You knew another mass shooting was bound to happen. The only unanswered questions were when, where and how many fatalities there would be. A little over a week ago, we found out. At least 18 people were shot and killed and 13 injured in Lewiston, Maine. Not surprisingly, law enforcement authorities identified the suspect as having used a high-powered, assault-style weapon during his killing spree.

My Laguna Beach friends and I may live 3,000 miles from Lewiston, but we share that community’s grief and anguish. This past summer, more than 50 of us signed an open letter to Joe Biden urging the president to convene a Camp David gun summit with leaders of the National Rifle Association, 2nd Amendment proponents, law enforcement officials and families of victims in attendance. Two weeks ago, we contacted the new White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention with a request to forward our plan, now endorsed by more than 1,000 people coast to coast, to the Oval Office. 

For too long, the parties on both sides of the gun safety debate have talked “past” each other instead of “with” each other. My friends and I believe a Camp David summit is the best way to change that dynamic. We feel the sooner the relevant parties sit down and break bread, the sooner they can agree on new, commonsense gun laws. The number of innocents killed and wounded in Lewiston is a national tragedy. Please, Mr. President, convene a gun summit at Camp David as soon as possible.

Denny Freidenrich, Laguna Beach