Two bump stocks surrendered to police after RI ban, according to 22 departments

By: Daniel Keith

Twitter: @ABC6

Email: news@abc6.com

With the gun debate heating up again at the State House, one ban already in effect has been a bit underwhelming.

The ban on bump stocks took effect in September, giving owners 90 days to surrender them to police to be destroyed.

Almost six months later, the results are next to nothing.

ABC 6 spoke with 22 police departments across the state on Friday to see how many bump stocks were handed in once the ban took effect.

We’re told only two in total were surrendered to police. Both were in Johnston and both were handed in by the same firearms dealer.

ABC 6 was not told about one instance where a private bump stock owner handed over the device that can be used to simulate the effects of an automatic weapon. However, ABC 6 is still waiting on replies from another 14 departments to see if any private owner surrendered the bump stock.

But believe it or not, Linda Finn, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, said that the number is to be expected, and she believes the state has bigger fish to fry.

“I’m not surprised that only a couple of them turned in,” she said. “Most people in Rhode Island knew they shouldn’t have them anyway, even though they weren’t explicitly called out.”

She said the focus now is on a new set of legislation to ban assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and prohibiting guns on school grounds except for police.

“It’s going to keep kids and families safer,” she said. “I think we need to get in line with other states. I don’t think we should be waiting for an accident to happen.”

The RI Second Amendment Coalition is opposed to the new bills where testimony in the Senate Judiciary Committee is set for Tuesday.

The RI Second Amendment Coalition did not respond to our calls for comment on the bump stock data.

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