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I'm working down n St. Croix for a few weeks and ran across this in their local newspaper:

Senators move to bolster ammunition law after court decision

BY AILENE YASMIN TORRES, DAILY NEWS STAFF

Published: April 23, 2010

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ST. CROIX — To give an old law new teeth, the Public Safety, Homeland Security and Justice Committee has taken another look at ammunition possession in the territory.

A decision in a 2009 V.I. Supreme Court case, Smith v. People of the V.I., overturned a conviction because the law did not establish a mechanism for authorizing possession of ammunition.

Bill No. 28-0215 seeks to change that.

“There is real life carnage taking place in the territory,” Sen. Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly, who sponsored the bill along with Sen. Usie Richards, said. “St. Croix has had 12 homicides in less than four months.”

After a record year of 56 murders, the territory is on pace to top it in 2010. As of this report, there were 22 homicides territorywide — most of them shootings.

“We have one of the highest per capita murder rates in the nation,” she said.

If it becomes law, the bill will make it illegal for persons who are not licensed to carry a firearm to possess or sell ammunition.

Police Commissioner Novelle Francis Jr. said that change could make a difference.

“They sell it, give it away or buy it on behalf of others,” Francis said about the current situation.

The law currently on the books, cites illegal ammunition possession but cannot be enforced because of the V.I. Supreme Court ruling.

The bill, if it becomes law, would ensure that unlawful possession of just one bullet — defined as a projectile, casing and gun powder — could result in an arrest.

That possibility and that of leaving the final decision of an arrest up to a low-ranking officer, made Sen. Alvin Williams Jr. bristle.

He asked whether the wife of a licensed gun owner could be arrested if she drove a car after her husband left a bullet in it and was stopped by police.

“Sen. Williams, in its most technical terms, yes,” Assistant Attorney General Wilson Campbell said. “Because the bill is making it illegal to possess ammunition unless you have a license to do so.”

Francis assured the senators that would not happen because the police officer would investigate and make a determination to arrest based on the individual set of circumstances.

Sen. Celestino White Sr., a former police officer, said licensed gun owners should be held accountable if they leave their ammunition or weapon in the care of someone who is not licensed to possess it. White suggested a hearing or penalty provision should be added to the law.

When asked directly whether he thought the bill was giving too much discretion to beat officers, Francis did not agree.

“It provides accountability for gun owners and the dealerships,” he said.

Campbell summed it up for committee members by saying that the spirit of the bill follows the spirit of law enforcement.

Rivera-O’Reilly said that by taking the bullets away, the threat of shooting deaths will lessen.

“We should remind everyone guns without bullets are not dangerous because it is actually the bullet that does the killing,” she said.

Here’s another blurb about what is going on down here:

A V.I. Supreme Court case, Smith v. People of the V.I., inspired the bill setting up rules for buying, storing and possessing ammunition. In that case, a defendant's conviction for unauthorized possession of ammunition was overturned because V.I. law did not establish a mechanism for licensed firearm owners to buy and possess ammunition. Without a procedure in place for being authorized to have ammunition, the state could not show the defendant was not authorized, the justices ruled.

Under the proposed law, having a licensed firearm would automatically confer the right to buy and possess the ammunition for that particular weapon—and only that weapon. Other provisions prohibit gun sellers from putting firearms on display where they are visible from the street and requiring dealers to keep weapons locked up except when being shown, repaired or properly transported.

Francis hailed the bill as giving police more of the tools they need to fight crime.

"Being able to remove ammunition from the streets is almost as important as removing the illegal firearms,” Francis said.

Voting yea were Malone, Sanes, Sprauve, White and Williams. Absent were Nelson and James.

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