Question: Would you like to see any changes made to Rhode Island’s gun laws?

District 32, Senate

Pam Lauria (D) — “As a Moms Demand Action volunteer, I have strenuously advocated for important gun-violence prevention laws in RI. We have more work to do. We must pass a safe storage law and assault weapons ban. Children shouldn’t have access to guns and weapons of war do not belong on our streets.”

Rhonda Holmes (R) — “Yes, we need to stiffen the penalties for violent offenders. I’m normally not supportive of mandatory minimums, but if you are repeatedly committing a crime with a firearm, you need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. RI has become very lax in this area.”

District 66, House

Sam Read (I) — “I support further common-sense gun legislation for our state. In light of the most recent changes to gun laws in the state, we now need to focus on school safety as well as increased mental health resources.”

Jennifer Boylan (D) — “I spent 10 years visiting the state house to advocate for better gun laws with Moms Demand Action. We should require that firearms be securely stored when not in possession of their owner. We should ban assault weapons which are common in mass shootings and make shootings more lethal.”

District 67, House

Jason Knight (D) — “Yes. We have done good work over the last few years to curb gun violence including enacting a red flag law, preventing domestic abusers from possessing firearms, banning ghost guns, and passing a ban on high capacity magazines. We can build on that legacy with a law banning assault weapons.”

Scott Fuller (R) — “RI has among the strictest gun laws in America. However, firearms crimes are dismissed at high rates with perpetrators quickly back onto the streets. Criminals don’t respect laws that aren’t enforced. We need more stringent prosecution — and fewer connected criminal defense lawyers — before we can judge current laws’ effectiveness.”