To: STATE EDITORS

Contact: Peter Hamm of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, +1-202-898-0792, phamm@bradymail.org

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence today endorsed U.S. Senator John Kerry for re-election, for a lifetime of public service and support for sensible gun laws that would help protect Americans and their families.

"Senator John Kerry has consistently supported sensible gun laws throughout his career in public service, and we're proud to urge his re-election to the Senate," said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. "As a prosecutor and as a legislator he has been a leader, working with law enforcement officials on efforts to reduce gun violence. As a hunter and a war hero, Senator Kerry knows that sportsmen do not need military-style assault weapons, and that measures to keep guns away from criminals, terrorists and children are just common sense."

Republican Jeff Beatty, who is challenging Senator Kerry, has supported extreme legislation that would force colleges and universities in Massachusetts to allow students to bring loaded, hidden handguns into classrooms. Numerous states resoundingly rejected such legislation this year. (MetroWest Daily News, "Candidate supports college club's push for student weapons," http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/archive/x2103872126)

"I am honored to receive the endorsement of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence," said Senator Kerry. "The key to stopping gun violence isn't a secret. Fewer guns ending up in the hands of children and criminals means fewer incidents of gun violence, fewer neighborhoods held hostage and fewer families losing a loved one. We need to enact commonsense legislation like closing gun show loopholes, giving law enforcement the resources they need to arrest those responsible for illegal gun sales and limiting access to military-style assault weapons. Stopping gun violence isn't a Second Amendment issue; it's a life or death one."

The Brady Campaign is urging candidates for public office to support specific steps to help make American communities safer, such as:

-- Requiring Brady criminal background checks on all gun sales, including at gun shows;

-- Strengthening law enforcement's efforts to disrupt the illegal gun market, by providing tools to crack down on corrupt gun dealers and stop the large-volume gun sales that supply gun traffickers; and,

-- Restricting civilian access to military-style assault weapons.

"There are only a few national gun control laws on the books, and even those have loopholes," Helmke said. "This leads to senseless gun violence devastating the lives of tens of thousands. Senator Kerry has been and will continue to be a strong partner in the fight for sensible gun laws to protect you, your family and your community."

The Brady Campaign endorsed Senator Barack Obama for President and Senator Joe Biden for Vice President recently. To find out more about endorsements in other states, as well as where the Presidential candidates stand on the gun issue, go to the Brady Voter Education Fund's web guide at BradyVoter.org (http://www.bradyvoter.org).

As the nation's largest, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence, the Brady Campaign, with its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters, works to enact and enforce sensible gun laws, regulations and public policies. The Brady Campaign is devoted to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in our communities.

Visit the Brady Campaign website at www.bradycampaign.org. For continuing insight and comment on the gun issue, read Paul Helmke's blog at www.bradycampaign.org/blog/.

Contact: Peter Hamm, 202-898-0792, phamm@bradymail.org

SOURCE Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence

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