BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Some Massachusetts lawmakers introduced legislation Tuesday that would ban assault-style weapons from being manufactured in the Commonwealth.
During a virtual news conference, State Reps. Frank Moran and Marjorie Decker pointed out that it is illegal to sell assault-style weapons in Massachusetts, but they are still being made at Springfield-based gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson. Assault-style weapons have been banned in the state since 2004, but they can still be manufactured and sold elsewhere in country.
The state lawmakers were joined by the group Stop Handgun Violence. Founder John Rosenthal said one of the weapons used in the Columbine shooting, as well as the AR-15 rifles used in the Aurora, Colo. and Parkland shootings were all made in Massachusetts.
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"Congress has done nothing except for shrink under gun lobby money and pressure. Meanwhile, Massachusetts elected officials, on a bipartisan basis, have made our state the safest nation in America when it comes to preventing gun violence. But, we can’t turn our backs on every other state," Rosenthal said.
The lawmakers were also joined by Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, whose daughter, Jessica, was killed in the Aurora, Colo. movie theater shooting in 2012.
“She was killed by an AR-15 that was made by Smith & Wesson in Massachusetts,” Sandy Phillips said. “Massachusetts is exporting bloodshed to the rest of the country.”
WBZ NewsRadio has reached out to Smith & Wesson for comment.
WBZ NewsRadio's Karyn Regal (@Karynregal) reports
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(Photo: Mario Jarjour/WBZ NewsRadio)