Edina gun control ordinance vote put on hold after council discussion

EDINA, Minn. (FOX 9) - The Edina City Council on Tuesday night opted not to vote on an ordinance that would ban guns in the city.

Edina gun ban ordinance

What we know:

Minnesota communities are drafting gun bans in the aftermath of the Aug. 27 mass shooting at Annunciation Church and School in Minneapolis that killed two students and left 30 total people wounded.

However, even if cities draft and pass gun legislation, it cannot be enforced under Minnesota state law.

Edina Mayor James Hovland said Tuesday night he wants residents to be able to weigh-in at a public hearing before the city council takes a vote on it.

He publicly called out one resident who spoke about it is a "leftist political agenda," when gun violence is the leading killer of children in the U.S.

"I was really disappointed in the resident that came at the beginning and seemed to think that it was a leftist agenda to care about the fact that death by gun is the biggest killer of kids in our country. Seven a day getting killed by gun violence, I don’t see where that’s anything but a humanistic sort of agenda to care about the greatest asset we have in our country," Hovland said. "We’ve got to rely on them to take care of all of us, make our country successful. If we’re killing seven a day through gun violence, something is wrong." 

Edina City Manager weighs-in

What they're saying:

Hovland asked Edina City Manager Scott Neal to draft an ordinance on a gun ban in the city. It mirrors what the City of St. Paul did recently, and passed unanimously 7-0. But the gun ban cannot be enforced, as it has to be passed at the state level.

Neal put together an ordinance for Edina at their Oct. 22 meeting, but couldn’t publicly endorse it as it can’t be enforced by police.

"We’re at a position where we can offer an ordinance, but can’t endorse it because of the unenforceable nature of the ordinance," Neal said.

City attorney reacts

Dig deeper:

Edina City Attorney David Kendall offered his thoughts Tuesday from a legal perspective, saying that he agreed with Hovland and Neal that the city can’t put an effective date on a gun ban until the state law is changed.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders have been urged to call a special session to ban assault rifles and high-capacity magazines after the Annunciation shooting. So far, that hasn’t happened.

"Until state law is changed, I don’t think the council is in a good position to direct police to enforce an ordinance," Kendall said.

"We were all shattered by what happened at Annunciation on August 27. We know there are people on both sides of this issue. We weren’t going to pass anything that our police department couldn’t legally enforce or was something that would make their conduct illegal."