Schepisi bill bans bump stocks

TRENTON, N.J. – After the shooter in Las Vegas used bump stocks to fire his rifle automatically, Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi quickly responded with a bill requiring all bump stocks to be returned to police, banning them for sale or possession in New Jersey.

“No civilian should ever have access to an automatic weapon. I had never heard of a bump stock before this week, but I strongly believe we should ban them so weapons cannot be converted to automatic,” said Schepisi (R-Bergen).

Bump stocks were approved by the Obama administration in 2010 as a way to help people with disabilities fire a semi-automatic rifle.  While the intent to make bump stocks legal to ensure parity for those with disabilities, these items have instead resulted in weapons being illegally converted.

“A man with no prior indication of mental illness or arrests murdered nearly sixty Americans and injured hundreds more by easily converting a weapon into an automatic machine gun. I, along with most of America, was heartbroken by the massacre that took place in Las Vegas,” continued Schepisi. “Since the event I have struggled to put into words my feelings regarding the horror of what happened.”

Schepisi’s bill requires all bump stocks be returned to police within sixty days, and prohibits stores in New Jersey from selling it and civilians from owning it. Possession will be a second-degree crime.

“As a mother of two children, I have the same grave concerns for their safety as most do,” added Schepisi. “Even though New Jersey has some of the most strict gun laws in the nation my concern does not go away.  I have long been a proponent of sensible gun safety measures to protect our communities, while finding a balance to protect second-amendment rights of law-abiding Americans who, for the most part, are responsible gun owners.”