PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Union County Sheriff Cody Bowen has joined Linn County Sheriff Michelle Duncan in promising not to uphold the laws established in Measure 114.
It’s looking likely that Oregon voters will pass the gun reform measure, which will outlaw “large-capacity” magazines. It will also require gun buyers to undergo gun safety training and background checks before obtaining a mandatory permit.
These permits would be administered, maintained and documented by Oregon State Police.
Sheriff Bowen voiced his disdain for the measure on Union County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page on Thursday.
“As Union County Sheriff, I agree 100% with Sheriff Duncan,” Bowen stated. “This is an infringement on our constitutional rights and will not be enforced by my office!”
Bowen’s statement was made in response to a separate Facebook post published by Duncan that same day.
“I want to send a clear message to Linn County residents that the Linn County Sheriff’s Office is not going to be enforcing magazine capacity limits,” Duncan said. “This measure is poorly written and there is still a lot that needs to be sorted out regarding the permitting process, who has to do the training and what exactly does the training have to cover.”
While phrasing of the measure states that the banning of large-capacity magazines will help protect law-enforcement officers because “estimates suggest that nearly 40% of crime guns used in serious violent crimes, including attacks on law enforcement officers, are equipped with large-capacity magazines,” Bowen said that the law will cause him to lose officers.
“This measure will only harm law abiding gun owners and result in wasted time with additional redundant background checks,” Bowen said. “With no funding from the state to provide additional payroll costs, this will ultimately sacrifice patrol and deputy presence in our community. Another attempt at defunding our police at its finest!”
Bowen went on to say that he will “fight to the death” to defend the country’s constitutional rights.
“To the people who chime in with me picking and choosing which laws I want to enforce or not enforce, hear this,” he said. “When it comes to our constitutional rights, I’ll fight to the death to defend them. No matter what crazy law comes out of Salem!”
Measure 114 is currently leading the unofficial election count by 50.97%, with 869,844 votes.