North Dakota
North Dakota wrote exception into state law for binary trigger used by Fargo shooter
FARGO — North Dakota lawmakers made sure
binary triggers
were legal in the state four years before a gunman who likely planned a mass shooting in Fargo used the device to kill a police officer.
The state Legislature codified the binary trigger into Century Code with overwhelming support in 2019.
House Bill 1308
added language into law that stated a “machine gun, submachine gun or fully automatic rifle,” which is banned under North Dakota law, “does not include a binary trigger that fires one round upon the pull of the trigger and one round upon release of the trigger.”
The bill was proposed because some companies wanting to sell the trigger in North Dakota worried state law at the time banned the triggers, Rep. Mike Lefor, R-Dickinson, said Feb. 18, 2019, as he carried the bill to the House floor.
“There is one company that refuses to sell them to North Dakota because they think somebody might get good enough at pulling and releasing the binary trigger, causing it to fire five times in a second,” then-Sen. Dwight Cook, R-Mandan, said March 29, 2019, as he carried the bill to the Senate.
Cook’s 2019 words are similar to those spoken by North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley when he announced Friday, July 21, that 37-year-old Mohamad Barakat, of Fargo, retrofitted a long rifle with a binary trigger before opening fire on police on July 14. Officers were responding to a routine crash at 25th Street and Ninth Avenue South in Fargo when Barakat fatally shot Officer Jake Wallin.
A binary trigger allowed Barakat to rapidly shoot at law enforcement, Wrigley said during the Friday news conference. He called the trigger “purposeless.”
“Some of my agents were commenting to me that if you get pretty good at that, and you get the rhythm of that, you’ve made your weapon into a fully operable machine gun,” Wrigley said as he described using the trigger.
The attorney general declined to comment Monday when asked if he would seek legislation to ban the trigger. He said Friday that banning the trigger is a “broader discussion down the road.”
The North Dakota House passed House Bill 1308 in an 80-12 vote, while the state Senate approved it 42-3. No one spoke against the bill on the House and Senate floors.
Lefor and Cook both voted yes.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum signed the bill into law. His spokesman, Mike Nowatzki, noted the bill received bipartisan support.
“While the governor isn’t going to speculate on potential future legislation, he would, as always, seriously consider any recommendations from the law enforcement community,” Nowatzki said in an email to The Forum.
The Legislature passed the law to clarify that binary triggers were legal in North Dakota, Lefor said Monday in an interview with The Forum. The current House majority leader said it would be difficult to make North Dakota “an island” that bans the binary trigger when federal law allows it through the Second Amendment.
“This is something that has to be resolved on the federal level because it is legal federally,” Lefor said.
Sen. Merrill Piepkorn, D-Fargo, who voted against House Bill 1308, told The Forum he didn’t understand why legislators had to insert the language into law. He said he would be in favor of either rewriting the law to remove the term binary triggers or banning the device, though he would speak with concerned citizens and law enforcement to get a sense of what would be the best way to approach revising Century Code.
“I would take a look at it,” he said. “I think the public has a deeper understanding about the effect of this type of weapon.”
David Samson / The Forum
‘Trick shooting or target shooting’
Rep. Matthew Ruby, R-Minot, introduced House Bill 1308 because a constituent requested it, according to testimony he gave to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
“The main issue is that certain manufacturers are worried the language may ban these triggers, while others are perfectly fine sending orders here,” he said in a letter to the committee.
When asked what the biggest market for the trigger was, Ruby said, “Mainly trick shooting or target shooting,” according to testimony records. He also said he had one.
“The other reason is you can hit some pretty good fire rates by training,” Ruby told the Senate committee. “The fastest revolver, with no attachments, is 8 rounds per second. You can get really fast if you train. That is usually your target shooters and competition shooters.”
He did not return a message left by The Forum.
Barakat, who also injured two officers and a bystander in the shooting, practiced at a West Fargo gun range. He was
“practicing his shooting skills”
in the hours before the ambush, Wrigley said Friday.
The shooter also researched “mass casualty events” online, Wrigley said. The last website on Barakat’s search history was a story about thousands attending the Downtown Fargo Street Fair, leading authorities to believe he planned to shoot attendees.
North Dakota Century Code defines a machine gun as being able to fire five or more rounds in a second with one trigger pull, Lefor said on the House floor.
“For a binary trigger to fire five rounds per second, it would require three trigger pulls,” he said, adding it only meets one of the two criteria for the definition of a machine gun.
Wrigley on Friday disputed claims that the binary trigger didn’t turn guns into a fully automatic weapon.
“It’s the functional equivalent of it, and we’ve outlawed that for decades,” he said.
Binary triggers are legal in most states, though at least 10 states have banned the device.
