VINTON, Va. – A Vinton gun store says Virginia’s new assault weapons ban has sharply reduced its inventory and sales, even as the law remains tied up in court.
The assault weapons ban took effect Wednesday, prohibiting the sale of many semiautomatic firearms and certain firearm accessories that meet the state’s definition of an assault weapon. Although the law is currently the subject of ongoing litigation, retailers say they have stopped selling affected products because they could face legal liability if the ban ultimately remains in effect.
“We’re a day and a half in, and it’s definitely slowed down quite a bit from what it was the last couple weeks,” said James Sprouse, gun manager at Ginger Mafia Tactical.
Sprouse said the assault weapons ban has left shelves noticeably emptier and has limited the types of firearms the store can legally sell.
“When it comes to handguns because of their magazine capacity, it’s a huge limitation,” Sprouse said. “Most manufacturers are threading the barrels for muzzle devices to go on. If it’s got a threaded barrel, it’s banned. So it’s going to make it difficult to keep the wall stocked with anything other than bolt actions and lever actions.”
The restrictions extend beyond firearms, Sprouse said, preventing the store from selling certain magazines and other products. Overall, he estimates the business is now able to sell about half of the inventory it previously carried.
To offset the losses, the store has shifted its focus toward federally regulated National Firearms Act items, including suppressors.
“We transitioned pretty heavily into NFA items with suppressors and such, so that’s hopefully going to tide us over,” Sprouse said.
Despite the ongoing legal challenge, Sprouse said the uncertainty surrounding the assault weapons ban has made continuing sales of affected firearms too risky.
“It makes a huge liability on our end to try and sell anything after the law got passed,” he said. “So that means we’re just waiting on the federal government with their new lawsuit and the injunctions to play out.”
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones defended the assault weapons ban, saying it is intended to reduce gun violence and improve public safety.
“We’ve seen the data. We know that firearms are the leading cause of death among children here in Virginia,” Jones said. “So we’ve got to make sure we’re using every tool in our toolbox to make our communities safer.”
Sprouse said he hopes the courts ultimately overturn the assault weapons ban, allowing the store to resume selling the products it carried before the restrictions took effect.
“I think with the amount of pushback they’re getting from local lawsuits in the state, the federal government filing their lawsuit, I think that there’s a good probability that hopefully by the end of the year the law would be overturned,” he said.