This week, Townhall covered how Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom (CA) signed several gun control measures into law, one of which restricts where gun owners can carry their firearms.
On the east coast, Connecticut enacted its most restrictive gun control measures since 2013 that bans open carrying of firearms and bans the sale of more than three handguns within 30 days to any one person. Additionally, the law increases bail and “toughens probation and parole for what officials called a narrow group of people with repeated serious gun offenses,” as well as expands its current so-called “assault weapons” ban. The law strengthens penalties for high-capacity magazines and creates more crimes to the list of disqualifications for owning a firearm.
Now, Massachusetts lawmakers have renewed a push to overhaul their state's gun laws to ban most so-called “assault style” firearms.
Reportedly, those who own versions of these kinds of guns will be allowed to possess them if they did so before Aug. 1, 2024 (via Boston Herald):
A broad-ranging new gun control bill unveiled in Massachusetts on Thursday would ban most so-called “assault-style” firearms.
“No person shall possess, own, offer for sale, sell or otherwise transfer in the commonwealth or import into the commonwealth an assault-style firearm, or a large capacity feeding device as defined in section 121,” it reads.
What are those guns? The bill would change section 121 of the state’s Chapter 140 laws to replace “assault weapon” with “assault-style firearm” and define the latter as one of five things.
Any semi-auto, magazine-fed centerfire rifle with a folding or telescopic stock, thumbhole or pistol grip, forward grip, the ability to accept a flash suppressor, or that has a heat shield on the barrel.
Any semi-auto, magazine-fed pistols threaded to accept a flash suppressor or silencer, a forward grip, or that has a heat shield that isn’t part of the slide.
Any semi-auto, magazine-fed shotgun with a folding or telescopic stock, pistol grip or thumbhole grip, or a forward pistol grip for the non-firing hand.
Anything banned by section 128B, rewritten to include all “assault-style firearms.”
A long list of popular models, like the AR-15
According to Axios, California became the first state to enact a so-called “assault-style” weapons ban in 1990. Other states, like Maryland, New York and New Jersey have created similar laws.
Townhall previously reported that Newsom proposed an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to implement sweeping gun control measures that would impact all Americans. This would include restrictions on sporting rifles such as AR-15s, AK-47s and M-16s.
“The 28th Amendment permanently enshrines four additions to the laws of our land,” Newsom explained. “And it ensures NRA-owned politicians can never strip those protections away.”
NEW: I’m proposing the 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution to help end our nation’s gun violence crisis.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) June 8, 2023
The American people are sick of Congress’ inaction.
The 28th will enshrine 4 widely supported gun safety freedoms -- while leaving the 2nd Amendment intact:
1)… pic.twitter.com/ZJ7fyfH0Cf
