Assault Weapons

The Federal Assault Weapons Act, banning the sale of semiautomatic military-style assault weapons, was passed as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.  President Clinton signed it into law on September 13, 1994.

The Act led to a dramatic decline in the incidence of assault weapons traced to crime.  In the five-year period (1990-1994) before enactment of the Assault Weapons Act, assault weapons named in the Act constituted 4.82% of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) crime gun traces nationwide.  After the law’s enactment, however, these assault weapons made up only 1.61% of the guns ATF had traced to crime - a drop of 66% from the pre-ban rate.

Click here to read On Target: The Impact of the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Act.

Click here to read Assault Weapons Threaten Our Safety and Security.

Click here to read about incidents of assault weapon violence since the ban expired.

Click here to read The Top 10 NRA Myths About Assault Weapons.

.50 Caliber Rifles

In 1987, Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Inc., patented its self-described “armor-penetrating” .50 caliber BMG sniper rifle.  Capable of destroying armored personnel carriers, aircraft and bulk fuel and ammunition sites, the .50 caliber sniper rifle is now proliferating in the civilian market.  Accurate at up to 2,000 yards (20 football fields end-to-end) it can inflict effective damage to targets over four miles away.  With more power on impact then any other semi-automatic rifle legally available on the civilian market, the .50 caliber represents a serious threat to our local law enforcement and national security.

Despite their destructive threat .50 caliber sniper rifles are only subject to the same minimal Federal regulations as shotguns, hunting rifles and smaller target rifles.  Under Federal law, gun dealers may sell .50 caliber rifles to buyers 18 or older who pass a Brady background check.  If a buyer purchases a .50 caliber rifle from a private seller, however, such as at a gun show, there is no age limit under Federal law to purchase the rifle and no background check.   

Click here to read The Threat of .50 Caliber Armor-Piecing Sniper Rifles

This map shows the effective range of a .50 caliber sniper rifle fired from Arlington, Virginia into Washington, D.C., in range of the White House, Capitol building, and Smithsonian museums, among other places in Washington.