Boulder's assault weapons ban unenforceable for time being after district court ruling

Mar. 20—Boulder will not be enforcing the city's assault weapons ban after a district court ruled that a state statute preempts local governments from restricting gun sales and possession.

Judge Andrew Hartman on March 12 ruled that only state or federal laws can prohibit the possession, sale and transfer of assault weapons and large capacity magazines. Colorado has passed laws "that are effectively a scheme preempting local governments from enacting municipal firearms and magazine possession ordinances," according to court documents.

The complaint, first filed in June 2018 by Boulder residents Robert Lynn Chambers and James Michael Jones against the city, argues that Boulder's ban is invalid because sections of it conflict with state law.

Boulder staff will be meeting with outside counsel later in the week to discuss next steps, city spokesperson Shannon Aulabaugh said Thursday. In the meantime, the ban will not be enforced.

The assault weapons ban has been in place since 2018 when Boulder City Council unanimously approved it, despite a near immediate threat of legal action. The idea initially was suggested by former City Council member Jill Adler Grano after the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., which left 17 people dead.

However, according to earlier reporting by the Camera, Boulder officials acknowledged the ban would be difficult to enforce. It bans certain pistols and semi-automatic rifles with pistol grips, a folding or telescoping stock or any protruding grip that allows a weapon to be stabilized with the non-trigger hand.

Colorado's 2003 state statute says that local governments cannot enact regulations that prohibit the sale, purchase or possession of a firearm that a person is allowed to sell, purchase or possess under state or federal law.

The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence acknowledges that the statute is meant to provide statewide uniformity of firearm regulation to avoid "extraterritorial impact" of inconsistent firearms regulation among local jurisdictions.

Hartman's ruling references this, noting that the "need for statewide uniformity favors the state's interest in regulating assault weapons and LCMs (large-capacity magazines)."

But for gun violence prevention organization Colorado Ceasefire, the ruling illustrates that the statute "is not serving the people of Boulder."

"Cities and counties know best whether certain weapons are inappropriate in their neighborhoods," Colorado Ceasefire spokesperson Eileen McCarron said in a statement.

"This is a bitter disappointment. Assault weapons have been the source of horrendous tragedies here in Colorado and across the nation," Tom Mauser agreed in the Colorado Ceasefire statement. "Clearly the people of Boulder do not want these weapons of war in their city."

Mauser's son Daniel was killed in the 1999 Columbine High School shooting. He's since been a spokesperson for the grassroots gun violence prevention organization.

Denver has an assault weapons ban that was upheld by default due to a split 3-3 vote in the Colorado Supreme Court. One justice abstained. Due to the tie, no legal opinion or analysis was given and the case does not set precedent.

Boulder approved its assault weapons ban in 2018, years after the state preemption law, whereas Denver has had its law on the books since 1989.

Robert Wareham, a Colorado attorney who specializes in gun law, said he believes "a great deal of deference has to be given to an act of the general assembly when they say this is a matter of statewide concern."

"I think it's a waste of money for the Boulder taxpayers," Wareham said of Boulder's chances of upholding its ban on appeal. "I think they are going to be unsuccessful in the Supreme Court."

Boulder resident and radio and TV personality Jon Caldara, who has a separate case challenging the assault weapons ban that is on hold in federal court, has long spoken out against the city's assault weapons ban and said he's thrilled "to know I am no longer a criminal in my hometown of Boulder."

Caldara said Boulder "isn't the same town I remember from decades past."

"My biggest feeling on this ruling is that I'm glad that a court is now forcing this bigoted city government to live up to its words of tolerance and inclusivity," he said.

Cody Wisniewski, executive director of the Mountain States Legal Foundation's Center to Keep and Bear Arms, filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of Caldara and several other plaintiffs fewer than 24 hours after Boulder City Council voted the assault weapons ban into law. The lawsuit claims the ordinance violates the plaintiffs' Constitutional rights.

Ultimately, Wisniewski said the fate of the federal case is dependent on how Boulder chooses to proceed.

"We'll be watching closely to see what the city does and how they react and that will heavily determine our next steps," he said.

Hartman's ruling is "a really important victory in the fight for Coloradans' rights," but Wisniewski said "the fight is certainly not over."