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National Association for Gun Rights Calls Out Illinois’ Semi-Auto Ban Lies
Representatives from the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) on Wednesday May 10, 2023 filed a rebuttal to the State of Illinois to the United States Supreme Court.
On May 1, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett requested further information from the State of Illinois and City of Naperville, asking them to explain why they believe their “Assault Weapons” Ban laws are Constitutional.
The state and city filed their responses yesterday, May 9th. Lawyers for the state argued AR-15s are not protected by Second Amendment saying they are not in common use and therefore not protected by the Second Amendment. For that reason, Illinois argued, the state’s ban on “assault weapons” should stand.
Further, the state argues the Second Amendment provides no protection to “large-capacity magazines,” because they are not “arms.”
NAGR issued their response today.
A quote from the brief:
“The State makes the argument that the banned firearms are not indisputably ‘arms’ within the Second Amendment’s plain text. This is more than just incorrect; it defies common sense. All firearms are arms. ‘[T]he Second Amendment extends, prima facie, to all instruments that constitute bearable arms.’ Therefore, the text of the Second Amendment, prima facie, extends to the banned firearms.”
In addition to the brief, Dudley Brown, President of the National Association for Gun Rights, issued the following statement:
“The Illinois Attorney General is not only spitting on the Constitution, but apparently he is also historically illiterate. The Second Amendment has always applied to a wide variety of ‘arms,’ including AR-15s and various types of ammunition. Plus, to argue AR-15s aren’t in common use despite being the most popular rifle in America with hundreds of millions in circulation is flat out ludicrous.”
NAGR, in conjunction with their legal arm, the National Foundation for Gun Rights (NFGR), filed a lawsuit against both the city of Naperville and the state of Illinois on behalf of Robert Bevis, a Naperville gun store owner. Bevis stands to lose his business and his livelihood if the ordinance stands.
On May 1, the U.S. Supreme Court signaled interest in issuing an Injunction Pending Appellate Review which, if granted, would halt both the state and local laws outlawing “Assault Weapons.”
Now NAGR and the state of Illinois will wait to hear from the Supreme Court on whether the requested injunction is granted.
NAGR’s full brief can be found here. https://gunrightsfoundation.org/scotus-reply/
The National Association for Gun Rights’ legal defense arm, the National Foundation for Gun Rights works to expand pro-gun precedents and defend gun owners. For more information on the National Foundation for Gun Rights please visit their website at https://gunrightsfoundation.org// .
The National Foundation for Gun Rights is a 501(c)(3) organization that exists to expand pro-gun precedents and defend gun owners in the courts.
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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
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