Gov. John Hickenlooper told county sheriffs at a recent gathering he felt conflicted about supporting a bill that limited ammunition magazines, but because one of his “staff made a commitment,” he felt compelled to sign it into law.
“To be honest, no one in our office thought it would get through the legislature,” Hickenlooper, a Democrat, said in an unedited video recorded by the conservative group Revealing Politics. “There were several Democrats who said without question they weren’t going to vote for it.”
The measure — by far the most controversial in a package of gun-control bills signed into law in 2013 — bars the sale of ammunition magazines of more than 15 rounds. The measure passed the Democratic-controlled legislature with no Republican support.
Eric Brown, Hickenlooper’s spokesman, said Wednesday that he has not had a chance to speak with the governor about which staffer committed the governor’s support and signature for the legislation. Hickenlooper is in Mexico this week to promote economic development.
State Rep. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, the prime sponsor of the measure to limit ammunition magazines, said she never received any commitment from Hickenlooper’s staff.
“I was told to count my votes,” Fields said Wednesday.
Hickenlooper, in the remarks at the biannual gathering of the County Sheriffs of Colorado in Aspen on Friday, said he went along with the bill after “one of my staff had committed us to signing it.”
“Once you give your word, or someone who works for you gives your word for you — someone who has the responsibility and the ability to do that — generally you try not to go back on that,” Hickenlooper said.
In early February 2013, as the bill gained initial approval in the House, Hickenlooper voiced support for the legislation.
However, the governor told the sheriffs that the “tipping point” from him came from feedback he had received from police officers in urban areas.
“A couple of police officers, including the police chief in Denver, all said this is the way police officers die is these kids go around with these high-capacity magazines,” Hickenlooper said.
After he signed the bill into law, Hickenlooper told the sheriffs, he was told his staff went back and got facts they “should’ve had from the beginning,” which revealed “roughly 300,000 magazines that carried more than 15 rounds” were already in Colorado.
“How’s a police enforcement officer going to tell which is the old one? The new one?” Hickenlooper said.
He added, “how big of a difference is (the law) going to make if there are that many? If some kid, some punk kid in Aurora wants to get out there and start spray-shooting his neighbor, which has still happened right in Aurora, in Denver, in Colorado Springs — it’s not like you’re going to have a hard time finding the magazine.”
Brown said Wednesday that he did not have the statistic Hickenlooper cited.
After the bills were signed into law, 55 of Colorado’s 62 elected sheriffs filed a federal lawsuit against the state, saying the regulations violated the Second Amendment. A federal judge ruled the sheriffs didn’t have standing to sue in their official capacity, but allowed term-limited sheriffs to sue as individuals.
Hickenlooper has faced backlash since the meeting last week with the sheriffs, in which he said he was unaware they wanted to meet with him in 2013 to discuss their concerns over proposed gun laws.
Montezuma County Sheriff Dennis Spruell set off a social media firestorm when he wrote about Hickenlooper’s apology on the department’s Facebook page as the governor was speaking.
Hickenlooper widely voiced support for a 2013 gun-control measure that mandated background checks for all firearms sales and transfers.
The passage of limits to ammunition magazines and universal background checks led to the recalls of two state lawmakers last September.
Former Senate President John Morse, who was ousted in one of the recalls, said Monday that he believes lawmakers did what was right in passing the reforms.