The US Supreme Court on Tuesday granted Certiorari on two consolidated cases challenging “assault weapons” bans, laying the groundwork for a possible overhaul of firearms regulations across the country.
The court agreed to a hearing Viramontes vs. Cook County from the Seventh Circuit and Grant vs. Higgins from the Second District and combine the cases into a single argument to be heard this fall. In both cases, the Supreme Court is asked to determine whether assault weapons, most commonly AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles, are covered Second Amendment.
The Viramontes Case calls for trial from Cook County, Illinois Regulation Ban on assault weapons, which the law defines as sSemi-automatic rifles with the capacity to accommodate large capacity magazines and other possible modifications such as a pistol grip or muzzle brake, in addition to many specific firearm models enumerated. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed Ruling for the District, saying plaintiffs failed to overcome the Circuit’s 2023 ruling Bevis v. City of Napervillewhere the court found that AR rifles are not significantly different from M16 rifles used in military roles and are therefore “outside the class of weapons to which individual law applies.”
The Grant Case challenges Connecticut Ban on assault weapons, enacted after the Sandy Hook school shooting in 2012. Connecticut offers a similar definition of assault weapons to the Cook County ordinance. The Second District Court of Appeals confirmed the law to find it specifically”Andnormally dangerous Weapons…consistent with our nation’s history tradition of Regulation of such weapons.”
In both cases, the petitioners argue that firearms banned under the respective laws are widely available throughout the country and therefore fall under the protection of “common use.” District of Columbia v. Heller. Cook County and Connecticut contend that the banned firearms are functionally equivalent to those used in military contexts and that the laws therefore fall within the country’s “historic tradition of firearm regulation.” New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruenregardless of the popularity of the weapons.
If the Supreme Court sides with the petitioners, similar restrictions on firearms will be imposed in states such as: California, MarylandMassachusetts, New Jersey, new YorkAnd Washington be significantly affected. The judgment will come against the backdrop of an evolving legal landscape. Last week, a state judge in Virginia blocked an assault weapons ban just days before it was set to take effect.
