Supreme Court Declines to Hear Major Gun Rights Appeals
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review two significant cases related to gun laws—one challenging Delaware’s prohibition on assault-style firearms and high-capacity magazines, and another contesting Maryland’s handgun licensing rules.
By refusing to hear these appeals, the Court sidestepped engaging with two prominent legal battles involving Second Amendment rights.
Gun owners and advocacy organizations had petitioned the Court to overturn Delaware’s restrictions on so-called “assault weapons” and magazines holding more than 17 rounds. Their appeal followed a lower court’s decision not to grant a preliminary injunction against the law.
According to Reuters, while such weapons have appeared in several mass shootings, FBI data shows that handguns are responsible for the majority of gun-related homicides in the U.S.
Another case involved the group Maryland Shall Issue and other plaintiffs, who challenged Maryland’s handgun licensing law. They argued that the law conflicts with the constitutional right to bear arms. However, the Court also declined to take up that appeal, effectively leaving the lower court’s decision intact, which upheld the state’s licensing requirements.
Though the justices rejected these two appeals, they have not yet acted on other challenges—including one against Maryland’s ban on assault-style weapons and another disputing Rhode Island’s restriction on high-capacity magazines.
The current Court, which leans 6-3 conservative, has tended to favor an “originalist” interpretation of the Second Amendment in previous landmark rulings dating back to 2008.
Delaware's 2022 law banned semiautomatic rifles such as the AR-15 and AK-47, along with large-capacity magazines. However, residents who owned these firearms before the law went into effect can keep them if they meet specific conditions. The law also prohibits using pre-existing high-capacity magazines, rendering many such devices unusable under the new restrictions.
The challenge to Delaware’s law was brought by individual residents, a licensed firearms dealer, the Firearms Policy Coalition, and the Second Amendment Foundation. They argued that the lower courts erred in ruling that “deprivation of Second Amendment rights necessarily constitutes an irreparable injury.” In 2023, the plaintiffs requested an injunction, which a federal judge denied. That decision was upheld by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia in 2024.
The 3rd Circuit emphasized that a preliminary injunction is not automatically granted in cases involving constitutional rights. “Preliminary injunctions are not automatic,” the court stated. “Instead, custom and history have long saved them for very special occasions.” It added, “This is not a strange case.”
Maryland's 2013 handgun law requires most prospective buyers to obtain a qualification license. Applicants must submit fingerprints, complete a safety course, and undergo a background check.
Opponents of the law contend that the process is burdensome and delays legal gun ownership, sometimes taking “a month or longer,” which they say discourages people from exercising their Second Amendment rights. The state, however, maintains that the licensing process, including fingerprinting and safety training, “significantly improve public safety.” The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Richmond, Virginia, upheld Maryland’s stance.
The Supreme Court is also considering other firearm-related matters. In October, it heard arguments about the legality of a 2022 Biden administration rule targeting “ghost guns”—untraceable firearms increasingly used in crimes. A ruling is expected by late June.
On March 4, the justices are scheduled to hear another case involving firearms. This time, U.S. gun manufacturers Smith & Wesson and Interstate Arms are seeking to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Mexico. The suit accuses the companies of facilitating the illegal flow of guns to Mexican drug cartels.
Last year, the Court ruled that a federal ban on “bump stocks”—devices that enable semiautomatic rifles to mimic fully automatic fire—was unlawful. Reuters noted that the justices have struck down several major gun control measures in previous landmark rulings from 2008, 2010, and 2022.