The 2nd Amendment and Air Rifles/Pellet Guns/BB Guns

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gamyrick

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May 31, 2015
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Tennessee
Some people have the mistaken idea that they’re right to own Air Rifles/Pellet Guns/BB Guns are protected under the 2nd Amendment. Many people have gone to court and argued that a Municipalities ban on Air Rifles/Pellet Guns/BB Guns is unconstitutional and violates their 2nd Amendment right to bear “Arms”. EVERY court that has heard this argument has ruled that Air Rifles/Pellet Guns/BB Guns are NOT “Arms” and therefore the 2nd Amendment does NOT apply. It is a statement of FACT that there is NO legal precedence defining Air Powered Guns of any type as “Arms”. I draw your attention to People vs. Nivar a court case challenging the Administrative Code of City of NY § 10-131 (b). “Defendant also argues that New York City’s ban on the possession of air pistols violates the Second Amendment…. he claims that air pistols are both “arms” and handguns that simply work differently from hand-held firearms. Thus he argues, air pistols are entitled to Second Amendment protection and the City’s outright ban is unconstitutional... based on the information provided by the parties about how air pistols operate and how air pistol manufacturers intend them to be used... this court must conclude that air pistols are not “arms”…. Accordingly, this court holds that Administrative Code of City of NY § 10-131 (b) does not implicate the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.” More than a dozen courts around the country have heard this same argument and arrived at this same decision. Legal precedence is unanimous, Air Powered Guns are NOT “Arms” and are NOT protected under the 2nd Amendment. 
 
KzooRichie, you are correct that the NRA assisted in having air guns removed from a firearms status. However, this was not done to protect air gunning. It was done to preserve and protect the 2nd Amendment status of firearms. The legal precedence for air powered guns of any type is that they are not "arms" and therefore are not protected by the 2nd Amendment. The NRA does not want air powered guns associated with firearms. They’re not looking to protect your right to use air powered guns. They are looking to protect everyone's right to bear arms (firearms). So as not to cloud the main point I have removed the side note. Thanks 
 
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They can have my Cricket when they pry it from my cold..... :p. 

IMO there is 0% chance this will ever be an issue. "Gun Nuts" (a term I use fondly) are often screaming Obama wants to take our guns away. What gun rights have been lost during his tenure? Not proposals, but lost. I bet most can think of a thing, so I'll tell you:

Kalashnikov rifles can be imported this is a trade embargo.

Getting high powered guns in states near Mexico now has more paperwork.

7N6 ammo is banned.

The "gun grabbers" ain't getting much traction, and they ain't gonna want our airguns.



 
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"gamyrick"Hunterroark, I'm not worried, I’m just clarifying an issue that came up on a post yesterday. I must admit that I was surprised by the lack of knowledge that this individual displayed.
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And I'm surprised at your lack of reading comprehension. Go back and reread my first two posts. They aren't edited and what you posted later in that thread and here proves what I was saying. 

Slow down man. 
 
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"gamyrick"
"arod2000"
Air Rifles and Pellet Guns are not firearms and have no 2nd Amendment protection.
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That's not accurate^ That's exactly what my previous post was getting at. The 2nd amendment says "right to bear arms" it does NOT say "right to bear firearms". It's something I could see attorneys arguing for a long time. Air guns could very well be protected by the 2nd amendment. Arms, firearms - what's the difference??

"They can be outlawed with a city ordinance which is much easier and faster than passing a state or federal law."

How is that different than firearms? Firearms are illegal in Washington DC, New York City and other metropolitan areas.
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Why do you think that the above statement is not accurate? Why do you think that there is some ambiguity as to the meaning of the word "arms" in the 2nd Amendment? Chicago and Washington D.C. both banned all firearms using a city ordinance. It was later determined through the courts that these bans violated our "Right to Bear Arms" as provided to us through the 2nd Amendment. Subsequently, both bans were struck down. Today, if you can obtain a permit in either of these cities, you can own a firearm. NYC has always allowed gun ownership, you need to get a permit. If air powered guns were banned by city ordinance there is no 2nd amendment protection, they are simply banned. If you go to the Pyramyd Air web site, you will find a section called "Shipping Restrictions". This is a list of cities that they cannot ship to. In some cases air guns are banned all together, in other cases it's illegal to sell or purchase air guns within the city limits. Take note that in some cities sling shots are illegal.
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Just to clarify the issue. You copied and pasted this portion of my post (Air Rifles and Pellet Guns are not firearms and have no 2nd Amendment protection.) and then you wrote: "That's not accurate." ..."Air guns could very well be protected by the 2nd amendment." These statements of yours are very clear and also very wrong. My statement is factually accurate and I stand by what I have written. Before you attack my reading comprehension again, you should first understand what you, yourself have written. Thanks
 
