Good morning. My previous thread is temporarily closed, and since it is devoted to an overall discussion of the 2nd Amendment, I thought I would devote another thread to this specific issue, and why I am in favor of it. First let me make a number of points:
1. I do not believe that limiting these magazines would be a violation of the 2nd Amendment. My reasoning is this: the previous AWB existed for 10 years, and it included this limitation. Several states currently have this restriction, including my own state of California. None of these laws have been challenged to the Supreme Court, as trigger locks were. The SC could have referred to these limitations in the Heller restriction, but they did not. Thus, I am pretty confident that this sort of restriction on magazines is legal, and not an infringement on the 2nd Amendment. If I believed that it WAS an infringement, I would never be in favor of it.
2. I fully acknowledge that limiting gun magazines will not have any effect whatsoever on gun crimes in general. My reason for limiting them is specific to mass shootings.
The basis of my argument comes from several law enforcement agencies. Here is a partial list:
National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence
Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.
Hispanic American police Command Officers Association
National Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators
National Association of Chiefs of Police
Major Cities Chiefs Association
National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives
National Association of Black Law Enforcement Executives
National Sherrif's Association
Police Executive Research Forum
Police Foundation
All of these national organizations, and many if not most state law enforcement agencies, are in favor of this ban. Their reasoning is pretty simple:
1. In the 22 high profile mass shootings since the AWB was lifted, 20 of them used 30 round magazines or higher.
2. The easiest time to take down the shooter is when he is trying to reload. This was most notable in the case of Jared Loughner. Loughner was tackled while trying to reload his rifle. If he had less bullets in the original magazine, lives would have been saved on that occasion. Lives might have been saved in the Aurora shooting as well. And there are more examples.
That is the basis for my argument. Obviously there is much more detail, and I look forward to the responses I receive. One thing- I am in and out much of the day. I ask that, even if I am not here to respond, that the moderators not close this thread. I promise that I WILL get back to it. Thanks.