Idaho Leads 2nd Amendment Fight - Attorney General Raúl Labrador Letter (10/04/24)

US Constitution - Second Amendment

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ignored major Supreme Court precedent and upheld Maryland’s unconstitutional law by holding that the most popular rifle in America — the AR-15 — is not an “arm” within the scope of the Second Amendment. AG Attorney General Labrador and 28 other states urged SCOTUS, through an amicus brief, to directly take up Maryland’s gun ban law and overturn it.

Labrador wrote:

Maryland’s law broadly bans hundreds of firearms in common use and under legal ownership.  The Fourth Circuit ruled that semi-automatic rifles like the AR-15 are NOT protected by the Second Amendment – because those semi-automatic arms are best suited for the military and therefore not protected for citizens. 

This, despite the fact the U.S. military does not use, nor has it adopted, the AR-15 for issue. Because an AR-15 looks like it COULD be military or shares cosmetic similarities with existing military arms, it should apparently be banned. Appearance over substance is not a standard for good governance.

AG Labrador points out that the Fourth Circuit’s ruling ignores a myriad of case law on the Second Amendment. He also explained that Idaho has stepped in to help with several related cases, including:

• Multiple cases in California and Illinois to overturn gun and magazine bans. 

• The VanDerStok case to overturn rulings on so-called “ghost guns.”

• The Chevron Deference doctrine at SCOTUS, which drove so many bad policy decisions and rules coming from agencies that unconstitutionally bypass congressional authority.

Labrador states:

There is no historical precedent where an authoritarian government has ever banned firearms for the safety of their citizens, despite what they claim. Authoritarian governments ban firearms for their own safety and preservation of power, pure and simple.

Labrador urged readers to take heart that Idaho and 26 other state attorneys general (and the state legislatures of Wisconsin and Arizona) support efforts for SCOTUS to overturn Maryland’s gun ban.

While Idaho strongly supports gun rights, many citizens in America do not enjoy similar protections or have state leaders who will stand up against such attacks. Signers of this brief to SCOTUS know that a threat to freedom in one state is a threat to freedom everywhere.

ED NOTE
Kudos to all for standing up to tyranny and misguided decision making! May these signers be successful in their quest for SCOTUS to restore Constitutionally protected 2A rights for all (at least in Maryland).