SOUTH BEND – Some of the president's new gun control proposals unveiled Wednesday may have prevented the shooting death of a South Bend Police officer about 6 years ago.
Corporal Nick Polizzotto was gunned down by a man that was mentally unstable.
On April 24, 2007, Polizzotto was shot to death by 45-year-old Scott Barnaby.
Barnaby was killed in return fire.
"This is something that you want to come to the forefront and be addressed and thank God it is now," said Tony Polizzotto, Nick's brother.
Tony Polizzotto lost his brother that day, and it's taken 6 years for this issue to reach a boiling point.
"Better late than never, and it's horrible something like Newtown has to happen," he said.
Back in 2007, Barnaby bought a gun at a gun show. 3 days later, he used that gun to shoot Polizzotto to death.
The man who sold him the gun was jailed for not conducting a proper background check.
"If these dealers get busted for selling a gun without a background check, there needs to be a lot stricter penalties," Polizzotto said.
In an interview with the South Bend Tribune in May of 2007, right after the shooting, Barnaby's brother Chris said, "Mentally unstable people should not have access to guns. America needs to wake up."
Now, with the president's new proposal to expand gun control, legislation could change.
The president is calling upon Congress to allow universal background checks on prospective gun owners, something that puts Tony Polizzotto at ease, finally.
"Not just me, but a lot of gun owners want to see stricter laws because they don't want someone out there with a firearm thats unstable," Polizzotto said.
