California to the Left of the Country, and Not Just Geographically!

Courtesy of KCET.org
Courtesy of KCET.org

The “Left-Coast” state has done it again.

The election of 2016 saw the election of a man for President who has espoused his strong support for the 2nd Amendment and gun-owners’ rights.

But that message was lost on Californians.  On Tuesday, two thirds of the voters passed Proposition 63, which further restricted the rights of the law-abiding gun owners of the state.

Under the new initiative, possession of magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammunition is banned completely.  Previous legislation banned the sale of “large-capacity” magazines but allowed people to keep ones they already owned. That will no longer be the case. They will now have to surrender those magazines to law enforcement for destruction.

The state’s lawmakers had passed a competing law earlier in the year banning possession of large-capacity magazines but made continued possession an “infraction” similar to a traffic ticket.  The initiative, however, allows a prosecutor to either charge the violator with an infraction or a misdemeanor.

Additionally, the new initiative will require background checks for ammunition sales with ammo sales being reported to the Department of Justice, makes it a crime not to report lost or stolen guns, and speeds the seizure of firearms from owners who are no longer allowed to own them.

The state already has a program to remove guns from those who are found guilty of a felony or a violent misdemeanor, found to be mentally unstable, or are the subject of a restraining order involving domestic violence. But the initiative sets up a new process requiring offenders to give up their weapons as soon as they are convicted.

Gun-control advocates are hoping the ammunition restrictions and California’s unique firearm seizure program could serve as models for other states.

 

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