Washington pushes ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines

The state of Washington on Thursday proposed bans on the sale of “assault weapons” and high capacity magazines as part of a package of gun laws.If Washington passes the law, it will become the seventh state of the United States to put a ban on assault weapons. The rising gun violence in the country is one of the major drivers of this law and the 2020 US presidential election will see the issue being raised by both the major parties, especially the Democrats. 

Ban on assault weapons in Washington?

Governor Jay Inslee said that the gun-control push is aimed at making it harder for those who want to inflict mass violence upon innocent people. Inslee also added, "If we stop selling high capacity magazines, it will reduce the number of people dying in senseless gun violence every year."

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National Rifles Association from the United States refused to comment on the latest push by Washington. NRA is a gun rights advocacy group which directly lobbies for and against firearms legislation in the country. The group is very vocal about its stand on the issue of banning guns in the US. 

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Columbia University's Teachers College found that using high capacity magazines had a higher death toll. However, the study also found that gun violence involving high capacity magazines have been used in states where they are banned. According to research, in 2013 alone, there were 73,505 gun-related violence in the United States. Incidents of mass shooting in the country have also increased at a rapid pace. 

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In October 2017, a 64-year-old man opened fire at a crowd attending a festival in Las Vegas from his hotel room where he was equipped with stocks of semi-automatic rifles and a bag of ammunations. The mass shooting that killed 58 people was one of the deadliest in the history of the United States. 

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