Breaking with some in GOP, Sen. Phillips: Ban “bump stocks”

ALBANY -- Breaking with some Republican colleagues, a Long Island senator is calling for a ban on the sale and possession of “bump stocks,” devices that effectively can turn a semi-automatic weapon into an automatic one.

Sen. Elaine Phillips (R-Flower Hill) also called for tougher background checks on would-be firearm purchasers and a ban on gun ownership by “people who present an imminent threat to themselves and others.” Phillips, a first-term senator in a politically split district, said state lawmakers must act in the wake of the most recent school shooting massacre in Parkland, Fla.

“This is a seminal moment in our nation’s history and we must come together to act,” Phillips said in a statement, noting she is a mother of three daughters.

On Monday, the Republican-led Senate approved a series of “school safety measures” but voted down an attempt by Democrats to amend it by adding a number of gun-control measures – including the ban on bump stocks.

Democrats on Tuesday said Phillips should have joined them a day earlier or the week prior when they tried to force a vote on bump stocks.

“Senator Phillips voted against all these bills twice in the last week. To issue a statement after the fact saying you support these Democratic gun laws is the definition of cowardice,” Democratic spokesman Mike Murphy said in an email.