Akron has become the first city in Ohio to officially ask the state legislature to ban assault weapons and related equipment.
Akron City Council passed a resolution at its regular meeting Monday night calling for a ban at the state level. Councilwoman Tara Mosley-Samples, who introduced the resolution, said it’s necessary because local communities can’t restrict gun sales, but the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed that states can.
Will Ohio's Republican-led General Assembly go for it? "Maybe,” Samples says.
"You know what, I think that we are in a shift,” Samples says. “And really, truly believe that individuals, regardless of their party, really want to see something done about assault weapons. I mean, even Governor Kasich is calling for a ban," she noted.
Samples is the running mate of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dennis Kucinich, a former U.S. Congressman and mayor of Cleveland. Shortly after the fatal shooting of 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida, Kucinich called for city councils across the state to lobby the legislature for a change in gun laws.
There may be some support from Ohio’s government. Gov. Kasich had told CNN he supported limits to the "God-darn AR 15" assault rifle used in the mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
And in the Ohio Senate, Democrat state Sens. Michael Skindell of Lakewood and Charleta Tavares of Columbus proposed a ban on "assault weapons," including the AR-15. Language in the bill could effectively ban all semi-automatic weapons.
The resolution passed by Akron's Council calls for a ban not only on assault weapons, but on accessories like large ammunition clips and bump stocks that allow for automatic fire.
