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IL: Federal Appeals Court Upholds Illinois Ban on Semiautomatic Weapons, Overturning Lower-Court Ruling
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A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld an Illinois ban on semiautomatic weapons, keeping in place a law passed largely in response to a deadly Independence Day parade shooting.
The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit overturns a lower court decision that found the ban unconstitutional. The 2-1 appellate decision found that the Illinois law does not violate the Second Amendment, and its restrictions are “consistent with the principles that underpin our Nation’s tradition of firearm regulation.” |
IN: Questions Raised Concerning Gibson Co. Fatal Shooting Investigation
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Mark A. Taff
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A week after a jury found Patrick Waite acted in self-defense in the fatal shooting of three members of his wife’s family, his attorney criticized Gibson County law enforcement for not investigating related crimes.
Attorney Scott Danks says Waite’s home deed, which he says was fraudulently transferred to the Tapia family before the shootings, remains in court.
He also says vehicles, credit card use and other alleged crimes involving the Tapia family have not been investigated.
Danks says Waite is now out of state for safety reasons. |
IL: Divided Seventh Circuit upholds Illinois ban on AR-15-style rifles and large-capacity magazines
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In a closely watched Second Amendment decision, a divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has upheld Illinois’ ban on so-called assault weapons and large-capacity magazines, reversing a district court ruling that had found key provisions of the law unconstitutional.
The consolidated appeals, including Federal Firearms Licensees of Illinois v. Pritzker and Barnett v. Raoul, challenge the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA), which Illinois enacted in 2023 following the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park. |
The limits of the Second Amendment
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In previous articles, I explored two of the biggest unanswered questions in the Second Amendment space: Who are “the people,” and what constitutes “Arms”? Both of these questions seemingly emerge from the text of the amendment itself, which states that “[a] well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” But these are not the only open questions. |
CA: Can California protect its own gun control laws?
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California Democrats are used to defending gun control measures against lawsuits by Second Amendment advocates like the California Rifle and Pistol Association.
Now, the state is facing a lawsuit from the Trump administration targeting a new law restricting sales of Glock semi-automatic handguns.
Since July 1, the state has prohibited the sale of Glock handguns and various off-brand imitators that can be converted to fully automatic guns — which are already illegal under state and federal laws, with some exceptions — after inserting a converter into the gun. |
MI: The Second Amendment: A Family Tradition and a Constitutional Duty
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Mark A. Taff
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I believe in responsible gun ownership because I've lived it. I was taught firearm safety as a child, and I've taught those same values to my own sons. Safety and constitutional rights are not enemies. Responsible citizens are one of the strongest arguments for protecting the Second Amendment.
I am honored to have earned the endorsement of the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners. That endorsement recognizes not just a campaign position, but a lifelong commitment to responsible firearm ownership and constitutional freedom. If elected, I will go to Lansing to defend our Constitution, protect our freedoms, and stand for the citizens of the 78th District. |
VA: The Conservative Justices Are Itching to Create a Constitutional Right to Buy an AR-15
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Mark A. Taff
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In January 2026, however, Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, was sworn in as governor. A few months later, she signed a package of gun violence prevention bills into law. One of those laws, SB 749, makes it a misdemeanor to manufacture, sell, purchase, or transfer “assault firearms,” which the law defines as semiautomatic centerfire rifles or pistols with magazines that can hold more than 15 rounds. Violations are punishable by up to one year in prison and a $2,500 fine. |
U.S. Supreme Court protects gun owners, women’s sports
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The Second Amendment was vindicated in a case called Wolford v. Lopez, in which the Court struck down a Hawaii law that unduly burdened law-abiding gun owners. A 2022 Supreme Court ruling (New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen) had already reinforced the principle that Americans can carry handguns outside the home for self-defense.
Officials in Hawaii objected to the High Court’s ruling. They passed a law requiring gun owners to get express permission every time they brought a firearm onto private property, including publicly available places like parking lots and shopping centers. In doing so, they hoped to circumvent the justices’ orders.
