Shooters’ group calls for mental health review

The Sporting Shooters Association says the triple murder-suicide in the Hunter Valley this week highlights the need for a review of mental health services rather than an overhaul of New South Wales gun laws.

The Sporting Shooters Association says the triple murder-suicide in the Hunter Valley this week highlights the need for a review of mental health services rather than an overhaul of New South Wales gun laws.Michael Richardson, 32, was found with a single gunshot wound at his East Gresford home on Monday.He killed himself after murdering his wife and two young children.Mr Richardson lost his gun licence last year after a failed suicide attempt but had it returned earlier this year after undergoing psychological testing.The state’s Greens are calling for an overhaul of the gun licensing system but Shooters Association national secretary Roy Smith says that is just opportunistic.”We’re certainly not experts in the area of mental health services but it’s obvious this problem is more of a mental health issue than it is of gun laws,” he said.(Source: ABC News: July 2004)