DENVER – The city council approved a measure Monday evening that bans bump stocks in the city and county of Denver, and modifies local ammunition rules to be in compliance with state law.
The council approved the first reading of the bill last Tuesday after a public comment period in which eight people spoke in favor of the measure, and one spoke against it, calling for even stronger rules.
The 11-1 vote in favor of the ban is mostly symbolic.
Denver already has an existing ban on so-called assault weapons, which include semi-automatic rifles with magazine capacities of 21+ rounds and semi-auto shotguns with either a folding stock or six-round magazine capacity.
The new language would change the magazine capacity to 15 rounds instead of 21+, putting city law in line with state law, and would also add language defining what a bump stock is, and banning such devices.
The efforts come in the wake of the shooting in Las Vegas last year, in which more than 800 people were wounded—more than 400 of them due to gunfire that came from weapons modified with bump stocks.
The Colorado General Assembly also has a bill this session that would include bump stocks in Colorado’s “dangerous weapon” classification, though it faces an uphill battle after being assigned to a Republican-controlled Senate committee.
Violating the assault weapons ordinance carries punishment of fines between $100 and $999 and between 10 and 180 days in jail.
