Baltimore Wants to Ban Replica Guns

BB Gun

Baltimore City has proposed a ban on replica guns. This ban carries penalties including seizure, fine, and imprisonment for possession of a gun that ‘looks like’ a real firearm. This law completely ignores lawful use of such guns and inaccurately describes these guns as ‘toys’, which they are not. The law is incredibly vague and scapegoats the responsibility of officers for proper force escalation onto victims of police shootings.

Replica Gun Ban Summary

The proposed law would completely ban ownership of what the city determines is a ‘replica gun’. It’s important to note that there is no grandfather clause here, so if you already own a replica gun you are immediately a criminal when this law goes into effect. The law also does not make it illegal to sell the replica guns, so it would be possible to go into a local Walmart in Baltimore City to purchase a replica gun to then have it seized by police as soon as you walk out of the store and face fine and criminal penalties as a result. Seizure would not require a warrant by the police either.

The law defines a Replica Gun as:

 “Any toy, imitation, facsimile or replica pistol, revolver, shotgun, rifle, air rifle, b-b gun, pellet gun, machine gun, or other simulated weapon, which because of its color, size, shape, or other characteristics, can reasonably be perceived to be a real firearm.”

Markings on Replica Guns
There is an inherent problem with this definition because it makes no provisions for what types of markings could be included on such a replica to make a clear indication that the replica gun is not a ‘real firearm’. An example of this is a federal law found in 15 U.S.C.A. § 5001:

(b)Distinctive marking or device; exception; waiver; adjustments and changes

(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) or (3), each toy, look-alike, or imitation firearm shall have as an integral part, permanently affixed, a blaze orange plug inserted in the barrel of such toy, look-alike, or imitation firearm. Such plug shall be recessed no more than 6 millimeters from the muzzle end of the barrel of such firearm.

(c)“Look-alike firearm” defined

For purposes of this section, the term “look-alike firearm” means any imitation of any original firearm which was manufactured, designed, and produced since 1898, including and limited to toy guns, water guns, replica nonguns, and air-soft guns firing nonmetallic projectiles. Such term does not include any look-alike, nonfiring, collector replica of an antique firearm developed prior to 1898, or traditional B–B, paint-ball, or pellet-firing air guns that expel a projectile through the force of air pressure.

The federal statute applies primarily to air-soft guns that are clearly toys. Notice that BB-guns and pellet guns are specifically excluded from this requirement. This is due to the fact that these guns can cause bodily harm and should not be misidentified as toys. There is a good reason why these guns look real, because they can cause real harm. Under the current law it is unclear if the below gun would be classified as a replica gun or not because there is no standard for markings in the proposed bill even though this gun meets the federal standards for marking.

Airsoft Gun with Orange Barrel Insert

The law should clearly state what markings should be on a replica gun to make it clear that it is not a real firearm. The way the bill is written opens up a whole slew of problems with citizens having these replicas seized and faced with criminal charges because there is no standard for what a replica gun looks like. But again, BB-Guns and Pellet guns in my opinion should not be marked in a way to indicate they are toys. What the city council does not seem to understand here is that there are also real firearms that are brightly colored and look like 'toys' as well. Here is a friendly looking Hello Kitty firearm, remember this is a real firearm, not a toy:

Real Handgun

Federal Law Prohibits States From Banning Replica Guns
Flat out, it's against federal law for states to ban these types of guns. This is something that was pointed out by the Baltimore City Department of Law. The council after receiving this letter should have wholly dismissed the bill, but for some reason have sought to push it forward. Here is what the Baltimore City Department of Law stated (emphasis added):

"Congress has specifically preempted local government from regulating certain imitation firearms. In general, Section 5001 provides that toy, look alike or imitation firearms must be marked in a specific manner. Section 5001(g) further provides that the provisions of Section 5001 shall supersede any provision of State or local laws or ordinances which provide for markings or identification inconsistent with provisions of this section provided that no State shall ... (ii) prohibit the sale (other than the sale to minors) of traditional B-B, paint ball, or pellet-firing air guns that expel a projectile through the force of air pressure."

Think of the Children!

This argument is wholly unfounded as it is already illegal for a minor (anyone under 18) to possess a replica gun in Baltimore City under Baltimore City Code § 59-3. Air rifles, BB guns, etc:

"No person may sell, give away, lend, rent, or otherwise transfer to any minor or permit any minor to possess any air rifle, air gun, or BB gun."

This law also applies to air-pellet (airsoft) and paintball guns under § 59-26. Gas- or air-pellet guns:

"No person may sell, give away, or otherwise transfer a gas- or air-pellet gun or paintball gun to, or permit the use of a gas- or air-pellet gun or paintball gun by, any individual whom that person knows or has reasonable cause to believe is a minor."

