BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair A
2013-2014 Regular Session B
4
8
AB 48 (Skinner)
As Amended June 24, 2013
Hearing date: July 2, 2013
Penal Code
SM:mc
HIGH CAPACITY AMMUNITION
MAGAZINES/AMMUNITION DATABASE
HISTORY
Source: Author
Prior Legislation: SB 427 (de León) - 2011-2012, vetoed
AB 2358 (de León) - 2010, failed passage on Senate
Floor
AB 1663 (Hagman) - 2010, failed passage in Assembly
Public Safety
AB 962 (de León) - Ch. 628, Statutes of 2009
AB 2062 (de León) - 2008, held in Senate
Appropriations Committee
AB 362 (de León) - 2007, held in Senate
Appropriations Committee
AB 996 (Ridley-Thomas) - 2006, vetoed
AB 352 (Koretz) - 2006, died in conference
AB 2714 (Torrico) - 2005-06, vetoed
SB 1152 (Scott) - 2003-04, vetoed
Support: Albany Unified School District; Berkeley City Council;
California Chapter of the American College of Emergency
Physicians; California Chapters of the Brady Campaign
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to Prevent Gun Violence; California Nurses Association;
City of Albany; City of Berkeley; City of Beverly
Hills; City of El Cerrito; City of Emeryville; City of
Oakland; Mayor, City of Piedmont; Courage Campaign;
Emery Unified School District; Law Center to Prevent
Gun Violence; Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department;
Sacramento City Councilmember Kevin McCarty; South
County Citizens Against Gun Violence; Violence
Prevention Coalition of Orange County; Women Against
Gun Violence; West Contra Costa Unified School
District; Youth Alive; City of Santa Monica; American
Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
Opposition:California Sportsman's Lobby; California Waterfowl
Association; National Association for Gun Rights;
Safari Club International; Sheriff of Shasta County;
Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California;
Crossroads of the West Gun Shows; National Shooting
Sports Foundation, Inc.; California Association of
Federal Firearms Licensees; California Association of
Firearms Retailers; National Rifle Association of
America
Assembly Floor Vote: Ayes 46 - Noes 26
KEY ISSUES
SHOULD THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (DOJ) BE REQUIRED TO CREATE A
DATABASE TO RECORD SALES OF AMMUNITION AND REQUIRE AMMUNITION
SELLERS, EXCEPT AS SPECIFIED, TO OBTAIN SPECIFIED IDENTIFICATION
INFORMATION FROM AMMUNITION BUYERS AND REPORT THAT INFORMATION TO
DOJ?
SHOULD DOJ BE REQUIRED TO CROSS CHECK THAT INFORMATION WITH ITS
PROHIBITED ARMED PERSONS FILE TO DETERMINE IF THE BUYER IS
PROHIBITED FROM PURCHASING AMMUNITION AND, IF THE BUYER IS
PROHIBITED, TO FORWARD THAT PURCHASER'S INFORMATION TO LOCAL LAW
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ENFORCEMENT?
SHOULD DOJ BE REQUIRED TO NOTIFY LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ENTITIES IN
THE CITY, COUNTY OR CITY AND COUNTY WHERE THE BUYER LIVES IF ANY
AMMUNITION PURCHASER OBTAINS MORE THAN 3,000 ROUNDS OF AMMUNITION
WITHIN A FIVE-DAY PERIOD?
SHOULD BUYING OR RECEIVING A LARGE-CAPACITY AMMUNITION MAGAZINE BE
ADDED TO THE CURRENT BAN ON IMPORTATION, MANUFACTURE, OR SALE OF
THESE MAGAZINES?
SHOULD ANY PERSON IN THIS STATE WHO KNOWINGLY MANUFACTURES OR CAUSES
TO BE MANUFACTURED, IMPORTS INTO THE STATE, KEEPS FOR SALE, OR
OFFERS OR EXPOSES FOR SALE, OR WHO GIVES, LENDS, BUYS, OR RECEIVES
ANY LARGE-CAPACITY MAGAZINE CONVERSION KIT, AS DEFINED, BE GUILTY OF
A MISDEMEANOR?
