In the process, the 62-year-old journalist has been called ''Rambo Rowan'' and the ''Jacuzzi Vigilante'' by some of his critics, while others have lampooned him with posters and placards. He has received a stream of hate calls and letters. He has also become embroiled in a vitriolic public feud with city officials, especially Mayor Marion S. Barry Jr., over whether he should have been charged with a gun violation and whether the city secretly offered him leniency on condition that he stop criticizing its officials. Suddenly in Spotlight
''I don't know how the Rowan thing will cut, but I do know gun control is a hot subject now,'' said Barbara Lautman, an official of Handgun Control Inc., perhaps the leading anti-gun group. ''We don't have …show more content…
The incident involving Mr. Rowan may or may not sway any votes. But this much is certain: it has caused the gun control issue, which had died down, to burst into flame anew.
Once again the issue is making headlines. Once again there is increasing public debate about the constitutional right to bear arms and the need somehow to end the many murders and holdups committed with easily obtainable guns. Says Gun Was Son's
As for Mr. Rowan, as a result of the late-night pool incident, he faces misdemeanor charges for possessing an unregistered gun and ammunition. The gun was not registered as required by city law, he told investigators, because it had been brought into the city by his son, Carl Jr., while the younger Mr. Rowan was working as an agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
His son gave him the gun, Mr. Rowan added, after he had received several threats on his life. The young swimming pool trespasser, he continued, had lunged at him, leading him to fire the …show more content…
Rowan wounded the young trespasser. But the legislation was attracting little attention beyond Capitol Hill, despite the fact that its passage would be a major step forward in gun control. The pool incident changed all that. ''It's hard to ascertain what effect the shooting will have on any votes, but it certainly has helped bring the gun issue to the forefront once again,'' said Richard Gardiner, the assistant general counsel for the National Rifle Association, the nation's most powerful gun group. September Vote Expected
Mr. Gardiner's assessment also appears to hold true for the Maryland gun control situation. There, pro-gun forces are citing the Rowan incident as they try to overturn a recently passed law meant to stop the sale of cheaply made handguns that anti-gun forces refer to as ''Saturday Night Specials.''
The House is expected to vote on the seven-day delay legislation shortly after Labor Day and the Senate soon thereafter. The Maryland law will be on the November ballot in the form of a referendum.
Both contests are expected to be close. The N.R.A. has already spent almost $3 million in mailings to its three million members, urging them to pressure members of Congress not to pass the delay legislation. Most members have received scores of letters, and many
''I don't know how the Rowan thing will cut, but I do know gun control is a hot subject now,'' said Barbara Lautman, an official of Handgun Control Inc., perhaps the leading anti-gun group. ''We don't have …show more content…
The incident involving Mr. Rowan may or may not sway any votes. But this much is certain: it has caused the gun control issue, which had died down, to burst into flame anew.
Once again the issue is making headlines. Once again there is increasing public debate about the constitutional right to bear arms and the need somehow to end the many murders and holdups committed with easily obtainable guns. Says Gun Was Son's
As for Mr. Rowan, as a result of the late-night pool incident, he faces misdemeanor charges for possessing an unregistered gun and ammunition. The gun was not registered as required by city law, he told investigators, because it had been brought into the city by his son, Carl Jr., while the younger Mr. Rowan was working as an agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
His son gave him the gun, Mr. Rowan added, after he had received several threats on his life. The young swimming pool trespasser, he continued, had lunged at him, leading him to fire the …show more content…
Rowan wounded the young trespasser. But the legislation was attracting little attention beyond Capitol Hill, despite the fact that its passage would be a major step forward in gun control. The pool incident changed all that. ''It's hard to ascertain what effect the shooting will have on any votes, but it certainly has helped bring the gun issue to the forefront once again,'' said Richard Gardiner, the assistant general counsel for the National Rifle Association, the nation's most powerful gun group. September Vote Expected
Mr. Gardiner's assessment also appears to hold true for the Maryland gun control situation. There, pro-gun forces are citing the Rowan incident as they try to overturn a recently passed law meant to stop the sale of cheaply made handguns that anti-gun forces refer to as ''Saturday Night Specials.''
The House is expected to vote on the seven-day delay legislation shortly after Labor Day and the Senate soon thereafter. The Maryland law will be on the November ballot in the form of a referendum.
Both contests are expected to be close. The N.R.A. has already spent almost $3 million in mailings to its three million members, urging them to pressure members of Congress not to pass the delay legislation. Most members have received scores of letters, and many