FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 19, 2014

CONTACT: Peter Van Delft
(617) 704-6682

SHERIFF TOMPKINS JOINS WITH SENATOR MARKEY IN SUPPORT OF “HANDGUN TRIGGER SAFETY ACT”

Sheriff Steven W. Tompkins (center) speaks in support of U.S. Senator Ed Markey’s (far right) “Handgun Trigger Safety Act” at Project R.I.G.H.T. in Grove Hall.

Sheriff Steven W. Tompkins recently joined with U.S. Senator Ed Markey in support of his proposal of new legislation, the "Handgun Trigger Safety Act."

Announced from the offices of Project R.I.G.H.T. in Grove Hall, Sheriff Tompkins stood with Senator Markey among a group of supporters that included Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley; State Representatives Gloria Fox and Dan Cullinane; City Councilors Tito Jackson, Ayanna Pressley and Michelle Wu; Reverends Jeffrey Brown, William Dickerson and Miniard Cullpepper; Monalisa Smith of Mothers For Justice and Equality; and Jorge Martinez of Project R.I.G.H.T.

If passed, this legislation will mandate that all handguns produced in the United States be made to accept personalization technology, which would prevent them from being used by anyone other than their intended user. It will also require anyone selling a handgun to retrofit it with personalization technology.

"We need to enact the ‘Handgun Trigger Safety Act.’ It’s no–brainer legislation," Sheriff Tompkins stated. "We need to do everything within our powers to protect the lives of our citizens, particularly children, and this legislation with its focus on handgun personalization technology moves us in that direction."

"Additionally, we need to pay greater attention to the glut of gun–related deaths that continue to occur, but we also need to look more deeply into the excessive number of shootings that don’t result in death. The tracking technology that Senator Markey’s proposed legislation calls for is crucial because it allows authorities to identify and trace these guns back to their original source."

Explaining his motivation for the proposal of the "Handgun Trigger Safety Act," Senator Markey said, "Without question, this is a huge issue. We are all here to make a commitment to better lives for our children, the people of this community and the Commonwealth. We can commit ourselves to ending the senseless scourge of gun violence that takes the lives of our people and tears apart our communities and families. This is the type of gun safety legislation that everyone – regardless of political party or affiliation – should be able to support."

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