The U.S. Supreme Court made a pivotal decision on Monday, declining to review Maryland's ban on semiautomatic rifles, including the AR-15, thereby upholding a lower court's ruling. The law, which bans over 40 types of firearms labeled "assault long guns," has been a subject of intense debate since its enactment after the 2012 Sandy Hook tragedy.
The refusal to hear the case leaves the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit's decision intact, which supported Maryland's legislation. This decision comes as a significant setback for gun owners, constitutionalists, and Second Amendment advocates who view the ban as an infringement on their rights.
The Supreme Court's silence on the reasons behind its decision not to take up the case has been met with dissent from three of its conservative justices—Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch. Justice Thomas, in particular, issued a strong dissent, asserting that the lower courts have been "distorting" the Court's past rulings on gun rights and that the issue was "ripe" for review. He expressed concern that without vigilant enforcement by the Court, the right to bear arms would be relegated to a "second-class right."
The decision also coincided with the Court's refusal to hear a separate challenge to Rhode Island's large-capacity magazine ban, further stirring frustration among gun rights proponents. Critics of the decision are left questioning the Supreme Court's commitment to upholding the constitutional right to bear arms.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, while not dissenting, issued a statement acknowledging that similar legal challenges are working their way through the federal appellate courts. He suggested that the Supreme Court is likely to address the issue "in the next term or two" as lower courts clarify their interpretations.
The legal battle over Maryland's ban has been complex. The 4th Circuit previously held that weapons like the AR-15 fall outside Second Amendment protections as they are "most useful in military service." However, this conflicts with a 2022 Supreme Court ruling that gun laws must align with historical tradition.
Since the 2022 decision, lower courts have faced challenges in applying this new standard, with varying interpretations emerging. The plaintiffs in the Maryland case argued that rifles such as the AR-15, which are widely owned, fall under "common use" and are thus constitutionally protected. Despite Justice Kavanaugh's agreement with the challengers' argument regarding the common use of AR-15s, the appeals court ruled in favor of the state's restrictions.
For now, Maryland's law remains enforceable, leaving gun rights organizations and individual plaintiffs to reflect on their next steps. The Supreme Court's decision not to review the case has, for the moment, put an end to this particular challenge, but the broader debate over gun rights and regulations continues.
