MOSCOW, April 17 - RAPSI. State Duma Deputy Speaker Sergei Zheleznyak has proposed banning or limiting guns in public places on Wednesday. He believes that several bills should be considered that seek to ban or to limit guns in public places, where security must be ensured by law enforcement agencies.
He added that security in public places should be organized in a manner that would preclude the possibility of using guns and quash the desire among citizens to carry weapons.
The proposals were submitted to the lower house of parliament during the discussion of a bill that increases responsibility for shooting in the street. The bill stipulates a fine of up to 150,000 rubles ($4,770) and the confiscation of weapons and bullets. Violators will also be stripped of the right to purchase, to keep and to carry weapons for three to seven years.
The initiative was triggered by a high-profile case involving a shooting in central Moscow on Sept. 30, 2012, which led to a public uproar.
Participants in a wedding procession led by a Ferrari followed by other luxury vehicles fired non-lethal guns into the air while the cars blocked traffic, Gazeta.ru reported. They later claimed that it is a Dagestani cultural tradition to shoot guns in the air during celebrations. Fifteen wedding participants were detained and released after police reports were filed. The shooter was detained for 15 days and also paid a 2,000 ruble ($65) fine. The case was followed by several similar incidents.