Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Embattled Governor Northam Pushing Magazine Ban!

Friday, June 7, 2019

Embattled Governor Northam Pushing Magazine Ban!

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has announced that he will convene a special session of the state legislature in order to push a package of radical gun control legislation. Early reports state that the package will include a ban on the standard capacity firearm magazines used by tens of millions of law-abiding gun owners. The details of Northam’s plan have yet to be released, but such bans in other states and the failed federal ban have often targeted magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds. There are hundreds of millions of magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds that are lawfully-possessed and lawfully used every day in the U.S.

Some have suggested that Northam’s high-profile attack on gun owners is motivated by an eagerness to distract from he and Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax’s own problems in the wake of scandals involving a racist yearbook photo and alleged sexual misconduct. Whatever Northam’s motive, it is clear that the evidence does not support his proposed magazine ban.

Banning standard capacity magazines does not reduce violent crime

In 2018, the Rand Corporation released a comprehensive study that surveyed the available research on several gun control policies. In the study, Rand researchers sought to determine “How Bans on the Sale of Assault Weapons and High-Capacity Magazines Affect Gun Use Outcomes.” The study stated,

We found no qualifying studies showing that bans on the sale of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines decreased any of the eight outcomes we investigated.

The “gun use outcomes” studied included “violent crime.”[1]

A 2004 U.S. Department of Justice-funded study of the 1994 “assault weapons” ban, which also banned magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds, determined,

Should it be renewed, the ban’s effects on gun violence are likely to be small at best and perhaps too small for reliable measurement.[2]

A 1997 U.S. Department of Justice-funded study of the federal ban acknowledged,

At best, the assault weapons ban can have only a limited effect on total gun murders, because the banned weapons and magazines were never involved in more than a modest fraction of all gun murders.[3]

There is no good evidence that banning standard capacity magazines reduces mass shootings or mass shooting casualties

In the 2018 Rand study that concluded “no qualifying studies showing that bans on the sale of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines decreased any of the eight outcomes we investigated,” one of the outcomes studied was “mass shootings.”[4]

The 2004 U.S. Department of Justice-funded study of the 1994 “assault weapons” ban found that,

                relatively few attacks involve more than 10 shots fired.

and that,

it is not clear how often the outcomes of gun attacks depend on the ability to fire more than 10 shots (the current limit on magazine capacity) without reloading.[5]

The 1997 U.S. Department of Justice-funded study of the federal ban noted,

We were unable to detect any reduction to date in two types of gun murders that are thought to be closely associated with assault weapons, those with multiple victims in a single incident and those producing multiple bullet wounds per victim.[6]

A 2016 article published in Justice Research and Policy, examined 23 mass shootings with six or more victims that occurred between 1994 and 2013 and in which the perpetrator used one or more magazines with a capacity of more than 10 rounds. The study determined,

In sum, in nearly all [large capacity magazine]-involved mass shootings, the time it takes to reload a detachable magazine is no greater than the average time between shots that the shooter takes anyway when not reloading. Consequently, there is no affirmative evidence that reloading detachable magazines slows mass shooters’ rates of fire, and thus no affirmative evidence that the number of victims who could escape the killers due to additional pauses in the shooting is increased by the shooter’s need to change magazines.[7]

In the aftermath of the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech, Governor Tim Kaine convened a review panel to study the tragedy. The perpetrator had used several magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds in the shooting. The report stated,

The panel also considered whether the previous federal Assault Weapons Act of 1994 that banned 15-round magazines would have made a difference in the April 16 incidents. The law lapsed after 10 years, in October 2004, and had banned clips or magazines with over 10 rounds. The panel concluded that 10-round magazines that were legal would have not made much difference in the incident. Even pistols with rapid loaders could have been about as deadly in this situation.[8]

Gov. Northam’s proposal would not have prevented the Virginia Beach shooting

Following the shooting, Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera was interviewed by George Stephanopoulos on ABC. Chief Cervera noted,

As far as more legislation on gun issues. I’m a member of Major City Chiefs, we did publish something about a year and a half ago. I don’t think most of that would have mattered in this particular case. We do have the Second Amendment it is very stringent for our country. In this particular case the weapons were obtained legally. Everything was done in a legal manner by this individual.[9]

In the wake of the Virginia Beach shooting, National Tactical Officers Association Executive Director Thor Eells told National Public Radio, “The type of magazine means nothing to the potential threat.”[10]

Law-abiding Virginia gun owners are being scapegoated by anti-gun politicians in their attempt to hurriedly force through ineffective gun control measures. Such imprudent action should never be tolerated. Given the alleged conduct of the governor and lieutenant governor that has recently come to light, their impatience with the normal legislative process is all the more suspicious.

