Transcripts

SPEAKER: One of the things going on at the Capitol today, the Senate Crime Prevention Committee is talking about its Omnibus Crime Bill. And there's a debate that's developing at the Capitol as well over gun control. Two major provisions are part of the gun control debate, at least two. One would allow cities in the Metropolitan area to enact stricter gun control ordinances than the rest of the state, and others would require people buying a semiautomatic military assault weapon to submit to a background check and a waiting period. Joining us now from the Capitol is Chief Deputy Attorney General Jack Tunheim. Good morning, sir.

JACK TUNHEIM: Good morning.

SPEAKER: Glad you could join us. Are those, so far as you can tell, are either or both of those provisions ultimately going to become law?

JACK TUNHEIM: Well, I think both of them have the best chance in this session than any session we've seen in quite a while. There is momentum developing, particularly on the local municipality limited repeal bill. I think we're going to see some form of that.

SPEAKER: Now, I'm a little confused, frankly. It was my understanding that over the weekend, the local option portion was defeated in at least one of the committees. But that instead of that, there was a provision passed which would prohibit people from carrying guns anywhere in the state of Minnesota, which effectively would broaden the law. Is that right?

JACK TUNHEIM: Well, there-- as with a lot of these bills at this stage of the session, there's a lot of different kind of action going on. I expect that what the final version will look like is some form of limited repeal of the law that restricts municipalities from enacting stricter gun control laws, but it's going to be limited. That's where the battle is going to be. It's going to be significantly limited. So it's not going to be a broad any kind of local gun control ordinance that can be passed.

SPEAKER: Is there any evidence, concrete evidence, that gun control laws actually reduce crime?

JACK TUNHEIM: Well, both sides in this battle can point to evidence that they indicate supports their position. I think it's natural, though, that if guns are restricted in some way, shape, or form, that's going to deter use of weapons in criminal activity, particularly when you're looking at the military type assault weapons. Banning their use, their transfer, their individuals' ability to have those weapons, I think would have a major effect.

SPEAKER: Mm-hmm. But if somebody commits a crime with any gun, including those assault weapons right now, most often, they at least face the possibility of a tougher sentence, don't they?

JACK TUNHEIM: Well, they certainly do. But I think the effort is on to try to restrict those weapons as much as absolutely possible to deter their use as much as possible. And trying to get at it from a number of different angles is really the goal of proponents of that legislation.