The New York state senator who told a female GOP staffer to “kill” herself on Tuesday recently proposed a bill that would force gun owners in the state to turn over their social media to authorities so they could check for threatening and violent warning signs.
The bill, introduced by New York State Sen. Kevin Parker, would allow police to “disqualify those who have published violent or hateful posts,” according to USA Today, and would require law enforcement to review online activity of handgun license applicants.
State Sen. Kevin Parker says he hopes his proposal sparks discussion about how to balance public safety and online privacy. The Brooklyn Democrat noted that mass killers often provide warning signs through their social media posts, as in the case of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect, who ranted online that Jews were ‘children of Satan.’
‘It’s a new time. It’s a new technology,” Parker said. ‘It’s time that we in fact start having that conversation about how we monitor social media in a way that we can create safety for our communities.’
Parker tweeted instructions for a GOP staffer to “kill” herself Tuesday. New York State Senate Majority’s Deputy Communications Director Candice Giove uncovered that a car connected to Parker was blocking a bike lane in New York City, using a State Senate parking permit. Giove tweeted about the discovery and Parker quickly responded, “Kill yourself.” (RELATED: New York State Senator Tries To Clarify ‘White Guys’ Comment)
Parker deleted the tweet amid social media backlash, but then spent the next few hours personally attacking the same woman he told to commit suicide.
Oh my word. pic.twitter.com/DB7KgEZj8s
— Jon Campbell (@JonCampbellGAN) December 18, 2018
Where was @Candicegiove when NYers voted for a #Democratic State Senate & progressive legislation like the Dream Act & CFE funding? That’s right, working with the #NOIDC appendage of the GOP. #DreamAct #CFEFunding
— Senator Kevin Parker (@SenatorParker) December 18, 2018
. @Candicegiove is on the wrong side of history for every important issue facing New York State!
— Senator Kevin Parker (@SenatorParker) December 18, 2018
Parker has not commented on the matter, or the bill he is sponsoring about violent social media posts, since Tuesday.