1. Brady Campaign Priority Added to New Massachusetts Governor's Policy Recommendations
2. Brady Campaign's Top Priority in Washington State, Background Checks at Gun Shows, Scheduled for State Senate Hearing
3. Virginia Chapters Work with Statewide Coalition on Annual Lobby Day

Newly-elected Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick's Public Safety Transition Team completed its recommendations to the Governor and the Brady Campaign's top policy priority of stopping large volume handgun sales was included in the recommendations. The report even mentioned the Brady Campaign, and our local allies, the MATH Coalition, by name. Already, legislation to stop large volume sales of handguns has been introduced in both the State House and Senate.

The Washington State Senate has introduced and scheduled a hearing on a bill to require background checks for all gun sales at Washington gun shows! If passed and enacted, SB 5197, would close a dangerous loophole in the state's current gun law that allows criminals, the mentally ill and would-be terrorists to purchase guns at gun shows...no questions asked...no background check!

In Washington each year, more than 560 people are killed with firearms, and many more are injured. Often, access to illegal guns fuels such violence, and buying a gun at a gun show, where a background check is not required for every gun sale, is one way that guns get into the illegal market.

Polling shows that 80% of Washingtonians support requiring background checks at guns shows.

On January 15, our Virginia Million Mom March Chapters, working hand-in-hand with Virginians Against Handgun Violence and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, had a very successful Lobby Day in Richmond to fight for their number one priority: background checks at gun shows.

In addition to meeting with legislators, they held a press conference and received great coverage. One of the featured speakers was Kailey, the 11-year-old daughter of Martina, our Northern Virginia Chapter's communication director. Kailey did a fantastic job, and wasn't at all intimated by the mobs of angry pro-gun people who packed the audience. She is quoted in much of the press coverage; the press was very interested in hearing a child's perspective on the gun issue.

The Virginia State Campaign now moved into full gear, working to get support for their bill, as well as calls and email into the key electeds on the committee that is considering the background check bill.