By David Ingram
WASHINGTON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Retired U.S. Supreme Court
Justice John Paul Stevens prodded Congress on Monday to act and
presidential candidates to speak out on gun control at a time
when gunmen are carrying out mass killings across the United
States.
Stevens, 92, spoke to a luncheon hosted by a gun-control
lobbying group where he referred to shootings such as a July
rampage that killed 12 people in a Colorado movie theater.
"The fact that Congress doesn't address it is, I think,
mind-boggling," he said, given the importance of the issue and
the passion surrounding it.
Stevens had a leading role in two gun rights cases near the
end of his 35 years on the high court. In 2008 and 2010, he
dissented when narrow court majorities said individuals had a
fundamental right to "keep and bear arms."
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which the
court read to guarantee the right, was intended to apply only to
state-run militias, Stevens wrote.
Stevens was asked after his speech whether his criticism of
Congress extended to the presidential race in which President
Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney rarely
discuss guns. Stevens said he would like to hear the candidates
discuss the subject more.
"That's a question I'd like to ask both of them," Stevens
told reporters, quickly adding that he is no expert on running a
presidential campaign. Elections are on Nov. 6.
The inaction on gun measures reflects the strength of gun
rights groups such as the National Rifle Association. Known for
marshaling thousands of committed activists nationwide and
running challengers against opponents, gun rights activists have
blocked new restrictions in Congress since the 1990s.
Stevens left the Supreme Court in 2010 but continues to give
speeches and interviews. He wrote a book published in 2011 about
the five chief justices he knew during his career.
His speech on Monday doubled as a pep talk for the host -
Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the largest U.S. lobbying
group for gun control - as he told supporters that the Supreme
Court's decisions left some room for new gun measures.
The court in 2008, in the case District of Columbia v.
Heller, recognized as valid longstanding rules such as bans on
felons buying guns and on short-barreled shotguns.
"The failure of Congress to take any action to minimize the
risk of similar tragedies in the future cannot be blamed on the
court's decision in Heller," Stevens said.
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