{"id":2554228,"date":"2026-01-27T13:45:01","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T18:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians-4\/"},"modified":"2026-01-27T13:47:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T18:47:19","slug":"dems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Dems&#8217; &#8216;Unconstitutional&#8217; Gun Bill Would Jail Law-Abiding Virginians"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians-4%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2554228&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Virginia gun owners face a potential legal crackdown after the Democrat-controlled state government advanced SB749, a bill that would ban possession of magazines holding more than 10 rounds without grandfathering existing owners and would outlaw the sale or purchase of so-called \u201cassault weapons\u201d (defined in state code as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians-2\/\" title=\"Dems&#039; &#039;...&#039; Gun ... Would Jail Law-Abiding ...ns\">semiautomatic center-fire rifles<\/a>). Under the amended proposal,simply possessing a large-capacity magazine could be a misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail and,if convicted,a three-year prohibition on owning firearms.The bill\u2019s July 1 enforcement date and the practicalities of enforcing or confiscating widely owned magazines remain unclear. The proposal has drawn immediate threats of legal challenges from the NRA, criticism from the DOJ\u2019s Harmeet Dhillon and former virginia AG Jason Miyares as unconstitutional, and comparisons to similar state-level magazine bans that have faced court setbacks. Observers note the measure could prompt one of the major Second Amendment legal battles of 2026, especially given Supreme Court precedents in Bruen and Heller.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Legal gun owners&rsquo; Second Amendment rights are under threat in Virginia after the Democrat-controlled government workshopped a bill that would effectively criminalize anyone who possesses a magazine that holds more than 10 rounds.<\/p>\n<p>Newly elected Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger claims to &ldquo;respect the Second Amendment and don&rsquo;t let anyone tell you otherwise.&rdquo; In the first days of the new gubernatorial administration, however, the Democrat trifecta and triplex under Spanberger committed the state to infringe on Virginians&rsquo; right to bear arms. Under <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/bill-details\/20261\/SB749\/text\/SB749SC1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SB749<\/a>, countless &ldquo;responsible&rdquo; Virginia gun owners could be classified as criminals for possessing guns and magazines that they legally acquired. <\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>&#128680; VIRIGINA GUN RIGHTS ALERT &#128680;<\/p>\n<p>Virginia lawmaker&#8217;s proposed amendment to SB 749 (&#8220;Assault Weapons&#8221; and magazine ban) eliminates grandfathering for existing magazine owners. <\/p>\n<p>Under the amended bill, simply possessing any magazine that holds more than ten rounds would become a&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/50KR5GfDDM\">pic.twitter.com\/50KR5GfDDM<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&mdash; National Association for Gun Rights (@gunrights) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gunrights\/status\/2015843423450955803?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>A previous version of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-unconstitutional-gun-bill-would-jail-law-abiding-virginians\/\" title=\"Dems&#039; &#039;...&#039; Gun ... Would Jail Law-Abiding ...ns\">legislation grandfathered current gun owners<\/a> with larger magazine capacity in so they wouldn&rsquo;t face repercussions. The new prohibition, if passed, would effectively criminalize the possession of any magazine that holds more than 10 rounds, regardless of when or how it was purchased. <\/p>\n<p>The bill also seeks to outlaw the sale or purchase of any &ldquo;assault weapon,&rdquo; which the Virginia code deems any <a href=\"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/18.2-308.2:2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">semiautomatic center-fire rifle<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>&#128680; Today, a bill to ban &#8220;assault weapons&#8221; was voted out of committee in the Virginia Senate&ndash; and it <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >essentially makes gun ownership illegal<\/a> in the commonwealth.<\/p>\n<p>Its author is State Senator Saddam Azlan Salim, who was born in Bangladesh.<\/p>\n<p>In Virginia&#8217;s code, an &#8220;assault weapon&#8221;&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/tNmXB28R3x\">pic.twitter.com\/tNmXB28R3x<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&mdash; Greg Price (@greg_price11) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/greg_price11\/status\/2015911417245807031?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Violators of either provision could face misdemeanor charges that, if turned into convictions, could come with up to 12 months in prison and a legal restriction that keeps them <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/AssocAnderson\/status\/2015928890363965584?