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Robertson v. City and County of Denver5/2/1994
easonably related to a legitimate governmental interest such as the public health, safety, or welfare. People v. Gross, 830 P.2d 933 (Colo. 1993); People v. Pharr, 696 P.2d 235 (Colo. 1984); Bushnell v. Sapp, 194 Colo. 273, 571 P.2d 1100 (1977).
The statement of legislative intent contained in the ordinance reads as follows:
The city council hereby finds and declares that the use of assault weapons poses a threat to the health, safety and security of all citizens of the City and County of Denver. Further, the council finds that assault weapons are capable both of a rapid rate of fire as well as of a capacity to fire an inordinately large number of rounds without reloading and are designed primarily for military or antipersonnel use.
The city council finds that law enforcement agencies report increased use of assault weapons for criminal activities. This has resulted in a record number of related homicides and injuries to citizens and law enforcement officers. It is, therefore, the intent of the city council to place reasonable and necessary restrictions on the sale and possession of assault weapons while placing no restrictions on the right of citizens to use weapons which are primarily designed and intended for hunting, target practice and other legitimate sports or recreational activities and the protection of home, person and property.
§ 38-130(a).
The city council expressly sought to promote the health, safety, and security of the citizens of Denver by enacting the ordinance. More specifically, it declared that prohibiting the possession and sale of assault weapons was premised on the city's interest in curbing crime -- particularly homicides. As common sense suggests, " state has a very significant interest in preventing crime." Gross, 830 P.2d at 941. See also People v. French, 762 P.2d 1369, 1373-74 (Colo. 1988) (prevention of crime is a compelling state interest). There can be no doubt that an ordinance, intended to prevent crime, serves a legitimate governmental interest sufficiently strong to justify its enactment.
In addition, the evidence presented to the trial court clearly showed that the ordinance is reasonably related to this interest. For example, A.W. Zavares, the chief of police of Denver, testified that "assault weapons are becoming the weapons of choice for drug traffickers and other criminals." Evidence also was presented indicating that assault weapons were used in one of every ten crimes that resulted in a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearm trace in 1988-89. Further, the evidence indicated that assault weapons accounted for nearly thirty percent of all firearms traced to organized crime, gun trafficking, and terrorists, and over twelve percent of drug related crimes nationwide.
The unique characteristics of assault weapons coupled with the prevalent use of such weapons for criminal purposes establish that such weapons pose a substantial threat to the health and safety of the citizens of Denver. In addition, the evidence at trial supports the Conclusion that weapons which are easily concealed, such as shotguns equipped with folding stocks, pose a greater threat to law enforcement officials and the public at large because their concealability makes them better suited to criminal purposes.
Finally, the evidence presented to the trial court established that Denver has sought to prohibit the possession and use of approximately forty firearms. The evidence also established that currently there are approximately 2,000 firearms available for purchase and use in the Un
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