Congresswoman McCarthy reacts to Giffords shooting

Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, a longtime advocate of gun control, spoke out regarding the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 19 others in Arizona last Saturday. Shooting suspect Jared Loughner appeared in Federal court in Phoenix on Tuesday.

"One of the greatest privileges of being an American is the freedom to peaceably assemble in public,” McCarthy said. “One of the greatest pleasures of being an elected official is meeting with constituents in their communities in order to help them. As someone who's experienced senseless gun violence firsthand, I'm praying for my colleague, Rep. Giffords, the others shot with her and all their families today.”

McCarthy entered politics in 1997 on a one-issue platform of gun control after her husband, Dennis was gunned down and her son, Kevin, was seriously injured by Colin Ferguson in 1993 as their Long Island Rail Road train was pulling into the Merillon Avenue station in Garden City. In what has become known as the LIRR Massacre, Ferguson was later convicted of murdering six people and injuring nineteen others in the incident. He is now serving 315 years and eight months to life at the Attica Correctional Facility New York.

“This kind of shooting affects my whole family,” McCarthy said. “It brings back memories we don’t want to remember.” She said that this is an intense, emotional drain on Giffords entire family, and that, other than close family and friends, they should be allowed to deal with this without political intrusion. “They will need all the strength they can muster.”