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Look guys, I have a concealed carry permit in North Carolina. I can carry a .50 caliber Desert Eagle under my shirt, but I cannot carry a Bowie knife or a spring assisted knife. 

My point is two fold: we are under the radar, generally, and that is good with air guns. Two: the government is always nonsensical when it comes to things like this. 

The moral of the story: find freedom loving candidates and vote for them. Lewis and Clark carried only an airgun with them. Clearly that was an "arm". Just because some liberal, paint between the lines, judge said that it wasn't doesn't make it true. 
 
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JPBrewer, I agree with you. Air gunning is under the radar and that is a very good thing. I also agree that government more-often-than-not gets it wrong. However, the Lewis and Clark expedition was used in the case that has been sited here. The court's decision states: “Nor do the defendant’s citations of the Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1803-1806 to establish that air guns were an integral part of the American arsenal at the time of the Framers carry the day. All these historical references illustrate that Captain Merriwether Lewis used an air rifle for hunting and to astonish Native Americans. Conspicuously missing from the excerpts that the defendant selected is any reference to the use of air guns in the early nineteenth century for self-defense.” I​n fact, there is no written record that air guns were used in the United States at any time during the 19th century for self defense. You may be correct in asserting that just because a judge says something it doesn't make it true, however, it does make it legal precedence and or law. On page 3, someone entered a post titled "is anyone else concerned". I made the mistake of simply giving my opinion, which was based on facts. 
 
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An excellent point. I was just trying to point out that just like a knife an airgun is a weapon. It is a double-sided sword once you have a weapon. On one hand, air rifles are now construed in the context of a granddaddy helping their grandson how to shoot. But you could construe any firearm in that sense. My point is that self-defense is a right granted by God not any government. Vote for candidates that understand this. 
 
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If you go back to the constitution, the general idea of "bearing arms" had to do with the right of the people of the US to rise against those who governed; not to dictate what was meant by "arms". It was simply a measure to prevent anyone who "governed" from become a "ruler" and gave the nation the promise to rise against any dictatorship. 

When legislation was made; there were no air rifles; nor were there any automatic rifles (with limited magazine capacity). I don't think they had calibre and propellants in mind.

And I'm not even American. Anyway, don't give up your rights - it is the thin edge of the wedge. The right to bear arms, even with a pitchfork, should be protected.
 
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Hi gamyrick - I'm South African. We've got the highest murder and violent crime rates in the world. In the face of this, the South African government is still making gun ownership more restrictive by the year.... And it started with the definition of firearms. Once that's done, they start to introduce more hoops to jump through to get your licence. Then they require you to retake a license test every 5 years.
Before you know it, all your rights no longer exist. Including the right to bear arms.

Experience ages a man.
 
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It's a beautiful place, no doubt, but the crime is a problem. Many say it isn't, but nobody walks in the streets after dark and everybody locks the doors real well. I was considered irresponsible because I didn't have a steel gate inside my house. :)

I also watched some of Airarms 's videos, and they are very good. The lad knows his stuff - good on him.

They do restrict air rifles in SA to some extent. If you have a.177, there is no limit to muzzle velocity - so this is the rifle of choice. 0.22 is contentious as the law is ambiguous - it says any air rifle under 5.5mm (or 0.22) diameter does not need a license. If you do the math, a 5.5 is 0.21. The counter logic goes that it is able to fire a 0.22 pellet.
There are various opinions expressed about this, but I've not yet seen a 22 on a firearms license - yet. 
Anything above a 0.22(0.25, 0.30) needs a firearms license, which is not worth the effort. As I mentioned earlier, they introduced very draconian measures to even get a firearms license these days.

 
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