The Snope case was probably the best chance we had of getting this Supreme Court to hear an assault weapon ban challenge in quite some time. There are other challenges working their way up the chain, sure, but this one was already at the Court. The fact that it kept going back to conference time and time again became something of a meme, but it also seemed like they almost had to hear it after that many times.
And, as we now know, that wasn’t the case. They denied it, though with some vague declaration that they’d probably hear a case later on down the line.
Unsurprisingly, some of the gun rights groups are less than pleased by what we saw on Monday.
Gun Owners of America and Gun Owners Foundation offered these thoughts via a press release:
Gun Owners of America (GOA) and Gun Owners Foundation (GOF) today responded to the Supreme Court’s denial of certiorari in Snope v. Brown, a legal challenge to Maryland’s ban on AR-15s.
While the Court declined to take up the case at this time, Justice Brett Kavanaugh issued a significant statement noting that the Supreme Court “should address [these] issues in the next Term or two.” GOA and GOF had filed an amicus brief in the Snope case, urging the Court to hear it—and we are deeply disappointed by the denial. As Justice Thomas warned, until the Court is “vigilant in enforcing” the Second Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms will remain “a second-class right.”
It is reckless and dangerous for the Court to allow tyrannical AR-15 bans to stand for even another year or two. Millions of law-abiding Americans are being stripped of their rights while courts below defy Bruen and invent new tests to uphold unconstitutional laws.
Fortunately, GOA and GOF are not waiting idly. Our legal team is now litigating FFLs of Illinois v. Pritzker, where we secured a permanent injunction against Illinois’ sweeping rifle and magazine bans. That case is currently on appeal in the Seventh Circuit and stands as one of the best-positioned challenges to be taken up by the Supreme Court. When the justices are ready, we’ll be there with the strongest possible case. In the meantime, GOA will continue to lobby Congress, the Trump Administration, and state governments to protect and restore the Second Amendment.
Sam Paredes, on behalf of the Board of Directors for Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement:
“While we are disappointed the Court did not take up Snope now, Justice Kavanaugh’s statement shows that the justices know the constitutionality of AR-15 bans must be resolved—and soon. GOA and GOF are proud to be leading the charge. When the Court is ready, our FFLs of Illinois case will be at the front of the line, perfectly positioned to deliver a knockout blow to these unconstitutional bans.”
Erich Pratt, Senior Vice President of Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement:
“The fight doesn’t end with Snope—it accelerates. We’re grateful to have Justice Kavanaugh reaffirm that the High Court will soon address these issues, and GOA is more than ready. We’re preparing for final disposition in a case that hopefully will force the Supreme Court to defend the plain meaning of the Second Amendment. This is our moment, and gun owners can count on us to lead.”
Paredes and Pratt are far from the only gun rights leaders who expressed their disappointment.
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Chairman Alan Gottlieb shared their sentiments.
“The modern semiautomatic is definitely in common use,” Gottlieb observed. “Our primary concern is that American gun owners will have to once again wait for the high court to accept a case and determine whether state-level bans violate the Constitution’s Second Amendment, which we definitely believe is the case. Remember, a right delayed is a right denied.”
He noted, though, that he can understand the Court has a lot on its plate at the moment and hopes that Justice Kavanaugh’s statement that they will hear a case on the subject in the near future comes to fruition.
The Firearms Policy Coalition has a brief statement on its website stating, “We are disappointed that some members of the Supreme Court did not have the judicial courage to do their most important job and enforce the Constitution.” The organization added, “Like millions of peaceable gun owners across the country, we are frustrated that the Court continues to allow lower courts to treat the Second Amendment as a second-class right. But more than anything else, we are more resolved than ever to Fight Forward and eliminate these immoral bans throughout the nation, whatever and however long it takes.”
Like both GOA and CCKRBA, the FPC vowed to continue fighting.
Cam will be talking with NRA-ILA Executive Director John Commerford about Snope on Bearing Arms’ Cam & Co today, but in a statement on X the group called the rejection “disappointing”, adding that “until SCOTUS enforces its precedents relating to Second Amendment rights, “…the right to bear arms will remain ‘a second-class right.’”
The long and the short of it is that no one in the gun rights sphere is happy about the Supreme Court’s decision here. This is absolute BS and we all know it. This was supposed to be a Court we could trust to uphold our right to keep and bear arms, and it’s been sorely disappointing. We got the Bruen decision, which was amazing, but rather than a harbinger of things to come, it’s an anomaly that we simply can’t explain.
Any vague promise made by Kavanaugh is likely to be forgotten in the next couple of terms, and we’re likely to have to wait an eternity before we actually have the matter of our right to keep and bear arms, in relation to so-called assault weapons, heard by the highest court in the land. My guess is the anti-gun side is hoping to keep kicking it down the road until they’re in the majority.
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