Rifle in Sniper Attacks May Shape Debate Over Nation's Gun Laws

• Published in: The Wall Street journal. Eastern edition
• Main Author: By Gary Fields and Nicholas Kulish
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, N.Y Dow Jones & Company Inc 25.10.2002
• Edition: Eastern edition
• Subjects: Bans; Enforcement; Firearm laws & regulations; Firearms; Sales; Serial murders; Shootings; United States > US
• ISSN: 0099-9660

Authorities arrested John Allen Muhammad and took into custody a teenage companion, John Lee Malvo, in connection with the shootings that killed 10 people and wounded three. Mr. Muhammad is being questioned in the sniper case while being held on an unrelated gun charge. Authorities seized a Bushmaster XM-15 rifle from the car in which the pair was traveling, and last night said ballistics tests confirmed it was used in at least 10 of the sniper shootings. The Bushmaster, a lookalike to the Army's M-16 rifle, could boost arguments by gun-control advocates that the 1994 federal assault-weapons ban, which restricts several adjustments being made to semiautomatic rifles, needs to be strengthened. The law must be renewed in 2004 when the current ban expires, and these groups could use the sniper attacks to seek stronger gun restrictions. The last ban passed the House by just two votes after months of contentious debate, and banned the production and sale of 19 semiautomatic firearms. The Bushmaster XM-15 appeared on the market after the 1994 assault-rifle ban took effect. Bushmaster is a major rifle maker ranking seventh in the U.S. among 191 firms. Annual sales average $36 million, company Chairman Richard Dyke says, with customers including the military, law-enforcement agencies and the public. It is the primary producer of firearms that resemble the military M-16, says Kristen Rand, legislative director of the Violence Policy Center, which studies the impact of gun violence.