Tiverton
voters recall town councilors who pushed ‘second amendment sanctuary’
resolution
Tiverton voted to recall Town
Council President Robert Coulter and
Town Council Vice President Justin
Katz in the special recall election on October 10. Nearly 1,600 voters voted “yes” to the recall with only 80 votes cast in favor of Coulter and Katz.
Katz blamed the defeat on the
“statewide machine” of political action committees, including the teachers’
union, that sent out numerous mailers and others who put “bunches of political
talk and lies,” on social media to get people out to vote.
The Rhode
Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV)
is encouraged by the recall results. Coulter and Katz led the introduction last
spring of a resolution declaring Tiverton a “second
amendment sanctuary” town.
With a room packed with out-of-town
folks and residents, the resolution
was defeated 4-3, only to be revised and brought
back at a later date for passage. The resolution directed law enforcement to
enforce gun laws “with discretion.”
The councilors also made it known that they were using their elected positions to “send a message to the State House” regarding their views on gun legislation.
“Second amendment sanctuary”
resolutions are dangerous because they advance the false narrative that
the Second Amendment is at risk,
making law-abiding gun owners feel threatened and contributing to the sort of
hysteria that leads many to vehemently oppose any measure at all that regulates
gun possession, no matter the weapon or the threat to public safety.
“I am satisfied that these
councilors were recalled. The introduction and passage of this resolution was
the last straw for many who had watched them push their political agenda
outside the conventions of town governance. It sowed division in a town already
divided,” said RICAGV supporter and Tiverton resident, Maureen Morrow.
“Furthermore, it contained
incendiary and false language about ‘seized weapons’ stating the town would not
use taxpayer dollars to store weapons. No present or proposed law in Rhode
Island calls for seizing weapons.”
RICAGV looks forward to seeing who
will go on to replace Coulter and Katz in the General election scheduled next
month.
The Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence
is an organization that was created by concerned citizens of Rhode Island. The
organization came to be in 2013 after the Rhode Island General Assembly failed
to pass common sense gun legislation. We recognize gun violence as a public
health issue. Using common sense means and methods, we seek to reduce injuries
and deaths from gun violence. We are dedicated to changing the narrative of
common-sense gun safety legislation.