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2 Assault Weapon Ban Challenges Head to SCOTUS
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The U.S. Supreme Court will hear two challenges to state-level assault weapon bans, a move that brings potential precedent-setting cases before the country’s highest court.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently granted to hear two Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) petitions for a writ certiorari in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins. Each takes on “assault weapons” bans, one in Illinois, the other in Connecticut.
Viramontes, originally filed in 2021, takes on Cook County’s ban on numerous commonly owned modern firearms. It served as the precursor for a nearly identical statewide ban later passed by the Illinois legislature. Grant, meanwhile, bans semi-auto rifles by both name and feature set. |
Concealed Carry Corner: Realities of Self-Defense
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Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner. Last week, we talked about navigating unwelcoming areas. If you happened to miss that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I wanted to look at some of the realities of self-defense and how it starts to change your behavior over time. When people start carrying a concealed firearm, they oftentimes think it's as simple as putting their gun on and heading out, but it's certainly more than that once you start living in it every single day. Let's take a closer look at some of the realities of self-defense. |
WA: The 15-Year-Old Bite of Seattle Shooter Could Get 30 Days?
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In 2020, two men with 65 combined arrests opened fire on a rush-hour crowd at 3rd and Pine, killing a woman and shooting a 9-year-old boy. Both were acquitted of murder. Their defense: they were returning fire. A Washington jury said that's lawful self-defense.
Charlie Harger has covered this story before. Sunday at the Bite of Seattle, three people are dead, a two-year-old was shot in the arm, and one of the alleged shooters is 15 years old. The self-defense playbook writes itself — and the juvenile sentencing grid caps unlawful gun possession at 30 days, no matter how many times a kid is caught carrying. Two bills to fix these laws died in committee. Nobody had to go on the record voting no. |
VA: Court Freezes Virginia 'Assault Weapon' Ban Until Supreme Court Ruling Drops
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A state court has granted a motion to stay a ruling in a case challenging Virginia's new ban on popular semi-auto firearms and their magazines.
The stay, requested by state officials, was granted by Judge Jeffery Campbell in the case of Santolla v. Katz. It effectively blocks further proceedings on the case until 60 days after the U.S. Supreme Court issues its decision in the pending "assault weapon" ban challenges of Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins.
Santolla is one of several cases brought by pro-Second Amendment groups against SB749, a pending law that would have banned the sale, purchase, manufacturing and transfer of many semi-automatic firearms and magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds. |
NY: Governor Hochul Announces New Gun Safety Actions to Protect New Yorkers from Federal Firearm Regulation Rollbacks
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Governor Kathy Hochul today announced actions in response to the Trump Administration’s proposed rollbacks that would make sweeping and dangerous changes to federal firearms regulations. Earlier this year, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced changes to more than 30 rules that will make it easier for dangerous individuals to obtain firearms and harder to hold bad actors in the firearms industry accountable. In response, New York State is taking action by increasing enforcement and education and exploring legislative changes that will blunt the effect of many of these changes and preserve public safety.
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NY: Hochul to crack down on rogue gun sales as federal government floats rollbacks
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Democratic New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul responded on Thursday to proposed federal firearm rules that relax background checks and allow selling guns online. She joined New York State Police Superintendent Steven James for a press conference to announce the reinstatement of a regional gun control task force and promise new state laws to address the federal rollbacks.
In the video above, Hochul explained a third initiative: targeted inspections of gun dealers linked to crime. |
USVI: DOJ Lists All The Ways They Claim Virgin Island's Gun Law Violates Second Amendment
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In response, the DOJ listed nine provisions, including two separate carry bans and three separate bans on firearms and/or accessories among the provisions it said violated the Second Amendment, from the new law that did not meet constitutional muster in the Wednesday filing responding to the motion to dismiss. The DOJ also said the Virgin Islands acknowledged the territorial government knew their licensing standard was unconstitutional.
Virgin Islands Attorney General Gordon Campbell Rhea did not respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation. |
VA: Virginia’s AR-15 Ban Lawsuits Hit Strategic Pause as Supreme Court Takes Up AR-15 Question
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Virginia’s legal campaign against commonly owned semi-automatic rifles and standard-capacity magazines has reached an unusual point: The Commonwealth’s ban remains blocked, two major lawsuits have been paused, and nearly every party is now waiting for the U.S. Supreme Court to address the constitutional question Virginia lawmakers tried to avoid.
The two most important recent developments came in Santolla v. Katz, the NRA-backed state case that produced a statewide preliminary injunction, and McDonald v. Katz, the federal challenge brought jointly by individual gun owners, the NRA, Firearms Policy Coalition and Second Amendment Foundation. |
MD: NCLA to Court: Stop Maryland County’s New Ban on Religious Community Self-Defense with Firearms
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Montgomery County, Maryland just imposed Expedited Bill 23-26 banning even licensed firearm holders from carrying a firearm within 100 yards of houses of worship and other "places of public assembly.” It prohibits members of the local Jewish community from defending themselves as they go to their synagogues multiple times a day, pray together as their religious commitments require, and leave. This defies their tradition’s mandate to protect themselves and their fellow Jews when necessary. The new law creates serious constitutional problems, especially in light of recent attacks on Jewish people and institutions across the country. |
Ask Jordan: Is a personal nuclear weapon protected by the Second Amendment?
