Carl McCall yesterday brought the Beltway sniper attacks into the governor’s race yesterday – charging that Gov. Pataki has failed to require ballistic fingerprinting for rifles.
“It shouldn’t take tragic events like those in Virginia and Maryland for New York to enact comprehensive laws that protect our people,” McCall said in a statement.
“The lack of leadership over the past 7 ½ years has made our government reactive – enacting laws that respond to specific demands, meet political needs and are narrow in scope,” McCall said.
McCall said Pataki should close a “loophole” by requiring that rifles and other long-barreled weapons be included in the state’s ballistics database, which was established two years ago as part of a sweeping gun-control law pushed by Pataki.
The law – praised by gun-control advocates – also mandated trigger locks on all new handguns and closed a loophole in the Brady Bill for gun-show dealers.
The Pataki campaign had no comment on McCall’s charges.
In interviews with The Post in August, gun-control advocates praised Pataki for his strong support of the 2000 law.
“The governor has done a good job in New York state in supporting sensible gun measures, but there’s always room for improvement,” said Andy Pelosi, the executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence.
Also yesterday, McCall avoided joining in the ethics criticism of Pataki by Independence Party candidate Tom Golisano – who dominated Sunday’s gubernatorial debate by charging that the governor was selling paroles to a campaign contributor.
Asked if he believed Golisano’s charges, McCall said: “I do not know. These allegations have been made. It’s up to the governor to explain them, not me.”
But McCall – who received the backing of the Atlantic Chapter of the Sierra Club in Westchester – said the issue was “fair.”
Appearing in Harlem, Pataki dismissed Golisano’s charges.
“These are allegations that have been written about time and time again that were thoroughly investigated years ago. I’m confident that out of that investigation, the appropriate actions were taken,” Pataki said.
“And let me just say, I’m extraordinarily proud about what our parole board has done.”
Two parole officials pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators in the scandal while another pleaded guilty to a similar charge.