On gun laws that are dumb
I was doing a bit of perusing VA gun laws and found this in Virginia’s Code:
It shall be unlawful for any person who is not a citizen of the United States or who is not a person lawfully admitted for permanent residence to knowingly and intentionally possess or transport any assault firearm or to knowingly and intentionally carry about his person, hidden from common observation, an assault firearm. It shall be unlawful for any person who is not a citizen of the United States and who is not lawfully present in the United States to knowingly and intentionally possess or transport any firearm or to knowingly and intentionally carry about his person, hidden from common observation, any firearm. A violation of this section shall be punishable as a Class 6 felony.
For purposes of this section, “assault firearm” means any semi-automatic center-fire rifle or pistol that expels single or multiple projectiles by action of an explosion of a combustible material and is equipped at the time of the offense with a magazine which will hold more than 20 rounds of ammunition or designed by the manufacturer to accommodate a silencer or equipped with a folding stock.
The VA shooter had a Glock 9mm (Glock’s site is down) and a Walther P22. The Walther (a 22LR plinker) comes from the factory with a threaded barrel. As such, it comes from the manufacturer designed to accommodate a silencer. In VA, the Walther is an assault firearm, whatever that is. Recall also that the California DOJ a couple of years ago reclassified the Walther as an assault weapon (whatever that is) for that reason (only after saying initially it was not).
Update: Disregard. In comments, Dr. Strangegun sets me straight:
P22s aren’t centerfire. The law doesn’t apply.
I missed that whole centerfire bit.
April 17th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
That’s weird. I bought a P22 with a threaded barrel in Virginia – however I somehow doubt that this will remain an “overlooked” section of the law for too much longer.
April 17th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
Legal to have if you are a US citizen or permanent resident, as per the quoted text.
Illegal for an
illegal alienundocumented worker or visitor.So, Ahab, I guess you’re one of the former.
April 17th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
whoops, I mis-read that part.
April 17th, 2007 at 3:17 pm
P22s aren’t centerfire. The law doesn’t apply.
April 17th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
good catch.
April 17th, 2007 at 6:48 pm
I was thinking about getting a Walther P22, because it was the only thing I can get my little bitty hands around. I guess this Asian guy felt the same way.