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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 04062004 - C40 ......................................... ............-..............................I...................................................... . ............... .. ORDINANCE NO. 2004-10 LARGE CALIBER FIREARMS —CONVEYANCE PROHIBITED The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors ordains as follows (omitting the parenthetical footnotes from the official text of the enacted or amended provisions of the County Ordinance Code): SECTION 1. SUMMARY. This ordinance adds Chapter 54-22 to the County Ordinance Code to prohibit the sale of.50 caliber firearms in unincorporated areas of the County. SECTION 11. Chapter 54-22 is added to the County Ordinance Code, to read: Chapter 54-22 LARGE CALIBER FIREARMS—CONVEYANCE PROHIBITED 54-22.002 Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to protect the health, safety, and general welfare of the residents of Contra Costa County by prohibiting the sale of.50 caliber firearms in unincorporated areas of the County. (Ord. 2004-10 § 2.) 54-22.004 Definitions. As used in this chapter,the following terms have the following meanings: (a) "Firearm"means any device, designed to be used as a weapon or modified to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel a projectile by the force of explosion or other means of combustion. (b) "Large caliber firearm"means any rifle capable of firing a center-fire cartridge of.50 caliber or larger or.50 BMG caliber or larger either by designation or by actual measurement. (c) , "Rifle"means any firearm that is designed or redesigned, made or remade, and intended to be fired from the shoulder and is designed to fire only a single projectile through a rifle bore for each single pull of the trigger. The term"rifle"does not include any shotgun. (Ord. 2004-10 §2.) 54-22.006 Conveyance Prohibited. No person shall sell, give, transfer ownership of, transfer,offer for sale, or display for sale any large caliber firearm. (Ord. 2004-10 § 2.) 54-22.008 Exemptions. (a) The provisions of this chapter do not apply to any of the following: (1) Any sale or transfer of a firearm that is prohibited under state law. ORDINANCE NO. 2004-10 1 (2) The sale or transfer of any'destructive device as defined in Section 12301 of the California Penal Code. (3) The sale or transfer of any assault weapon as defined in the California Penal Code. (4) Any firearm approved for sale pursuant to Section 12131 of the California Penal Code. (b) The provisions of Section 54-22.005 do not apply where the purchaser or transferee is any of the following: (1) A law enforcement agency. (2) An agency duly authorized to perform law enforcement duties'. (3) A state or local correctional facility. (4) A person described in Section 12302 or 12322 of the California Penal Code. (5) A federal law enforcement officer. (5) A person who is properly identified as a full-time paid peace officer, as defined in Section 830.1, 830.2, 830.4, or 830.5 of the California Penal Code, and who is authorized to, and does,carry a firearm during the course of his or her employment as a peace officer. (7) A firearms dealer who has been issued a Federal Firearms License, a Certificate of Eligibility by the State of California, and a permit by the County of Contra Costa to engage in the retail sale of firearms. (8) A purchaser of a curio or collector firearm. A firearm will be deemed a curio or collector firearm only if it falls within one of the following categories: (A) It was manufactured before 1899. (B) It is classified as a curio or relic pursuant to Title 27 Code of Federal Regulations section 178.11, and the purchaser maintains a current federal firearms collector license. (C) It is a muzzle-loading firearm. (9) A federal, state, or local historical society,museum, or institutional collection that is ORDINANCE NO. 2004-10 2 _._._.... ......... ......... ......... ......... ......... ......... ......... .... . ............ ............ ....._........_.._..........__........ ._........ ......... ......... ......... ......... ......... open to the public,provided that the large caliber firearm is used for display purposes, is secured from unauthorized use, and is unloaded. (10) An entity or establishment engaged in the business of motion picture, television, or video production,provided that the large caliber firearm is used only as a prop during the course of motion picture, television, or video production, is secured from unauthorized use, and the person charged with maintaining custody of the firearm while it is not in use maintains a current Certificate of Eligibility issued by the State of California. (11) A person who obtains title to a large caliber firearm by bequest or intestate succession. (Ord. 2004-10 § 2.) 54-22.414 Enforcement. A violation of this chapter is an infraction. If a violation of this chapter occurs, the County may seek compliance by any remedy allowed under this code and any other remedy allowed by law. (Ord. 2004-10 § 2.) SECTION 111. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance becomes effective 30days after passage, and within 15 days after passage shall be published once with the names of supervisors voting for or against it in the Contra Costa Times, a newspaper published in this County. PASSED on April S, 2004 by the following vote: AYES: Supervisors Gioia, Uilkew, DeSaulnier, Glover NOES: Supervisors Greenberg ABSENT: clone ABSTAIN: None ATTEST: JOHN SWEETEN, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and Chair and County Administrator By: [SEAL] Deputy TLG: HA2004\13oard of Supervisorslarge caliber firearms ord-rifle.wpd ORDINANCE NO. 2004-10 3 FINDINGS IN SUPPORT OF ORDINANCE NO. 2004-10 (Large Caliber Firearms) 1. The design of the .50 caliber sniper rifle enables the destruction of aircraft,heavy machinery, and infrastructure from long ranges. 2. The .50 caliber sniper rifle was originally designed for use in the military but is increasingly sold in the domestic civilian market. 3. The .50 caliber sniper rifle has the capacity to accurately hit targets from a distance of one mile and has a maximum range of approximately four miles. 4. Ammunition for the .50 caliber sniper rifle has more than seven times the power on impact as the .30-06, five times that ofthe .308, and more than three times that ofthel.338. 5. The .50 caliber sniper rifle uses different types of ammunition, including ball ammunition, armor- piercing ammunition, and armor-piercing-incendiary ammunition. Ballammunition is for use against personnel and light material targets. Armor-piercing ammunition is for use against armored aircraft and lightly armored vehicles, concrete shelters, and other bullet-resisting targets. Armor-piercing-incendiary ammunition is tipped with phosphorus and explodes on impact. 6. One ball cartridge can penetrate two inches of concrete from 220 yards and one inch of concrete from 1,640 yards. From 38 yards, 50 rounds of ball ammunition can penetrate 10 inches of concrete and 15 rounds can penetrate 12 inches of a triple brick wall. One armor-piercing cartridge can penetrate one inch of armor plate from 220 yards and 0.3 inches of armor plate from 1,640 yards. 7. The United States Government Accounting Office, Office of Special Investigations, determined that.50 caliber rifles have been linked to terrorist groups, international drug cartels,domestic drug dealers, and violent criminals. 8. Contra Costa County has a high concentration of chemical and refinery facilities, which could. serve as targets ofterrorist attacks with .50 caliber rifles.