Democrat bill would ban 'armor-piercing' ammo

Rep. Eliott Engel, D-N.Y.

Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., is leading a legislative charge to ban armor-piercing ammunition in the United States, saying "no compelling argument" exists for anyone outside the military or police to have access to it.

"Armor-piercing rounds like green tips should only be in the hands of military personnel or police officers, period," Engel said, The Hill reported. "There is absolutely no compelling argument to be made for anyone else to have access to them.'

His bill, the Armor Piercing Bullets Act, would do what the Obama administration was not able to accomplish through a controversial proposal from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives – to ban citizens from buying the green tip ammo.

"The out-of-touch gun industry lobbyists[are] fighting tooth and nail to keep cop-killing ammunition on the streets," Engel said, in a statement posted on his government website. "We need to speak up on behalf of our police officers and say 'stop the madness.'"

Critics of any proposed AR-15 ammunition restrictions say the ammunition is popular with hunters. But a spokesman for Engel disputed that claim.

"Deers do not wear body armor," the spokesman said, The Hill reported. "No, I have never met a deer that walks around in Kevlar."

The ATF, facing widespread pressure, dropped its proposal to prohibit ammunition companies from making or selling 5.56 mm projectiles for M855 cartridges. But Democrats in Congress are now pushing for the agency to reignite its proposal, even as they're bringing forth legislation to do the same.

Engel also said of his legislation: "[This] would restrict the sale of small caliber, .223-derived, 5.56x45mm NATO 'green tip' rounds, cartridges commonly used in AR-15 semi-automatic rifles that can penetrate the soft body armor often worn by police ... As the ATF rightly pointed out, these rounds can easily be loaded into concealed pistols and other short guns, making them particularly dangerous to police officers."

A previous WND report, however, found that police agencies contacted for comment could not document any incidents where officers were killed by suspects using the M855 ammunition.