First Step Completed in Colorado’s Effort to Ban Most Semi-Automatics

We’ve written a fair bit about Colorado’s latest anti-gun efforts. They want to ban all magazine-fed semi-automatic firearms. That’s bound to get us worked up here at Bearing Arms, to say nothing of the gun community as a whole.

This is a blatantly unconstitutional action that is completely and totally indefensible.

Unfortunately, it’s also a serious effort rather than just a bit of grandstanding. We know this because the bill cleared its first hurdle.

A controversial proposal that would make it illegal to sell, buy or make guns that use detachable magazines cleared its initial committee hearing Tuesday, the first hurdle on its legislative path.

The bill’s main sponsor, Democratic Sen. Tom Sullivan of Centennial, opened the hearing by talking about his son’s murder at the hands of a mass shooter during the 2012 attack on an Aurora movie theater.

“High-capacity magazines are what put the ‘mass’ into mass shootings,” Sullivan said. “The people of Colorado have mandated that we do something about the public health crisis that is gun violence, so that’s what we’re going to do.”

The measure specifically would make it illegal to sell, purchase or manufacture semiautomatic rifles and shotguns, and some semiautomatic pistols, that are capable of accepting detachable ammunition magazines.

The hearing drew hundreds of witnesses to the Capitol to testify. Coloradans from all over the state crowded the marble-clad hallways hoping to get a seat in the packed committee room.

Sullivan and his co-sponsor in the Senate, Denver Democrat Sen. Julie Gonzales, said one reason for the bill is to enforce Colorado’s existing ban on magazines that hold more than 15 rounds. They also claim the policy is an important way to limit the damage inflicted during mass shootings.

The thing is, self-defense shootings are far more common than actual mass shootings–and by that, I mean those that aren’t associated with other criminal activity and four or more people are killed, other than the shooter–and that’s exactly who will be impacted by this measure. Most defensive handguns are magazine-fed semi-automatics, as are most defensive rifles.

They’ve already banned the magazines, after all. If gun control works as advertised, why would they need to also ban magazine-fed semi-automatics?

What we’re seeing is really nothing more than the next step of incremental gun bans. They’re not going to come out tomorrow and just ban everything. Anti-gunners know that will never fly. So, they just keep pushing and pushing until they run into an obstacle, like a Supreme Court decision, and then they reframe where they push to see how much they can get away with.

They held a hearing, but the truth of the matter is that it didn’t really matter what they heard from the people. They’re going to do what they’re going to do, and I think they’re going to try this.

But just in case, if you’re in Colorado, call your legislators and do it today. Tell everyone you know to do the same. No one should be permitted to think for one moment that this gross encroachment on people’s constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms will fly.

I’m sure gun rights groups have the lawyers on standby, as they should be.

After Bruen, I’m a little amazed that anyone is willing to try this. That one should have ended this, and even Rahimi muddying the waters didn’t open the door on this one.