U.S. mayors join together to call on Biden to reduce gun violence
AUSTIN, Texas - Two suspects under the age of 18 remain in jail tonight for Saturday's mass shooting on East Sixth Street that killed one person and injured 13 others.
Mayors from across the country are now calling on President Joe Biden to take further action to reduce gun violence.
The first suspect was arrested Sunday. "I can tell you he is under the age of 17," said Interim Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon.
The second suspect, 17-year-old Killeen ISD high school student Jeremiah Roshaun Leland James Tabb, was arrested on Monday. Chief Chacon confirmed in a press conference Tuesday that both teen suspects are believed to be shooters.
Almost all of the 14 victims are said to be innocent bystanders according to APD. Doug Kantor was shot that night and died at the hospital a day later.
"Doug Kantor was killed at the hand of two juveniles who had guns they should never have had," said Mayor Steve Adler, who joined several other mayors across the country to call on President Biden to take further action in reducing gun violence faced by cities on almost a daily basis.
On Friday night alone, Mayor Nan Whaley of Dayton, Ohio says there were four mass shootings over a period of six hours in Austin; Chicago; Savannah, Ga.; and Cleveland, Ohio.
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"There are limited things that we can do locally to prevent gun violence in this way. However, we're trying to do everything that we can, but so much of what we would like to do with respect to guns, we've been preempted by a state legislature that seems to be concerned about helping to ensure that more people have weapons. That's why the mayors from across the country are stepping up to say we need federal assistance," said Mayor Adler.
Mayor Adler says the push from Washington will further protect citizens from gun violence and guns falling into the wrong hands like in the case of the Sixth Street shooting.
"The first thought I had was how did [the underage suspects] obtain the firearms?" said Steve Ou, sales manager for Guns Warehouse in Cedar Park.
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Ou says there's a rigorous set of guidelines gun stores physically have to hand to each gun owner to make sure guns do not fall into the hands of kids.
"We do have to give them a youth handgun safety act. This is an actual federal pamphlet on what the federal law states is in regards to what you can and can't do. Specifically, if this gun were to fall into the wrong hands, the hands of a juvenile, just someone 18 or younger, under federal law, that's not allowed," he said.
If the investigation reveals someone sold the suspects the guns, that person could also face legal charges.
Ou says it is also not allowed to leave a firearm out and have it accessible to a child. He says under federal law, a gun owner could face charges if a child got a hold of your gun. "You're not allowed to have to give a firearm or the ammunition that went inside the firearm so it's kind of a double whammy on the federal side. The firearm is one charge and the ammunition is another charge."
According to Ou, if the investigation reveals the suspects broke into a house or car to steal the guns, the gun owner would not face charges.