SAINT PAUL, Minn. – A bill that would ban assault weapons, and another that would ban magazines with more than 10 rounds in Minnesota, both fail in a 10 to 10 vote in the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee.
Jackie Flavin is the mother of 10-year-old Harper Moyski who was shot and killed at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis. She said the damage done to her daughter by a semi-automatic gun was so severe she and her husband weren’t able to see or be with her body.
“Months later as the pews were removed from that church, more of her remains were found. We had to cremate our daughter a second time. Imagine receiving that phone call and then tell me what this gun is for? Hunting? There are other tools,” Flavin said.
President of the Minnesota Gun Owners Law Center Rob Doar said banning assault weapons would only move people to an underground market to buy them.
“Ordinary people should not be criminalized for ordinary things. The Supreme Court has repeatedly agreed that these arms, these accessories are in common use and things that are in common use are protected by the second amendment,” Doar said.
GOP State Representative Bidal Duran of Bemidji shared his concerns that both bills would have also banned off-duty police officers from using assault weapons.
The high capacity magazine ban bill was co-authored by DFL State Representative Heather Keeler of Moorhead.
The assault weapons bill would have banned the following guns:
- Avtomat Kalashnikov (AK-47) semiautomatic rifle
- Beretta AR-70 and BM-59 semiautomatic rifle
- Colt AR-15 semiautomatic rifle
- Daewoo Max-1 and Max-2 semiautomatic rifle
- Famas MAS semiautomatic rifle
- Fabrique Nationale FN-LAR and FN-FNC semiautomatic rifle
- Galil semiautomatic rifle
- Heckler & Koch HK-91, HK-93, and HK-94 semiautomatic rifles
- Ingram MAC-10 and MAC-11 semiautomatic pistol and carbine
- Intratec TEC-9 semiautomatic pistol
- Sigarms SIG 550SP and SIG 551SP semiautomatic rifle
- SKS with detachable magazine semiautomatic rifle
- Steyr AUG semiautomatic rifle
- Street Sweeper and Striker-12 revolving-cylinder shotgun
- USAS-12 semiautomatic shotgun
- Uzi semiautomatic pistol and carbine
- Valmet M76 and M78 semiautomatic rifles