Addressing the issue is a challenge, Lefor told The Forum. He said his “heart absolutely breaks” for Wallin, the officer’s family and the Fargo community. He said he believes the change on binary triggers has to come from the federal level.
“At the end of the day, you can’t have a hodgepodge of state laws across the country,” Lefor said.
Piepkorn said during a Senate committee hearing that the bill was introduced for one person. He was the only committee member of six on the Senate side to vote against a “do pass” recommendation.
“I don’t think it warrants a place in our Century Code,” Piepkorn said, according to hearing minutes.
Lawmakers can take steps to prevent a mass shooting, or at least lessen the threat, without infringing upon people’s right to bear arms, Piepkorn told The Forum.
“It’s certainly not a hunter’s issue. It’s something else,” he said. “I think that there’s broad public support for us … taking a look at the law and seeing what we can do to lessen threats like this.”
HOUSE: 80-12
YEAS: Bert Anderson, R-Crosby; Dick Anderson, R-Willow City; Thomas Beadle, R-Fargo; Rick Becker, R-Bismarck; Larry Bellew, R-Minot; Jake Blum, R-Grand Forks; Glenn Bosch, R-Bismarck; Mike Brandenburg, R-Edgeley; Chuck Damschen, R-Hampden; Jeff Delzer, R-Underwood; Bill Devlin, R-Finley; Jason Dockter, R-Bismarck; Sebastian Ertelt, R-Gwinner; Clayton Fegley, R-Berthold; Jay Fisher, R-Minot; Jim Grueneich, R-Ellendale; LaurieBeth Hager, D-Fargo; Patrick Hatlestad, R-Williston; Craig Headland, R-Montpelier; Pat Heinert, R-Bismarck; Jeff Hoverson, R-Minot; Michael Howe, R-West Fargo; Craig Johnson, R-Maxbass; Dennis Johnson, R-Devils Lake; Mary Johnson, R-Fargo; Daniel Johnston, R- Kathryn; Terry Jones, R-New Town; Tom Kading, R-Fargo; Karen Karls, R-Bismarck; Jim Kasper, R-Fargo; George Keiser, R-Bismarck; Keith Kempenich, R-Bowman; Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck, Ben Koppelman, R-West Fargo; Kim Koppelman, R-West Fargo; Gary Kreidt, R-New Salem; Vernon Laning, R-Bismarck; Mike Lefor, R-Dickinson; Donald Longmuir, R-Stanley; Scott Louser, R-Minot; Jeffery Magrum, R-Hazelton; Andrew Marschall, R-West Fargo; Bob Martinson, R-Bismarck; Aaron McWilliams, R-Hillsboro; Lisa Meier, R-Bismarck; Corey Mock, D-Grand Forks; David Monson, R-Osnabrock; Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck; Jon Nelson, R-Rugby; Emily O’Brien, R-Grand Forks; Mark Owens, R-Grand Forks; Bob Paulson, R-Minot; Gary Paur, R-Gilby; Chet Pollert, R-Carrington; Todd Porter, R-Mandan; Brandy Pyle, R-Casselton; David Richter, R-Williston; Shannon Roers Jones, R-Fargo; Karen Rohr, R-Mandan; Dan Ruby, R-Minot; Matthew Ruby, R-Minot; Bernie Satrom, R-Jamestown; Mike Schatz, R-New England; Austen Schauer, R-West Fargo; Jim Schmidt, R-Huff; Mary Schneider, D-Fargo; Randy Schobinger, R-Minot; Cynthia Schreiber-Beck, R-Wahpeton; Luke Simons, R-Dickinson; Kathy Skroch, R-Lidgerwood; Vicky Steiner, R-Dickinson; Michelle Strinden, R-Fargo; Nathan Toman, R-Mandan; Wayne Trottier, R-Bismarck; Bill Tveit, R-Hazen; Steve Vetter, R-Grand Forks; Don Vigesaa, R-Cooperstown; Robin Weisz, R-Hurdsfield; Greg Westlind, R-Cando; Denton Zubke, R-Watford City.
NAYS: Mary Adams, D-Grand Forks; Pamela Anderson, D-Fargo; Tracy Boe, D-Mylo; Josh Boschee, D-Fargo; Ruth Buffalo, D-Fargo; Gretchen Dobervich, D-Fargo; Matt Eidson, D-Grand Forks; Ron Guggisberg, D-Fargo; Karla Rose Hanson, D-Fargo; Richard Holman, D-Mayville; Alisa Mitskog, D-Wahpeton; Marvin Nelson, D-Rolla.
ABSENT AND NOT VOTING: Dwight Kiefert, R-Valley City; Mark Sanford, R-Grand Forks.
