The past few years have seen an unprecedented number of mass shootings in the U.S. According to the nonprofit and database Gun Violence Archive, 2021 saw the highest total ever, 690, which was followed by 646 more in 2022, the second-highest number on record.

This year, as of April 30, more than 250 lives have been lost in 185 additional U.S. mass shootings, which the nonprofit defines as those in which at least four people are shot. Each incident represents a galvanizing moment to advocate for gun control legislation and improvements to the state of public safety across the country.

“When the Parkland shooting happened at Marjory Stoneman Douglas in February 2018, that sparked my calling to be involved in this work,” says local advocate Geena Marano, “because of high school students and elementary school students having to share their stories and advocate. I wanted to be a part of that and empower that.”

Marano, a volunteer and leader with the Nevada chapter of Moms Demand Action and a clinical social worker, says she’s met many in her field who are very concerned about gun violence, especially against marginalized groups.

As a survivor of the October 1, 2017 mass shooting on the Las Vegas Strip, she has firsthand experience about the different levels of impact a mass shooting can have—physical, emotional, mental and on the community. That’s why she and other survivors feel compelled to share their stories with the public, she says.

“Five years ago, I remember running for my life with my sister and my best friend.” Marano said at an April 6 joint committee hearing for a pair of gun control bills working their way through the Nevada Legislature.

“It is painful to relive the haunting memories of texting my mom, possibly for the last time, saying, ‘There’s lots of bodies. We’re running. There’s a shooting. I love you.’ It is even more upsetting that children and teens are sending the same messages and having this fear instilled in them forever,” she told lawmakers.

Proposed by Assembly Floor Leader Sandra Jauregui, AB355 would raise the legal age to “possess or control” a semiautomatic shotgun or semiautomatic centerfire rifle from 18 to 21 years old. The law also would make it illegal for someone to help anyone under 21 access those types of weapons.

Similar laws have passed in other states, including Florida, which passed its law after the Parkland shooting, in which a 19-year-old legally purchased the assault weapons used to kill 17 people at a high school.

During the April 6 hearing, Jauregui, another survivor of the October 1 Las Vegas shooting, emphasized that the age requirement to purchase a handgun in Nevada is 21.

“We have seen far too many mass shootings by people who are under 21, who get their hands on assault rifles and go out and kill—Sandy Hook, Uvalde, Buffalo—all mass shooters that used assault rifles and were under 21,” Jauregui said. “In the past five years, six of the nine deadliest shootings were committed by people under the age of 21,” she continued, adding that studies have shown that the age restriction can reduce suicide rates among adolescents and young adults.

AB354, also proposed by Jauregui, would prohibit guns within 100 feet of a voting site and close a 2021 law’s loophole with regard to “ghost guns” or self-built firearms. In February, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms reported that the number of ghost guns recovered by law enforcement has increased more than tenfold since 2017, from more than 1,600 guns recovered in 2017 to 19,273 in 2021.

In keeping with longstanding partisan trends, Republican lawmakers have voted against the bills, asserting that they violate the Constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens.

An April 5 statement by the Nevada Assembly Republican Caucus reads, in part: “Standing against infringements on the Second Amendment is one of the most important priorities of the Nevada Assembly Republican Caucus. This is why every one of our members will vote against Assembly Bills 354 and 355. A criminal intent on committing violent crimes will not be stopped by this law, but this law will stop, for example, a young woman who lives alone from procuring and responsibly owning a firearm for her own home defense.”

On his campaign website, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo has said he “supports the right of all law-abiding citizens to own a firearm if they so choose.” The website also expresses his support for the “right to build a firearm for personal use,” and vows to veto any legislation that would take away that right.

The governor’s office did not return requests for clarification on his positions on gun safety legislation and comment on the proposed laws.

In response to lawmakers’ questions about whether the bill would affect families that allow children 14 and older to own or possess guns for the purpose of hunting, Jauregui said the bill would prohibit those children from accessing semiautomatic shotguns and semiautomatic centerfire rifles.

With an exception for honorably discharged members of the military and for law enforcement, AB355 has passed the assembly by a 26-14 vote. If it passes through the Democrat-controlled Senate, it will go to the governor’s desk to be signed into law or vetoed. The second bill restricting guns at voting sites is also on its way to the Senate after it passed the assembly by a 28-14 vote.

In recent years, the Democrat-controlled Legislature has passed other gun safety legislation, including child safe storage laws, red flag laws and ghost gun ban.

In a statement to the Weekly, Jauregui referenced a recent Nevada Independent/OH Predictive Insights poll that found that 70% of 900-plus Nevadans surveyed support raising the minimum age to buy assault rifles. She also emphasized that law enforcement agencies, up to the Department of Justice, have sounded the alarm on the growing prevalence of ghost guns, which lack serial numbers in contrast to manufactured guns.

“Gun violence is an inescapable epidemic in America and has left too many of our communities traumatized and reeling. Better gun violence prevention measures for assault weapons and ghost guns are two steps in the right direction that will protect Nevadans,” Jauregui said.

“The vast majority of Nevadans agree that the age requirement to purchase an assault weapon should be raised from 18 to 21,” she continued. “And with the number of ghost guns being recovered from crime scenes doubling in 2021, more law enforcement agencies are becoming concerned about their prevalence. Keeping our communities safe from gun violence is common sense and should not be a partisan issue.”

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