BABY STEPS

Justice Department Moves to Ban Bump Stocks

A proposed regulation classifying the devices as “machine guns” has been formally submitted.

The U.S. Department of Justice on Saturday formally submitted a proposed regulation to ban bump stocks and classify them as “machine guns” under federal law, the first step in a long process to outlaw the devices. “President Trump is absolutely committed to ensuring the safety and security of every American and he has directed us to propose a regulation addressing bump stocks,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. Bump stocks, which turn semiautomatic weapons into automatic ones, came under scrutiny in the wake of several recent mass shootings. The gunman in last October’s Las Vegas massacre, which killed 58 people, had reportedly used bump stocks, and a deadly Florida high school shooting last month renewed calls to outlaw the devices. The Justice Department’s proposed regulation must first be approved by the Office of Management and Budget, and it would then be published and face possible revisions.