Wal-Mart won’t sell AR-15s, other semi-automatic weapons

“We’re focusing on other hunting and sportsman firearms, such as shotguns and rifles, based on customer demand”, said Kory Lundberg, a Wal-Mart spokesman.

Making a specific effort to reject the assertion that Walmart was caving to anti-gun pressure, Lundberg claimed instead that the decision was driven by a steep decline in demand for modern sporting rifles, despite the fact that such firearms are among the most popular guns in America. The stores will instead stock guns that sell better, like hunting rifles.

Wal-Mart said the decision was unrelated to high-profile incidents involving the rifles, including the killing of 26 students and adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in 2012.

The news picked up online Wednesday hours after a disgruntled former employee fatally shot two Virginia journalists on camera, then posted online videos of the crime.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) witnessed a decline in the market cap on Tuesday as its shares dropped 1.33% or 0.85 points. Wal-Mart does not disclose gun-sales figures. That’s up from 1.4 million total checks in July of 2015. If that background check doesn’t come back in time, the retailer can still sell the gun. Walmart is refocusing its firearms sales on “people who shoot clays and stuff”.

Wal-Mart surprised some critics and supporters this year by taking a public stand in support of gay rights in its home state of Arkansas. Earlier this year, it vowed to remove merchandise from its stores that depicted the Confederate battle flag.

But Wal-Mart is already more careful with its gun sales than many other businesses.

In April a federal court ruled in Wal-Mart’s favor and vacated an injunction that would have required a vote on the issue at the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting in June. Trinity Church is glad to hear that Walmart is doing this. Shooter Adam Lanza used an AR-15 rifle in that attack.

James E. Holmes, the gunman involved in the Colorado theatre massacre, was sentenced Wednesday to 12 life sentences in prison, one for each murder victim, and 3318 additional years for his additional crimes, including attempted murder.