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The high court’s greatest proponent of gun rights, Justice Clarence Thomas, has indicated that he thinks nuclear weapons fall on the unprotected side of the line. Last year, he criticized a lower court’s concern that approving AR-15s could lead to legalizing nuclear weapons. He wrote: “Even if some nuclear warheads are small enough for an individual to carry, no reasonable person would think to use one to defend himself. Still less could nuclear warheads ever become a common means of self-defense.” He deemed “fantastical” the lower court’s worry of (as he put it) “Americans lobbing nuclear warheads at one another.” |
USVI: DOJ Says Virgin Islands Replaced One Unconstitutional Gun-Control Regime With Another
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The U.S. Department of Justice says the Virgin Islands cannot escape a federal Second Amendment lawsuit by repealing one unconstitutional gun-control law and replacing it with another.
That argument comes in a July 29 opposition to the territory’s second motion to dismiss in United States v. Government of the Virgin Islands. The filing is the latest development in a fight AmmoLand has followed since the Justice Department first sued the Virgin Islands government, the Virgin Islands Police Department, and Police Commissioner Mario Brooks in December 2025 over excessive licensing delays, discretionary permitting, and firearm-license conditions imposed without statutory authority. |
Ugly Pattern Emerges In Mass Shootings In Left-Coast Cities
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Shootings that took place near a pizza restaurant in Tucson, Arizona, and a food festival in Seattle, Washington, occurred in places with a pattern of leniency involving firearm misuse.
Nine people were wounded in a July 19 shooting near Empire Pizza and Pub in Tucson, while three people were killed and four others were wounded during the Bite of Seattle food festival near the city’s iconic Space Needle. However, information after both shootings indicates that these shootings could have been prevented by locking people up for past firearm misuse. |
CO: Colorado coded the gun stores. Congress may reverse course
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SB24-006 passed out of the Colorado legislature in 2024 and was quickly signed by Jared Polis.
Piercing through the confusing jargon in the bill’s fiscal note, it essentially requires credit card companies to tag purchases related to firearms in their systems, in theory to make it easy to spot someone planning a mass shooting.
To my knowledge, that has yet to happen. The only outcome thus far that I’m aware of is that the government has leaned on private industry to help them keep track of of constitutionally-protected activity. |
WV: 3 financial institutions accused of discriminating against West Virginia firearms maker
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Three financial institutions were issued warnings for alleged discrimination against an Eastern Panhandle firearms maker, according to West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey.
McCuskey announced Thursday that his office sent letters warning First Internet Bank, its partner Ramp, and a separate company called BILL that they “may be violating West Virginia’s Firearms Industry Nondiscrimination (FIND) Act.”
The attorney general alleges that all three institutions have declined to provide Kent Cartridge Company, of Kearneysville, with payment processing services. He says if the alleged discrimination continues, “further action will be taken.” |
WA: CCRKBA Weighs In On Seattle Murders, Touted By Mayor And Police Chief As A ‘Gun Problem’
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The July 26 deadly shooting that killed three at a food festival at the Seattle Center has drawn lots of remarks from anti-gun politicians in Seattle and throughout Washington state.
In fact, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson was quick to blame the killings on “gun violence,” instead of putting the responsibility on the person who brought a gun to the festival and opened fire in the crowd.
“No one should have to weigh the risk of being shot before attending an event, gathering with friends or experiencing their city,” Wilson said in a released statement. |
Credova Renews SAF Gold-Level Corporate Partnership
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Credova – a fintech company servicing the firearms and outdoor recreation industries – has renewed their corporate partner commitment at the Gold level with the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF).
"The Second Amendment Foundation is the tip of the spear in defending the Second Amendment in the courtroom," said Credova founder Dusty Wunderlich. "Their legal victories have shaped the landscape of gun rights in America, and that work matters, deeply. SAF is an indispensable defender of individual liberty, and we're honored to stand beside them as a corporate partner for another year." |
Tenney Releases 2026 Second Amendment Plan
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Tenney outlines Second Amendment plan: Congresswoman Claudia Tenney said she has released a “2026 Second Amendment Plan” focused on defending gun rights, opposing New York and federal firearms restrictions, and protecting “privacy and due process” for gun owners.
Plan’s stated priorities: The release says the plan seeks to support “law-abiding” gun owners, sportsmen, hunters, veterans and “responsible gun owners,” while preventing what Tenney describes as government overreach and preserving the right to “keep and bear arms.” |
IL: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Signs Order Toughening City Standards On Buying Guns
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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Wednesday signed an executive order to toughen standards for where city departments and sister agencies buy guns, firearm accessories, and ammunition.
The Mayor's office said the executive order was motivated by nationwide concerns about law enforcement agencies purchasing firearms from unvetted dealers.
"This executive order reflects a simple belief that every taxpayer dollar should be advanced for public safety, and it should support responsible business practices," said Mayor Johnson. |
New Guns 2026: Smith & Wesson America 250 Limited-Edition Model 642 and Model 66 Revolvers
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Smith & Wesson has announced two limited-edition models commemorating America’s 250th anniversary: the Smith & Wesson Model 642 and Model 66 Combat Magnum America 250 revolvers.
The Smith & Wesson Model 642 America 250 Limited Edition commemorates America's 250th anniversary while delivering the proven reliability and concealability of the iconic J-Frame platform. Chambered in .38 Special +P with a 1.875-inch stainless steel barrel and 5-round capacity, this lightweight revolver is designed for personal defense and everyday carry. Its enclosed hammer and double-action-only trigger create a smooth, snag-free profile for fast, consistent draws. |
Magazine Spring Myths
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Set: A spring “takes a set” when the stress in the spring wire exceeds the steel’s yield strength. Instead of returning to its original free length after being compressed, it remains permanently shortened. If you’ve ever mashed or pulled the spring from a ballpoint pen and it didn’t return to its original length, you’ve seen this effect in action in a very low-quality spring. A properly engineered magazine spring should never reach this point during normal use. If fully loading a factory magazine caused the spring to take a permanent set, it wouldn’t be “normal wear”; it would indicate a serious design or manufacturing defect. |
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