[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 79 (Tuesday, June 21, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    THE FAIRCHILD HOSPITAL SHOOTING

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I stand before the Senate today with a 
very sad message.
  Last night the State of Washington and the community of Spokane were 
rocked by the impact of violence. A young, recently discharged 
serviceman entered Fairchild Air Force Base Hospital and opened fire 
with an AK-47.
  Today there are 4 people dead and 22 wounded.
  Many are critically wounded, and two of the injured are children. I 
am deeply shocked and saddened by this horrible incident, and my heart 
and prayers go out to the families and friends of the innocent victims.
  The gun used in this senseless attack was an AK-47 assault rifle.
  AK-47 rifles are legal in this country. It is legal to manufacture 
replicas, and sell AK-47 assault weapons here in the United States.
  An AK-47 rifle was used in the 1989 Stockton, CA, shootings where 
innocent children were gunned down on a playground.
  An AK-47 was used later that same year in shootings at a Louisville, 
KY, printing plant.
  An AK-47 weapon also was used in the January 1993 CIA shootings in 
Langley, VA.
  The fully automatic AK-47 has been the weapon of Communist bloc 
countries, such as the Russian Army. It was also the weapon faced by 
United States soldiers in Vietnam.
  As many have said before me, the AK-47 and other military-type 
assault weapons were designed for no other purpose than to kill. They 
are not hunting rifles, or guns designed for any type of sport. They 
were designed to kill.
  If something can come out of what happened in Spokane last night, my 
hope is that Congress will come to agreement on the assault weapon ban 
language in the crime bill--which the House and Senate are now 
considering in a conference committee. The AK-47 is on the list of 
weapons that would be banned in the bill.
  Mr. President, the gunman in Spokane was only 20 years old. In many 
States it is legal for him to buy so-called long guns such as the AK-47 
even at the age of 18. However, he would not have been able to buy a 
handgun until he turned 21.
  It was also a young man under 21, who shot and killed a young high 
school student in Seattle, WA, 3 months ago with a different assault 
weapon. It is also on the list of guns that would be banned by the 
proposal pending before the conference committee.
  It is amazing and appalling to me that a young person under 21 years 
of age cannot buy a handgun, but--under current law--can purchase an 
AK-47 and other so-called long guns at the local gun store.
  There is no waiting period on long guns in many States. So even if 
the gunman had purchased the gun recently, he would not have been 
subject to a background check. The Brady bill--which was recently 
signed into law--only covers handgun purchases. It, unfortunately, does 
not cover guns such as the AK-47, which is not a handgun.
  It is also amazing to me that Congress has been sitting on assault 
weapon ban legislation since at least 1989, which is the same year as 
the Stockton, CA, schoolyard murders. That was over 5 years ago, and 
still nothing has become law.
  It is shocking to me that a young man could actually have access to 
an AK-47 assault rifle and use it in such a devastating and senseless 
crime. This terrible tragedy seems to me to underscore the importance 
of banning assault weapons in this country.
  What happened in Spokane last night is not an isolated incident. We 
keep hearing stories about someone opening fire with an assault rifle 
and people being killed. How many more people have to die before we 
realize how destructive and totally unnecessary these weapons are and 
ban them from this country?
  It is past time to pass a ban on assault weapons. If it saves even 
one innocent life, then--in my mind--it is well worth the law. And 
finally, it is time for us to ask the question, ``Why has our Nation 
endured such a record of violence?'' Until we answer that question 
openly and honestly as a society, we will continue to be shocked and 
saddened by tragedies such as what occurred in my home State last 
night.
  I yield the floor.

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