PURPOSE
The purpose of this bill is to (1) require the Department of
Justice (DOJ) to create a database to record sales of ammunition
and require ammunition sellers, except as specified, to obtain
specified identification information from ammunition buyers and
report that information to DOJ; (2) require DOJ to cross check
that information with its Prohibited Armed Persons File to
determine if the buyer is prohibited from purchasing ammunition
and, if the buyer is prohibited, to forward that purchaser's
information to local law enforcement; (3) require DOJ to notify
local law enforcement entities in the city, county, or city and
county where the buyer lives if any ammunition purchaser obtains
more than 3,000 rounds of ammunition within a five-day period;
(4) provide that the ammunition database provisions will not be
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effective until there are sufficient funds in the Ammunition
Vendor's Special Account, which this bill would create, for DOJ
to create the database and DOJ does so; (5) add buying or
receiving a large-capacity ammunition magazine to the current
ban on importation, manufacture or sale of these magazines.
This crime is punishable as a misdemeanor, by up to one year in
the county jail, or as a felony, by 16 months, two or three
years in county jail; (6) clarify that, for purposes of the ban
on manufacturing high capacity magazines, manufacturing includes
both fabricating a magazine and assembling a magazine from a
combination of parts, including but not limited to the body,
spring, follower, and floor plate or end plate, to be a fully
functioning large-capacity magazine; and (7) provide that,
except as specified, any person in this state who knowingly
manufactures or causes to be manufactured, imports into the
state, keeps for sale, or offers or exposes for sale, or who
gives, lends, buys, or receives any large-capacity magazine
conversion kit, as defined, is punishable by up to six months in
county jail, a fine of not more than $1,000, or both.
Current Federal Law
Current federal law , the federal assault weapons law (the
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, H.R. 3355, Pub.L.
103-322,) became effective on September 13, 1994, and banned the
possession of "assault weapons" and "large capacity ammunition
feeding devices," defined as a magazine capable of holding more
than ten rounds of ammunition, manufactured after that date.
That law expired in 2004 and has not been reenacted.
Current California Law - Large Capacity Magazines
Current law defines a "large-capacity magazine" as "any
ammunition feeding device with the capacity to accept more than
10 rounds, but shall not be construed to include any of the
following:
A feeding device that has been permanently altered so
that it cannot accommodate more than 10 rounds.
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A .22 caliber tube ammunition feeding device.
A tubular magazine that is contained in a lever-action
firearm. (Penal Code § 16740.)
Current law provides that, except as specified, commencing
January 1, 2000, any person in this state who manufactures or
causes to be manufactured, imports into the state, keeps for
sale, or offers or exposes for sale, or who gives, or lends, any
large-capacity magazine is punishable by imprisonment in a
county jail not exceeding one year or in the state prison for 16
months, two or three years. (Penal Code § 32310.)
Current law provides that, upon a showing that good cause
exists, the Department of Justice may issue permits for the
possession, transportation, or sale between a licensed firearms
dealer and an out-of-state client, of large-capacity magazines.
(Penal Code § 32315.)
Current law provides that, except as specified, any
large-capacity magazine is a nuisance and is subject to an
injunction against its possession, manufacture or sale, and is
subject to confiscation and summary destruction. (Penal Code §
32390.)
Current law provides that as used in the assault weapons ban,
"magazine" means any ammunition feeding device. (Penal Code §
16890.)
Current California Law - Ammunition Sales
Current law prohibits possession of ammunition by a person under
18 years of age, except as specified. A violation is generally
punishable as a misdemeanor, but, if the minor has been found
guilty of violation certain enumerated offenses previously, a
violation may be punished as either a felony by 16 months, two
or three years in county jail or as a misdemeanor by up to one
year in the county jail. (Penal Code §§ 29650, 29700.)
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Current law provides that selling any ammunition to a person
under the age of 18 or selling ammunition designed and intended
for a handgun to a person under the age of 21 is a misdemeanor.
(Penal Code § 30300.)
