Details

Status

March 3, 2005 - Read twice. Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Synopsis

This bill is the Senate version of HR1136. It is aimed at the FN Five-SeveN but goes much further. The function of the bill is to make it "unlawful for any person to manufacture, import, market, sell, ship, deliver, possess, transfer, or receive" any handgun that uses "armor piercing ammunition".

So, what is "armor piercing ammunition"? The Attorney General gets to define it. This is done via `Body Armor Exemplar' which is defined as "body armor that the Attorney General determines meets minimum standards for the protection of law enforcement officers."

Analysis

This official title of this bill is:

To protect the Nation's law enforcement officers by banning the Five-seveN Pistol and 5.7 x 28mm SS190 and SS192 cartridges, testing handguns and ammunition for capability to penetrate body armor, and prohibiting the manufacture, importation, sale, or purchase of such handguns or ammunition by civilians.

so it is a much wider threat to our rights than just one gun. Keep in mind that the bullet for this round is 40 grains or under. To give this perspective, the bullet is the same size as a .22LR bullet.

Type 1 body armor was developed to not allow penetration of the common police round of the day, the .38 Special. So, it would be possible that any handgun more powerful than the .38 Special would be illegal to possess.

Ultimately, any legislation that has the Attorney General defining any sort of standards is inappropriate. It places the power to infringe Constitution rights in the hands of a political appointee.

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