SENATE: 42-3
YEAS: Howard Anderson Jr., R-Turtle Lake; JoNell Bakke, D-Grand Forks; Brad Bekkedahl, R-Williston; Randy Burckhard, R-Minot; David Clemens, R-West Fargo; Dwight Cook, R-Mandan; Kyle Davison, R-Fargo; Dick Dever, R-Bismarck; Jim Dotzenrod, D-Wyndmere; Jay Elkin, R-Taylor; Richard Erbele, R-Lehr; Robert Fors, R-Larimore; John Grabinger, D-Jamestown; Joan Heckaman, D-New Rockford; Kathy Hogan, D-Jamestown; David Hogue, R-Minot; Ray Holmberg, R-Grand Forks; Jordan Kannianen, R-Stanley; Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden; Karen Krebsbach, R-Minot; Curt Kreun, R-Grand Forks; Oley Larsen, R-Minot; Diane Larson, R-Bismarck; Gary Lee, R-Casselton; Randy Lemm, R-Hillsboro; Larry Luick, R-Fairmount; Scott Meyer, R-Grand Forks; Janne Myrdal, R-Edinburg; Erin Oban, D-Bismarck; Dave Oehlke, R-Devils Lake; Dale Patten, R-Watford City; Nicole Poolman, R-Bismarck; Larry Robinson, R-Valley City; Jim Roers, R-Fargo; Kristin Roers, R-Fargo; David Rust, R-Tioga; Donald Schaible, R-Mott; Ronald Sorvaag, R-Fargo; Jessica Unruh, R-Beulah; Shawn Vedaa, R-Velva; Terry Wanzek, R-Jamestown; Rich Wardner, R-Dickinson.
NAYS: Richard Marcellais, D-Belcourt; Tim Mathern, D-Fargo; Merrill Piepkorn, D-Fargo.
ABSENT AND NOT VOTING: Michael Dwyer, R-Bismarck; Judy Lee, R-West Fargo.
GRAND FORKS – UND is home to a flourishing LGBTQ community thanks to efforts from students, staff and faculty, though its future is shrouded in uncertainty as states across the country propose and enact bans against diversity, equity and inclusion at public institutions.
Jeff Maliskey became the first director of UND’s Pride Center in 2022 after having steered it in an interim capacity since 2017. Under his stewardship, the LGBTQ community has taken an increasingly active role on campus.
“You start small, and then it’s grown all over campus,” Maliskey said. “That’s why you really do see us kind of as this hub in the state, this hub in little Grand Forks, North Dakota, as the ones leading the initiatives.”
Darin Buri, the College of Engineering and Mines Facility and library manager, credits the increased visibility of the community to Maliskey.
“Jeff’s been wonderful,” Buri said. “It wasn’t always visible, but I think it’s gotten a lot more visible since Jeff started in his position.”
Maliskey joined the university staff in May 2015, during a time when marriage equality was a political hot topic. This would culminate in the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision the very next month, which made same-sex marriage a constitutionally protected right.
The month before Maliskey came to Grand Forks, the North Dakota Legislature
voted down a bill that would prohibit discrimination against LGBTQ individuals
.
“(It wasn’t) a great conversation that I was hearing around campus from other faculty and staff, from students that were engaging in conversations,” Maliskey said. “So I almost felt like I was retreating a little bit back into the closet, if you will.”
Over two years later, in the 2017 fall semester, Maliskey was approached by the university’s vice president to take the interim leadership position of the newly founded Pride Center.
The center was created as a result of student advocacy, providing a physical space as well as resources and support for a community that has been active on campus since the creation of the Ten Percent Society, now known as the Queer and Trans Alliance, in the 1980s. Both were firsts for the state, according to Maliskey, creating a picture of a university leading efforts for queer and trans inclusion in North Dakota.
From the 1980s onward, students were responsible for leading these efforts, Maliksey said. Once the Pride Center was established, staff and faculty began to assume a greater role, using the Pride Center to provide students with support and resources as well as forming their own advocacy group, the LGBTQ Staff and Faculty Association.
During the most recent academic year, the Pride Center held 43 events, including the LGBTQ+ Higher Education Day-Long Institute and week-long events like Coming out Week and Trans Awareness Week. The center also provided academic support for LGBTQ students, such as study tables and academic challenges that were successful in raising the GPA of some of its participants, according to the center’s annual report.
Maliskey said the effect has been felt by students. The number of students involved with the Pride Center and the programs it offers has increased every year and the climate for LGBTQ students on campus has improved since.
However, the national conversation surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion doesn’t bode well for the center and the support it provides for students.
According to the Chronicle Of Higher Education
, 85 bills that would prohibit public colleges and universities from having diversity, equity and inclusion offices and staff have been introduced across 28 states and the U.S. Congress since 2023. Of those 85 bills, 14 have become law in states like Florida, Texas and most recently Utah, where LGBTQ resource centers have closed their doors for good.
