LANSING – As yet another Michigan family prepares to bury a victim of a drive-by shooting, State Representative Brenda Clack (D-Flint) today blasted state Senate leaders for failing to act on her bipartisan plan to crack down on the individuals who so recklessly endanger our communities by committing these crimes.
"No family should have to worry about stray bullets flying around on the street, the playground or even through the windows at home," Clack said. "Yet more than a year after the House passed this plan almost unanimously, the Senate continues to turn away from the needs of our citizens. The senseless deaths must stop. I ask our state leaders in the Senate to honor all the residents of all our communities and act now to pass this plan."
Clack renewed her call for Senate action today, the day after a 19-year-old student was shot and killed on Detroit's west site. Witnesses said the teenager was in a Chevrolet Cavalier with another man when a Ford Focus pulled up with four people inside and someone inside the car starting shooting at the victim. The young man ran out of the car to try to get to safety but was shot at least once and collapsed in a neighbor's yard. That man's house was hit by multiple bullets.
Clack's plan would more than double the penalty for any person who intentionally fires a weapon from a vehicle. The House passed Clack's plan on a vote of 109-1 on March 15, 2007, and it has been languishing in the Senate since then. Currently, such an offense is punishable by no more than four years in prison and a $2,000 fine, regardless of the consequences of the act. Clack's plan increases the penalty to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. If the crime results in serious bodily harm to another person, the penalty increases to 15 years and $15,000.
The latest shooting victim is among the growing list of citizens who will not benefit from the justice that Clack's plan would deliver. Last month, Davario Barrera was found guilty in the drive-by shooting of 14-month-old Stacy Evans Jr. that took place last March in Buena Vista Township. The incident was similar to a drive-by shooting that killed a 5-year-old Flint girl, NiYauna Jones, in July 2006.
State Representative Gabe Leland (D-Detroit) co-sponsored Clack's plan and joined her today in calling on the Senate to pass it immediately. Monday's shooting took place in his district.
"This plan will put more violent criminals behind bars for a longer time and hopefully make others think twice before they start spraying bullets into our neighborhoods," Leland said. "As we work to bring new residents to Detroit and attract new employers so we can create jobs, it's critical that we build safer neighborhoods. The House and the Senate must work together to make our state stronger for everyone, and this plan is a key part of that."