Say “Orlando Massacre” and you can expect a gun control debate to take up a good deal of your time and patience. A common thread in the debate may be over the pros and cons of an assault weapons ban. This is nothing new, but the fact that most people, even some politicians and reporters, don’t know what an assault weapon is, the difference between it and an assault rifle, or have conflicting definitions for one or both makes debate at any level fall apart since both parties aren’t discussing the same thing. Like what happened to the Capulets and Montagues, some basic specifics of the argument have been forgotten and the community is paying the price. In a time when people are shooting their mouths off without doing proper research, here’s some information to contribute to a solid understanding of what’s actually being debated.
The first term is “assault weapon,” and luckily there is a solid definition offered by the now-defunct Federal Assault Weapons Ban of 1994, which is also the commonly agreed upon definition. It defines “semiautomatic assault weapons” as semiautomatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns having specific characteristics. Most of the public’s attention has been drawn toward rifles and pistols since they’ve been the weapons most commonly used in mass shootings so I’ll elaborate on them. The ban deemed a semiautomatic rifle an assault weapon if it had “the ability to accept a detachable magazine” and had at least two of the following characteristics: a folding or telescoping stock, conspicuously protruding pistol grip, bayonet mount, flash suppressor or threaded barrel designed for one, or a grenade launcher. A semiautomatic pistol was deemed an assault weapon for accepting a detachable magazine and having at least two of the following characteristics: a magazine attaching to the pistol outside the grip, “threaded barrel capable of accepting a barrel extender, flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer,” shroud attached to, partially or completely encircling, the barrel to permit a shooter to hold the firearm with the non-trigger hand without being burned, an unloaded manufactured weight of at least 50 ounces, and being a semiautomatic version of an automatic firearm.
It is important to note that assault weapons, even when defined by the US government, are semiautomatic and therefore require a trigger pull with every shot. This is the main aspect that sets them apart from “assault rifles” which have been defined by multiple military and civilian authorities as rifles capable of selective-fire. The key difference is that assault rifles have selective-fire meaning they are capable of being switched between semiautomatic and automatic fire. Either way, assault weapons are only semiautomatic and are distinct from assault rifles.
While assault rifles can be legally purchased in the US they are far more expensive than semiautomatic models and require extensive and expensive federal hoops to jump through before being sold and there are more limitations on who is eligible to buy one than semiautomatic models. Still, the majority of mass shootings in recent years have been committed with semiautomatic firearms most of which fall under the 1994 ban’s definition of assault weapons. Even the pistol used in Orlando would not have the 1994 ban’s classification as an assault weapon. The pistol was never used but was still bought for the purpose of carrying out Omar Mateen’s crime, and this will create added debate about firearms in general.
Debate on gun control was rekindled this past week at the federal level with a 15 hour filibuster given by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and legislation was scheduled for a vote on June 20. Reports say that the legislation is likely to fail but that doesn’t mean it can’t be brought up again or that new legislation can’t be drafted. Armed with the knowledge to form and refine an educated opinion, go out and get the attention of a local, state or federal representative and tell them what you think about gun control because if they are to do their jobs they need to know just what the voting public thinks. In the more likely chance you find yourself in a debate with a peer about gun control and an assault weapons ban you can rest assured that you know what you’re talking about and perhaps this divisive debate can be conducted with a little more civility.
