Bill Would Ban Sale And Possession Of Gun Silencers

WASHINGTON, D.C. –

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), a founding member of the Senate Gun Violence Prevention Caucus, and Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.-12) reintroduced the Help Empower

Americans to Respond (HEAR) Act – bicameral federal gun safety legislation to ban the importation, sale, manufacturing, transfer and possession of gun silencers or suppressors.

“Gun silencers are devices designed for a very specific purpose – to suppress the sound of gunfire from unsuspecting victims and reduce the chances they can run, hide, take cover, and call the police during an active shooter situation,” said Sen. Menendez. “It is well past time that we pass the HEAR Act, legislation that would prevent armed assailants from using deadly devices that only make incidents of gun violence all the more dangerous.”

“Silencers are not tools of self-defense, they are tools of murder. They have no legal application, which is why law enforcement officials around the country have called for their elimination,” said Rep. Watson Coleman. “The HEAR Act will save lives and is part of the common sense approach to firearms legislation that has widespread support among voters on both sides of the aisle.”

Sen. Menendez first introduced the HEAR Act in 2019 following the deadly Virginia Beach mass shooting, in which a gunman attached a suppressor to a .45-caliber handgun before opening fire in a local government office building where he killed 12 people and injured four more.

In addition to prohibiting gun silencers, the HEAR Act would:

• Authorize a buyback program for silencers using Byrne JAG grants;

• Provide individuals with a 90-day grace period after the date of enactment for individuals to comply with the ban;

• Provide limited exceptions for certain current and former law enforcement personnel, for certain Atomic Energy personnel and purpose, and for certain authorized testing or experimentation.

Violence Policy Center, Newtown Action Alliance, March For Our Lives, and Everytown support the bill.

“The Violence Policy Center applauds the introduction of the HEAR Act to ban silencers. Silencers are military-bred accessories that make it easier for criminals to take innocent lives and threaten law enforcement,” said Kristen Rand, States Government Affairs Director. “Manufacturers brag that silencers can make guns ‘whisper quiet’ while increasing shooters’ accuracy and ability to fire rounds more quickly. These characteristics only make silencers more attractive to mass shooters and terrorists. The Violence Policy Center documented the dangers of silencers in our 2019 study, Silencers: A Threat to Public Safety.”

“Common-sense regulations on fi rearm silencers and mufflers is a simple, straightforward step in encouraging responsible gun ownership,” said Elena Perez, Senior Policy Associate at March For Our Lives. “These devices drastically reduce the noise of shots fired, making it challenging to identify where the gunfire is coming from, a potentially fatal mistake in mass shootings. With gun violence increasing in severity across the country, why make already deadly weapons even deadlier?”

A gun silencer, which is also known as a suppressor, is attached to the barrel of a firearm in order to “limit the sound, muzzle

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Games:

Continued From Page 1 improves gameplay and it has many silly and diverse characters and an interesting story.”

“I take a lot of inspiration from Portal 2, by Valve. It provides the player an interesting look into how to solve problems,” student Landon Fitts said.

For student Isaac Panora it was “Super Mario Maker because I used to play it a lot as a kid and learned a lot about level design just from this game alone.”

“I’ve been playing video games for a long while now, and I’ve played a lot of great games. I can’t choose just one. I do add some references to these games in my own games, at times,” Dylan Maikisch said.

Student Anthony Sanabia said his favorite video game was “Destiny 1 due to the game design and art style that grabbed my attention and left me addicted.”

“My favorite game of all time is Prime Fortnite. There is nothing that could make that time in the game better, it was the perfect game,” student Tylar Wojcik noted.

As to what they enjoy about game design work Borrayo said “I especially enjoy coding the game itself because I see it as a good challenge.”

“I like the freedom of creating whatever I want,” Fitts answered.

As to where they start in the game design process the class had varied answers.

“I start my process brainstorming ideas for my characters or enemies – my vision of what those main characters will be. Then, I start designing an animated sprite of my main character,” Maikisch said.

Panora said, “when coming up with a new game, I usually imagine a player character, imagine a setting for the game, and come up with ways this can become a game. Most of my games really do originate from just my pure imagination.”

One student incorporated her pet skunk

Government:

Continued From Page 10 flash and kickback” of a gun. Silencers pose a great danger to law enforcement officers and the public since they make it more difficult to detect the location of an active shooter. They diminish the effectiveness of gunshot detection technology deployed in many municipalities that rely on audio sensors to record the sound, time and location of loud noises.

Gun silencers have been used in gun violence related incidents over the last decade:

• In Monterey Park, California, on January 21, 2023, an armed assailant with a semi-automatic weapon modified with a homemade suppressor killed 11 people and injured nine others.

• In Virginia Beach, Virginia, on May 31, 2019, a gunman armed with a .45-caliber handgun fitted with a suppressor killed 12 people in a government building. One individual who survived the shooting reported hearing what sounded like a nail gun.

• In Jacksonville, Florida, in December 2017, police arrested a man for planning to “shoot up” an Islamic Center. He was charged with possessing a silencer not registered to him that

Buckwheat into her game. Another student, a musician, was finalizing the musical component for his game.

“I aspire to engage students of all backgrounds and interests, to broaden students’ perspective about how programming and technology are relevant to self -expression and problem-solving. We need our students to be involved in technology, and to play an active role in shaping the future,” their teacher, Laurie Grote told The Manchester Times

She added, “For this competition, students assumed the role of a video game designer. Their task was to come up with an idea for a new video game. They worked to develop the theme of the game, its rules, and the mood and style of the game.”

“They designed the user interface, composed music and sound effects, and produced game art,” Grote added. “There’s no question – students are interested in video games. Games inspire their work.”

“I left my career in New York City to work as an instructional assistant and coach at MTHS, in 2004. The following year, I began teaching visual arts at Keansburg High School,” she said.

Grote crafted a type of visual arts curricula that wasn’t present in that district – Interactive Multimedia and she was awarded the NJ Governor’s Teacher Recognition Award for reinvigorating Keansburg High School’s art department – introducing its students to cutting edge technologies and career options in multimedia and technical design.

She explained, “(Manchester’s) program of studies is designed to assist students in the development of video games. Students learn to think like a game designer, determine how different types of professional games are structured, and learn principles and strategies for designing their own games.”

Grote said, “partway through the process, students shared their projects for peer review and incorporated user feedback before publishing their game.” he purchased from an undercover detective.

• In southern California, in February 2013, a former Los Angeles police officer killed four people, and wounded three others over the course of nine days. As police investigated, they wondered why nearby residents were not reporting the shots. It turned out that, in an effort to conceal his murders, the shooter was using a silencer, which distorts the sound of gunfire and masks the muzzle flash of a gun.

• In Toledo, Ohio, in January 2011, a man fatally shot his coworker as he sat eating his breakfast in his office. No one at the office heard the gunshot and the victim’s co-workers originally assumed he had died of a heart attack. Police later surmised that the killer had used a silencer.

Gun silencers are among the fastest-growing segments of the gun industry. While several states, including New Jersey, outlaw gun silencers, these devices are currently permitted under federal law, but must be registered. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, there are currently over 900,000 silencers registered under the National Firearms Act. A nationwide ban on silencers would ensure the devices are not trafficked into states where bans are in place.