Supreme Court to Hear Cases on State Bans of AR-15-Style Rifles
The U.S. Supreme Court announced it will review appeals challenging Connecticut and Cook County bans on semiautomatic rifles, including the AR-15, to determine their compatibility with the Second Amendment.
The Supreme Court said it will hear appeals from Connecticut and Cook County, Illinois, that challenge state bans on semiautomatic rifles such as the AR-15. The cases stem from laws enacted after mass-shooting incidents, including the 2012 Sandy Hook tragedy, and join a growing list of state-level restrictions in about a dozen states covering major cities.
The court, which issued a landmark 2022 decision expanding gun-rights jurisprudence, is expected to hear oral arguments in the fall. The Connecticut law and the Cook County ordinance, both upheld by lower courts, prohibit the sale and possession of certain assault-style weapons that lawmakers say are favored by mass shooters.
"These laws are critical public safety measures, and they are consistent with the Second Amendment," said Janet Carter, managing director of Second Amendment litigation at the gun-control organization Everytown Law.
Gun-rights advocates contend the bans violate the Constitution, arguing that semiautomatic rifles are in common use and therefore protected. "The Second Amendment protects arms in common use for lawful purposes, and it is hard to argue that a type of rifle that potentially outnumbers Ford F-150 trucks in America doesn’t meet that standard," said Adam Kraut, executive director of the Second Amendment Foundation.
Attorneys for Cook County emphasized the public-safety impact of assault-weapon attacks, noting the trauma such incidents have caused. The Supreme Court has recently ruled on other Second Amendment issues, striking down a Hawaii gun-carry restriction and a federal ban on gun ownership by marijuana users, while upholding certain restrictions such as those barring individuals under domestic-violence restraining orders from possessing firearms.
