Gov. John Carney (D-Delaware) signed off on tougher penalties for people who get guns through straw purchases Wednesday.
Defendants now face 5 years in prison for a first offense.
A straw purchase is when a person who is prohibited from possessing a gun illegally gets someone else to buy it for them.
Lisa Summers said a straw purchase led to the fatal shooting of her niece Keshall "Keke" Anderson. Two Wilmington teens charged in her death are currently being tried.
“The gun violence has to stop," she said. "We have to learn to start taking care of each other and not allowing those who are in a position that will do us harm to be able to do so.”
But the man convicted of the straw purchase leading to Anderson’s death was convicted under federal law, not state law.
Data compiled by the state shows Delaware prosecutors have charged 38 people for straw purchases since 2013. Just four were convicted. The Delaware Attorney General's Office said nearly 60 percent of those charged were convicted of a crime, although not necessarily on the straw purchase charge.
Carney concedes there’s been only a handful of convictions in recent years. But he said this is just one piece of a package of gun control bills being considered to reduce gun crimes in the state.
“It’s difficult to do that enforcement because you have to track down purchases made by individuals who are law abiding individuals," he said. "This legislation will create a bigger deterrent for somebody doing that.”
Carney says he expects stiffer penalties will help deter people from illegally obtaining a gun through a straw purchase. But he adds the state also needs to enforce existing law.
Note: We have added a clarification to the story from the Delaware Attorney General's Office regarding people charged with straw purchases.
