The bill, signed by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2007, was approved for implementation in the Golden State last year. It requires weapon manufacturers to add micro-punching features to all new or updated semi-automatic pistols. Two business groups, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute, filed a lawsuit against the law in California Superior Court earlier this month. Smith & Wesson does not plan to make any changes to the M&P Shield and SDVE pistols to continue selling them in the state. All other M&P handguns that Smith & Wesson has marked for updates will fall off california`s list of handguns certified for sale by August. Firearms that are legal in the state of California based on the information we have. “The micro-stamping mandate and the company`s reluctance to adopt this so-called technology will result in a decrease in the number of Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistols offered for sale by California residents.” “Until the micro-stamping is lifted, we expect the Ruger pistols — some of the safest available — to continue to be removed from the list,” the company said. Smith & Wesson will continue to offer its California revolvers and handguns, including versions of the M&P Shield and SDVE pistols launched last week. The company believes that the sale of these firearms “will more than compensate” for the loss of other M&P handguns in California. Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC) said it will no longer sell many of its semi-automatic handguns in California, under a new state law that requires the use of microamp technology.
“The technology doesn`t fully exist yet, but by making it a law, they [California] actually enacted a gun law without passing one,” said David Kopel, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Denver`s Sturm College of Law and research director at the Independence Institute, FoxNews.com. “This is an indirect way to ban the sale of new handguns.” Law enforcement authorities are exempt from micro-stamping requirements. Other states considering a microamping requirement include Connecticut, New York, and Massachusetts. Smith & Wesson shares were trading 4% at $13.36 late Friday afternoon. Ruger slipped 5.6% to $73.65. The decision follows a similar decision by rival gun maker Sturm, Ruger (NYSE: RGR), which recently announced that its handguns would be removed from California`s list of approved firearms. Critics say that tracing a bullet back to a registered gun owner doesn`t do much to combat crime, as criminals often kill with stolen handguns. Many believe that tracking down bullets was never the true intent of the law. Get all the stories you need to know about the most powerful name in the news that comes to your inbox every morning Armed gun manufacturers like Smith & Wesson have argued that micro-stamping is prohibitive and doesn`t deter crime. The company said it would not include micro-embossing in its firearms. Smith & Wesson said it expects the sale of its Californian revolvers, which don`t need to be micro-stamped, to offset the impact on society.
James Debney, the company`s president and CEO, is committed to continuing to work with industry groups to oppose the law while providing California customers with products that comply with the law. Below, we`ve added a link to the California Department of Justice`s handgun list. James Debney, president and CEO of Smith & Wesson, said the Springfield, Massachusetts-based gunmaker would continue to work with the National Rifle Association and the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a professional group, to oppose the law. The NSSF filed a lawsuit last week. It is the customer`s responsibility to check with your local reseller to verify and validate this information as laws change. Firearm micro-stamping or ballistic embossing works by engraving a microscope mark on the tip of the firing pin. When the weapon is fired, it leaves an imprint, usually a serial number, on the cartridge casings. The revealing mark theoretically allows law enforcement investigators to trace the bullet back to the registered gun owner. California`s law is the first in the country to be implemented and was originally enacted in October 2007, but has only recently been implemented.
Several other States are considering similar measures. “Smith & Wesson does not and will not include micro-stamping in its firearms,” the Springfield, Massachusetts-based manufacturer said in a statement. “A number of studies have shown that micro-punching is unreliable, useless in terms of security, is too expensive and, most importantly, has no demonstrable help in preventing or solving crimes.” Micro-stamping is a technique in which the engraving pin simultaneously serves as a buffer and engraves an identification code on the primer. The code, which would theoretically help law enforcement track cartridges to the gun owner, is also engraved on the case. FILE: Undated: A 1911 model pistol is held in the hands of an assembler at the Smith & Wesson plant in Springfield, Massachusetts. The patent holder of the microstanz technology, Todd Lizotte, was part of a Department of Justice study team that concluded that there are “legitimate problems related to the technical aspects, production costs and management of microamps-related databases that would need to be addressed before full implementation is required by law.” according to the study, published in the journal of the Association of Firearm and Toolmark Examiners (AFTE). has been published. Storm Ruger, based in Southport, Connecticut, also announced this month that it would also stop selling its guns in California due to the Microamps Act.