FebruLINDA REILLY
Delco Times
May 18, 2006
UPPER DARBY -- A 16-year-old township teen shot in the chest with a gun allegedly purchased legally by a straw purchaser lived to testify at the preliminary hearing against three persons accused of the crime. The 42-year-old brother of Bryan Miller, executive director of CeaseFire NJ, a New Jersey coalition of groups devoted to reducing gun violence statewide, wasn’t as lucky. Michael Miller, an FBI agent, was shot and killed in the line of duty in 1994 with a MAC-10 assault gun purchased in Texas and illegally sold in Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood, in conjunction with CeaseFire NJ and PA; Pennsylvanians Against Trafficking Handguns; Men United for a Better Philadelphia; the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence;and the Pennsylvania Million Mom March held a press conference on 69th Street. The conference was held across the street from Lou’s Jewelry and Pawn -- commonly called Lou’s Loans -- to focus attention on the legal sales and illegal transfer of firearms.
"It’s important we come together and support legislative change," said Chitwood, referring to a bill that would allowing one handgun purchase per month per person to prevent bulk purchasing.
"We don’t need these guns on the street. Straw purchases are used to kill," Chitwood said.
Diane Edbril, of CeaseFire PA, noted the excessive legal purchases of handguns and cited Lou’s as one of the biggest sellers of firearms to the gun traffickers.
"Lou’s has one of the highest rates of handguns traced back to it after being used in a crime," Edbril said.
"This indicates that Lou’s sells firearms to folks who are in fact straw purchasers, people standing in for the real buyers, the kids, gang leaders and felons who are prohibited from making the purchase directly from the licensed gun dealers. Law enforcement is able to trace crime guns back to the original places of sale. We need to stop these guns at the source."
According to Chad M. Ramsey of the Brady campaign, officials were able to trace 178 crime guns sold legally at Lou’s within a year.
"Lou’s sells guns in bulk to individuals and those guns end up on the street," Ramsey said, noting of the 3,000 gun dealers in the state, "Lou’s is by far the worst."
Lou’s personnel declined to comment, referring inquiries to their attorney, who could not be reached for comment.
Signs inside Lou’s specify requirements to purchase guns, including a Pennsylvania driver’s license or non-driver’s license required for firearms purchases.
A check of state police records is also conducted for any gun purchase. Customers would be charged $20 for immediate denial, $50 for pending denial and $50 for customer cancellation.
©DelcoTimes 2006
