The Colorado State Shooting Association has sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi urging an investigation by the Department of Justice into the state of Colorado’s gun laws.
The letter raises the alarm that a newly signed law by Democrat Governor Jared Polis infringes on the Second Amendment and notes that 37 Colorado counties “have declared themselves to be ‘Second Amendment Sanctuaries’ in an attempt to oppose or resist the state’s efforts to undermine or effectively deny their rights.”
The group asked that a newly formed task force, the Second Amendment Enforcement Task Force (SAEF), investigate the matter.
AG Bondi announced the creation of SAEF with to “protect gun owners from overreach.”
The letter reads in part:
Dear Attorney General Bondi,
We, the undersigned representatives of the Colorado State Shooting Association, the Colorado Republican Congressional Delegation, the Colorado State Senate Republican Caucus, The Colorado State House Republican Caucus, a coalition of pro-Second Amendment sheriffs, and leaders of Colorado’s pro-Second Amendment movement, write to urgently request that you direct the Department of Justice’s Second Amendment Enforcement Task Force to investigate and take action to protect the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens of the State of Colorado.
Over the past few years, the State of Colorado and some of its larger cities and political subdivisions have, through a progression of increasingly oppressive and burdensome statutes and ordinances, engaged in a systematic and unrelenting campaign designed to restrict, impair, impede and ultimately extinguish Coloradans’ right to keep and bear arms in violation of our Constitution.
**********
SB25-003, recently signed into law by Governor Jared Polis, is especially egregious, imposing restrictions that directly clash with the fundamental right to keep and bear arms as affirmed by the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010), and New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022). This law, as with many of those listed above, ignores the historical tradition of firearms ownership in America, impermissibly burdens law-abiding gun owners, erodes self-defense rights, and restricts access to firearms in common use. It clearly fails to meet the constitutional benchmarks set by the Supreme Court in these cases.
As congressional leaders, state senators, state representatives, sheriffs, and advocates for Colorado’s Second Amendment community, we see the damaging impact of these laws every day. Even though the Supreme Court has clearly ruled that the Second Amendment should not be treated as a “second-class right,” that has not been the case here in Colorado. While these measures do little to enhance public safety, they create confusion, and cause law-abiding citizens to fear prosecution and loss of their rights. In response, at least 37 Colorado counties have declared themselves to be “Second Amendment Sanctuaries” in an attempt to oppose or resist the state’s efforts to undermine or effectively deny their rights. That is a testament to the widespread indignation and determination among our communities.
Huey Laugesen, executive director of the Colorado State Shooting Association, told FOX31’s Nate Belt that alongside the letter, the association has collected voters’ signatures. As of Monday, Laugesen said they had collected “tens of thousands.”
“When we have government coming in and putting in insurmountable obstacles for a lot of people, and particularly low-income individuals who are much more likely to be victimized by violent criminals, that’s a major problem. That’s some serious overreach,” Laugesen told Belt.
“We won’t stand for it because it’s a very dangerous path that we’re headed down.”
