BELLEVUE, WA – The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms says legislation just introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly to ban so-called “assault weapons” should be rejected, and is calling on its members in the state to demand as much from their elected representatives.
The bill, H-5436, targets virtually every self-loading rifle, regardless of caliber, capable of accepting detachable magazines. Only semi-automatic rifles of .22-caliber rimfire with tubular magazines would be exempt from the proposed ban.
“The authors of this legislation seem intent on banning every semiautomatic rifle possible, plus several models of semi-auto shotguns and various popular pistols,” noted CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “We’ve seen similar legislation in other states, all appearing to follow the same general formula, and they all amount to egregious efforts to erode the Second Amendment rights of law-abidiing citizens, without any reference to arresting and prosecuting armed criminals.
“It is distressing to hear state officials argue for bans on firearms based on their appearance, or their ability to accept certain accessories,” he continued. “Likewise, for the supporters of this bill to claim it somehow is aimed at gun safety is ludicrous. They seem to equate criminalizing firearms with gun safety, which strains common sense and will likely not prevent a single violent crime.
“When Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha declares in a prepared statement there is ‘no need’ for a private citizen to own a certain type of firearm,” Gottlieb commented, “one has to wonder who put him in charge of determining someone else’s ‘need.’ Besides, the Second Amendment is not about anyone’s ‘needs,’ it’s about rights. It is actually the cornerstone of the Bill of Rights.
“We’re encouraging Rhode Island gun owners and grassroots activists to vigorously oppose H-5436,” he concluded. “They should immediately contact their local representatives and ask for a ‘No’ vote, and send a message to the General Assembly that banning whole classes of firearms is not the way to reduce violent crime or tragedy resulting from negligence.”