http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/news/091304_nw_gun_ban.html
Assault Weapons Ban Expires at Midnight
WASHINGTON — Starting at midnight it will be legal to buy many kinds of semiautomatic weapons in the Untied States for the first time since 1994.
On the campaign trail, as John Kerry was endorsed by the National Association of Police Organizations, he blamed President Bush for letting the assault weapons ban lapse.
Kerry said, "George Bush made a choice today. He chose his powerful friends in the gun lobby over the police officers and the families he promised to protect."
President Bush said he would have signed a new ban on assault weapons if Congress had passed it. But Republicans leaders never brought it up for a vote.
Most police organizations support the ban. Gun control supporters predict its expiration will lead to more violent crime.
But, it is unclear whether the ban has helped reduce crime. Loopholes enabled many of the 19 military-style assault weapons to remain on the market because gun makers simply altered their names.
Although, a third of its members support the ban, the powerful National Rifle Association says only 2 percent of gun crimes involved assault weapons.
National Rifle Association's Wayne LaPierre says, "What matters is how a gun shoots. And the guns that are going to be available on Tuesday shoot no different than the ones that were available last Friday."
Many states - including California, Massachusetts, New York, and Hawaii - have passed their own laws curbing the use of assault weapons. Some of those are more stringent than the federal ban.
Threaded Mode
