Virginia Sheriff Draws Line in Sand As Gun Control Bills Come Into Focus

Tuesday was "crossover day" at the Virginia state capitol, which means any bill that didn't pass out of its chamber of origin and cross over to the other side of the statehouse is officially dead for the session. 

As we previously reported, the "permit to purchase" measure that was being pushed by anti-gun Democrats is no longer a threat, though SB 643 is still a blatant attack on the 2A rights of young adults by prohibiting adults under-21 from purchasing handguns and "assault firearms". The proposed 11% excise tax on firearms and ammunition as well as the proposed $500 tax on suppressors are also dead for the year, along with the bill that would have allowed localities to ban shooting on all private land less than five acres.

Still, many other bills are on a path to passage, including expanding the state's "red flag" law, gutting reciprocity, a ban on the manufacture, sale, and transfer of so-called "assault firearms" and "large capacity" magazines, along with a ban on home-built, unserialized firearms. 

The grassroots pushback to the Democrats' anti-gun agenda continues to gather steam. Nearly two dozen counties have now re-affirmed their status as Second Amendment sanctuaries, and more are expected to do the same in the coming weeks. 

The sheriff of Patrick Count, Virginia, meanwhile, is telling residents to "keep living your life unchanged" and vowing that "[y]our Constitutional right to keep and bear arms will never be infringed upon by me or any member of my staff."

So what can sheriffs like Smith actually do to safeguard the right to keep and bear arms in their counties? A few things come to mind. 

First, they can vow not to use the state's "red flag" law. They can also announce that, as far as they're concerned, any valid concealed carry license from another state will still be recognized in their county. They can decide not to make arrests for anyone openly carrying long guns on public streets, parks, and right of ways. They can use their discretionary authority and decline to arrest any lawful gun owner who possesses an unserialized firearm or an unfinished frame or receiver. 

Keep in mind, though, that the Virginia State Police also has a presence in almost every Virginia county, and that agency will be enforcing all of the anti-2A legislation signed into law by Gov. Abigail Spanberger. We need Commonwealth's Attorneys to take the same principled stand as Sheriff Smith and decline to prosecute any violations of the new, non-violent, possessory offenses that Democrats are putting in place. 

Pro-2A officials like Smith won't be able to shield residents from every one of the new infringements to our right to keep and bear arms that are about to be foisted on Virginia gun owners, but they don't have to sit on their hands either. They can continue to use their voices to call out these unconstitutional laws, and they can also decline to use the power of their office to enforce any provision in state statute that runs afoul of the rights of Virginia residents. It sounds like Sheriff Smith is committed to doing that, but we need other sheriffs and prosecutors to make this same pledge. 

Editor’s Note: The radical left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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