage of legislation that
35 would make gun trafficking a federal crime; and
36
37 Section 6. The City of Boynton Beach, echoing the call of gun violence survivors
38 and family members, calls on both President Obama and the U.S. Congress to put in place
39 concrete reforms to reduce gun violence nationwide and help prevent future mass shootings;
40 and
41
42 Section 7. The City of Boynton Beach's Mayor and Commission will join with
43 domestic violence prevention advocates, faith leaders, law enforcement officials, and other
44 elected officials to make clear that failure to strengthen gun laws at the national level will
45 continue to fuel gun violence in big and small cities throughout the country; and
46
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1 Section 8. The City of Boynton Beach's Mayor and Commission requests the City
2 Clerk to transmit this memorial to all members of Florida's Congressional Delegation, and to
3 the Obama administration.
4
5 Section 9. This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon passage.
6 PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City of Boynton Beach, this / 0 Day of
7 February, 2013.
8 CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA
9
10
11 I Y
12 Mayor – Woodrow L. Hay
4 . Y
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16 ' rccor rack McCray
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20 • m' • – Je r ' Taylor
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24 Commissit er – teven Holzman
25
26
27
28 Com loner – negal
29 ATTEST:
30
31
32
33 J a et M. Prainito, MMC
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