Video Marine vet prosecutor refusing to enforce ‘unconstitutional’ Spanberger gun ban Marine veteran and Spotsylvania, Virginia, Commonwealth Attorney Ryan Mehaffey discusses his hardline stance against a new Gov. Abigail Spanberger-signed gun ban.
A top DOJ prosecutor responded to concerns raised by a Virginia resident and fellow Trump administration official over alleged slow-walking of background checks after a judge temporarily blocked a sweeping "assault weapons" ban that otherwise was set to take effect Wednesday.
The uproar comes as Richmond becomes the latest Democrat-run capital to pursue restrictions on Second Amendment-related activities. The Supreme Court's recent rulings against New York's and the District of Columbia's gun laws have given conservatives major legal victories in their efforts to challenge similar measures.
Amid Virginia's legal fight, critics accused state police of intentionally slow-walking background checks to effectively backdoor-enforce the law while it is litigated. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon responded that her office is "all over this" case and other instances of "gun-grabbing nonsense nationally."
Joined by Gun Owners of America, a Virginia resident seeking to purchase firearms from a dealer in Kilmarnock, Virginia, sued to block Richmond's new law imposing criminal penalties for selling or purchasing "assault firearm[s]," which critics said is a sweeping violation of the Second Amendment.
VIRGINIA GUN SALES SPIKE AHEAD OF JULY 1 ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN SIGNED BY GOV. SPANBERGER
Gov. Abigail Spanberger speaks during a ceremonial bill signing event at Highland Springs High School in Richmond, Virginia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (Mike Kropf/Richmond Times-Dispatch)
The inclusion of the Kilmarnock gun store established legal standing in GOP-friendly Lancaster County in Virginia's Northern Neck, where Judge John Martin blocked enforcement of the law through Dec. 31.
After the ruling, FTC Commissioner Andrew Ferguson tweeted that he encountered what he called an "en masse" delay in background checks after visiting his local gun store. The checks are handled by the Virginia State Police.
The top cop at VSP, Col. Jeffrey Katz, is both a Spanberger appointee and listed the defendant in the Lancaster case.
"The Virginia State Police is is delaying background checks en masse in one of the most flagrant violations of our rights that I've seen. This is outrageous," Ferguson said.
"Our police are aiding radical leftists to disarm Americans."
When asked about the allegation, VSP suggested there was no intentional slow-walking and said troopers have seen a spike in applications over the past month.
"The Firearms Transaction Center is seeing a large number of transactions. The [center] has processed over 100,000 transactions in June alone and have been averaging over 5,000 transactions a day," said Matthew Demlein, an ombudsman for the state police.
"The [center] is working diligently to complete each transaction."
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Philip Van Cleave — whose Virginia Citizens Defense League is a co-plaintiff in the case — also said he was not convinced VSP was intentionally holding up background checks in light of the Lancaster decision.
"I don’t want to be unfair to the Virginia State Police," Van Cleave tweeted. "I’m not convinced that the delays are intentional."
"I just don’t think VSP and their computer system is geared up to handle the immense volume that the gun-control idiots in the general assembly have created."
Another critic of the ban shared a section of the Code of Virginia that appeared to allow firearm transfers to proceed despite background check delays.
If a dealer fulfills the requirements laid out by VSP but police do not respond within five business days, the dealer may complete the sale or transfer of the firearm without violating the law.
Fox News Digital reached out to DOJ to determine what actions are being taken or planned, given allegations from Ferguson and others.
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Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon arrives for a news conference at the Justice Department on September 29, 2025 in Washington, DC (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Martin’s ruling stated that the firearm characteristics identified in the ban lack a rational basis because handguns are excluded despite fitting the lawmakers' stated military-style rationale.
The ban was originally authored in the House by Del. Dan Helmer, D-Fairfax, and in the Senate by Sen. Saddam Salim, D-Dunn Loring.
In comments reported by Courthouse News Service, Van Cleave separately noted that a commission set up by Democratic then-Gov. Tim Kaine following the Virginia Tech massacre found that gun-magazine limits like those focused on in the new law would have "made no difference in the outcome."
Attorney General Jay Jones, arguing for the state, said in a statement that "gun violence is the key driver of violent crime in this commonwealth and nation, and assault weapons are designed intentionally to inflict maximum damage in a matter of seconds."
During his 2025 campaign, text messages surfaced showing Jones had envisioned the shooting of the former Republican speaker of the Virginia House.
"The assault weapons ban passed by the General Assembly and signed by the Governor will save lives in the Commonwealth and is compliant with the Constitution of Virginia," Jones said.
When she signed the law in May, Spanberger lamented that the legislature declined to accept her proposed changes that would have carved out commonly used hunting firearms.
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"I am signing this bill into law because firearms designed to inflict maximum casualties do not belong on our streets. We are taking this step to protect families and support the law enforcement officers who work every day to keep our communities safe," she said, adding that she would work with Salim and Helmer to clarify the law’s language to assuage hunters.
Fox News Digital reached out to Virginia's Republican legislative minority for additional comment. The House was expected to go into session late Monday, where the subject could come up.
Born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania, worked in both the New York and Washington bureaus for Fox News since 2013.
