Democrats Propose Unconstitutional Bill to Confiscate Firearm Silencers
April 15, 2021
Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.-12) today reintroduced the Help Empower Americans to Respond (HEAR) Act, federal gun safety legislation to ban the importation, sale, manufacturing, transfer, and possession of silencers.
“Gun silencers are dangerous devices with one purpose and one purpose only – to muffle the sound of gunfire from unsuspecting victims,” said Sen. Menendez.
“Silencers are not tools of self-defense, they are tools of murder,” said Congresswoman Watson Coleman. “They have no legal application which is why law enforcement officials around the country have been calling for their elimination.
Aside from prohibiting silencers, the HEAR Act would also:
- Authorize a buyback program for silencers using Byrne JAG grants;
- Provide individuals with a 90-day grace period after the date of enactment for individuals to comply with the ban;
- Provide limited exceptions for certain current and former law enforcement personnel, for certain Atomic Energy personnel and purpose, and for certain authorized testing or experimentation.
The HEAR Act is cosponsored by Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.).
“The only people who could reasonably oppose a ban on gun silencers are criminals trying to avoid detection by law enforcement or mass murderers trying to hurt as many people as possible,” said Sen. Blumenthal.
Silencer Crimes Not as Preveleant as Portrayed
In the press release, Sen. Menendez lists four instances where a silencer was used in a shooting however out of the four instances listed there are some discrepancies. below are each incident and our analysis.
In Virginia Beach, Virginia, on May 31, 2019, a gunman armed with a .45-caliber handgun fitted with a suppressor killed 12 people in a government building. One individual who survived the shooting reported hearing what sounded like a nail gun.
It is unknown whether this was a legally purchased silencer; however the firearms used in the crime were purchased legally so it is assumed the silencer was legal. This is the only incident listed where a legal silencer was used.
In Jacksonville, Florida, in December 2017, police arrested a man for planning to “shoot up” an Islamic Center. He was charged with possessing a silencer not registered to him that he purchased from an undercover detective. The man texted the undercover detective saying, “The suppressor is not really that ‘quiet’ but it can be used on the 4th of July or New Year (sic) time, it can easily blend with the sound of fireworks”.
No shooting happened. A man was arrested for possessing an illegal silencer purchased from an undercover officer.
In Southern California, in February 2013, a former Los Angeles police officer killed four people and wounded three others over the course of nine days. As police investigated, they wondered why nearby residents weren’t reporting the shots. It turned out that, in an effort to conceal his murders, the shooter was using a silencer, which distorts the sound of gunfire and masks the muzzle flash of a gun.
Silencers are illegal in California, and it is unknown if the officer purchased the silencer legally. However, in order to do that he would have had to purchase it in a different state and brought it into California illegally.
In Toledo, Ohio, in January 2011, a man fatally shot his coworker as he sat eating his breakfast in his office. No one at the office heard the gunshot and the victim’s co-workers originally assumed he had died of a heart attack. Police later surmised that the killer had used a silencer.
No silencer was recovered or seen. The police assumed that a silencer might have been used because there were no witnesses that heard a shot. Since this crime was committed more than a decade ago not much information is available to confirm the police report.
Sen. Menendez also reintroduced the Keep Americans Safe Act to ban “high-capacity” magazines that can hold over ten rounds.
Analysis
Our take:
- The quotes from elected officials are intentionally misleading and exaggerated. Most silencer-owners are hunters or recreational shooters who value the hearing protection provided by the hearing-safe noise level silencers provide.
- It’s a common misconception that silencers are actually silent. Firing a gun with a silencer still produces a loud noise, typically as loud as a jackhammer. The intent of a silencer is to keep the sound at a hearing-safe level so that the user is not required to wear hearing protection. This can provide an extra layer of safety for hunters in the field. By using a silencer and forgoing earplugs, they can more easily hear when other people are nearby.
- Silencers are expensive to obtain and take a long time to acquire due to NFA requirements. Typically silencers cost $800+ and take 8+ months including a background check by the FBI and fingerprints and photos submitted to the ATF. This is in addition to the $200 tax required.
- The federal laws governing silencer crimes already provide stiff penalties. If a person is caught possessing a silencer that is not registered to them, they can face a possible penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000. If a person commits a felony using a silencer, the punishment is a minimum of 30 years in federal prison.
- The total number of crimes involving silencers is so low that it begs the question of why new legislation is necessary. President Biden used the NFA process for silencers as an example of gun control that is working in his recent speech regarding new gun control measures.
Jeremy Mallette is co-founder of International Sportsman. An avid hunter and outdoorsman, he has spent more than a decade in the outdoor industry, from hiking and camping to silencers and hunting. His father taught him to shoot at age six, and he received his first firearm at age eight — a 1942 Colt Commando .38 special revolver. He enjoys yearly trips to Kansas for pheasant hunting, spending time with his children at the deer lease, and collecting unique firearms.