Defiant NY Republican: 'There will be more than 7 bullets' in my wife's gun

A Republican state lawmaker from New York decried the prospect of tighter gun regulations on Tuesday, saying it would criminalize gun owners, including himself and his wife, Think Progress reported.

"This bill would turn me into a criminal," Assemblyman Steve Katz (R) said. "Because you can bet that before I leave to do the people's work, there will be more than 7 bullets in the magazine of my wife's firearm."

The state assembly is currently deliberating on a bill passed by the state senate on Monday that would ban gun magazines that carry more than 7 rounds of ammunition. The bill also mandates background checks on any gun sales, and requires mental health professionals to alert authorities if they feel patients are likely to hurt themselves or others, thus enabling the confiscation of their weapons.

"The message out there is so clear after Newtown," said Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver (D). "To basically eradicate assault weapons from our streets in New York as quickly as possible is something the people of this state want."

Katz specifically objected to a provision in the bill banning semiautomatic firearms, as well as rifles with detachable magazines. People who currently own these kinds of firearms would be required to register them.

"There are provisions in this bill redefining semiautomatic weapons that would make law-abiding citizens a new class of criminals overnight," Katz said.

He also cited the recent story of a Georgia woman who shot and severely injured an intruder in her home. However, statistics note that firearms are 22 times more likely to be used to commit suicide than to repel a home invasion.

Watch Katz state his opposition to New York's new gun law, posted on YouTube by Think Progress on Jan. 15, 2013, below.