BURLINGTON, Vt. -
The Burlington City Council preliminarily passed a ban on assault weapons.
It now goes to a committee to be worked on and then would return to the council. If passed for a second time, the ban because it's a charter change would still need the approval of Burlington voters and legislators in Montpelier.
The ban would outlaw semi-automatic guns and multiple ammo clips in the city.
Before the ban was passed, gun supporters packed the council meeting and they made it clear any attempt to outlaw these guns was going too far.
"It should be federal. So we have federal laws. So it's the same across the nation. Not Burlington has this. Barre has this. Rutland has this. Brattleboro has this," says Clint Gray, who was against the ban.
Councilor Norman Blais says he had proposed the ban on semi-automatic weapons and multiple ammo clips to make the city safer. Blais says he was motivated by tragedies including in Newtown, Connecticut.
Opponents pointed out that the guns could be easily bought outside the city and brought to Burlington. They also argued there should be a greater emphasis on mental health.
Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin said he wouldn't talk specifically about what is happening in Burlington.
But he did weigh in generally on gun control measures.
"I firmly believe that a 50 state solution is the only way that we're going to make real progress," says Shumlin.
The governor says there needs to be a greater focus on mental health. And that's something he thinks can be done in Vermont.
