Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has signed four new gun control measures.
The laws raise the minimum gun buying age from 18 to 21, require a three-day waiting period between the purchase and receipt of any gun, reduce some legal protections that prevent the firearms industry from being sued, and strengthen Colorado's red flag law, which already allows family or police to petition a court to bar a person from access to guns for 364 days.
Colorado Democrats enacted the laws in hopes of reducing gun violence, mass shootings and suicides. Gov. Polis said during the signing ceremony that "Coloradoans deserve to be safe in our communities, in our schools, in our grocery stores, in our nightclubs."
The changes come after a shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs in November 2022, and a March shooting at a high school in Denver that injured two administrators.
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Opponents of the new measures said it would make it harder for Colorado residents to defend themselves. Gun rights advocates have filed lawsuits challenging the new laws.
The new waiting periods and age rules bring Colorado into the company of other states that have recently tightened their own gun laws, including California, Florida and New York.
Earlier in the week Washington announced changes to its own gun laws, including extending mandatory waiting periods and making gun manufacturers more liable in negligence lawsuits. Washington also passed a new law banning the sale of certain high-powered rifles, including the AR-15.
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