HARRISBURG -- A sign waved at a gun supporters' rally Tuesday outraged lawmakers who interpreted it as suggesting the lynching of a Philadelphia legislator and said they would report the incident to police as a death threat.
Two men stunned onlookers by raising the banner criticizing Democratic Rep. Angel Cruz, sponsor of a bill that would create a registry of gun owners and require people to pay a yearly $10 fee for each gun or face state police confiscation of their weapons. Cruz should be "hung from the tree of liberty for treasonous acts against the Constitution," the sign read.
Angry lawmakers criticized the sign brought by Alan Kiser, of Warren County, as degrading and prejudicial. At an afternoon news conference, members of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus said they would report the incident to state police and Capitol Police because they considered it a death threat against Cruz, a Hispanic who is a member of the caucus.
"It's one thing to defend one's Second Amendment rights, but it's another to display a sign urging the lynching of a state House member," said caucus chairman Rep. Thaddeus Kirkland, D-Delaware County. "That goes too far and that scares many of us."
Kiser said his sign was meant to suggest that Cruz -- and any lawmaker supporting House Bill 760 -- should be impeached.
"Our state representatives take the oath of office to defend the Constitution," said Kiser. He said the sign "shouldn't upset them."
Paul Estus, of Ridgway in Elk County, who held the banner with Kiser, told The Associated Press it was "just a figure of speech."
Rep. Marc Gergely, D-McKeesport, chairman of the Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus, had urged attendees to act civilly when lobbying lawmakers. "It is okay to disagree, but we hurt our own movement when people act irresponsibly," Gergely said in an afternoon statement expressing disappointment with what happened.
The sign was "over the top," Cruz said, but he said attendees had a right to express their opinions. He said people outside of Philadelphia don't understand what it's like in a city where "five or six killings" happen a day.
In the rest of Pennsylvania, "they don't hunt human beings like they do in Philadelphia," said Cruz, whose bill is before the House Judiciary Committee.
Republican Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, of Cranberry, a strong supporter of gun owners' rights who helped organize the rally, said the sign contained "horrible statements" that had no place in a conversation about politics and policy. The people involved did not represent the event organizers, he said.
The second annual Second Amendment Rally at the Capitol drew hundreds of people, including state Sen. Bob Regola, who stood with sportsmen and lawmakers proposing an expansion of gun owners' rights. Regola, a Hempfield Republican, faces criminal charges for letting his teenage son keep a 9 mm pistol.
Regola told reporters afterward he didn't think it would be inappropriate to join the rally even though he is charged in connection with the suicide of his 14-year-old neighbor, who used Regola's gun.
"I believe in the right to bear arms. Those are my values. I'll never go away from my values," Regola said.
Regola had a right to stand on the Rotunda steps, said Harry Schneider, of Cranberry, legislative chairman of the Pennsylvania Sportsmen's Association. "There is a presumption of innocence under the law. He hasn't been convicted of anything."
Regola is charged with perjury, false swearing, providing a firearm to a minor and reckless endangerment in connection with the July death of Louis Farrell. Regola's handgun was found near the body. Regola's son, Robert "Bobby" Regola IV, 17, faces a charge of possession of a gun by a minor.
Gun supporters urged lawmakers to pass bills such as one by Metcalfe that would allow people who can prove they are in "imminent danger" a temporary permit to carry a concealed weapon, and another Metcalfe bill that would eliminate a gun-sales database maintained by state police.
A bill proposed by Rep. Dick Stevenson, R-Mercer, would allow people with concealed weapons permits to buy additional guns without again undergoing criminal background checks. Another bill would allow people to use lethal force to defend themselves in places other than homes, such as businesses or automobiles.
"We are here to reaffirm we have a right to bear arms, and we will not allow it to be taken," said Kim Stolfer, of McDonald in Washington County, chairman of Firearm Owners Against Crime.
"The overwhelming majority of gun owners are not criminals. ...They are not madmen, and they shouldn't be treated as such. They're hunters and sportsmen," said Rep. Jesse White, a Democrat who represents portions of Washington, Beaver and Allegheny counties.
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