(The Center Square) – A Washington state Republican lawmaker is backing a bill that would stiffen penalties for unlawful firearm possession by requiring every individual convicted as such to go to jail, with no discretion from police.
Rep. Sam Low, R-Lake Stevens, told The Center Square that House Bill 1139 was inspired by the 2022 shooting death of an Everett police officer
“This is something I’ve worked on with the mayor of Lake Stevens, Brett Gailey,” Low said. “He’s a retired Everett police officer, and his close friend, Officer Dan Rocha, was killed a couple years ago.”
On the afternoon of Mar. 25th, 2022, Rocha stopped at a coffee shop on North Broadway Ave. in Everett. As he was getting his coffee, he noticed a suspicious person moving firearms between cars in the parking lot.
“We had a convicted felon who wasn’t supposed to have firearms who had a trunk full of firearms and was loading it from one car to another, and when officer Rocha came up, the felon shot and killed him and then ran over him,” Low said.
Richard Rotter of Kennewick was found guilty of aggravated first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for Rocha’s murder.
Low explained he’s been working with Gailey for the last year on the legislation.
“Really it’s about going after these people in gun crimes who’ve already lost their rights to have guns, and yet here they are with guns,” the legislator said.
Rep. Mari Leavitt, D-Lakewood is co-sponsoring the bill.
“The bill has drawn bipartisan support so that’s a good start,” Low said.
The lead sponsor said there could be potential resistance from lawmakers who, in recent years, have objected to tougher sentencing penalties.
“It’s giving some mandatory jail with it, which gets some people a little anxious, but really gun violence has to stop,” Low said. “It’s going after those who aren’t supposed to have weapons and holding them accountable that is the most important.”
As previously reported by The Center Square, Washington Democrats have introduced several gun control measures for the 2025 legislative session.
The Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility lists seven priorities for the 2025 session including a requirement for permits to purchase firearms, a tax on firearm and ammunition sales, and a restriction on “bulk sales.”
“Permit-to-Purchase laws are proven as the single most effective policy to save lives and reduce gun violence,” wrote Renee Hopkins, CEO of the Alliance for Gun Responsibility, in a December memo. “All of our work in Washington over the last decade has been leading to this pivotal moment.”
Low suggested Democrats often blame Republicans for having no solutions to the gun crime epidemic, but he believes HB 1139 is part of the solution.
“The other side of the aisle seems to want to make it tougher for law-abiding citizens to have guns, and that seems to be what we have year after year,” Low continued. “They say Republicans don’t have any answers or ideas, and this bill is not ignoring it. A lot of times when repeat offenders are being held, they are let out within 12 hours, and we’ve got to tighten up on that, we’ve just got to, and that’s what this bill does.”
