Utah's second biggest city has joined the biggest in enacting a controversial gun-control ordinance aimed at curbing gang activity.
The City Council voted unanimously Thursday night in favor of an ordinance that prohibits the possession of a firearm by anyone younger than age 18 - with some exceptions - and imposes a five-day waiting period on the purchase of firearms by anyone younger than 25.West Valley City Attorney Paul Morris said that while the ordinance is the same as Salt Lake City's in substance, it differs from it in style and language.
"We had the benefit of acting after the special legislative session, so we incorporated some of the new language," Morris said, referring to anti-gang bills passed by the Utah Legislature last week.
However, because those bills did not include a waiting period - and existing state law prohibits local governments from enacting rules that conflict with state provisions - West Valley City and Salt Lake City both are braced for legal challenges that could strike down their ordinances.
West Valley City Councilman Duane Moss said the council realized that the ordinance was vulnerable, "but we'll just wait and see." The action was necessary, he said, because "we felt we had to start somewhere to deal with this problem."
Titled the "West Valley City Anti-Gang Firearm Ordinance," the measure was debated during a public hearing Oct. 7, with a number of critics arguing that the waiting period would be ineffective as well as illegal. Those arguments were repeated Friday in the wake of the council action.
"Basically, most of the ordinance is already covered by state and federal laws, so the only new thing is the waiting period, and that won't stand up in court," said West Valley gunshop owner David Nell.
And even if it did, the waiting provision wouldn't accomplish anything, according to Nell. He said that of the 11,000 guns his shop has sold during the past nine years, only one to his knowledge has been used in a crime. Contrary to claims by ordinance proponents, most criminals buy their guns from illegal sources or steal them, Nell said.
"One gang member said at the Legislature that he could buy a gun on a street corner in less than 30 minutes," Nell said. "The waiting period won't affect anyone except the honest citizen."
He said federal law already prohibits the sale of guns to anyone younger than 18, and gang members between the ages of 18 and 25 will still be able to buy guns unless they have been convicted of a felony.
The council's vote was more of an anti-gang message than an anti-gang measure, Nell said. "What they did is send out a message that they're trying to do something. It was purely cosmetic."
The ordinance allows minors to possess a firearm if they have the permission of a parent or guardian, for hunting or at a licensed firing range. It prohibits parents or guardians from knowingly providing a firearm to any minor who has been convicted of a violent crime. Parents who violate the clause could be prosecuted for a criminal misdemeanor offense.