Mayor Supports Bump Stock Ban
East Hampton Village Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr., who has spoken forcefully about the nation’s gun policies in the aftermath of mass shootings, has conveyed his strong support for legislation co-sponsored by Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. that would make so-called “bump stocks” illegal in New York State.
The gunman who killed 58 people and wounded almost 500 at an outdoor music festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1 is believed to have modified his weapons with devices that enable them to fire in rapid succession.
Mr. Thiele announced on Oct. 10 that he would co-sponsor the proposed legislation, introduced by Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy, that would outlaw a trigger crank, a bump-fire device, or any part, combination of parts, component, device, attachment, or accessory that is designed or functions to accelerate the rate of fire of a semiautomatic rifle to approximate the operation of a machine gun.
“As our nation is unfortunately aware, these devices are becoming more readily available to members of the general public for no good reason,” Mayor Rickenbach, a former police officer, wrote to Mr. Thiele last Thursday. “The continued assault on our fellow Americans is tragic and incredibly unsettling. With the help of legislation such as yours, maybe we can work toward a less volatile and dangerous world than we live in.”
The letter followed remarks the mayor delivered at the village board’s Oct. 5 work session. After calling for a moment of silence in honor of the victims, he was somber. “I just don’t know what it’s going to take” for meaningful legislation on firearms, he said. “We’re all citizens of this wonderful country, but as the future is unfolding it seems there is just more and more loss of life with respect to attacks with semiautomatic assault weapons, and also automatic weapons.”
“I would hope that our colleagues in Washington on both sides of the political aisle heed the message with respect to the stock barrel applications that can be made to a semiautomatic rifle to make it fully automatic,” he said. “It defies description.”
To lawmakers who say the aftermath of a mass shooting is not the time to discuss the issue, he asked, “When is the right time?”
These weapons, he said, are only appropriate for law enforcement or the military. “Aside from that, there’s absolutely no application.”
“We’ve got to get our act together,” he said, echoing remarks he has delivered several times in the recent past.