Mayor Sam Adams, anti-gang violence activists call for tougher gun-control measures

By Helen Jung, The Oregonian

Teressa Raiford was back in her hometown of Portland last September, helping set up an anti-violence program for youth when the need for such services hit home.

Her 19-year-old nephew, Andre Payton, was shot dead in a hail of gunfire outside an Old Town nightclub, about a month after she arrived, one of a string of victims of gang-related violence in Portland last year. And the violence persists -- four people were shot early Sunday in Northeast Portland, the fifth gang-related incident since March 12.

Payton's death -- and the comments Raiford heard from his friends in the days afterward -- convinced the Dallas, Texas business consultant to extend her stay in Portland and help advocate for better services for youths and tougher gun-control laws.

"They said there were 40 shots that rang out that night," said Raiford, one of several people at a Monday press conference calling for tougher background checks for gun buyers. She urged citizens to support a federal bill to fix gaps in the background check system to "try to do something that's going to save these children."

The press conference was organized by the Fix Gun Checks campaign, a project of Mayors Against Illegal Guns. The campaign is traveling across the country towing a large billboard that displays the estimated number of gun-involved murders in the country since the Jan. 8 mass shootings in Tucson, Ariz. that killed six people and injured 13 others, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. The billboard's tally at Monday's press conference was 2,449.

Among others, Portland Mayor Sam Adams criticized incomplete background check systems and encouraged citizens to back a federal bill that is designed to address loopholes.

He also criticized federal law for "holding us back" from enacting tougher laws on the local level.

The city recently enacted five new gun-control laws aimed at curbing gun-violence, particularly among juveniles. The laws hold adults responsible if their guns get into children's hands, penalize gun owners who don't report the theft or loss of a firearm, and designate shooting hot spot zones and allow the city to exclude certain gun offenders from them.

They also set curfews for juveniles who have been convicted of certain gun offenses and enact a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days in jail for a gun offender found carrying a loaded gun in a public place.

For Raiford, her nephew's death was a wake-up call to the prevalence of guns, and the ease with which people can get them.

She remembered asking Payton's friends if they knew he carried a gun. She was shocked at the responses that "everybody does" and "it's not safe to run around here without a gun."

"Basically, it's a way of life," she said.

And so she's now reaching out to other community groups and government agencies about the prospects of setting up a gang phone line, in which gang members or former gang members could take phone calls from kids seeking guidance. She also wants to set up a foundation in Payton's memory that could serve as a hub for all the resources available to youths in need.

And despite several months of "couch surfing," she's not ready to go home yet.

"I'm still with the same suitcase of clothes," she said. "I didn't know I was coming out here for a funeral."