Major gun control legislation has passed the House of Delegates in Virginia. House Bill 2 would prohibit any sale or possession of new “assault rifles” in the commonwealth if passed.
The ban passed the house along party lines, with 51 Democrats in support and 49 Republicans in opposition.
The bill describes an assault weapon as a semi-automatic centerfire rifle or pistol that has the ability to accept a detachable magazine and has one of the following characteristics: a folding or collapsible stock, a pistol grip, a vertical fore grip, or the ability to possess a sound or flash suppressor. It excluded any antique firearm and any rifle that is not operated by a pump, lever or bolt.
It also limits magazine capacity in excess of 10 rounds.
“When we talk about what this bill calls assault rifles, we’re talking about the most commonly owned rifle in the United States … there’s 20 million of them in circulation,” said Del. Timothy Griffin of Bedford, Virginia.
“The weapons here in this bill are similar to those that I carried in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Del. Daniel Helmer, of Fairfax, who sponsored the bill.
Helmer was a team commander in Special Operations Command in the U.S. Army.
“Today, as a father of two kids in public schools as the husband of a public school educator, we’re losing the capacity to be shocked that these weapons of war, these weapons designed to put sustained fire on an enemy are being used time and again to kill our children,” Helmer said before the floor vote.
Republicans in the House called the bill disjointed, with arbitrary definitions of what guns would be illegal.
“So, instead of like a typical stock like you would see on a hunting rifle, you have a pistol grip. Now it’s an assault weapon,” said Del. Nick Freitas of Culpeper, a former Green Beret and Iraq War veteran. “The reason why I call that arbitrary is because it is. It’s a question of ergonomics. We had somebody testify once where they said, ‘Look, the reason why I use an AR-15 is because I’m disabled.'”
The bill also excludes any weapon that was manufactured before July 1 of this year.
Del. Timothy Griffin said before the final floor vote that the provision would be a nightmare to enforce.
“The firearms they are banning are completely indistinguishable, as I said from the 20 million already in existence … This will increase warrantless searches, it will make anyone who wants to protect his or her home less safe.”
Helmer again pointed to public safety and high crime rates among youths: “We should not accept that the No. 1 killer of kids in our Commonwealth is bullets.”
A similar bill must now pass the state Senate before it goes to Gov. Glenn Youngkin for a signature or possible veto.
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