Current law provides that, except as specified, any person who
is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm is also
prohibited from owning, or possessing ammunition. A violation
may be punished as either a felony by 16 months, two or three
years in state prison or as a misdemeanor by up to one year in
the county jail. (Penal Code § 30305(a).)
Current law provides that, except as specified, a person
enjoined from engaging in activity pursuant to an injunction
against that person as a member of a criminal street gang is
prohibited from owning or possessing ammunition. Violation of
this section is punishable as a misdemeanor. (Penal Code §
30305(b).)
Current law provides that supplying, selling, or delivering
ammunition to someone that a person knows or reasonably should
know is prohibited from owning or possessing ammunition is a
misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in the county jail.
(Penal Code § 30306.)
Current law provides that, with limited exceptions, delivery or
transfer of ownership of handgun ammunition may only occur in a
face-to-face transaction with bona fide evidence of identity
from the purchaser. Violation of this section is punishable as
a misdemeanor. (Penal Code
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§ 30312.)*
Current law provides that vendors of handgun ammunition must
comply with certain conditions, requirements and prohibitions,
with limited exceptions, including not selling or transferring
ownership of any handgun ammunition without, at the time of
delivery, legibly recording the following information (Penal
Code § 30352):*
The date of the sale or other transaction.
The purchaser's/transferee's driver's license or ID
number and the state of issuance.
The brand, type, and amount of ammunition sold or
otherwise transferred.
The purchaser's/transferee's signature.
The name of the salesperson who processed the sale or
other transaction.
The right thumbprint of the purchaser or transferee on
the above form.
The purchaser's /transferee's full residential address
and telephone number.
The purchaser's/transferee's date of birth.
Current law requires that handgun ammunition vendors must keep
these records for a period of not less than 5 years and must
make these records available to inspection by specified law
enforcement during normal business hours. (Penal Code §§ 30355,
30357.)*
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Current law requires that handgun ammunition vendors shall not
knowingly make a false entry or fail to make an entry or obtain
the required thumbprint. (Penal Code § 30360.)*
Current law provides that violations of the above laws regarding
handgun ammunition vendors are punishable as a misdemeanor.
(Penal Code § 30365.)*
Current law defines "handgun ammunition" as "ammunition
principally for use in pistols, revolvers, and other firearms
capable of being concealed upon the person, notwithstanding that
the ammunition may also be used in some rifles" and exempting,
as specified:
ammunition designed and intended to be used in an
antique firearm; and
blanks. (Penal Code § 16650.)*
* Enforcement of these sections is currently stayed per order of
the Fresno County Superior Court in Parker v. State of
California, No. 10 CECG 02116. That order is currently on
appeal.
This bill would require DOJ to create a database to record sales
of ammunition. All ammunition sellers would be required to
obtain specified identification information from ammunition
buyers and report that information to DOJ, in a manner to be
determined by DOJ. DOJ would then be required to cross check
that information with its Prohibited Armed Persons File to
determine if the buyer is prohibited from purchasing ammunition.
If the buyer is prohibited, DOJ would be required to forward
that purchaser's information to local law enforcement.
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This bill would also require DOJ to notify local law enforcement
entities in the city, county, or city and county where the buyer
lives if any ammunition purchaser obtains more than 3,000 rounds
of ammunition within a five-day period and the purchaser is an
individual and not an ammunition vendor.
This bill provides that the ammunition database provisions will
not be effective until there are sufficient funds in the
Ammunition Vendor's Special Account, which this bill would
create, for DOJ to create the database and DOJ does so. At
least 30 days before the database is operation, DOJ is required
to provide written notice of that fact to ammunition vendors.
This bill exempts from the ammunition database provisions law
enforcement officers and agencies and ammunition vendors.
This bill would add buying or receiving a large-capacity
ammunition magazine to the current ban on importation,
manufacture or sale of these magazines. This crime is
punishable as a misdemeanor, by up to one year in the county
jail, or as a felony, by 16 months, two or three years in county
jail.
This bill would clarify that, for purposes of the ban on
manufacturing high capacity magazines, manufacturing includes
both fabricating a magazine and assembling a magazine from a
combination of parts, including but not limited to the body,
spring, follower, and floor plate or end plate, to be a fully
functioning large-capacity magazine.
