The citizens of the United States of America have the right to possess firearms in accordance with the second amendment of the American Constitution of 1789, and it was not until the federal firearms control law in 1968, after the assassination of Martin Luther King, that the minimum age for firearm possession was raised to 21 years of age.

The sale of firearms has a specific regulation and, depending on the state, the norms can be more or less permissive. Despite this, acquiring munition is quite easy in the United States in general, as manifested by the states that have provided the chance to purchase in non-specialised establishments. In the state of Georgia, munition can be bought in pharmacies; in the state of Pennsylvania, it can bought in self-service vending machines and, in the state of Texas, in jeweller’s shops.

California is now one of the states with restrictive regulations regarding the sale of firearms in the USA. However, it has taken a step further with the control of the sale of munition. Habitually, regulations concerning the sale of munition are not as strict as those regarding the acquisition of firearms; for example, there is no minimum age in a federal context to be able to buy bullets. But in California being able to buy munition has become complicated in order to combat armed crime via local legislation.

Since the approval of proposal 63, voted by the citizenship, bullets can only be bought in armouries authorised by the Department of Justice. Those buying weapons and munition in California have to identify themselves with a digital print in specialised stores. This new regulation imposes controls on those who wish to obtain munition by purchasing it in other states, which must be done in armouries, which will check for any criminal record. Even sales via Internet have been restricted and it cannot be sent directly to the home, as it must be sent to authorised establishments.

Authorised distributors of munition are obliged to keep a record of all bullet sales throughout the state of California from the start of 2019.

Opponents of these measures, a noteworthy one of these being the National Rifle Association, criticise such measures because of the increase in administration costs due to the application of the measure, and because of the difficulty that non-dangerous people have to obtain weapons.

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