Maine legislature passes sweeping gun safety laws in all-night session

Measures including background checks on private sales and waiting periods for purchases follow deadly shooting last year

Maine’s state legislature approved sweeping gun safety legislation including background checks on private gun sales, waiting periods for gun purchases and criminalizing gun sales to prohibited people before adjourning on Thursday morning, nearly six months after the deadliest shooting in state history.

The Democratic governor, Janet Mills, and the Democratic-led legislature pressed for a number of gun and mental health proposals after the shooting that claimed 18 lives and injured another 13 people, despite the state’s strong hunting tradition and support for gun owners.