This bill would provide that, except as specified, any person in
this state who knowingly manufactures or causes to be
manufactured, imports into the state, keeps for sale, or offers
or exposes for sale, or who gives, lends, buys, or receives any
large-capacity magazine conversion kit is punishable by up to
six months in county jail, a fine of not more than $1,000, or
both.
This bill would define large-capacity magazine conversion kit as
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a device or combination of parts of a fully functioning
large-capacity magazine, including, but not limited to, the
body, spring, follower, and floor plate or end plate, capable of
converting an ammunition feeding device into a large-capacity
magazine.
RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
For the last several years, severe overcrowding in California's
prisons has been the focus of evolving and expensive litigation
relating to conditions of confinement. On May 23, 2011, the
United States Supreme Court ordered California to reduce its
prison population to 137.5 percent of design capacity within two
years from the date of its ruling, subject to the right of the
state to seek modifications in appropriate circumstances.
Beginning in early 2007, Senate leadership initiated a policy to
hold legislative proposals which could further aggravate the
prison overcrowding crisis through new or expanded felony
prosecutions. Under the resulting policy known as "ROCA" (which
stands for "Receivership/ Overcrowding Crisis Aggravation"), the
Committee held measures which created a new felony, expanded the
scope or penalty of an existing felony, or otherwise increased
the application of a felony in a manner which could exacerbate
the prison overcrowding crisis. Under these principles, ROCA
was applied as a content-neutral, provisional measure necessary
to ensure that the Legislature did not erode progress towards
reducing prison overcrowding by passing legislation which would
increase the prison population. ROCA necessitated many hard and
difficult decisions for the Committee.
In January of 2013, just over a year after the enactment of the
historic Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011, the State of
California filed court documents seeking to vacate or modify the
federal court order issued by the Three-Judge Court three years
earlier to reduce the state's prison population to 137.5 percent
of design capacity. The State submitted in part that the, ". .
. population in the State's 33 prisons has been reduced by over
24,000 inmates since October 2011 when public safety realignment
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went into effect, by more than 36,000 inmates compared to the
2008 population . . . , and by nearly 42,000 inmates since 2006
. . . ." Plaintiffs, who opposed the state's motion, argue in
part that, "California prisons, which currently average 150% of
capacity, and reach as high as 185% of capacity at one prison,
continue to deliver health care that is constitutionally
deficient." In an order dated January 29, 2013, the federal
court granted the state a six-month extension to achieve the
137.5 % prisoner population cap by December 31st of this year.
In an order dated April 11, 2013, the Three-Judge Court denied
the state's motions, and ordered the state of California to
"immediately take all steps necessary to comply with this
Court's . . . Order . . . requiring defendants to reduce overall
prison population to 137.5% design capacity by December 31,
2013."
The ongoing litigation indicates that prison capacity and
related issues concerning conditions of confinement remain
unresolved. However, in light of the real gains in reducing the
prison population that have been made, although even greater
reductions are required by the court, the Committee will review
each ROCA bill with more flexible consideration. The following
questions will inform this consideration:
whether a measure erodes realignment;
whether a measure addresses a crime which is directly
dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there
is no other reasonably appropriate sanction;
whether a bill corrects a constitutional infirmity or
legislative drafting error;
whether a measure proposes penalties which are
proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other
reasonably appropriate remedy; and
whether a bill addresses a major area of public safety
or criminal activity for which there is no other
reasonable, appropriate remedy.
COMMENTS
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1. Need for This Bill
According to the author:
Today in California it's easier to buy bullets than to
buy alcohol, cigarettes or certain cold medicines.
While sales of cold medicines such as Sudafed are
reported to the Department of Justice, ammunition
sales are not. We expect to show ID to buy alcohol or
tobacco, but there is no such requirement for buying
bullets. Bullets - the very things that make guns
deadly - should not be easier to buy than alcohol or
cigarettes.
