Missouri and Minnesota recently began the process of enacting laws to require anyone who owns an assault weapon purchased legally in the past to turn those weapons in to law enforcement or risk charges, including felony.
Supporters say this is an important step to getting all assault weapons off the streets.
Opponents argue forcing people who purchased a gun legally in the past to hand them over to law enforcement is gun control gone too far. They say it opens the door to government taking other things by simply changing laws.
Background on Missouri bill.Background on Minnesota bill.Folks Local 15 News talked with said it's the people not the guns who are the problem.
"Too much.They don't need to control the people's that's already got it's not the weapons themselves it's the people that use them," said Mobile resident Clarence Perkins.
"I'm kind of for that in a way. I don't believe you need an assault rifle for protection," said another resident.
"The problem to me is not necessarily the gun. It's the person who has the gun," added another Mobile resident we asked.
"The assault rifle is not the problem. We need to get away from trying to ban guns, we need to start working on the people who are possessing these guns," said D.A. Ashley Rich.
No similar law is on the books in Alabama.
