Woodridge, Il. won't back AWB

Chicago Daily Herald, (Aug. 21)

Woodridge won't back ban on assault guns
A resolution urging Congress to renew and strengthen the federal ban on assault weapons has been rejected by Woodridge village trustees.

The board's 4-2 vote this week was disheartening to the trustee who sponsored the initiative, but not surprising.

"One of my campaign promises was to enact an assault weapons ban for Woodridge, but that would have been an administrative nightmare and not very effective," Trustee Robert Brandt said Friday. "The next step was to encourage Congress to extend the federal ban, which is more effective than a municipal ban."

The federal ban, which targets certain semi-automatic assault weapons capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition, is set to expire Sept. 13.

Brandt said he's shared the resolution with neighboring municipalities in hopes they might approve it, but most officials said they've heard little talk of the idea.

"I haven't heard a word about it," Lisle Mayor Joe Broda said, "but that's not to say it's not in the system somewhere."

The other Woodridge trustee to support the resolution, Richard Wood, said opponents on the board felt the resolution was too far reaching.

"Most of the board members said ... they couldn't support something they didn't think the municipality should be involved in," he said. "I felt strongly enough in favor of it to support it."

Broda said he also thinks the resolution may be too far reaching and suggested other avenues for Brandt's campaign.

"Most communities are only empowered as much as the state law allows," he said. "This could go to the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference, where it might be better suited."

A local gun advocacy group, Woodridge Citizens for Firearm Safety, opposed the resolution, saying the existing ban isn't working. Representatives from the National Rifle Association and Illinois State Rifle Association also opposed the measure.

"Not a single one of the studies found any public safety benefit (from the ban) whatsoever and two studies found incremental increases in crime and murder," said the group's president, Dave Mamer.

Strengthening the ban isn't going to help it, either, he said.

"We're doing more of something that doesn't work already? I don't see the logic in that," he said.

The federal ban is supported by the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police.

"Assault weapons are routinely the weapons of choice for gangs and drug dealers," said Elmwood Park Chief Tom Braglia, also president of the state group. "Weapons of this nature exist for one reason only, and that is to kill people."

Brandt said it was his intention to bring the pending expiration of the assault weapons ban to light and urge its renewal. He said he's not interested in taking people's sporting weapons away.

"It's just common sense," he said. "I received support from numerous Woodridge residents."
  ¶ 12:20 PM