Walmart Joins Dick's In Raising Minimum Age To Purchase Guns

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Walmart, the largest seller of firearms and ammunition in the U.S., announced Wednesday that it would no longer sell guns or ammo to anyone under the age of 21.

The move comes the same day that Dick's Sporting Goods announced the same age restriction and a store-wide ban on assault-style weapons.

In a statement, Walmart said the decision came "in light of recent events." The statement contained, "we've taken an opportunity to review our policy on firearm sales. Going forward, we are raising the age restriction for purchase of firearms and ammunition to 21 years of age. We will update our processes as quickly as possible to implement this change."

This comes two weeks after 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Police say the 19-year-old shooting suspect, Nikolas Cruz, used an AR-15 rifle.

In 2015, Walmart stopped selling military-style modern sporting rifles, including the AR-15. This time around, they're not selling any guns or ammo unless you're 21.

"At 18-years-old, you can join the military and fight for the country with a gun in your hand. The people that are doing wrong with the guns, they're going to get them," said one Walmart customer, Minnie Clark.

Still, Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said both stores did the right thing. "That's common sense gun legislation; they didn't need a push or kick to do it."

Additionally, gun control advocates celebrated in Springfield Wednesday after five bills passed the House.

They include: Prohibiting the sale of semi-automatic weapons to anyone under the age of 21, banning bump stocks, establishing a 72 hour cooling-off period before anyone can buy a semi-automatic rifle, and requiring gun dealers be licensed.

Before the bills passed, Gov. Bruce Rauner said, "I'm open to considering changes in regulations. We need to find a way to keep our citizens safe and keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill."

One bill that did not make it to the floor was the Paul Bauer Act, named in honor of fallen Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer. It would ban the sales of body armor and high-capacity ammunition magazines to anyone other than police officers, security guards, and the military.

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