Many county sheriffs in Oregon are rising up against the state’s new mandate that sets limits on gun magazine capacity due to its clear violation of the 2nd Amendment.
The so-called Reduction of Gun Violence Act gained voter approval from the state’s electorate in the recent midterm elections. It bans ammunition magazines from holding more than 10 rounds and does not stop there.
💥💥👇🏻 “Several sheriffs in Oregon said they will not enforce the state’s ridiculous new gun law that places a limit on magazine capacity, arguing that the provision violates the Constitution’s Second Amendment” #2AShallNotBeInfringed https://t.co/escYB2hIdF
— ✨⭐️Rain⭐️✨ (@kittenmule888) November 17, 2022
Measure 114 also mandates law enforcement maintain an electronic and searchable database for gun permits, give in-person firearms training and gather fingerprints as part of the process of purchasing a gun.
Permits are on top of the already-required federal steps to buy a gun. The ban on larger magazines is not retroactive, but firearms that have built-in magazines for more than 10 rounds must be modified to be fired or transported.
However, at least five county sheriffs report they will not enforce the law, either in its entirety or in parts, and their main focus is the magazine provision.
Union County Sheriff Cody Bowen told Fox News that the new law does zero to correct the issue. He said gun violence is not related to larger magazine capacity or a lack of background checks.
Rather, it is tied to mental and behavioral health awareness. Bowen said the root of gun violence is a problem with “society as a whole” and not the guns or magazines themselves.
He described the measure as an affront to 2nd Amendment rights.
And further, Bowen believes there is “just no way possible for us to enforce it.” But even if there were, he again cited the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
The Oregon Sheriff’s Association said the new background checks on gun sales required by the law duplicate requirements already on the state books. The law also works as an unfunded mandate, requiring local law enforcement to devise and fund their own permit programs.
Another sheriff, Michelle Duncan of Linn County, posted on Facebook that her office “is NOT going to be enforcing magazine capacity limits.”
Still another, Malheur County Sheriff Brian Wolfe, said his officers are already busy fighting an “uptick in drug-related crimes” due to Oregon’s decriminalization of methamphetamine, heroin, and other drugs.
Out of Oregon’s 36 counties, only six voted to approve the measure. But these mostly urban areas dominated the polls and decided 2nd Amendment rights for the rest of the state — at least in most counties.
