Dave P
Member
A positive spin on the AWB:
BY J.D. GALLOP
FLORIDA TODAY
Calls have been streaming into Herb Stratton's gun shop days after a decade-long ban on assault weapons expired.
Some callers inquire about semi-automatic rifles with folding stocks. Others want 30-round ammunition magazines the government banned from manufacture or import.
"We were inundated with calls, but the people calling thought they could (now) get pre-banned guns," said Stratton, owner of Action Gun Outfitters located in Melbourne. "Even during the ban, you could find these guns because they were always available. The ban was all about aesthetics."
The Clinton administration's ban ended midnight Monday. It had focused on 19 types of weapons, most with military-style features or designs that made them look all the more menacing.
Now gun shop owners are allowed to sell semi-automatic weapons with specialized bayonet mounts, muzzles and collapsible shoulder stocks. Once hard-to-find 30-shot ammunition magazines -- which sold privately for about $75 during the ban -- are expected to be more readily available, Stratton said.
Assistant State Attorney Wayne Holmes said that the ban had numerous loopholes that still allowed for the sale of the weapons and accessories.
"The whole gun-regulation issue is extremely political," Holmes said. "Really, the ban didn't make that much difference, because these weapons are used in a very minimal number of illegal instances. Clearly there are already strong laws that deal with the illegal use of weapons of every type."
Holmes also didn't see any tangible impact locally.
Lt. Steve Fernez of the Melbourne police department is concerned the weapons could end up purchased by legitimate gun enthusiasts only to turn up stolen and illicitly used later.
BY J.D. GALLOP
FLORIDA TODAY
Calls have been streaming into Herb Stratton's gun shop days after a decade-long ban on assault weapons expired.
Some callers inquire about semi-automatic rifles with folding stocks. Others want 30-round ammunition magazines the government banned from manufacture or import.
"We were inundated with calls, but the people calling thought they could (now) get pre-banned guns," said Stratton, owner of Action Gun Outfitters located in Melbourne. "Even during the ban, you could find these guns because they were always available. The ban was all about aesthetics."
The Clinton administration's ban ended midnight Monday. It had focused on 19 types of weapons, most with military-style features or designs that made them look all the more menacing.
Now gun shop owners are allowed to sell semi-automatic weapons with specialized bayonet mounts, muzzles and collapsible shoulder stocks. Once hard-to-find 30-shot ammunition magazines -- which sold privately for about $75 during the ban -- are expected to be more readily available, Stratton said.
Assistant State Attorney Wayne Holmes said that the ban had numerous loopholes that still allowed for the sale of the weapons and accessories.
"The whole gun-regulation issue is extremely political," Holmes said. "Really, the ban didn't make that much difference, because these weapons are used in a very minimal number of illegal instances. Clearly there are already strong laws that deal with the illegal use of weapons of every type."
Holmes also didn't see any tangible impact locally.
Lt. Steve Fernez of the Melbourne police department is concerned the weapons could end up purchased by legitimate gun enthusiasts only to turn up stolen and illicitly used later.
