Dumfries set to ban BB guns

Dumfries town officials on Tuesday could vote to ban BB and other pneumatic guns.

The Town Council will consider an update to a provision in the town code the deals with such pneumatic guns.

From town documents:

The Town Attorney was contacted by a citizen recently regarding Town Code Section 38-46.

The citizen’s concern is that our ordinance may be written in violation of Code of Virginia 15.2- 915.4. As a result, the Town Attorney researched the issue and prepared a proposed revision to the ordinance in question.

The Town Attorney provided Council with a copy of the code
sections and the proposed revised ordinance during the June 7, 2016, meeting.

After the discussion, Council instructed the Town Attorney to proceed with the ordinance amendment.

The ordinance, if approved, reads like this:

Section 38-46 – Discharge of firearms or airguns; hunting; trapping
(a) Except as provided for in subsection (c) herein, it shall be unlawful for any person willfully to discharge or cause to be discharged any firearm in this town.

(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to hunt or trap, or to use or shoot an air rifle, BB gun or like pistol or gun in the town.

(c) Pneumatic guns may be discharged at facilities approved for shooting ranges or on other property where firearms, or on or within private property with permission of the owner or legal possessor thereof when conducted with reasonable care to prevent a projectile from crossing the bounds of the property. As used in this section, “pneumatic gun”
means any implement, designed as a gun that will expel a BB or a pellet by action of pneumatic pressure. “Pneumatic gun” includes a paintball gun that expels by action of pneumatic pressure plastic balls filled with paint for the purpose of marking the point of impact.

(d) This section shall not apply to any law enforcement officer in the performance of his official duties, or to any other person whose willful act is otherwise justifiable or excusable at law in the protection of his life or property, or is otherwise specifically authorized by law.

(e) A violation of this section shall constitute a class 3 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500.00.

We asked the Town Manager, Attorney, and Police Chief, and Town Council members via email if there has been an increased number of cases of pneumatic gun firings in the town.

We received the following emailed responses:

“I believe this is simply to get in [sync] with VA code.”
— William Murphy, Dumfries Town Council

“The Ordinance Is being rewritten, by our Town Attorney, to line-up with the State Ordinance.”
— Gwen Washington, Dumfries Town Council

Cities, towns, and counties are able to ban pneumatic guns, according to Virginia State Code.

The Dumfries Town Council is expected to take up the issue at its regularly scheduled 7 p.m. meeting on Tuesday, June 21.