Colorado governor signs gun bills to limit ammunition magazines, expand background checks

Exactly eight months after dozens of people were shot in a Colorado movie theatre, the state’s Democratic governor signed new restrictions on firearms in the state on Wednesday.

It is a big change for Democrats who have traditionally shied away from taking on gun control in a western state where owning a gun is as common as owning a car in some rural areas.

Gov. John Hickenlooper signed new limits on ammunition magazines and a landmark expansion of background checks on Wednesday in his office, surrounded by legislative sponsors and their guests. The signings mark a significant moment in Colorado, a state with a libertarian tradition of self-reliance.

Over the last month, Colo. has been viewed as a test for how far states are willing to go on new restrictions after the horror of shootings at a Connecticut elementary school and in a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado, a suburb of Denver. There, on July 20, a gunman dressed in body armour and carrying an arsenal of firearms killed 12 people and wounded dozens of others during a midnight showing of a “Dark Knight” Batman film.

Then in December, a massacre at a Connecticut school left 28 dead and revived gun control as a top issue. U.S. President Barack Obama proposed several gun safety measures a month later in response.

Despite the president’s backing, a push for a federal assault weapons ban has faltered in Washington, where the National Rifle Association gun lobby has powerful allies, especially in the Republican party. Senate Democrats decided that the ban won’t be part of the gun control bill because it didn’t have enough support to pass.

Many Democrats think a national ban on large-capacity magazines has a better chance of getting more support. Other measures under consideration in the Senate would expand required federal background checks for firearms buyers, increase federal penalties for illegal gun trafficking and increase money for school safety.