Store owners react to gun control plan

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Gun store owners and police are in the direct line of fire in the gun control debate. 

The cornerstone of the president's gun control effort includes reinstating the assault weapons ban and adding background checks on the purchase of any weapon anywhere. But the question that keeps coming up is will either of those make a difference.

“This is a semi automatic rifle. It means every time you pull the trigger it fires a round,” said Greg Burge with Beech Grove Firearms. “But you must pull the trigger.”

Greg Burge, owner of Beech Grove Firearms says this is the weapon everyone is talking about when it comes to putting an assault weapons ban back in place. It's the same type of weapon that was banned from 1994 to 2004. 

“It's been tried. It didn't work, “ Burge said. “So why now will it work, cause they are coming at it at the same angle as they did before.”

COMPLETE COVERAGE | Gun control headlines

Burge says he agrees that one innocent life lost is too much. But he says going back to a weapons ban or putting a universal background check into place, won't make a difference.

They already check you every which way they can.  So what can we really add to that,” Burge said.

“Does any of this really make any difference?” asked IMPD Chief Rick Hite. “It makes a difference if we are looking at it from a holistic standpoint. Looking at who are responsible gun owners.”

Hite says second amendment rights need to be protected. But he says police have a responsibility to make sure people are responsible in purchasing weapons.

“And that's the question. Should we allow people who have a previously existing issue in terms of mental health should they bear arms?  Should they be allowed to buy a weapon?  Should those weapons be allowed to be kept in the households?  Those are the real kinds of conversations,” Hite said.ONLI

ONLINE EXTRA | Obama unveils $500 million gun violence package

Background checks as proposed might have the biggest impact on gun shows.  A spokeswoman for the Indy 1500 gun and knife show that will be in Indianapolis this week in a statement to 24-Hour News 8 said: 

There are currently over 20,000 firearm laws on the books at the local, state and federal levels across the country, and we hope Congress carefully weighs these two facts when discussing further gun control measures. 

The gun show promoters also say allegations that people at gun shows don't do background checks is false.