The nation’s capital treats gun owners like criminals. Even after a Supreme Court smackdown in 2008, Washington still has the country’s most stringent gun-control laws. The city’s anti-firearm ordinances are so convoluted and beyond the norm that average Americans can find themselves in big trouble for doing something that is entirely legal in almost every state. The District, however, is slowly changing its tune.
The Washington Times has confirmed that D.C. city council Chairman Phil Mendelson will introduce a bill this week to partially decriminalize possession of unregistered firearms and ammunition for nonresidents. Mr. Mendelson, at-large Democrat, expects to announce the proposed changes in a press conference Monday. His legislation will allow those arrested in the District on firearms charges to choose administrative disposition of the charge, which means paying a fine and not getting a criminal record.
D.C. residents caught with unregistered guns or ammunition will still be charged with the misdemeanor crime, which carries a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine and a year in jail. It’s unclear if visitors who have already pled guilty in the District will have the opportunity to expunge their record if this law is enacted.
This change will affect quite a few people. Since 2009, 224 nonresidents have been arrested for possession of unregistered ammunition. One of those was former Army Specialist Adam Meckler. The medic had been out of the military for just two weeks when he was arrested at the VFW in Washington in September because building security found 14 long-forgotten 9mm rounds in his backpack. He didn’t have a gun with him, so he was surprised that having a harmless round of ammunition could be considered a crime.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE STORY.
Emily Miller is a senior editor for the Opinion pages at The Washington Times. Her “Emily Gets Her Gun” series on the District’s gun laws won the 2012 Clark Mollenhoff Award for Investigative Reporting from the Institute on Political Journalism.You can also follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
