Austria to Tighten Gun Laws Within Days of Shooting

Eight days after a rare school shooting in Austria, the government has introduced a slew of proposed laws aimed at gun control. The measures would raise the minimum age to own certain firearms from 21 to 25, increase the waiting period between purchase and delivery from three days to four weeks, and strengthen the mandatory psychological test that a gun purchaser must pass, per the New York Times and Deutsche Welle. The 21-year-old shooter, whose identity is protected by privacy laws, failed a psychological test during a military service assessment but passed the one required to purchase a pistol, which he used to shoot up a high school in Graz. He also used a legally acquired shotgun, currently available to any adult in the country without a weapons ban.

He killed nine students and a teacher before fatally shooting himself. Authorities say he had a fascination with school shootings and ultimately attacked the school from which he dropped out. "Nothing we do, including what we have decided today, will bring back the 10 people we lost last Tuesday," Chancellor Christian Stocker said Wednesday, per the Times. "But I can promise you one thing: We will learn from this tragedy." Also included in the proposals are measures to double the number of psychologists working in schools, require students who drop out of school to undergo mandatory psychological assessments, and restrict children's access to social media.

Stocker said the government had "promised that we would not go back to business as usual and that we would draw the right conclusions from this crime to live up to the responsibility we have," per DW. Many of Austria's 1.5 million privately-owned firearms are used by hunters, but Stocker said the new rules would not affect them. He also said the government would set aside $23 million for the families of the shooting victims. The proposed laws are expected to pass—as soon as this week, per the AP, and by "a big majority," the Times reports, showing how the attack has resonated. The leader of the far-right Freedom Party, which generally opposes government measures, only suggested the government take more time before announcing its recommendations. (More Austria stories.)