Proposed Washingston State ‘Assault Weapons’ Ban Would Not Have Prevented Burlington Mass Shooting

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s proposed statewide “assault weapons” ban would not have prevented the September 23 mass shooting in Burlington.

This is because the alleged gunman, Arcan Cetin, a Muslim immigrant, used a .22 rifle rather than an “assault weapon” to kill five people. Early CCTV images of Cetin holding the gun in Macy’s appeared to show a “hunting type” rifle with a wooden stock, which is a good description of the Ruger 10/22 he allegedly used to carry out the heinous crime.

According to KIRO 7, the mass shooting would not have been curtailed in the slightest by Ferguson’s “assault weapons” prohibition. This is because the Ruger 10/22 is not an AR-15, AK-47, or other type of “assault weapon.” Rather, it is a small caliber rifle used “for hunting small game.”

Breitbart News previously reported that Ferguson also wants a “high capacity” magazine ban. This would not have prevented the Burlington mass shooting either. After all, the Ruger 10/22 ships with 10-round magazines. And even though Cetin allegedly used an aftermarket 25-round magazine in his rifle, a 10-round magazine would have been more than sufficient to kill five people.

The type of gun used in the Burlington attack brings up and interesting point; namely, that AR-15s are not the weapon of choice for mass shooters. Contrary to leftist media claims, there is a vast plurality of weapon types used in mass public attacks. The common thread between all such attacks is the effort that goes into choosing victims who cannot fight back and leveraging the element of surprise.

For example, in his latest book, The War on Guns: Arming Yourself Against Gun Control Lies, John R. Lott Jr. explains that Nidal Hasam, the November 5, 2009, Fort Hood attacker, was armed with just a pistol and a revolver, yet was able to fire “220 shots” because those at whom he shot were not armed with anything. Think about it: 220 rounds from revolver and pistol. Proof positive that finding gun-free victims and leveraging the element of surprise is far more important than the type of gun an attacker might have in his or her hand.

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.