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">from owning or possessing any and all firearms for three years<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>It is unclear how the state plans to conduct a mass confiscation of <a href=\"https:\/\/thereload.com\/report-americans-own-717-million-large-capacity-ammo-magazines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">commonly-owned magazines<\/a> come the bill&rsquo;s July 1st enforcement date. What is clear is that, if this legislation becomes law, Virginia will be embroiled in one of the biggest Second Amendment legal battles of 2026. <\/p>\n<p>Already, gun rights groups such as the National Rifle Association have <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NRA\/status\/2015919856659337561?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">threatened court challenges<\/a> if Democrats proceed with their radical bill.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>The NRA stands ready to fight back against the radical gun grabbers in Virginia.<\/p>\n<p>Make no mistake: the NRA will meet this attack head-on and use every lawful tool available to stop it. We will see you in court. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/PcjiZOOAgT\">pic.twitter.com\/PcjiZOOAgT<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&mdash; NRA (@NRA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NRA\/status\/2015919856659337561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice Harmeet Dhillon called the proposed legislation a &ldquo;blatant violation of Supreme Court precedent&rdquo; and noted it &ldquo;will not stand&rdquo; if passed. <\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p>Former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares also classified the legislation as <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JasonMiyaresVA\/status\/2016168007987257454?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&ldquo;blatantly unconstitutional.&rdquo;<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Seems some want to lower criminal penalties on everyone but the law abiding citizens of Virginia,&rdquo; Miyares wrote on X. <\/p>\n<p>Other states such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cascadepbs.org\/politics\/2024\/04\/judge-rules-washington-high-capacity-magazine-law-unconstitutional\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Washington<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oregonlive.com\/crime\/2025\/11\/oregon-supreme-court-justices-question-gun-control-measure-114-regulations.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Oregon<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/thereload.com\/california-ammo-mag-ban-ruled-unconstitutional\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> California<\/a> have tried to implement so-called &ldquo;large capacity magazine&rdquo; bans like Virginia&rsquo;s proposal, but have faced hurdles in lower and state supreme courts. <a href=\"https:\/\/dojmt.gov\/attorney-general-knudsen-asks-scotus-to-strike-down-unconstitutional-firearm-magazine-ban\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Attorneys general across several more than two dozen states<\/a> have called on the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the ammo restrictions but have yet to receive a response. <\/p>\n<p>SCOTUS held in its 2022&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/21pdf\/20-843_7j80.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;decision that Americans&rsquo; constitutional right to keep and bear arms for self-defense requires no demonstration of a &ldquo;special need&rdquo; like the one New York tried to impose on unrestricted concealed-carry licenses. Before that, the highest court in the land determined in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oyez.org\/cases\/2007\/07-290\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>District of Columbia v. Heller<\/em><\/a>  that Washington D.C.&rsquo;s attempt to ban handgun possession in the home did not square with Americans&rsquo; Second Amendment rights to own firearms and use them for lawful self-defense.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Jordan Boyd is an award-winning staff writer at The Federalist and producer of &ldquo;The Federalist Radio Hour.&rdquo; Her work has also been featured in The Daily Wire, Fox News, and RealClearPolitics. Jordan graduated from Baylor University where she majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow her on X @jordanboydtx.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VA proposal could criminalize &gt;10-round magazines<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":490,"featured_media":2554229,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Untitled-design-3.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[3685,50385,5468],"class_list":["post-2554228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-democrats","tag-gun-control-2","tag-virginia"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Untitled-design-3.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2554228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/490"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2554228"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2554228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2554232,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2554228\/revisions\/2554232"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2554229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2554228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2554228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2554228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}