Another prominent member of the nation’s law enforcement community has spoken out for common-sense gun laws.

Col. Gerald Massengill, now retired as a Virginia State Police Superintendent, chaired the Virginia Tech Review Panel that studied the worst mass shooting in modern American history. According to his short bio on the Panel’s Web site, Col. Massengill served the people of Virginia with distinction:

He led the state’s law-enforcement response to the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon in Northern Virginia and the 2002 sniper attacks. Massengill retired in 2003 after 37 years in the Virginia State Police, and came out of retirement in 2005 to serve as interim director of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for 18 months.

On Monday, Col. Massengill made news by saying something that really shouldn’t be controversial at all: “The thought … of people losing their firearms is just something that Americans can’t tolerate and quite honestly shouldn’t. But on the other hand, we cannot allow the proliferation of guns to continue like they’re continuing.â€�

As Chair of the Virginia Tech Review Panel, Col. Massengill saw first-hand the effects of the damage done by a deranged shooter seven months ago. “I guess I’m one of those people who sees the devastation that firearms bring,â€� he said in one report. “There’s got to be reasonable checks and balances out there.â€�

Col. Massengill describes himself as “a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights,� someone who isn’t in favor of gun bans or “of people losing their firearms.� So what are the reasonable checks and balances on responsible gun ownership that he and the Review Panel proposed [pdf document] to help prevent another tragic shooting?

• All states should report information necessary to conduct federal background checks on gun purchases.

• Virginia should require background checks for all firearms sales, including those at gun shows.

• The Virginia General Assembly should adopt legislation in the 2008 session clearly establishing the right of every institution of higher education in the Commonwealth to regulate the possession of firearms on campus if it so desires.

The Brady Campaign is proud to stand with America’s law enforcement representatives like Col. Massengill who call for such basic requirements. None of these recommendations should be controversial. But even now – seven months after the Virginia Tech shooter murdered 32 people with guns he should never have been allowed to buy – the NICS Improvement Act of 2007 still languishes in the U.S. Senate. Why?

This bill will give states incentives to supply records of the dangerously mentally ill to the National Instant Background Check System. Senate leaders from both parties strongly support passage of the bill, including Virginia Sen. John Warner, and New York Sen. Charles Schumer. There is no reason this bill should be stalled another day.

We should urge Congress to make America’s gun laws stronger. The Senate should pass the NICS Improvement Act as soon as possible, and send it to President Bush for his signature.

The Student Pledge Against Gun Violence is simple. It reads:

“I will never bring a gun to school.

“I will never use a gun to settle a personal problem or dispute.

“I will use my influence with my friends to keep them from using guns to settle disputes.

“My individual choices and actions, when multiplied by those of young people throughout the country, will make a difference. Together, by honoring this pledge, we can reverse the violence and grow up in safety.�

In 1996, the United States Senate passed a resolution [pdf document] proclaiming the first Day of National Concern, followed by a Presidential Proclamation by President Bill Clinton. Since then, more than ten million young people have signed on to this pledge.

Ryan Vigil decided to convince as many of his classmates as he could at Highlands High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico to sign it, too.

And then, last Thursday, he was gunned down.

Ryan – a third-baseman for his school’s baseball team – participated in an ill-advised schoolboy prank with some of his friends as they drove around town and tossed golf balls at people. The kids reportedly tossed some at an alleged methamphetamine user, who later found the boys and allegedly shot Ryan in the head.

“[Ryan] always had a smile on his face,” Highlands High School baseball coach Anthony Lovato said. He had an extremely hard work ethic – [he was] a great kid to be around.â€�

Today is the National Day of Concern for 2007, a day when we can all rededicate ourselves to preventing even one more senseless gun death. We can remember Ryan, and remember the pledge that he and many of his classmates believed in and signed.

And we can also simply consider the words of Ryan’s High School Principal, Nikki Dennis, who said, “If you write any headline, he’s an example of the random violence facing our nation.

“Write that he was a good kid, a really good kid.�

What are we going to do about guns in our schools?

Over the last week and a half, there have been numerous reports about school “lockdowns� after a gun threat was detected in the vicinity of a school. A simple search of the words “lockdown� and “school� at news.google.com shows the frightening regularity of these events.

It is chilling how real this threat continues to be nearly six months after the Virginia Tech Massacre – and just over one year since the Amish schoolgirl shootings at Nickel Mines, PA. America is once again experiencing a spate of school-related gun incidents, including assault and murder.

Recent events show that if we choose to do nothing, another tragedy like Virginia Tech could happen tomorrow. Condolences aren’t enough. We must act now to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people.

One solution is the NICS Improvement Act (H.R. 2640) [pdf document], a common-sense bill designed to prevent dangerous individuals like the Virginia Tech shooter from legally buying guns. Supporters of this legislation include the Brady Campaign, strong gun law advocates in Congress like Rep. Carolyn McCarthy and Sen. Charles Schumer, and even the National Rifle Association. The bill has been stalled in the Senate by a single member, Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.

Every concerned American should contact their Senator to get their support to bring this bill to a full vote as soon as possible. Congress must pass strong legislation to ensure that the records of dangerous people who are already prohibited from buying guns actually get into the Brady background check system.

For your information, here are some of the most high-profile examples of school-related gun incidents over the last couple weeks:

• Tennessee State University, September 20th

Police were searching for three men who pulled a gun on a Tennessee State University student inside his dorm. The men walked into the dormitory, knocked on the student’s door, and when the student opened the door and saw that the men had a gun, he tried to close the door as a shot was fired into his room.

• Delaware State University, September 21st

Two students were shot on the campus of Delaware State University. The accused shooter was expelled for violation of the zero-tolerance policy for guns on campus. One of the victims remains in serious condition.

• St. John’s University, September 26th

A mentally ill student wearing a George Bush mask and carrying a .50 caliber rifle was arrested on St. John’s campus in New York. According to state and federal laws, because the rifle was considered a replica of an antique, he did not have to have a background check at the time of purchase. The NYPD test fired the rifle, and confirmed it was fully operational.

• Las Plumas High School (Oroville, CA), September 28

A 17 year old student in a California high school held 30 students at gunpoint with a .22 revolver. Shots were fired but no one was hit. After many hours, a standoff with police ended peacefully.

• University of Mississippi, September 29

Mississippi sprinter Rodney Lydale Lockhart died from one gunshot to the front of his head at his apartment near the Ole Miss campus. Lockhart was a member of the gold medal-winning U.S. 1,600-meter relay team in the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing. His death is being investigated as a homicide.

• Dean Middle School (Houston, TX), September 29

A 12-year-old girl allegedly brought a handgun to school and threatened to kill three teachers and a maintenance worker. No one was hurt, and it is unclear how police took her into custody. The student reportedly faces two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and could be charged as an adult.

• University of Memphis, September 30

A University of Memphis football player was shot and killed on the campus of the University of Memphis. University police said the preliminary investigation indicated that the player was targeted and not the victim of a random act of violence.

Clearly, we have a lot of work to do to end the threat of guns in schools. To help prevent another Virginia Tech, we need to keep asking our elected leaders, and each other, “What will you do to reduce gun violence in America?�

(Note to readers: This entry, along with past entries, has been co-posted on bradycampaign.org/blog and the Huffington Post.)