CeasfirePA continues push for new gun safety measures after shooting at Kansas City Super Bowl parade shooting
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - As we continue to learn more about what happened when multiple people opened fire at the Kansas City Super Bowl parade Wednesday afternoon, Pennsylvania lawmakers are working on new gun safety measures.
Josh Fleitman is the campaign director for CeaseFirePA, the state's gun violence prevention organization.
"Sadly, at this point, what is more American than a mass shooting at a Super Bowl parade?" Fleitman said. "We shouldn't have to make the calculation, should I go enjoy this parade, this sporting event, this festival or should I stay home because I'm afraid of a shooting impacting me and my family?"
It marked the second shooting in a year at a major U.S. sports title celebration. Last June, two people were injured after a parade for the NBA's Denver Nuggets.
Fleitman said two bipartisan bills are sitting in the state senate that could make a big difference, including universal background checks.
"Don't abolish the right to possess a firearm but simply make it harder for people who should not have guns to get them," Fleitman said.
The shooting in Kansas City happened despite the presence of more than 800 police officers.
Compared to Pennsylvania, where you need a permit to carry concealed, in Missouri, you do not, and whether or not there were bag checks, because of this, they could only do so much.
"We are doing better off here in Pennsylvania than Missouri, for sure in terms of the strength of our gun laws, but we can make a lot of progress here," Fleitman said.
The PA State House Judiciary Committee recently passed five gun safety bills that will now go to the full house for a vote. They would likely face an uphill back in the Republican-controlled Senate.