The Prince William County Board of Supervisors will set aside, for now, any further discussion on a proposed resolution urging Virginia lawmakers to support a handful of new laws aimed at preventing gun violence.
In an unexpected move Tuesday afternoon, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors voted unanimously to table further debate on a “resolution 10A,” which aimed to “address gun violence prevention in Virginia” by urging state lawmakers to pass gun safety legislation and boost funding for mental health treatment and firearms safety training.
The board had decided last Tuesday, Jan. 7, to delay a vote on the measure and take it up again during its evening session on Tuesday, Jan. 21. The board made that call after hundreds of gun-rights supporters turned out to an afternoon meeting amid a snowstorm to voice their opposition.
The resolution was not mentioned at all on the agenda for the Tuesday, Jan. 14, meeting.
But Supervisor Victor Angry, D-Neabsco, interrupted the meeting shortly after its 2 p.m. start time to propose the measure be set aside indefinitely.
Angry made a motion to remove the resolution from the Jan. 21 agenda and cancel the evening portion of that meeting entirely.
Angry said the board had already heard from the community on the controversial topic during two hours-long meetings — on Dec. 10 and Jan. 7 — and said the matter belonged with state lawmakers, not county officials.
“You know, first let’s understand, we are a constitutional county, not a sanctuary county, and I really feel personal about that, because I don’t think we should ever be a sanctuary for anything,” Angry said while making his motion.
“…With that said, I feel very strongly that we really should represent our constituents and allow our constituents to go to Richmond,
