When Gov. Parris N. Glendening first planned to require that only high-tech, personalized handguns be sold in Maryland, he didn't have to look far to find advice. Central to crafting the governor's proposal was a mild-mannered lawyer and policy expert in Baltimore. Stephen Teret, who runs the Center for Gun Policy and Research at Johns Hopkins University, had plenty of ideas, and key to them all was his guiding philosophy: Not everyone will handle a gun safely, so it's... (GunPolicy.org)

WASHINGTON — Fearing that Americans' gun rights hinge on the November elections, the National Rifle Assn. has donated more than $ 550,000 to Republican Party committees, putting it for the first time among the GOP's top five givers of unregulated "soft money." Traditionally, the NRA's political strategy has emphasized weighing in on individual congressional candidates who will stand strong against gun control. But with the House of Representatives up for grabs this... (GunPolicy.org)

The state government may take international legal action to force the powerful United States gun lobby to axe an advertising campaign it claims has wrongfully damaged South Australia's reputation. Attorney-General Trevor Griffin said yesterday he had written to the US Federal Trade Commission calling for a ban on the National Rifle Association publishing its "outrageous claims" that Australian law reform had led to spiralling crime rates in South Australia. "At this... (GunPolicy.org)

The laws are stricter than those sought by federal government Massachusetts and Maryland have become the first American states to impose strict controls on handguns. The new regulations, which include a requirement for childproof locks, go well beyond measures sought by the US federal government. Massachusetts decided on Monday that handguns will now be subject to consumer product safety laws, like toy guns and teddy bears. The regulations, which survived court... (GunPolicy.org)

Last year, after watching footage of a shooting in a California kindergarten, Donna Rees-Thomases applied for a permit to march on the mall in Washington DC on May 14 2000 — US Mother's Day. The idea was to mobilise American mothers against lax gun laws. With just one answering machine in New Jersey and two grandmothers taking messages, the Million Mom March was born. Today Rees-Thomases has offices in Washington DC and branches all over the US, powered solely by... (GunPolicy.org)

Four South Yorkshire Police officers are to be prosecuted over their role in alleged widespread fraud in the gun compensation scheme which followed the Dunblane massacre. They will be joined by one civilian member of staff, two gun dealers and one other person, but last night the Yorkshre Post learned that the man in charge of South Yorkshire's compensation scheme will not face any criminal or disciplinary charges. Supt Grahame Chambers, who has since retired, has been... (GunPolicy.org)

HARTFORD, Connecticut — Prosecutors in at least six states are investigating whether the gun industry is illegally trying to punish Smith & Wesson for agreeing to make its weapons more childproof. More than 20 subpoenas have been issued for firearms manufacturers, distributors and others, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Wednesday. The federal government is also looking at the issue, he said. A call to the Justice Department was not immediately... (GunPolicy.org)

WASHINGTON — Patti Nielson figures that if anyone can persuade Congress to pass a stalled gun control bill, it's a teacher who was shot at Columbine High School last year. Nielson, who was grazed by a bullet fired by Eric Harris, a student at the Littleton, Colo., school, came to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to plead the case for the gun control measure. "Maybe because I was shot at Columbine, maybe they'll understand it's coming from my heart," Nielson said after a... (GunPolicy.org)

TALLAHASSEE — The nation's biggest gun maker has agreed to put child-proof locks on weapons and two states are rushing to pass trigger-lock laws, but similar proposals have been quietly buried again in the Florida Legislature-long a safe haven for the gun lobby. Even legislation that would outlaw guns in hospitals-inspired by a pair of shootings in Miami-Dade County-was defeated by a House committee loyal to the National Rifle Association. With the 2000 session... (GunPolicy.org)