|
Miami
Outmanned and Outgunned
Miami
officials unite to end street ‘arms race’
By Ben Torter
An iconic symbol of power and death, the AK-47 is coveted by
revolutionaries, terrorists, military dictatorships and
anyone else who wants to kill a lot of people quickly
and without even having to be a good shot. And since
Congress dropped the federal assault weapons ban four
years ago, it’s become the weapon of choice among
Miami-Dade drug gangs.
Miami Commissioner Marc Sarnoff is urging citizens to back his
efforts to once again make these military weapons
illegal.
Even Miami Police Chief John Timoney, whom Sarnoff has criticized
recently for his ethics troubles, seems to have found
common ground with Sarnoff in their aversion to machine
guns.
“Their place is on the battlefield, not in the city of
Miami,” Sarnoff said, as he stood in front of press,
Miami’s
police brass and with the widow and father of slain
Miami police officer James Walker at press conference
Feb. 14.
Walker’s
body was cut apart by a spray of bullets that ripped
through his unmarked police car as he sat in a
North Miami Beach
alley on Jan. 8. The alleged shooter, 20-year-old Andrew
James Rolle, is your typical AK-47 user, according to
Sarnoff. Police believe the gun that killed Walker was
purchased by an 18-year-old who handed it off to a
19-year-old, who put it in the hands of Rolle. Gun shops
all over
South Florida
sell AK-47s or imitations for as little as $300.
“The absurdity is you must be 21 to buy a Glock [handgun],” Timoney
said.
Since the U.S. Congress allowed the assault weapons ban to expire
in 2004, military assault rifles have become a plague on
South Florida streets.
“We began to see in
South Florida
the effect almost immediately,” Timoney said. He
explained that the percentage of assault rifles used in
gun crimes rose from 4 percent in 2004 to about 17
percent in 2007.
Walker
was the second police officer killed by a military-grade
assault rifle in the last year, and the fourth shot.
Miami-Dade police officer Jose Somohano was killed in
September by a MAK-90 fired by Shawn LaBeet; two others
were injured, one with a grapefruit-sized hole blown out
of her knee.
“Very simply, our police are outgunned and outmanned,” Sarnoff
said.
Days before Somohano was killed, Timoney made the decision to allow
his officers to carry assault rifles if they paid for
them out of their own pockets. The department then
purchased 30 AR-15s and has said it will try to supply
one to any officer who takes a special three-day course.
Timoney explained that police will use bullets that
explode on impact to make it less likely that strays
will kill innocent bystanders. He explained that bullets
from assault weapons are so powerful they’ll tear
through concrete walls. Even a car is useless as cover,
unless a person is behind the engine, as bullets can
travel in one door and out the other and still strike
with deadly force.
“Rather than continue this arms race, it’s time for
Washington to step in,” Timoney said.
Sarnoff believes lawmakers might do something if they receive
enough pressure, so he’s posted a form letter asking for
assault rifles to be banned at www.marcsarnoff.com. He’s
counting on the public to sign and forward it to local,
state and national leaders. Names and addresses are
included.
He’s also pushing the Miami City Commission to endorse a resolution
asking local, state and
Washington, D.C., legislators to replace the ban and
enact stricter sentences for crimes committed with
assault weapons.
Seven states currently have bans on assault rifles:
California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey
and New York.
Closer to home, he hopes he can at least ban sales in the city of
Miami.
“It will become Rambo becomes reality if
something isn’t done,” Timoney said.
Comments? E-mail
ben@miamisunpost.com |
