A group of protesters seeking tighter gun restrictions are planning "lie-ins" on Capitol Hill and the steps of the Supreme Court to mark the one-year anniversary of the massacre at Virginia Tech that left 32 students shot and killed.

The protests are slated to begin on the front of the Supreme Court at noon tomorrow and on the lawn of the Capitol 45 minutes later. They will feature "lie-ins," that is, an unknown number of protesters, including family members of Virginia Tech victims and survivor Elilta Habtu, will lie down in groups of 32 to symbolize the 32 victims.

Protesters are seeking tighter controls on gun sales, which they say occur too easily. They are calling for more stringent rules at gun shows and hope to reinstate a ban on assault weapons.

"The American people know that it's too easy for dangerous people to obtain dangerous weapons," Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said in a release co-sponsoring the protests. "As we remember gun violence victims on April 16, we should urge Congress to close the gun show loophole immediately, and take other common sense steps to fight gun violence."

In the wake of last year's shooting the House and Senate passed a bill signed by President Bush in January to strengthen the prescreening of gun purchasers and limit the mentally ill from buying guns.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times