In North Dakota,
such a bill was signed into law last April
, though it extended only to prohibiting mandatory diversity, equity and inclusion — commonly referred to as DEI — training and diversity statements. Offices that receive funding from public universities, such as UND’s Pride Center, can remain open for now.
“We don’t have the federal protection and it’s really up to the states,” Maliskey said. “It’s not looking great or promising for us right now.”
According to Maliskey, closing down these centers could result in students, faculty and staff leaving the schools and the states to go to institutions elsewhere. This doesn’t just apply to queer and trans students, Maliskey said, but allies as well.
A closure could also result in an increase in mental health concerns, which Maliskey said is already being experienced by states that have lost their services.
“Are we going to be here tomorrow? Oh, I hope,” Maliskey said. “I hope we can continue to do our work to support students. We know there’s a need, because if we don’t we know the outcome isn’t great for our students.”
In the past year, 39% of LGBTQ young people nationwide seriously considered attempting suicide and 12% attempted suicide, according to
survey data from the Trevor Project
, a nonprofit focusing on suicide prevention and crisis intervention for LGBTQ youth. Additionally, among those surveyed who reported living in very accepting communities, the suicide rate was less than half as those who reported living in very unaccepting communities.
Such figures reflect the importance for LGBTQ adults on campus to be more open about their identity and support the students, according Bridget Brooks, an instructional designer and the current chair of the LGBTQ Staff and Faculty Association’s Board of Executives.
“I think being visible, if it saves one person’s life, it’s worth it,” Brooks said. “And it’s worth anything that could ever possibly happen to myself if someone else’s life is saved. So that’s why we need to be visible.”
The LGBTQ Faculty and Staff Association was created in the summer of 2021 after Maliskey, at the time the assistant director for the Hillyard Center and LGBTQ Initiatives, brought together a group of 10 faculty and staff.
According to Maliskey, the LGBTQ Staff and Faculty Association began as an informal network of LGBTQ staff and faculty who met to have conversations and build a community
Even though there’s a large number of LGBTQ faculty and staff on campus, previous activity was almost exclusively the territory of students, according to Buri. This meant that until the association was formed, there wasn’t any formal organization for faculty and staff.
“Now with this organization, we meet with the students a lot and participate in a lot of the things that they do,” Buri said. “So it’s a way for us to be visible and supportive of them as well.”
Maliskey said the association has not only increased the community’s visibility on campus, but it has also been able to connect students with faculty for research and academic support. If a student wants to engage in queer and trans research, Maliskey is able to connect them with faculty in the group who do that kind of work.
Another part of the association is the Out List, a voluntary list of currently 25 staff and faculty members who have chosen to openly identify as LGBTQ to amplify the community’s visibility and networking opportunities on campus.
“We all hold different identities,” Maliskey said. “No matter where you’re at, you can find somebody to connect with.”
Visibility has been an essential part of the UND LGBTQ community’s longevity, according to Buri. It’s also helped change minds and create a more tolerant climate on campus for the community.
“When you’re visible you’re not just a number or a statistic anymore,” Buri said. “And people know you and all of a sudden it kind of changes the dynamic, how they think.”
Despite an unclear future for the Pride Center and the LGBTQ community in general, Buri said he maintains hope.
“I think that it’s going to take all of us working together, but I think the future is bright,” Buri said. “We’ll get past whatever obstacles we have and we’ll do OK. We always have.”
WASHINGTON (KMOT) – The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded more than $28 million to West Fargo, Spirit Lake Tribe and the Three Affiliated Tribes.
The majority of the funds went to West Fargo for the installation of a road-rail separation with pedestrian, bike and ADA accommodations.
The Tribes were given partial of the funds to design road maintenance and address drainage issues, road widening, and parking accessibility for all.
The money comes from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE, grant program.
Copyright 2024 KFYR. All rights reserved.
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – North Dakota University System Chancellor Mark Hagerott will be moving to other job opportunities.
The chancellor released this statement about his work for the state: “It has been wonderful to be the chancellor and lead the North Dakota system for almost a decade. I am proud of the work we have done as a system during my tenure. I look forward to ensuring the continued success of the students we serve by assisting the Board during the upcoming legislative session.”
Hagerott said he will continue to serve the state of North Dakota as a professor of artificial intelligence and human security.
State Board of Higher Education Chair Tim Mihalick said the State Board of Higher Education is thankful for his leadership: “He has provided a systemwide vision to higher education that is student-centric and fiscally responsible. We look forward to continuing our work together through the next year and a half, to include the upcoming legislative session, and persisting in our shared systemwide higher education goals.”
He said his transition to teaching will be beneficial to the state in the future.
Copyright 2024 KFYR. All rights reserved.
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