Existing law prohibits individuals convicted of
felonies and violent misdemeanors, as well as those
with serious mental health issues, from purchasing or
possessing ammunition (and firearms), but does not
provide any mechanism to determine whether individuals
who purchase ammunition may lawfully do so.
Furthermore, California has some of the nation's
toughest gun laws, but its laws regulating ammunition
- including the type of large capacity magazines used
in the mass shootings in Newtown, Connecticut and
Aurora, Colorado, and in the assault on Congress
member Gabrielle Giffords - are filled with loopholes.
For example, although current law makes it illegal to
sell a large capacity ammunition magazine, it is not a
crime under current law to buy a large capacity
magazine in the state. Likewise, state law allows the
sale and purchase of "repair kits" that convert
regular ammunition magazines into illegal
military-style large-capacity magazines.
Unfortunately, some individuals are obtaining these
kits that allow them to assemble an ammunition
magazine holding as many as 30 rounds.
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Assembly Bill 48 addresses these shortcomings in
current law by doing the following:
making it a crime to purchase a
large-capacity ammunition magazine;
requiring ammunition sales to be
reported to the Department of Justice (DOJ);
requiring DOJ to cross reference
ammunition sales with the Armed and Prohibited
Persons Systems (APPS); and
notifying local law enforcement when
someone buys 3,000 rounds of ammunition within a
five day period.
Additionally, AB 48 makes it illegal to manufacture,
import into the state, keep for sale, or offer or
expose for sale, or give, lend, buy, or receive a
"large capacity magazine conversation kit" that allows
users to convert regular ammunition magazines into
illegal military-style large-capacity magazines that
can fire more than ten rounds of ammunition without
reloading.
2. High Capacity Magazines in Both Long Guns and Handguns
Many rifles and handguns that use a detachable ammunition
magazine can accept a high capacity magazine, meaning a magazine
that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. On a
semiautomatic handgun or rifle, one bullet is fired per
trigger-pull. The effect of attaching a high capacity magazine
is to allow the shooter to rapidly fire as many rounds as the
magazine holds, as fast as they can pull the trigger. A high
capacity magazine typically holds 30 rounds but some have been
designed to hold as many as 100 rounds. Since January 1, 2000,
California has banned the importation, manufacture or sale of
high capacity magazines. (Penal Code §§ 32310, 32390.) These
magazines have also been deemed a public nuisance and are,
therefore, subject to confiscation and destruction, although
this requires a prosecutor to obtain a civil injunction, which
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is costly and time-consuming. (Penal Code § 18010.) The
Department of Justice states that sellers are currently
circumventing the ban on sale of these magazines in California
by selling all the parts necessary to construct them as "repair
kits," which are then easily assembled in a matter of minutes.
Because possession is not prohibited, once the magazine is
assembled, law enforcement is unable to take any action at that
point. This bill would prohibit possession of the kits used to
manufacture these high capacity magazines. This bill would also
prohibit buying or receiving any high capacity magazine.
Many mass shootings, as well as other shootings with fewer
victims, have involved the use of high capacity magazines. The
Violence Policy Center, a Washington D.C. - based nonprofit
research group, compiled a list of 34 such mass shootings in the
United States that have involved the use of high capacity
magazines. Most recently these include the massacre at Sandy
Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in which the
shooter used several 30-round magazines and killed 28 people;
the Aurora Colorado movie theater massacre last July, in which
the shooter used a 100-round magazine and left 12 dead and 58
wounded; and the shooting in Tucson, Arizona on January 8, 2011,
in which the shooter used a Glock 19 pistol with a 33-round
magazine, killing 6 and wounding another 13. One of those
wounded was U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who is now
urging Congress to reinstate the federal ban on high capacity
ammunition magazines.
WASHINGTON - A halting but riveting Gabrielle Giffords
told Congress on Wednesday that it must act now to
stem gun violence, telling senators "too many children
are dying" just two years after she was shot at
point-blank range and suffered brain damage.
The former Democratic Arizona congresswoman, who
struggles to walk and is partially blind, stoutly read
a brief statement in a high-pitched, almost childlike
voice as her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly,
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sat at her side in a packed and dramatically hushed
hearing room.
