WA Gun Dealers Won't Sell AR-15s To Buyers Under 21

LAKEWOOD, WA - In Washington, you only have to be 18 to buy an AR-15-style assault rifle. But several local gun dealers are refusing to sell the notorious weapon to buyers under the age of 21.

Q13 Fox first reported last week that Jason Cazes of Bellevue, owner of LowPriceGuns.com, raised the AR-15 buying age to 21 at his store. After seeing that report, Michael Friedmann, an online gun dealer in Lakewood, decided to do the same.

Under state law, you have to be 21 and wait for five days to buy a concealed weapon, like a handgun. But rifles and shotguns can be bought without a waiting period at age 18. The AR-15 was used to kill 17 in Parkland, Fla., last week - but it's also been used in scores of other mass shootings, including Sandy Hook, the movie theater shooting in Aurora, and in Las Vegas last fall.

Last week, state Democratic and Republican lawmakers failed to vote on a measure that would raise the AR-15 buying age to 21. That law was held in committee as the legislative deadline passed on Feb. 14. There are over 1,400 licensed gun dealers in Washington, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Friedmann told Q13 that he's contacted federal and state lawmakers about raising the AR-15 buying age.

“It’s not taking away your Second Amendment right, it’s delaying you three years,” Friedmann told Q13.

Photo by Brennan Linsley/Associated Press