3A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2017
Governor renews push for more gun control
Brown wants
lawmakers to
act next year
By CLAIRE
WITHYCOMBE
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Gov. Kate
Brown has renewed a push to
tighten state laws restricting
gun ownership .
Days after a deadly shoot-
ing in Las Vegas that took 58
lives and injured hundreds,
Brown on Friday called on
Oregon lawmakers to “put pol-
itics aside” and pass two pro-
posals that failed in this year’s
legislative session.
But it’s not apparent what
will change lawmakers’ minds
in the upcoming 35-day legis-
lative session, which is due to
begin in February .
One proposal would pre-
vent a person from purchasing
a fi rearm until Oregon State
Police verify they are eligible
to do so. As it stands, people
in Oregon can still purchase
a gun without a background
check if OSP doesn’t verify
them in 72 hours. This is often
called the “Charleston loop-
hole,” after the shooter in the
Charleston church killings was
able to purchase his gun in this
manner.
Another proposal would
expand the types of relation-
ships that qualify for gun dis-
possession after a domestic
violence conviction, which
would close what is often
called the “boyfriend” or “dat-
ing partner” loophole.
The governor’s proposal
would also prohibit people
convicted of misdemeanor
stalking from buying fi rearms.
“I look forward to work-
ing with the Legislature to fi n-
ish what we started last ses-
sion and close the Charleston
and boyfriend loopholes for
good,” Brown said in a writ-
ten statement . “These poli-
cies will keep guns out of the
wrong hands and help keep
our promise to families across
the state to keep our communi-
ties safe.”
Brown, a Democrat, is run-
ning for reelection in 2018.
State House Majority
Leader Jennifer Williamson,
D-Portland, indicated her sup-
port for the governor’s propos-
als Friday.
“For the safety of every
Oregonian, it is vital that we
ensure guns do not end up in
the hands of individuals who
would do harm to themselves
or others,” Williamson said in
a statement. “I look forward
to working with Gov. Brown
in the coming months to close
Pamplin Media Group
Gov. Kate Brown on Friday
renewed calls for the Leg-
islature to pass gun control
measures .
the Charleston and boyfriend
loopholes.”
A spokesman for William-
son said she was unavailable
to comment Friday on the via-
bility of the legislation in the
upcoming short session, or
why it failed this year .
A spokesman for Sen-
ate President Peter Courtney,
D-Salem, did not respond to
requests seeking comment
about why the legislation did
not pass this year .
State Sen. Ginny Burdick,
D-Portland, a leading advocate
for gun control, was unavail-
able for comment Friday after-
noon, a spokesman said.
Burdick told Oregon Pub-
lic Broadcasting on Friday
that “we should be aiming for
bills that have broad bipartisan
support,” but that she would
vote for the proposals if they
reached the Senate fl oor.
Penny Okamoto, execu-
tive director of Ceasefi re Ore-
gon, a group that advocates for
stricter standards for gun own-
ership and gun safety, said it
wasn’t clear to her why the
legislation did not pass this
year .
“I could not tell you why
a Democratic governor’s pri-
ority could not get through a
Democratic House and a Dem-
ocratic Senate,” Okamoto said
Friday. Democrats hold the
majority in both chambers.
In this year’s session,
which concluded in July, law-
makers passed a bill that cre-
ated a process for temporar-
ily taking fi rearms away from
people who were at risk of
committing suicide.
Despite passing both
chambers, it was not without
objection.
Two Republican lawmak-
ers sought to refer the leg-
islation to the ballot, but
announced Thursday they had
not gathered suffi cient signa-
tures in time for the deadline.
Brown’s main challenger,
s tate Rep. Knute Buehler,
R-Bend, was quoted in The
Bulletin last week saying that
“deranged madmen won’t be
deterred by another new law
no matter how well-intended.”
The Capital Bureau is a
collaboration between EO
Media Group and Pamplin
Media Group.
Tensions ramped up in Gearhart over vacation rental vote
ton and Trump election there
were all kinds of signs taken.
Do you know how I handle it?
I tell them, ‘Sorry, you got your
political signs stolen, just go
get another sign and put it up.’”
Accusations of
sign stealing
By R.J. MARX
The Daily Astorian
GEARHART — When she
went to bed at midnight, Betty
Smith said a campaign sign on
her lawn opposing the repeal of
a vacation rental ordinance was
in place. By Saturday morning,
it was gone, along with about
15 other signs from homes on
Cottage and Marion avenues.
The signs advocated a “no”
vote to Measure 4-188, which
asks for a repeal and replace-
ment of Gearhart’s short-term
rental ordinance.
The missing signs were
fi rst reported Saturday after-
noon, Police Chief Jeff Bow-
man said.
“It’s theft of property, no
matter how you want to slice
it,” said Smith, a former adver-
tising director for The Daily
Astorian, who lives on Cottage
Avenue . “This was on our pri-
vate property. … These signs
cost money.”
She said the thefts took
place “probably between mid-
night and 6 a.m.”
“It’s not the fi rst time,”
Smith said. “When you lose
10 in one night, there’s clearly
something going on.”
“We had the owner’s per-
mission for every location,”
Cottage Avenue resident
Jeanne Mark said . “We were
painstaking about that.”
Along with seeking return
of the signs, Mark, Smith and
others said they also plan to fi le
reports with Gearhart Police.
“These signs cost money
and theft is a serious charge,”
Mayor Matt Brown said .
Sign stealing is a familiar
accusation in political cam-
paigns — from the presiden-
tial election down to the City
Council — and culprits are
rarely caught.
Bowman said residents may
not have much recourse. The
city does not take crime reports
the short-term rental regula-
tion debate may incite anger or
retribution.
“I walked down the Ridge
Path and saw signs that said
‘Save Gearhart, vote no,’” res-
ident Shannon Smith said at
Wednesday’s City Council
meeting.
“There are business folks
in town who have spoken up
in favor of this and they have
been retaliated against — the
big ‘R’ word — or they’ve
been called names like ‘selfi sh
and greedy,’” she said. “I don’t
think anyone who wants their
rights is selfi sh. We have to
fi nd a way to talk about it and
make our community come
together again.”
Retribution feared
Submitted P hoto
Campaign signs vanished
from homes along Cottage
and Marion avenues in
Gearhart this weekend.
on stolen or vandalized cam-
paign signs.
“That’s just the way it is
throughout the county,” Bow-
man said. “During the Clin-
While Gearhart has been
dotted with signs opposed to
the ballot measure, signs in
support are absent.
“We’re not putting up
signs,” measure advocate
David Townsend said last
week.
Some proponents of the
m easure fear the heightened
political tensions surrounding
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