As States Add More Restrictions To Assault Rifles, Gun Makers Have Found A Way To Beat The System
The gun makers are simply adjusting the make of the rifle to fit the restrictions put in place by the new legislation. “They’re basing the bans strictly on cosmetic features that have no bearing on the operation or the function of the firearm," said Mark Oliva, a spokesman for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade group for gun manufacturers.
The Wall Street Journal:
Gun Makers Adjust Rifles To Skirt Bans
California first banned the sale of guns it calls assault weapons, including AR-15 style rifles, in 1989, then updated the restrictions in 1999 and again in 2016. An accused shooter used just such a gun last month to attack a synagogue outside San Diego, killing one and injuring three. He bought it earlier this year in California where, despite the state ban, it is legal, according to law-enforcement officials. The AR-15 style rifle that John Earnest, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, is accused by police of using was one of many models the firearms industry has come up with to skirt the regulations put in place by the seven states that outlaw semiautomatic weapons with certain features, which they refer to as assault weapons. (Elinson and McWhirter, 6/21)
In other news on gun safety —
NH Times Union:
Some NH Chiefs Still Signing Gun Licenses, Police Say
Northwood Police Chief Glen Drolet’s decision to stop signing state pistol/revolver licenses when he issues them landed him in court Tuesday and raised questions about how other New Hampshire police departments handle licensing. “The way I see it, I wouldn’t want to be the officer in one of those states looking at an unsigned government-issued form trying to figure out if it’s valid,” Newfields police Lt. Michael Schwartz said Wednesday. Like other New Hampshire police chiefs, Schwartz said the Newfields chief still signs gun licenses when they’re issued. (Schreiber, 6/19)
