Bill Named For Teen Killed In Road Rage Incident Would Ban Loaded Guns In Cars
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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Should loaded guns be banned in cars? One Pennsylvania lawmaker thinks that would prevent fatal road rage incidents.
She has introduced a bill named after a teen who was killed in a road rage case.
"I would not want to see another parent have to deal with the awful pain that I deal with every waking moment of the day," Michelle Roberson said. "My daughter was 18 years old, had her whole life ahead of her, just graduated a week and a half before this tragedy took place."
Roberson's daughter, Bianca, was shot and killed in a road rage incident in Chester County in June of 2017.
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"Please, make it justice for Bianca. To me, that's the only justice she will have," Roberson said.
She's advocating for justice in the form of a change to state firearm laws, a bill named after Bianca introduced by Rep. Carolyn Comitta.
"House Bill 2669 is common sense legislation that can help protect Pennsylvania drivers from road rage by prohibiting individuals from carrying firearms, loaded firearms, in a vehicle," Comitta said.
In Pennsylvania, it's already illegal to carry a loaded firearm in a vehicle if you don't have a valid concealed carry permit.
If House Bill 2669 were to ever become law, the people most affected would be law-abiding citizens who have concealed carry permits.
"The problem is we would be affecting 1.17 million Pennsylvanians who carry a firearm to protect themselves every day," Kim Stolfer, co-founder of Firearms Owners Against Crime, said. "And we're going to be advancing a narrative that every time somebody does something bad, then we're going to have to take and curtail the rights of the law-abiding citizens."
The retired Marine says his heart breaks for Bianca Roberson's family and says unconscionable crimes should not be used to advance a political agenda.
"I think what we're seeing on a national scale play out as far as a lack of civility in society has translated into advantages for political opportunists to take advantage of tragedies," Stolfer said.
"The proposed bill is my way as a legislator to help create peace and change from a senseless tragedy and to make sure it never happens again," Comitta said.
"What she's trying to do now will get more people harmed," Stolfer said.
The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee. So far, no action has been taken.