"Speaking is difficult, but I must say something
important. Violence is a big problem. Too many
children are dying. Too many children," Giffords
said.
She enunciated each word slowly and clearly, and
punctuated her remarks at several points by looking up
abruptly, as if her head was a personal exclamation
point.
"We must do something," she said. "It will be hard,
but the time is now. You must act. Be bold. Be
courageous. Americans are counting on you."
* * * * * * *
Both she and her husband own guns and back the Second
Amendment. However, they have become critics of the
National Rifle Association, pushing for a new assault
weapons ban, universal background checks and a ban on
high-capacity magazines.
* * * * * * *
In his own testimony, Kelly said that a limit on the
size of ammunition magazines, as proposed by Obama,
could have saved lives in the Tucson attack that
killed six and wounded his wife.
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He said the gunman emptied his high-capacity
ammunition clip in 15 seconds, firing 33 bullets. If
the shooter had used a 10-round clip, 9-year-old
Christina-Taylor Green, who was struck by bullet No.
13, "would be alive today," Kelly said.
"I'm certainly willing to give up my right to own a
high-capacity magazine to bring back that young girl,"
he said. ("Gabby Giffords Says 'Too Many Children Are
Dying' During Emotional Plea to Senate Committee for
Stricter Gun Control," New York Daily News, January
30, 2013,
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/gabby-giffords
-senate-gun-control-hearing-report-article-1.1251013#ix
zz2MnHJGkby.)
A high capacity magazine increases the number of people that can
be killed or wounded in a short period of time with even a
conventional handgun or rifle. Perhaps the most dramatic and
horrifying example of this occurred in 2011 when a man opened
fire on teenagers at a summer youth camp in Norway, killing 69
and wounding another 110, using a semi-automatic rifle, the .223
caliber Ruger Mini-14. The Mini-14 does not contain any of the
features commonly associated with military-style assault
weapons, is perfectly legal in California, and is a popular
rifle with ranchers. What made that weapon such a monstrously
effective tool of mass murder is the fact that the killer was
able to rapidly reload one magazine after another of ammunition.
According to the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, Norway
forbids sale of ammunition magazines for hunting rifles that
hold more than three rounds. The killer stated that he bought
10 30-round magazines by mail-order from a supplier in the
United States. (Norway Shooter: Ammo Clips Were From U.S.,
Politico, July 28, 2011,
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/60154.html.)
3. The Federal Assault Weapons Ban Has Been Allowed to Expire
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The Federal Assault Weapons Ban was passed as a portion of the
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act on September 13,
1994. In addition to banning assault weapons, the Act also
banned the possession, manufacture or transfer of large capacity
ammunition feeding devices, or high capacity magazines. The Act
expired on September 13, 2004, and was not reenacted.
Like the assault weapons ban, whether citizens should be allowed
to own high-capacity magazines is one of the contested issues in
the debate over what constitutes reasonable gun regulation.
Anyone who's thought seriously about armed
self-defense knows why honest Americans - private
citizens and police alike - choose magazines that hold
more than 10 rounds. Quite simply, they improve good
people's odds in defensive situations," Chris W. Cox,
the executive director of the National Rifle
Association's legislative institute wrote in a piece
posted online. He called the ban a "dismal failure."
The federal prohibition on high-capacity magazines and
assault weapons was spurred in part by the 1989 mass
killing in Stockton, Calif. Patrick Edward Purdy, a
mentally unbalanced drug addict, fired 110 rounds from
an AK-47 into a schoolyard, killing five children and
wounding 29 others and a teacher. Purdy used a
75-round drum magazine and a 35-round banana clip, one
of four he carried. (David S. Fallis, Data Indicate
Drop in High-Capacity Magazines During Federal Gun
Ban, Washington Post, January 10, 2013,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/data-point
-to-drop-in-high-capacity-magazines-during-federal-gun-
ban/2013/01/10/d56d3bb6-4b91-11e2-a6a6-aabac85e8036_sto
ry.html.)
