A state Senate committee unexpectedly killed a bill to close Virginia’s “gun-show loophole” Wednesday, dashing hopes for the measure in the newly Democrat-led chamber.
The legislation, which would have prevented unlicensed sellers from skipping most criminal background checks at the shows, served an essentially symbolic purpose after a key House panel killed a similar bill Friday.
Critics last week quickly accused the Republican-controlled House Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee of being tone deaf to one of the biggest proposed reforms in the wake of the April 16 Virginia Tech massacre.
But the 6-9 vote in the Senate Courts of Justice Committee complicates the dispute beyond a simple party-line spat. Two rural Democrats, Roscoe Reynolds of Martinsville and John Edwards of Roanoke, broke ranks to oppose the bill.
Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Charlottesville, unsuccessfully sought a compromise that would have reined in the legislation’s scope, proposing an amendment to exempt buyers of antique guns or those with concealed-weapon permits from the background check. The amendment also would have confined the bill’s effect to only the gun shows’ leased premises.
“I thought I had a concept and agreement among the parties,” Deeds said. “The problem came with putting it into language and working in the details.”
After killing the amended version because of complications in its language, the committee voted 14-1 to send the bill to the Virginia Crime Commission, with a dissenting vote from its patron, Sen. Henry Marsh, D-Richmond.
Opponents of the regulation dispute even its name, arguing the term “loophole” is misleading because a private seller without a federal license can sell a firearm at venues such as yard sales. They also dispute its relevance to the Virginia Tech tragedy, because shooter Seung-Hui Cho did not buy either of the guns he used to kill 32 students and faculty at a gun show.
Sheena Jeffers contributed to this report.
