Senate committee OKs bill curbing gun purchases

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate Judiciary Committee approved legislation today toughening laws against people who illegally buy guns for others as lawmakers cast the first votes in Congress to curb firearms since December's horrific shootings at a Connecticut elementary school.

The panel was also debating bills banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, requiring background checks for nearly all gun purchases, and providing more money for schools to buy video cameras and other safety equipment.

The committee voted 11-7 to approve the measure, which boosted penalties against straw purchases, when people legally buy firearms for criminals or others legally barred from owning one. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, was the only Republican to vote in favor of the measure, whose chief sponsor was the panel's chairman, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.

"We know that many guns used in criminal activities are acquired through straw purchases. We need a meaningful solution to this serious problem," Leahy said.

Though the committee vote was mostly party-line, other Republicans co-sponsored the measure, and others indicated that there might be more GOP support by the time the legislation reaches the full Senate, probably in April.