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The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) teamed up with the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms to knock on the Supreme Court’s door again.
They’re not alone; the Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), Field Traders, LLC, and three freedom-loving folks, David Snope, Micah Schaefer, and Dominic Bianchi, have jumped on the bandwagon.
Together, they’re challenging Maryland’s ban on what anti-gunners call “assault weapons” in a case dubbed Bianchi v. Frosh.
Remember when the Supreme Court peeked at this case last June?
They scrapped what the lower court said and tossed it back to the Fourth Circuit, telling them to rethink it using the new Bruen playbook.
But here’s where it gets juicy. After the case got a full-blown hearing with the Fourth Circuit’s three judges, the court pulled a fast one. They sat on it for over a year without a peep, then decided to go big – hearing it “en banc” – that’s all the judges, in case you’re wondering.
Why? Well, it smells like they’re stalling and don’t want to put out a decision that might look like a win for the gun rights crew.
Alan M. Gottlieb, the big gun at SAF, is crystal clear. He says it’s high time for the Supremes to step in. These modern semi-auto rifles? You see them everywhere in America. Heck, they’re the nation’s top pick.
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But, Gottlieb points out, some courts are bending over backward to keep bans like Maryland’s alive, even after the Supreme Court already called the shots in Bruen.
“It is clear to us this case must be decided by the Supreme Court,” said Gottlieb in a press release obtained by GunsAmerica. “The type of modern semiautomatic rifle banned in Maryland is in common use across the country, and is the most popular rifle in America.”
“Yet, the Fourth Circuit and other courts of appeals have strained credulity to uphold such bans in the wake of the high court’s ruling in Bruen,” he continued. “This issue must be resolved.”
Adam Kraut, SAF’s Executive Director, is also throwing some shade at the Fourth Circuit. He thinks they’re playing hot potato with a panel decision they didn’t like.
According to him, Maryland’s “assault weapons” ban was on shaky ground from the get-go. The Heller decision already spelled out the rules, but it looks like the Fourth Circuit missed that memo.
So what’s the game plan? The good guys are pulling out the big guns, asking the Supreme Court to step in pronto. Because let’s face it, every day this drags on, it’s another day gun owners in Maryland can’t exercise their rights.
As always, stay tuned for updates.
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Maryland also does not recognize any other states CCP. If you have a pistol and you have to travel thought MD, make sure you look at their requirements. If you get pulled over and you say you have a CCP and a pistol in the vehicle that is easily accessible, you are toast.