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03/18/2024 10:24 PM
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20190&cosponId=29230
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House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: April 15, 2019 11:08 AM
From: Representative Isabella V. Fitzgerald
To: All House members
Subject: Semi-Automatic Assault Rifle: 72 Hour Waiting Period
 
On July 30, 2016, Allen Ivanov entered a party attended by his ex-girlfriend, Anna Bui, with a legally purchased AR-15 assault rifle, taking three innocent lives and injuring a fourth person in the attack. At his sentencing in 2017, Ivanov stated that he had acted in a state of shock after feeling “hopeless, suicidal, and outraged with jealousy.” He added that had his ability to quickly purchase an assault rifle been impeded, he would likely not have committed the shooting.

Mass shootings, often committed with semi-automatic assault rifles, can often be crimes of passion, such as for individuals who are enraged in the moment but would not commit a murder if they had time to calm down. One study found that requiring a waiting period prior to purchasing a gun can reduce gun homicides by 17% by providing for a “cooling off period.”

My legislation will establish a 72 hour waiting period for purchases of semi-automatic assault rifles in hopes of reducing the mass shootings that have plagued our nation and devastated our communities. Please join me in protecting all Pennsylvanians from future firearm violence.



Introduced as HB2078