Mayor wants gun-offender registry, changes in punishment

By Alex Doniach
Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton, in a push to increase public safety, has called for a statewide gun-offender registry and tougher penalties for people who carry handguns without permits.

In his annual State of the County address to the Rotary Club on Tuesday, Wharton unveiled a flurry of ideas to reduce violent gun crimes, including state legislation that would make it a felony instead of a misdemeanor for first-time offenders who illegally carry guns.

"The illegal use of carrying guns under our present laws has been minimized," he said. "It ought to be a felony. It ought to be serious."

During the luncheon at the Memphis University Club, Wharton spoke optimistically of the county's overall health despite a crippling national recession, saying the county's debt was trending down and bond ratings remained strong.

But he called the county's crime problem the "monster in the room" and the "ice on the wings of our flight to success."

He advocated changes to the state constitution that would allow pretrial detention in state courts. He also pushed for a gun-offender registry, much like the sex-offender registry, which would heighten community awareness of known offenders.

Days after a Cordova man was accused of killing another man during an argument over how close their SUVs were parked, Wharton said he will also push for more collaboration with the local health department to treat rampant violence as a public health risk.

These ideas, many of which will be taken to state lawmakers for consideration, have been largely well-received by local crime-fighters.

Dist. Atty. Gen. Bill Gibbons said he supports the push for tougher penalties for illegal gun possession.

For years, Gibbons said a statewide coalition of law enforcement officials have unsuccessfully tried to pass similar legislation, but those proposals have received little support because they included mandatory jail time, meaning higher costs to county jails.

Yet Wharton said he believes the public would be wiling to pay more to ensure safer streets.

"I'm not going to back down from this because it might cost money," he said Tuesday.

Gibbons was more reluctant to support the gun registry because of the possible costs. He said the state already has a list of individuals who are restricted from possessing firearms...