AUGUSTA (AP) – A Lewiston lawmaker’s gun-control bill that was given up for dead Friday morning was alive again by the end of the day.

Rep. Margaret Craven sought to create a 10-day waiting period for the purchase of a rifle or a shotgun by anyone under 21 years of age. A 12-0 vote Friday morning by the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee to kill the bill appeared to doom the proposal.

But the 13th committee member, House Chairman Stanley Gerzofsky, who wasn’t around for the 12-0 vote, decided to keep the bill alive so it can be debated on the House floor.

The Brunswick Democrat is calling for passage of an amended version of the bill saying that before a firearm is sold to anyone 18 or under, the buyer’s parents or guardian must be notified and give their written consent.

Gerzofsky’s amendment also calls for a study into who owns firearms that are used in suicides in Maine.

“I believe that the court of last resort is the House of Representatives, and every citizen has a right to be heard,” Gerzofsky said.

Craven, a Democrat, sponsored her original bill with the support of Catherine Crowley of Lewiston, whose 18-year-old son killed himself with a newly purchased shotgun in 2004.

State figures list suicide as the second-leading cause of death for Mainers aged 15 to 24.

AP-ES-03-16-07 1614EDT

Copy the Story Link