The justices correctly found that the Aloha State was asking too much. |
CA: Judge nixes federal bid for quick block on California ‘Glock ban’
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Mark A. Taff
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A Biden-appointed federal judge has refused, for now, the Trump administration’s effort to block the state of California from banning the sale of handguns made by Glock and similar weapons.
On July 9, U.S. District Judge Monica Ramirez Almadani denied the request from the U.S. Justice Department for a temporary restraining order freezing enforcement of the law known publicly as California’s “Glock Ban.”
In the ruling, Almadani did not address the merits of the Justice Department’s contention that the California law blatantly violates the Second Amendment and tramples on the rights of both gun owners and firearms sellers. |
Silence Is Defeat: Why Gun Owners Must Flood ATF Comment Dockets Now
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Yet, a dangerous myth quietly circulates within the Second Amendment community: “The ATF is going to do whatever they want anyway, so why bother writing a comment?”
Let’s set the record straight right now. That defeatist attitude is exactly how we lose.
If we remain silent when a public comment window is open, we hand the anti-gun lobby an uncontested victory. Your voice is a critical weapon in this administrative dogfight, here is exactly how the system works, why it matters, and how we use it to win. |
NSSF Fires Back After Appeals Court Upholds Illinois Gun Ban
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NSSF®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, is disappointed by the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Barnett v. Raoul. NSSF respectfully disagrees with the Court’s decision to reverse and remand a lower court’s ruling — made after conducting a several-day bench trial — that Illinois’ law is unconstitutional and that Modern Sporting Rifles (MSRs) and standard-capacity magazines are “arms” protected by the Second Amendment. |
The Supreme Court Fight Looming Over America’s 250th Birthday
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Mark A. Taff
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November’s mid-term elections are four months away. For all intents and purposes, though, they’re already here and antigun politicians in Washington, D.C., are signaling that what’s actually at stake is the future of the U.S. Supreme Court. U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) made it clear that expanding and overhauling the nation’s highest court to bend to an antigun agenda, through a scheme known as SCOTUS court packing, is “absolutely” in play.
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CA: Trump Administration Fails to Pause California’s ‘Glock Ban’ Law
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Mark A. Taff
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A California law that bans firearm dealers from selling certain Glocks and other semiautomatic pistols that can be converted into machineguns can remain in place for now, a federal judge said.
Judge Monica Ramirez Almadani of the US District Court for the Central District of California on Thursday rejected the Justice Department’s bid to temporarily halt enforcement of California’s law. The judge said she denied the request because DOJ’s lawsuit focuses on a novel theory that 34 U.S.C. § 12601 provides the federal government authority to challenge the constitutionality of the state law. |
CA: Federal Judge Lets California’s Glock Ban Stand—Without a Bruen Ruling
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Mark A. Taff
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This narrow view of harm has drawn skepticism from Second Amendment advocates, who maintain that restricting new sales of America’s most popular defensive handgun imposes a substantial burden on law-abiding citizens.
Notably, the opinion contains no substantive Second Amendment analysis under the Bruen framework, which demands a historical analogue for modern regulations. By relying primarily on § 12601 and the availability of old stock, the court effectively lowered the threshold for denying emergency relief. While the judge left open the possibility of revisiting a TRO or PI after further briefing on standing, the decision effectively delays resolution, punting the core constitutional questions further down the road. |
The tide is turning against state-level gun bans
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In Federalist 46, James Madison wrote a key to liberty was “the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation.” By contrast, European “governments are afraid to trust the people with arms.” Shortly after, in his first message to Congress on Jan. 8, 1790, President George Washington urged, “A free people ought not only to be armed but disciplined.”
Although I’ve taken issue with President Donald Trump on many issues lately, he deserves kudos for further protecting our Second Amendment “right to keep and bear arms” through administrative actions and lawsuits. |
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