Further, it is illegal to shoot any of these guns within city limits. The city has enumerated legal uses of these types of guns already:

"No person may possess, discharge or use any gas- or air- pellet gun or paintball gun in Baltimore City except:

(1) if the gun is kept within his or her domicile or is used by him or her exclusively for the purpose of teaching the use and care of firearms at a properly constructed indoor or outdoor range;
(2) on a properly constructed target range or recreational paintball facility;
(3) on private grounds or residence under circumstances in which the gun is operated so as to not endanger person or property and in a manner that prevents the projectile from traversing any grounds or space outside of the private grounds or residence; or
(4) if the gun is being transported in a motor vehicle for any lawful purpose and is not being carried on a person."

 So, there are already laws in place for the lawful use and age restrictions in place for these types of guns. So, what is the need to ban them altogether? If the city really wants to protect kids, then they need to enforce the law that is in place and make sure that kids know they are not allowed to have these types of guns in the city. Ad campaigns could be run or friendly police encouragement in neighborhoods to bring the the law to public knowledge could be enacted before chasing down a ban.

It's also already been published that this replica gun ban would not have stopped the shooting that spawned this bill in the first place.

The Motives of the Sponsor are Clear: Ban Handguns
City democrats want to take away all handguns from city residents, not just replica guns. City councilman Jim Kraft who sponsored this bill made the following statement in a WBAL interview:

"If we had our way, we would ban all handguns in the city of Baltimore. We just don’t have the authority to do it"

Kraft knows that it is unconstitutional to ban handguns as the Supreme Court ruled in the case of District of Columbia v. Heller.

This bill does affect the legal ownership of real handguns though. Maryland mandates that anyone who wants to purchase a handgun in the state must first obtain a Handgun Qualification License (HQL). Part of obtaining an HQL is a mandatory firearms training course. In these courses instructors use replica guns to teach about proper function and handling of a handgun. By enacting the replica gun ban, Baltimore city has in effect made it illegal to teach HQL classes in the city which prevents a Baltimore city resident from completing the necessary requirements to get an HQL, effectively making illegal to own a handgun in Baltimore.

Lawful Uses of Replica Guns
This law completely ignores the lawful use of replica guns and fails to consider why someone might want to own one. I already identified the purpose of firearm instruction as one, lets look at a few more.

Air Pistol

Firearm Practice
If you've ever owned a gun and go to the range regularly to practice you know it gets expensive fast. Ammunition over the last few years has increased in cost and and suffered from limited availability. Using a BB or pellet gun for practice is a good method to overcome this challenge. Personally, I use a BB/pellet handgun like the one pictured above to practice with. I actually shoot this gun more than my real firearms because I can practice the same mechanics of shooting like trigger control and aiming at a much lower cost and without the need for hearing protection or the recoil of a real firearm. It's important that when using an air-gun for this type of activity that it look and feel just like a real firearm for the training to be effective. Whenever I go shooting with someone new who has never shot a handgun I always teach them on a air-powered gun first to get the basics down before handing them a real firearm. This has proven to be an effective teaching tool and one that the city should support.

Air Rifle

Hunting
Pellet guns in particular are perfectly suitable for hunting small game like rabbits. I mentioned earlier that many of these replica guns are not toys. Pellet guns can shoot a lead projectile at over 1000 feet per second. That's similar velocities to real handgun cartridges. Pellet guns that are used for hunting should not be confused with a toy, nor should they be marked in such a way that a child might mistake it for a toy. These guns should also be legal to own.

Competitive Shooting
Air rifles are commonly used in competitive shooting sports. You know, small ones, like the Olympics. Anyone who competes in shooting will likely require an air rifle in order to so. Again, these guns are not toys. Competitive air rifles are incredibly accurate and designed to shoot high velocity lead projectiles.

Police Concerns
The Baltimore City Police Department wrote a letter about their opinion on the law and shared their concerns regarding replica guns. The BPD identified that one of the problems with replica guns is that police cannot distinguish the difference between a replica and a real gun when facing them on the street. They also identify the problem of criminals using replica guns in street robberies. These are both valid concerns that I can sympathize with.

The police should perceive these types of guns as real threats until they can determine that it is not a real firearm. If the city wants to address this problem the focus should be on the criminal behavior and not the lawful owner however. I would suggest that it's a felony for a criminal to use a replica gun in the commission of a crime and essentially treat the replica as if it were a real firearm since the criminal was threatening someone as if it were a firearm.

Furthermore, police should do their jobs in enforcing the laws that already prohibit minors from possessing these replicas instead of seeking to take away lawful ownership from law-abiding citizens.

In Summary
Baltimore City's proposed replica gun ban is illegal under federal statute and should be dismissed. There are already laws in place to keep replica guns out of minors hands that can and should be enforced. There are lawful reasons for citizens to own and use replica guns. If the City feels that it needs to legislate something the focus should be on criminal behavior rather than criminalizing law-abiding citizens.