Gun shop owner reacts to President Biden’s gun control announcement

PENDER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — A Cape Fear gun shop owner is reacting to President Biden’s executive order on gun control.

Dorothy Royal owns Surf City Guns and Ammo in Pender County. She feels some of what the president is proposing is misguided.

“I just think it’s adding insult to injury as far as law abiding gun owners go, that we keep getting punished when the problem is really criminals not staying in jail and getting illegal guns,” Royal said.

Royal feels most of what Biden proposed is already covered under current laws, saying she’s already required to vet customers looking to purchase guns.

“We do background checks or they have concealed carries or purchase permits,” Royal said. “If they’re a felon, if they’ve been charged and convicted of domestic violence, there’s a lot of things that make it where that person cannot have a gun.”

Royal says her shop doesn’t sell so-called ghost guns, but they do sell pistol braces. She argues those braces do not change the function of the pistol.

“What they are designed for with the Velcro strap is for those that are handicapped shooters or disabled or they don’t have any grip strength, where they’re able to put this around their wrist and it helps them hold the pistol,” Royal said.

On the other side of the issue is Sonya Patrick, chair of the 7th Congressional District Democratic Party. She recently held an event calling for gun reform, and praises the president’s actions.

“I think it’s long overdue,” Patrick said. “I think that we need to hold our leaders accountable to make it safe in this country.”

Patrick says she hopes additional restrictions go a step further, making it harder to purchase certain guns.

“I would like to see background checks on people with assault weapons, Patrick said. “I really don’t even understand the need for them and I really don’t understand why people fear that the government is going to take them away from them. Why do you need it? Put yourself in the victim’s place or the family of the victim’s place, how would you feel?”

Royal on the other hand believes there are misconceptions about assault weapons.

“Assault is an action. These guns sitting on my wall have never hurt anybody, they’ll never fire alone without anyone using them,” Royal said. “The action of the people that have them is the responsibility of the person who uses them.”

Although Royal believes Biden’s proposed changes will not have much of an effect, she does agree with the Red Flag Law.

You can find more information about current North Carolina gun control laws here.

You can read more on President Biden’s changes here.