Three sheriffs from the California State Sheriffs Association spoke out this week in opposition to Proposition 63, which would ban possession of previously legal magazines and require a background check for ammunition purchases.
Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko and Modoc County Sheriff Mike Poindexter told Action News Now that Prop 63 is made of pieces of failed legislation and would do nothing to stop crime. Honea also said it would turn law-abiding citizens into criminals.
The facts back the sheriffs. For example, a 2013 Colorado statute banning the sale of those same magazines has had zero impact. A 2014 investigation by Denver’s CBS4 found that the law was easily circumvented and had resulted in zero arrests. “People are going to find a way around it,” said then-Weld County Sheriff (now state Senator) John Cooke.