Colo. seeks curbs on guns for mentally ill

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WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The governor of Colorado said the mass shooting at a theater in his state this year focused more attention on keeping guns out of the hands of the mentally ill.

Gov. John Hickenlooper said on CNN's "State of the Union" the aftermath of the Aurora shooting spree had produced plans to make it easier for families to access mental-health assistance if they feared a loved one was losing his or her grip on reality.

Hickenlooper said other possible steps included greater scrutiny of mentally ill Coloradans trying to buy a gun. "One of the things we're doing in Colorado is looking at expanding the time if someone has had a mental illness hold, expand the time they have to wait before they can get access to a firearm." Hickenlooper said.

Last week's shooting spree at a Connecticut school was stirring up another heated debate over gun control in Washington, which Hickenlooper predicted would focus on ideas such as bans on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

"I think the access to guns is going to get discussed and certainly I think high-capacity magazines will be discussed," the governor said. "Our country is based on that Second Amendment. It has been shown repeatedly it does protect people's rights to bear arms, to have guns."