
Delaware Passes Assault Weapons Ban

DOVER, Del. — A ban on sales of AR-15 rifles and other assault style weapons passed the Delaware Senate last week, by a 13-8 vote, with every Republican in the chamber voting no on the measure and all but one Democrat voting yes.
The bill will now move on to Gov. John Carney’s desk to be signed into law.
Two-hundred fifty-four mass shootings have occurred since 2009 claiming the lives of 1,536 Americans, according to Every Town for Gun Safety, a gun control advocacy group. This includes 362 children and teens, whose futures were stolen, devastating their families and communities.
Assault rifles have been disproportionately used in these mass shootings.
These deadly weapons dramatically increase fatality rates; six times as many people are shot per incident. Delaware legislators addressed this crisis by passing this ban on the sale of semi-automatic rifles.
Legislators concluded that “assault-style weapons are exceptionally lethal weapons of war that have no place in civilian life.”
Bill 450 states the “potential function as a sports or recreational firearm is substantially outweighed by the danger that it can be used to kill and injure human beings.”
The bill lists deadly weapons including WASR-10 and AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles that were used in the shootings in Uvalde, Texas, Buffalo, New York, and Parkland. Florida.
The bill does not address assault rifles previously purchased, however, both the Delaware House and Senate passed a bill June 16 to prohibit the manufacture, sale, offer for sale, purchase, receipt, transfer or possession of an ammunition-feeding device with a capacity to accept more than 17 rounds of ammunition.
Legislators widely supported stricter background checks with House bill 423, which pinpoints criminal backgrounds using the Firearm Transaction Approval Program within the State Bureau of Identification. House bill 451 has divided support; this bill raises the legal age to own a firearm from 18 to 21.
Concerns have been raised by some that the gun control measures being pushed through the state legislature in the wake of the latest mass shooting are unconstitutional.
The bills’ authors, however, took pains to try to explain that they have no intention of impinging on anyone’s 2nd amendment rights. For instance, the assault weapons ban bill states: “It is not, however, the intent of the Legislature by this chapter to place restrictions on the use of those weapons which are primarily designed and intended for hunting, target practice, or other legitimate sports or recreational activities.”
Among those expressing approval for the state’s action on guns this weekend was longtime Delaware resident President Joe Biden.
“In the decade after Congress passed the 1994 ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines — with bipartisan support in Congress and the backing of law enforcement — mass shootings went down. But after Republicans let the law expire in 2004 and those weapons were allowed to be sold again, mass shootings tripled. Those are the facts, and they should inspire us to action,” President Biden added.
Eden can be reached at [email protected]
In The News
Health
Voting
In The States
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday held that Republican lawmakers in North Carolina can intervene to defend the state’s... Read More
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday held that Republican lawmakers in North Carolina can intervene to defend the state’s controversial voter-ID law, despite the fact the state’s Democratic attorney general is already defending it. The 8-1 ruling in Berger v. NC NAACP did not delve... Read More
ST. LOUIS — An Arkansas law targeting boycotts of Israel did not infringe on constitutionally protected free speech rights because... Read More
ST. LOUIS — An Arkansas law targeting boycotts of Israel did not infringe on constitutionally protected free speech rights because it was intended to serve “a purely commercial purpose,” the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Wednesday. The American Civil Liberties Union, which represented... Read More
WASHINGTON — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a proposed 1,100 MW... Read More
WASHINGTON — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a proposed 1,100 MW offshore wind energy project in waters off the coast of New Jersey. The agency will publish a notice of availability of the Draft EIS on Friday,... Read More
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The head of the Texas state police pronounced the law enforcement response to the Uvalde school... Read More
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The head of the Texas state police pronounced the law enforcement response to the Uvalde school shooting an “abject failure," telling lawmakers that there were enough officers and firepower on the scene to have stopped the gunman three minutes after he entered... Read More
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Katie Britt won the Republican nomination for Senate in Alabama Tuesday, defeating six-term Rep. Mo Brooks... Read More
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Katie Britt won the Republican nomination for Senate in Alabama Tuesday, defeating six-term Rep. Mo Brooks in a primary runoff after former President Donald Trump took the unusual step of rescinding his initial Brooks endorsement. The loss ends a turbulent campaign that... Read More
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will try to resolve a dispute between New York and New Jersey... Read More
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will try to resolve a dispute between New York and New Jersey over the latter’s desire to back out of a 1953 agreement to work together to combat corruption and racketeering on the waterfront docks the two states... Read More