A dozen Washington sheriffs have come forward to declare a new state gun law as “unconstitutional” and unenforceable, and they are refusing to enforce the measure.

Washington Initiative 1639, the “Changes to Gun Ownership and Purchase Requirements Measure,” passed in the November 2018 election, mandating an increase in the minimum age to purchase a semi-automatic rifle from 18 to 21.

Now 12 sheriffs are refusing to enforce it until a court rules on its constitutionality, Fox News reported Monday.

Sheriffs in a dozen Washington counties say the state’s new voter-approved gun restrictions might be unconstitutional, and they won’t enforce them until the courts weigh in. https://t.co/KWzZh7o24P

— AP West Region (@APWestRegion) February 11, 2019

The law contained multiple parts, with the age restriction having gone into effect on Jan. 1, and the remaining parts due to take effect later in the year.

The law also mandates that gun buyers complete a safety course prior to purchase, undergo a more rigorous background check, and be subjected to gun storage restrictions.

Shortly after the initiative was passed in November, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Second Amendment Foundation declared the law unconstitutional and filed a lawsuit in a federal court. They argue that the age restriction violates the 2nd and 14th Amendments, as well as the rights of gun sellers as provided by the Commerce Clause.

Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich was among the first of Washington’s law enforcement officers to denounce the law as unconstitutional…