David Gregory a host on NBC, is being investigated by the Washington Metropolitan Police Department in regards to the possibility of him violating any District of Columbia laws when he decided to hold a 30 round magazine during an interview on Sunday’s edition of “Meet The Press,” according to CNN.
According to a spokeswoman from the department, a representative for NBC inquired before the telecast about using the magazine on the show. Gregory displayed the magazine while he was conducting an interview with the executive vice president of the National Rifle Association.
Tisha Gant, the spokeswoman for the department, said that police told NBC that they were not permitted to display the high-capacity magazine. The reason for not being allowed to use the magazine was that they are illegal in the District of Columbia. The incident is currently being investigated, according to Gant.
Wayne LaPierre was on the show with Gregory, who displayed the magazine when asking LaPierre whether or not a ban on those magazines could reduce deadly shootings.
“So here’s a magazine for ammunition that carries 30 bullets,” Gregory said, holding up the black, rectangular device. “Now isn’t it possible that if we got rid of these, if we replaced them and said well, you can only have a magazine that carries five bullets or ten bullets, isn’t it just possible that we could reduce the carnage in a situation like Newtown?”
It is still unknown if the magazine was a prop or if it was real when Gregory used it on television. If a large capacity ammunition device that holds over 10 rounds of ammunition it is illegal to possess in the District of Columbia. The law also states that the devices are illegal whether or not they are attached to a gun. There was no firearm attached to the magazine when Gregory showed it on screen.
The studios for NBC are located within the city limits of the District of Columbia, which is where “Meet The Press” is filmed. The network did not issue a comment on the issue as of Wednesday.
“I don’t believe that’s going to make one difference,” LaPierre told Gregory during the show.
