Youngkin Signs Bill Filed After Shooting Death of Henrico Teen, Vetoes 30 Others Related to Guns

Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin handed down several vetoes, amendments and signatures on a number of gun and public safety bills the Democratic-controlled legislature pushed for this session.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks during a press conference near the end of the 2024 legislative session. (Charlie Paullin/Virginia Mercury)

Among the measures Youngkin signed into law are ones that would create a felony charge for parents or guardians who allow a child under 18 to access a firearm despite knowing the child has a history of violent or threatening behavior.

The other bills Youngkin signed make it illegal to make and use auto sears, small plastic or metal devices that convert firearms into automatic weapons by enabling them to empty an entire clip with one trigger pull.

Virginia lawmakers send more than 30 gun bills to skeptical governor

Youngkin, in a statement, said those bills were “commonsense reforms with significant bipartisan support from the General Assembly,” and noted that they will “make it harder for criminals to use guns in the commission of a violent act.” Youngkin also reiterated his commitment to protect “the right of law-abiding Virginias to keep and bear arms.”

The legislation creating the felony charge for parents came from Del. Rodney Willet, D-Henrico, and Sen. Schuyler T. VanValkenburg, D-Richmond, who introduced the bills after 13-year-old Lucia Bremer of Henrico County was shot to death on her walk home allegedly by a fellow student who had access to his guardian’s firearm.

“Lucia was a bright light in the Henrico community,” VanValkenburg said in a statement. “This new law, named in her honor, represents a monumental bipartisan victory, further underscoring the Commonwealth’s commitment to keeping Virginia’s children safe in their communities and classrooms.”

In response to the bills’ signing, Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor, who testified in support of the bill, said in a statement, “no adolescent, no child should have unsupervised access to a weapon, especially when they have already exhibited warning signs.”

On the law banning auto sears, Del. Mike Jones, D-Richmond, who carried the legislation, said in a statement the measure “is a critically important step in our ongoing efforts to prevent senseless tragedies.”

“These devices are exacerbating the already acute gun violent crisis communities like mine are facing,” Jones said.

Youngkin also issued several proposed changes to bills.  One would specify a ban on firearms in public or private hospitals to prevent them from winding up in the hands of people receiving mental health treatment at hospitals. Another would add federal definitions of serial numbers to a bill that creates a penalty for “knowingly” possessing a gun with a scratched off serial number.

Other amendments would create a knowledge standard for making, selling, importing or possessing  “ghost guns,” which can be created at home with 3D printers, and establish a mandatory minimum sentence for using them while committing  a felony. Another would reframe a bill to set up a workgroup that would create a list of parental rights and responsibilities of safely storing guns in the home.

Youngkin vetoed 30 bills, including ones to restrict assault weapons access, impose waiting periods to receive a gun after purchasing one, expand the definition of people convicted of domestic abuse who are prevented from having a gun to include intimate partners, ban guns in more public places and conduct a study on the effects of gun violence.

Other proposals Youngkin vetoed included measures that would make it possible to sue the gun industry, and another that would prevent home-based gun dealers from being located within one and a half miles of elementary and middle schools. Bills that also met Youngkin’s veto pen included one that mandated a waiting period before purchasing firearms, another that outlined safe storage standards for firearms in homes where a minor is present, another that would prevent people from leaving visible firearms in vehicles, as well as a measure that would create program to train law enforcement agencies statewide on the appropriate use of the state’s substantial risk order law, better known as red flag laws, which allow guns to be seized from people who may put themselves or others in danger. Proponents say red flag laws can help prevent violence, especially mass shootings, while opponents counter that they may enable guns to be seized from people who haven’t been charged with a crime.

Senate Minority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, who carried the proposal to clarify when red flag laws can be used, took to the social media platform X to criticize Youngkin’s actions.

“Public safety is about more than mandatory minimums & locking people up longer,” Surovell posted.

The legislature is scheduled to reconvene on April 17 to take action on Youngkin’s amendments and to review his vetoes.

by Charlie Paullin, Virginia Mercury

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