The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) and two other gun owners-rights groups have filed a reply brief with the United States Supreme Court in support of its petition for review in Snope v. Brown (formerly styled Bianchi v. Brown). This is the FPC’s case challenging Maryland’s ban on so-called “assault weapons.”
The brief underscores why the Court should grant review in the case and overturn the Fourth Circuit’s en banc (full court) decision. The question it presents reads, “Whether the Constitution permits the State of Maryland to ban semiautomatic rifles that are in common use for lawful purposes, including the most popular rifle in America.”
The brief also argues, “[I]ncredibly, in the sixteen years since Heller, every single court of appeals to consider the question has concluded that such bans are constitutional, employing a variety of tests that are uniform only in their failure to adhere to the principles established by this Court. Maryland asks this Court to deny certiorari [review] to allow even more time for percolation, but enough is enough. The lower courts have proven themselves incapable of following Heller’s clear guidance, and this Court should intervene without delay.”
“Our Snope petition presents the ideal vehicle and time for the Supreme Court to address recalcitrant lower courts and make clear that semiautomatic firearms are constitutionally protected,” said FPC President Brandon Combs. “We remain hopeful that the Court will take up this case and end bans on these popular firearms once and for all.”
FPC is joined in the litigation by individual FPC member David Snope, as well as the Second Amendment Foundation and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Click here to read more about the lawsuit.
