PITTSBURGH — The city of Pittsburgh is asking for the reversal of a ruling that blocks gun safety ordinances.
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court is being asked to reverse the ruling, which was a lower court decision. It blocks gun prevention measures, which stemmed from the Tree of Life synagogue shooting, from being put in place.
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The ordinances blocked by the ruling include the following:
- A prohibition relating to the use of assault weapons and large capacity magazines
- A local Red Flag law which provides a judicial framework for families and law enforcement officers to petition for a court-issued Extreme Risk Protection Order, which temporarily restricts a person’s access to firearms when they pose a significant risk of harming themselves or others
- A Child Access Prevention law which creates a civil penalty if a minor gains access to and uses a firearm, and the firearm’s custodian knew or reasonably should have known that a minor was likely to gain access to the firearm.
“Pittsburgh residents expect us to do what we can to make them safer, and I’m proud of the steps we’ve taken,” Pittsburgh Mayor William Peduto said in a statement. “Public health research is on our side, Pittsburgh residents are on our side, and the law is on our side, too. It’s disappointing our efforts have had to come to this, but we’ll continue to show the court that our measures comply with every word of state law.”
Everytown Law, the litigation arm of Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, is co-counsel for the City of Pittsburgh in the case, according to a news release.
“We believe city officials acted well within their authority when they passed these measures to prevent future gun violence,” Eric Tirschwell, managing director for Everytown for Gun Safety, said in a statement. “We look forward to the Commonwealth Court’s review and are hopeful the trial court’s ruling will be corrected.”
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