[1] The Effects of Bans on the Sale of Assault Weapons and High-Capacity Magazines, Rand Corporation, March 2, 2018.

[2] Christopher S. Koper, An Updated Assessment of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban: Impacts on Gun Markets and Gun Violence, 1994-2003, Report to the National Institute of Justice, June 2004.

[3] Jeffrey A. Roth, Christopher S. Koper, Impact Evaluation of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act of 1994, Urban Institute, March 13, 1997.

[4] The Effects of Bans on the Sale of Assault Weapons and High-Capacity Magazines, Rand Corporation, March 2, 2018.

[5] Christopher S. Koper, An Updated Assessment of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban: Impacts on Gun Markets and Gun Violence, 1994-2003, Report to the National Institute of Justice, June 2004.

[6] Jeffrey A. Roth, Christopher S. Koper, Impact Evaluation of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act of 1994, Urban Institute, March 13, 1997.

[7] Gary Kleck, Large-Capacity Magazines and the Casualty Counts in Mass Shootings: The Plausibility of Linkages, Justice Research and Policy, 2016, Vol. 17(1) 28-47.

[8] Mass Shootings at Virginia Tech April 16, 2007: Report of the Review Panel Presented to Governor Kaine, Commonwealth of Virginia, August, 2007.

[9] 1-on-1 with Virginia Beach police chief, ABC News, June 2, 2019.

[10] Martin Kaste, Do Extended Magazines Facilitate Mass Shootings?, National Public Radio, June 4, 2019.

TRENDING NOW
First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

California officials’ egregious foot-dragging over the issuance of carry permits has finally attracted the ire of the federal Department of Justice (DOJ). 

California: Governor Newsom Signs Gun Control Bills Into Law

Monday, October 13, 2025

California: Governor Newsom Signs Gun Control Bills Into Law

For someone who has claimed to be"...deeply mindful and respectful of the Second Amendment and people’s Constitutional rights,” Governor Gavin Newsom has once again proven that actions speak louder than words.

NRA Files Another Lawsuit Challenging the National Firearms Act

Thursday, October 9, 2025

NRA Files Another Lawsuit Challenging the National Firearms Act

Today, the National Rifle Association—along with the American Suppressor Association, Firearms Policy Coalition, and Second Amendment Foundation—announced the filing of another lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA).

Firearm Prohibition Advocates Mute on Jay Jones “Two Bullets to the Head” Scandal

News  

Monday, October 13, 2025

Firearm Prohibition Advocates Mute on Jay Jones “Two Bullets to the Head” Scandal

Democrat Jay Jones, candidate for Virginia attorney general, still has not suspended his campaign, even as pressure mounts over disclosures that should disqualify, to put it mildly, any individual from serving as the chief law ...

FBI Persists in Underreporting Armed Citizen Defensive Gun Use

News  

Monday, October 13, 2025

FBI Persists in Underreporting Armed Citizen Defensive Gun Use

Three years ago, Dr. John Lott of the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC), writing for RealClearInvestigations, described how the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was vastly undercounting, “by an order of more than three the number of instances in ...

North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Last week the North Carolina General Assembly briefly returned from recess and re-referred Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to the House Rules Committee.

Trump Administration Repeals Biden Era Firearms Export Crackdown

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

Trump Administration Repeals Biden Era Firearms Export Crackdown

Last Monday, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) at the U.S. Department of Commerce published a final rule that reversed a crackdown on the commercial export of firearms from the U.S. to other countries.

Rehearing En Banc Sought in NRA-Supported Challenge to New Jersey’s Carry Restrictions

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

Rehearing En Banc Sought in NRA-Supported Challenge to New Jersey’s Carry Restrictions

Today, the National Rifle Association announced the filing of a petition for rehearing en banc in Siegel v. Platkin, a challenge to New Jersey’s carry restrictions.

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Ban on Firearms Possession by Nonviolent Felons

Thursday, October 9, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Ban on Firearms Possession by Nonviolent Felons

Today, the National Rifle Association, along with the Second Amendment Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition, and FPC Action Foundation, filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a challenge to the federal lifetime prohibition on ...

US Virgin Islands: Sweeping Gun Control Measures Advance

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

US Virgin Islands: Sweeping Gun Control Measures Advance

The 36th Legislature of the US Virgin Islands is continuing to advance sweeping gun control measures through the legislative process.

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.