The Quebec government has introduced legislation designed to keep guns — even toy props for theatrical productions — out of schools and off university campuses. The bill, prompted in part by a shooting at Dawson College last September and by the Virginia Tech shootings in April, also would allow counselors, faculty members, and health professionals to break confidentiality laws if they suspect that a gun owner might go on a shooting spree.
The legislation, informally known as Anastasia’s Law — after Anastasia De Sousa, who was killed in the Dawson College tragedy — is expected to become law in September. Premier Jean Charest described the legislation at the Montreal college on Friday, with Ms. De Sousa’s parents in attendance, along with many students who had been at the college on the day of the rampage.
Despite widespread praise from gun-control organizations, student groups, and many others, Anastasia’s Law has some critics, who say it would do little to prevent such shootings. —Karen Birchard
