Washington becomes latest state to ban the sale of assault rifles

Washington became the latest state to ban the sale of assault rifles on Tuesday, when Gov. Jay Inslee (D) signed into law a series of gun safety bills.

“No one needs an AR-15 to protect their family,” Inslee said at Tuesday’s signing. “You only need it to kill other families. And for that reason, we are taking action today.”

He signed into law a trio of bills immediately banning the sale of at least 60 types of assault weapons, establishing a 10-day waiting period and safety training requirement to purchase any firearm, and requiring members of the firearm industry to enforce reasonable controls on gun sales.

“I do want to note that while we celebrate [these bills], they are not the only things we need against gun violence,” Inslee added. “They are not a total panacea. But just because they don’t solve all the problems does not mean that the state of Washington does not take action.”

Washington is now the 10th state to institute an assault weapons ban, joining California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York, as well as Washington, D.C.

The White House issued a statement on Tuesday commending Inslee, state lawmakers, advocates and survivors “who fought for years to make today a reality.”

“In so doing, they have made every community in the state — from Seattle to Spokane and everywhere in between — safer and more secure,” the White House added.

The renewed push for gun reform comes in the wake of several deadly mass shootings in the past month. In late March, a former student of a private Nashville elementary school, armed with two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun, fatally shot three 9-year-old students and three staff members. 

Five people were killed and four more were injured at Old National Bank in Louisville, Ky., earlier this month after a former employee opened fire with an AR-15. Another four people were killed and 32 were injured at a Sweet Sixteen birthday party in Dadeville, Ala., in mid-April, in which six people have since been charged.