Legislation will not ban handguns. Handguns will not be banned by legislation. The legislature chastised Smith for her stand on handguns. Smith was chastised by the legislature for her stand on handguns. The author is evoking effective imagery in the novel.
Imagery is evoked in the novel effectively.
The victim telephoned the police immediately. The police were telephoned immediately by the victim. Pretend for a moment that you break a family heirloom. Unless you can defend the use of passive voice, however, use active instead.