ACTION IN N.S.W.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXX, Issue 4871, 16 July 1936, Page 2

ACTION IN N.S.W.

CONTROL OF FIREARMS. BILL TO ASSIST POLICE. The growth of crimes of violence in New South Wales, and especially the increased use of firearms in committing them, have stirred the State Government to make the path of the transgressor harder and that of the police easier. Senior police officers have been pressing for the revision of the law for more than five years. During that time the police have been almost powerless to correct many extraordinary anomalies. Revolvers and pistols have been manufactured abroad specially to defeat the provisions of the New South Wales law, and known criminals have carried about weapons of which they could not legally be deprived. It is now hoped that, if the public gives assistance, the most dangerous of all criminals—the "gunmen" carrying.a concealable firearm —will find it more and more difficult, and eventually impossible to obtain weapons. Under the present law, a "concealable" pistol or revolver has a barrel not more than nine inches long. Before action was taken by the Commonwealth Government recently, it was possible to import from abroad, with very little supervision, weapons with barrels nine and a half inches long, or longer, which could be concealed without difficulty. Long barrels could also be sawn off to leave a compact but still highly effective weapon. Under the Customs Act, the importation of revolvers and pistols and their parts is now possible only under special license. The State's amending Bill, which will regulate the sale, use and possession of firearms, gives a new definition of concealable weapons which will permit the police to take drastic action where now they can do little. The legislation will give to the police a powerful new weapon in dealing with the dangerous criminals. In the opinion of some police officers, however, the Bill still has some dangerous loopholes. They believe that all firearms, no matter what their size, should be registered. It is known that in the past, some of the worst criminals in the State have rarely travelled without a rifle. It is also considered that there should be a check of some sort on ammunition which is now sold freely. The system of issuing licenses to householders and others with legitimate claims to weapons is already strictly supervised, but some police consider that the law in this respect is still not strong enough.