Pending gun control proposals causes worries, increased gun sale - WOWK 13 Charleston, Huntington WV News, Weather, Sports

Gun owner, Tim Stephens of Prestonsburg says if the government plans on going down the path of regulating the types of guns someone can have, then the government is going down the wrong path.

"Anyone that does want one, has the right to have one," says Stephens. "As long as they're mentally capable of dealing with it."

While we're on his back porch, firing off rounds from his AR-15, he tells us it's hard to address the kind of people shooting guns, and addressing the guns themselves is the easy way out.

"It's my opinion that they need to be looking at mental health issues, and get to the root of the problem, rather than just clipping at its branches, so to speak."

Restricting the types of add-ons and number of rounds in a magazine are suggestions we could hear tomorrow, when Vice President Joe Biden unveils his proposals for gun control.

"I personally don't need a 30-round magazine myself," says Stephens. "But, at the same time, you may need 30 rounds to be able to match or exceed anything that you may have to be fighting against."

The fear of possible restrictions on guns has led to a run on gun shops.

"I think they've armed America in about three weeks, is what they've done," says Todd Gillespi, owner of Todd's Gun Shop.

Gillespi's customers are worrying if their guns are going to be taken away.

"They might do a little better background checks, you know, that would be okay," says customer, Tim Knight. "But to say you can't own it, I mean, to me that kinda seems like a violation of our second amendment."

More involved background checks and mental evaluations are something our gun proponents believe in, but any limitations to the guns is going to get a lot of blowback.