Attorney General Kris Mayes says an effort on the part of the Phoenix City Council to transfer more than 500 unclaimed guns to the National Police of Ukraine is likely illegal.
The council approved to the donation of firearms in the possession of the Phoenix police in June.
But two Yavapai County Republican lawmakers filed a complaint saying state law requires cities to sell, not donate, unclaimed guns.
While Mayes’ backed the complaint, she called the state laws "inflexible" and "offensive to the victims of crime and the communities affected by gun violence" because they force cities to put guns used in crimes back on the streets.
"The laws essentially mandate that confiscated firearms, most of which have been used in crimes, must be resold and put back on the streets," Mayes said in a statement. "That is an insult to the survivors and victims of the original gun violence. These laws perpetuate a cycle where weapons are reintroduced into the very communities that have already been harmed by gun violence. The families of people who are murdered or maimed by gun violence should not have to live with the knowledge that those weapons are still on the streets.”
The city has canceled the donations, and the council will consider repealing the ordinance Wednesday.