Citing Parkland, Democrats push ban on high-capacity ammunition
As the anniversary of the Parkland massacre approaches, Democrats in Congress are pushing to ban the sale of ammunition magazines that carry more than 10 bullets.
U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, who represents the Parkland community, said seconds matter during mass shootings, and high-capacity magazines are worsening the death toll.
“These magazines were made for the battlefield,” said Deutch, D-West Boca. “They weren’t made for our communities.”
The Parkland shooter fired more than 100 rounds from his AR-15 rifle during the Feb. 14 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, killing 17 people and wounding 17 others in a 3 minute, 52-second span. Law enforcement recovered eight 30- and 40-round capacity magazines, according to a report from the state commission investigating the shooting.
Deutch unveiled the legislation — called the Keep Americans Safe Act — at an event Tuesday that featured lawmakers who represent the Sandy Hook and Columbine communities.
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said high-capacity magazines are a “gruesome hallmark of mass shootings” that have no use for hunting or self-defense.
“Large capacity ammunition has one purpose — allowing someone to kill as many people as quickly as possible without having to stop and reload,” he said.
The National Rifle Association is opposing the legislation, arguing it would effectively ban “the most commonly owned firearms for self-defense.”
“This is just more nonsense from anti-gun zealots who are looking to score political points by proposing legislation that would make criminals out of law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional right to self-defense while doing nothing to deter criminals from committing crimes,” Jennifer Baker, an NRA spokeswoman, said in a prepared statement obtained by CNN.
Gun control measures failed to gain traction in Congress after the Parkland shooting, but Democrats now control the U.S. House. Republicans still control the U.S. Senate, and gun legislation will likely face an uphill climb there.
Supporters said they think a growing grassroots movement — including the student-led March for Our Lives — will spur lawmakers to act.
Manuel Oliver, whose 17-year-old son Joaquin “Guac” Oliver was killed in the Parkland shooting, said banning high-capacity magazines should be a bipartisan issue.
“This is not blue,” he said. “This is not red. The shooter won’t ask you who you represent before killing you.”
Other gun legislation has been filed this year. One bill would require background checks for all gun sales. Another — sponsored by Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio — would provide federal funds to help states enact “red-flag” laws similar to Florida’s.
That state law made it easier for law enforcement to seize guns from dangerous people.
Possession of assault weapons, such as the AR-15 rifle, could be banned under a proposed Florida constitutional amendment that could be on the ballot in 2020. The amendment defines assault weapons as semiautomatic rifles and shotguns that carry more than ten rounds.