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According the Washington Post, an analysis of data taken from
one jurisdiction, the State of Virginia, showed, "During the
10-year federal ban on assault weapons, the percentage of
firearms equipped with high-capacity magazines seized by police
agencies in Virginia dropped, only to rise sharply once the
restrictions were lifted in 2004[.]"
* * * * * * * *
"I was skeptical that the ban would be effective, and
I was wrong," said Garen Wintemute, head of the
Violence Prevention Research Program at the University
of California at Davis School of Medicine. The
database analysis offers "about as clear an example as
we could ask for of evidence that the ban was
working." (Fallis, supra.)
4. What this Bill Would Do
This bill would require DOJ to create a database to record sales
of ammunition. All ammunition sellers would be required to
obtain specified identification information from ammunition
buyers and report that information to DOJ, in a manner to be
determined by DOJ. DOJ would then be required to cross check
that information with its Prohibited Armed Persons File to
determine if the buyer is prohibited from purchasing ammunition.
If the buyer is prohibited, DOJ would be required to forward
that purchaser's information to local law enforcement. This
bill would also require DOJ to report to local law enforcement
agencies whenever a person obtains more than 3,000 rounds of
ammunition within a 5-day period. This bill exempts from these
provisions law enforcement officers and agencies and ammunition
vendors.
This bill would add buying or receiving a large-capacity
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ammunition magazine to the current ban on importation,
manufacture or sale of these magazines. This crime is
punishable as a misdemeanor, by up to one year in the county
jail, or as a felony, by 16 months, two or three years in county
jail.
This bill would also provide that, except as specified, any
person in this state who knowingly manufactures or causes to be
manufactured, imports into the state, keeps for sale, or offers
or exposes for sale, or who gives, lends, buys, or receives any
large-capacity magazine conversion kit is punishable by up to
six months in county jail, a fine of not more than $1,000, or
both.
5. Impact on Prison Overcrowding
This bill would create an alternate felony/misdemeanor for
buying or receiving a large-capacity magazine. This would
likely have a minimal effect on prison population since a
defendant convicted of a felony violation of this provision
would serve his or her sentence in county jail unless the
defendant had a serious or violent prior conviction or was a
registered sex offender and it is already a prison-eligible
felony for anyone with a prior felony conviction of any kind to
possession any firearm or ammunition.
6. Similar Legislation
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Earlier this year this Committee approved SB 396 (Hancock),
which would prohibit the possession of high capacity magazines.
This bill, by contrast, would prohibit buying or receiving a
high capacity magazine. SB 396 is currently pending hearing in
the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
This Committee also approved SB 53 (de León) which would require
ammunition vendors licenses and ammunition purchaser permits.
SB 53 is currently pending hearing in the Assembly Public Safety
Committee.
7. Argument in Support
Mayor Jean Quan of the City of Oakland states:
AB 48 will help to regulate and tighten ammunition
sales in California and ban high-capacity magazines.
Specifically, this bill will regulate all ammunition
sales, require ammunition purchasers to show
identification, require ammunition sellers to be
licensed dealers, require ammunition sellers to report
sales to the Department of Justice, and ban kits to
convert ammunition clips into high-capacity magazines.
The city of Oakland has made public safety its top
concern. We have worked closely with our regional,
state and federal leaders to bring additional
resources to focus on hot spots and address trending
crimes. Gun violence is consistently a top priority
and AB 48, if signed into law, will help support our
efforts to make our City safer.
8. Argument in Opposition
The California Waterfowl Association states:
AB 48 would place an unreasonable burden on hunters
and other sportspeople who wish to voluntarily
transfer ammunition between themselves for legitimate
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AB 48 (Skinner)
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sporting purposes. This includes commonly occurring
transfers of small amounts of ammunition in the field
or at the shooting range, for example. In addition,
the bill would make it much more difficult for young
people who cannot legally purchase ammunition on their
own to actively participate in hunting and related
activities, which conflicts with the California
Department of Fish and wildlife and many conservation
nonprofits' continuing efforts to encourage greater
youth participation in the outdoors.
However, other than providing a limited exception for
law enforcement officers, AB 48 ammunition transfer
requirements offer no such flexibility.
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