The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit governed Friday that New Jersey’s bans on assault firearms and magazines holding more than 10 rounds violate the law Second AmendmentThis is the first time a federal appeals court has struck down a state ban on assault weapons.
The court sat in the bench and was split 10-5. Writing for the majority, Justice Freeman applied the U.S. Supreme Court framework New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruenwhich requires that firearm restrictions be consistent with the country’s historical tradition of gun regulation. The court agreed with the lower court that New Jersey’s Colt AR-15 ban is unconstitutional. This extended the lower court’s order to the entire class of semi-automatic rifles. The court also reversed the lower court’s decision upholding the state’s limit on large-capacity magazines, finding that the ban violated the Second Amendment.
The majority argued that semi-automatic rifles and the magazines in question were commonly used for lawful purposes and were therefore protected by the Second Amendment. The court noted the lower court’s finding that there were approximately 24 million AR-15 rifles in circulation nationwide and that New Jersey had not presented any data to refute the conclusion that such firearms were commonly used for self-defense, target shooting, hunting, and pest control.
Judge Patty Shwartz dissented, along with three other justices. She wrote that the Second Amendment was never understood to guarantee a right to keep and bear arms of any kind, and that the majority had adopted a contemporary view rather than the historical one required by the Supreme Court:
However, the majority believe that states cannot regulate currently popular weapons. This approach is contemporary, even as the Supreme Court tells us that we must keep in mind the history and tradition of banning dangerous and unusual weapons, such as the semi-automatic rifles with high-capacity magazines that gunmen continue to use in crimes and mass shootings.
New Jersey first restricted the use of large-capacity magazines in 1990 and changed the law in 2018 to no longer allow magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds, up from the previous 15. The Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, backed by the National Rifle Association, challenged the restrictions.
The ruling deepens the divide between federal appeals courts. Last year, the First Circuit upheld Massachusetts’ assault weapons ban, and other counties have upheld similar laws. The split comes as the U.S. Supreme Court has already agreed to hear consolidated challenges to assault weapons bans in Illinois and Connecticut. Arguments are expected this fall.
