Woonsocket Radio News Room

STATE HOUSE — The General Assembly today approved legislation to require gun dealers to notify the police in a gun buyer’s hometown in addition to the police department of the town where the gun was purchased.     

The Julie Lynn Cardinal Act (2020-H 7103Baa, 2020-S 2154Aaa), sponsored by Rep. Daniel P. McKiernan (D-Dist. 7, Providence) and Senate Minority Leader Dennis L. Algiere (R-Dist. 38, Charlestown, South Kingstown, Westerly), would require gun sellers to forward firearm applications to the police department of the city or town where the buyer resides, or the State Police if the purchaser resides outside Rhode Island or in the town of Exeter, which lacks a municipal police department.

The bill is named for the victim who perished in a shooting in Westerly last year where a resident purchased a gun from a firearms dealer in Richmond. Although Richmond Police conducted background checks, they were not aware that the buyer had a history with Westerly Police, including threats to buy a gun to kill himself and his estranged wife, which led to a stay at Butler Hospital. In addition to killing Cardinal, who was the manager of the affordable housing complex where the gunman lived, the shooter wounded another manager and a resident before fatally shooting himself.

“This is a simple matter of improving communication between law enforcement agencies,” said Representative McKiernan. “Local police departments are much more likely to have information regarding the mental health of a potential gun buyer. If there are concerns for the safety of the purchaser or others, then the police in the gun buyer’s community can take steps to keep the other agencies notified and potentially avert another tragedy.”

The measure now moves to the governor’s office.

The Trump administration will partially fund SNAP food-assistance benefits as the federal government shutdown continues. In a court filing today, the administration said the money would cover "50-percent of eligible households' current allotments." This comes after two separate rulings last week ordered the Trump administration to tap emergency funds that will cover some of the SNAP program.        Today is Election Day. In New York City, Democrat frontrunner Zohran Mamdani looks to win the mayor's office over former Governor Andrew Cuomo, running as an independent and Republican Curtis Sliwa. In Virginia and New Jersey, voters will choose new governors. In California, voters will decide on Governor Gavin Newsom's plan to redraw congressional district maps.        YouTube TV is rejecting a Disney request to return ABC channels back to its platform ahead of Election Day has been denied. Disney had asked YouTube TV to restore ABC for Election Day as a matter of public interest so subscribers could, in the company's words, "have access to the information they rely on." It all comes amid a blackout and dispute between the two companies as Disney-owned channels including ABC and ESPN have been removed from YouTube TV.        Six people are dead and dozens have been hospitalized due to a listeria outbreak linked to precooked pasta meals. The recall involves products from California-based Nate's Fine Foods. The cases of listeria have been reported across 18 states. The meals were sold at grocery chains nationwide, including Trader Joe's, Walmart, Kroger and Albertsons.        Los Angeles is celebrating the Dodgers' back-to-back World Series championship. Fans were out in the streets of downtown L.A. for a victory parade, followed by a rally at Dodger Stadium. Pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto was named World Series MVP after beating the Toronto Blue Jays.        Actress Diane Ladd is dead at 89. Ladd was nominated for best supporting actress at the Academy Awards three times for her roles in "Alice Doesn't Live Here", "Wild at Heart" and "Rambling Rose." She died at her home in California on Monday.       

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