By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
In a last-minute move Monday night, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger offered an amended version of controversial House Bill 217, rather than signing or vetoing the bill passed by the Democrat-controlled General Assembly.
This came only days after Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon vowed in a letter to the governor that she would “commence litigation in the event the Commonwealth of Virgina enacts certain bills that unconstitutionally limit law-abiding Americans’ individual right to bear arms.”
TGM previously reported Dhillon’s letter.
According to a press release from the Spanberger’s office, “The Governor’s amendments provide additional clarity to law enforcement as it relates to the firearms included under this legislation, as well as protect the use of certain semi-automatic shotguns used for hunting.”
There are some concerns, however, that Spanberger’s substitute actually includes all semi-auto rifles and pistols capable of holding more than 15 rounds within her definition of an “assault firearm.” It would make carrying such firearms, even by someone licensed to carry concealed, a crime.
In her letter to Gov. Spanberger, AAG Dhillon noted, “I urge you to reconsider allowing any bill that would infringe on the lawful use of protected firearms by law-abiding citizens to become law. In an effort to avoid unnecessary litigation, the Second Amendment Section stands ready to meet and confer with attorneys in the Virginia Attorney General Office…The Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens shall not be infringed.”
Whether the assembly re-convenes quickly to consider Spanberger’s amended version, or holds off, the ultimate result is a probable delay in any federal legal action.
Spanberger’s 11-page substitute bill will take some careful reading, but the fact that gun rights activists are raising questions about her new language, could spell trouble.
As noted by WVEC News, these are the revisions which could raise eyebrows:
- The substitute removes pistol grips and thumbhole stocks from the list of characteristics that would classify certain semi-automatic shotguns as assault firearms.
- It changes some magazine-capacity language in the firearm definitions.
- It makes technical wording adjustments throughout the bill while preserving the broader ban on many semi-automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns meeting specified feature tests.
There is no question Dhillon is prepared to take Virginia to court over this, and other gun control, legislation.
