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EXCLUSIVE: Ryan Mehaffey, a Marine veteran and Virginia prosecutor, is taking a hard-line stance against what he believes is an “unconstitutional” new gun ban signed by Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
Spanberger, who has been slipping in the polls amid criticisms of her progressive policy agenda, signed a new bill last week banning the future sale and manufacture of “assault weapons,” including many semiautomatic rifles, pistols and shotguns. The law also bans the future sale of magazines with a capacity of more than 15 rounds.
The move caused immediate backlash from many Virginians and raised new Second Amendment violation concerns. Rather than protest, however, Mehaffey, who serves as the commonwealth attorney for Spotsylvania County, is drawing a line in the sand and flatly refusing to enforce the ban.
With the bill set to take effect this July ahead of America’s 250th anniversary of independence, Mehaffey sent a letter to Spotsylvania Sheriff Roger Harris, instructing him that the ban is “unconstitutional and cannot be lawfully enforced.”
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A statement released by Spanberger’s office called the assault weapons ban a “critical step toward protecting families, communities, and the law enforcement officers who serve them.”
Spanberger remarked she signed the bill into law “because firearms designed to inflict maximum casualties do not belong on our streets.”
She added that “while the General Assembly chose not to adopt my amendment that specifically carves out certain firearms frequently used for hunting, I will work with the patrons to clarify this language.”
In response, Mehaffey said in an interview with Fox News Digital that the law “is striking at the core of the militia system that existed in Virginia.”
According to Mehaffey, the Second Amendment is not just an assurance of personal freedoms, but also a safeguard for a community’s ability to defend itself through a “well-regulated militia.”
“Our founders were careful to make sure when they drafted our founding document, that the ultimate right of the people was preserved to defend themselves and to defend their community,” he explained. “So, the linchpin of the constitutional analysis is going to be does this instrument have some reasonable relationship to the preservation or efficiency of a regulated militia.”
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Mehaffey argues that in Virginia, historical tradition and case law precedent not only allow citizens to own firearms but even require them to arm themselves with the weapons of a basic infantryman for common defense. In the Founding Fathers’ time, Mehaffey said the standard issue was a musket and 20 rounds. Today, the basic infantry weapon in the U.S. military is the M4A1 carbine equipped with a 30-round magazine.
“The second amendment may not mean that you are allowed to have a nuclear weapon,” he laughed. “But what it does allow you to have is a basic infantry weapon.”
“That sort of weapon is the core of what’s protected by the Second Amendment. Not necessarily a nuclear warhead, but a rifle that you can take out and form either a fire team or a company to defend yourself and to defend your community.”
Mehaffey is not alone in his stance. In addition to what he characterized as the “overwhelmingly positive” response from his community, Smyth County Commonwealth’s Attorney Phillip Blevins, an Air Force veteran, has also refused to enforce the bill, arguing it is unconstitutional. The ban is also facing lawsuits from gun-rights groups, including the NRA, Firearms Policy Coalition and Second Amendment Foundation.
Blevins told Fox News Digital that “ultimately, courts will continue to address these issues, and I respect the role of the judiciary. But as the elected Commonwealth’s Attorney for Smyth County, I will continue to stand for what I believe the Constitution requires, without apology or hesitation.”
“My position is not based on politics. It is based on constitutional fidelity,” he continued, adding, “The Bill of Rights either means something, or it does not.”
“As Commonwealth’s Attorney, I took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Virginia. That oath is not situational, and it does not change based on politics, headlines, or pressure from either side of an issue.”
Mehaffey believes he and those standing beside him on this issue will ultimately prevail.
“The Second Amendment is the supreme law of the land, both in the U.S. Constitution and the analog in the Virginia Constitution,” he explained. “So, whatever law is passed by the General Assembly is not going to have the ability to supersede the Constitution.”
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While he has gotten a lot of personal attention for his stance, Mehaffey emphasized that, “I want nothing more than to fulfill my office with honor and to be a good servant to the people that elected me to represent them and to stick up for their rights.”
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“That’s what I’m trying to do,” he continued, adding, “I would expect any government official to remain faithful to the Constitution and to discharge their duties as servants of the people in the same way that I have.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Spanberger for additional comment.
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