Maryland Law Creates
"de facto BAN" On Handguns
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"...one of the bill's most powerful proponents... commented that the new law has actually created
a "de facto ban" on some firearms that are completely legal..." |
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Rep. Ehrlich (R-Md) |
Maryland's "ballistic fingerprinting" requirement has had a
chilling effect on the lawful sale of handguns in the
not-so-"Free State." Many new handguns, perfectly legal in most
states, are simply not coming into Maryland, which means the
supply for any law-abiding citizen who hopes to buy a new handgun
is drying up.
It seems that many gun makers are not able or
willing to comply with Maryland's requirement that any handgun
manufactured after October 1, 2000, that is intended to be sold
in Maryland, include with the firearm a shell casing from a round
of ammunition that has been fired from that handgun, along with
identifying information on the handgun and the casing. The casing
and information is then stored at the Maryland State Police Crime
Laboratory, creating, in effect, a handgun registration system.
When the problem of gun makers and distributors not shipping new
handguns into Maryland was brought to the attention of U.S. Rep.
Robert Ehrlich, Jr. (R-Md.), last October, he immediately sent a
letter of inquiry to Col. David B. Mitchell, the Maryland State
Police Superintendent. Rep. Ehrlich, a solid friend of Maryland's
gun owners, asked Col. Mitchell for "a detailed accounting of
handgun manufacturers or distributers who have given notice...of
their intent to provide handguns for sale in Maryland." The
response, which came on December 13, confirmed many fears.
Mitchell stated that his investigation found that
- nine
manufacturers have "prohibited distributers from transporting
their handguns to Maryland,"
- three others may comply with the new
requirement, but have not begun to yet, and
- three more have
stated they will supply "only limited models."
At the core of the
confusion is the simple fact that the firearm distribution system
employed by most manufacturers is not designed to segregate guns
by state.
As the supply of legal handguns available to Maryland's gun
owners and gun dealers starts to diminish, even some of the
sponsors of the legislation are beginning to realize there is a
real problem. Maryland House Speaker Casper R. Taylor, Jr.
(D-Allegany), one of the bill's most powerful proponents when it
was under debate, commented that the new law has actually created
a "de facto ban" on some firearms that are completely legal.
According to an article in the December 29, 2000 issue of the
Washington Post, Taylor sent a letter to Maryland Attorney General
J. Joseph Curran, Jr. (D) requesting he "reinterpret the law to
make clear that gun makers unwilling to supply shell casings may
continue to ship their weapons to Maryland." Curran responded by
stating the state police can determine whether a gun dealer may
sell a handgun when a manufacturer has not supplied a shell
casing. But Curran's office also stated any handguns sent without
casings can be seized.
This "Catch 22" should come as no
surprise, as Curran is the same AG who stated in 1999, "Our
public policy goal must be to rid our communities of handguns."
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