Cooke: The Fifth Circuit Stopped an Unconstitutional Power Grab by the ATF

As anyone who has considered this issue for more than ten minutes will ineluctably comprehend, the entire purpose of writing laws down is to guarantee that, until those laws are changed by legislators, they remain in effect regardless of the transient passions of the mob. The law is the law, and it means what it means, even if … Read more

5th Circuit: The Statutory Definition of ‘Machinegun’ Does Not Apply to Bump Stocks

Since the National Firearms Act of 1934, federal law has heavily regulated machineguns. Indeed, as proposed, that law was known to many as “the Anti-Machine Gun Bill.” The possession or transfer of a machinegun was eventually banned through the Gun Control Act of 1968 and the Firearms Owners’ Protection Act of 1986 [with some guns … Read more

5th Circuit Court of Appeals Strikes Down Trump Bump Stock Ban

By Kevin McGill, AP A Trump administration ban on bump stocks — devices that enable a shooter to rapidly fire multiple rounds from semi-automatic weapons after an initial trigger pull — was struck down Friday by a federal appeals court in New Orleans. The ban was instituted after a gunman perched in a high-rise hotel … Read more

Bump Stock Bans May Be the First to Fall After Bruen

The earthquake that rumbled across the legal landscape yesterday as a result of the Supreme Court’s New York Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen ruling is only just beginning to be really felt. Yes, the Court nuked “may issue” licensing schemes in New York (and the eight other states with similar laws). But as the … Read more