Supreme Court Turns Away Two Firearms-Related Cases
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up two prominent cases concerning gun rights: one challenging Delaware’s ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines, and another regarding Maryland’s handgun licensing requirements.
By refusing to hear these appeals, the Court sidestepped two significant legal battles over Second Amendment rights.
The justices rejected an appeal filed by gun rights advocates and firearm organizations seeking to overturn Delaware’s 2022 law banning "assault weapons" and magazines holding more than 17 rounds. A lower court had previously denied a preliminary injunction against the law.
According to FBI crime statistics, while such weapons have been involved in several high-profile mass shootings, the majority of gun-related homicides in the U.S. are committed with handguns, as noted by Reuters.
The Supreme Court also declined to review a separate appeal from Maryland Shall Issue and other plaintiffs, who argued that Maryland’s handgun licensing law violates the Second Amendment. Lower courts upheld the law, which includes fingerprinting, training, and background check requirements for handgun buyers, as constitutional.
However, the Court has not yet acted on other pending appeals, including challenges to Maryland’s ban on assault weapons and a Rhode Island law concerning large-capacity magazines.
With its 6-3 conservative majority, the Supreme Court has consistently taken an originalist approach to interpreting gun rights in major rulings since 2008.
Delaware’s gun safety laws, enacted in 2022, prohibit several semi-automatic rifles, including the AR-15 and AK-47, while allowing pre-existing owners to retain them under certain conditions. The laws also ban large-capacity magazines, though those owned before the law’s implementation are subject to specific provisions.
Challengers to the Delaware law, including state residents, a firearms dealer, and groups like the Firearms Policy Coalition and the Second Amendment Foundation, argue that the lower courts erred in dismissing their claim that a "deprivation of Second Amendment rights necessarily constitutes an irreparable injury." Both a federal judge in 2023 and the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2024 denied their request for an injunction.
The 3rd Circuit emphasized that injunctions are not automatic, stating, "Preliminary injunctions are not automatic. Rather, tradition and precedent have long reserved them for extraordinary situations. We see nothing extraordinary here."
In Maryland, the state’s 2013 handgun law requires most residents to obtain a qualification license before purchasing a handgun. This process includes fingerprinting, safety training, and background checks.
Opponents of the law argue that it imposes excessive burdens, with the process often taking over a month, thereby discouraging lawful firearm ownership. Maryland defends the requirements, citing the "significant public safety benefits" provided by the fingerprinting and training prerequisites. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law, siding with the state.
Separately, the Supreme Court is currently considering other gun-related cases. In October, it heard arguments about a 2022 federal regulation targeting "ghost guns" — untraceable firearms increasingly linked to criminal activity. A decision on that case is expected by June.
Additionally, on March 4, the Court is set to hear a case involving U.S. gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson and firearms distributor Interstate Arms. The companies are seeking to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Mexico, alleging their role in facilitating illegal firearm trafficking to drug cartels.
In recent years, the Supreme Court has issued several landmark rulings on gun rights, including striking down a federal ban on "bump stock" devices in 2022 and invalidating major firearm restrictions in key decisions in 2008, 2010, and 2022, according to Reuters.