In Delaware, Senate Bill 6, the Delaware Large Capacity Magazine Prohibition Act of 2021 — bans magazines that hold 17 or more rounds. Gun owners with magazines of that size must sell them to a law enforcement agency by June 30, 2022. If they refuse, they face charges for a class B misdemeanor. Future offenses bump that up to a Class E felony.
This bill is in addition to a new permit process for purchasing handguns. A lone Democrat, Bruce Ennis, joined Republicans in opposing the handgun bill. His objection? It doesn’t affect criminals who get their weapons illegally; it affects law-abiding citizens.
Democrats claim there is an “urgency” for these laws, and that’s why they will push them through the Delaware House with or without Republican support. Senator Dave Lawson, a Republican, has already stated that the magazine ban is unconstitutional, giving residents the right to ignore it.
“The urgency for public safety laws that will protect Delawareans from the threat of gun violence gripping our communities must be carefully balanced with our duty to provide fair public notice of measures being considered by our chamber,” Senate President Pro Tempore David Sokola and Majority Whip Elizabeth Lockman said in the statement.
“These policies are not new and, put simply, Delawareans have waited too long for us to act on them,” Sokola and Lockman said, noting that previous attempts to enact such measures have failed. “Too many lives are at risk to justify any further delay in their consideration before the full Senate.”
The House which is also controlled by Democrats will vote next. If passed, the bills will go to the governor. If Delaware isn’t the state that you live in, don’t think it can’t or won’t happen in your state next. Thankfully, we have some places that are designated as Second Amendment sanctuaries, but we need a lot more.