Latest news with #Gator'sCustomGuns
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
State supreme court upholds ban on high-capacity gun magazines
May 8—The Washington state Supreme Court has upheld a state law that bans the sale or transfer of gun ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. In a 7-2 ruling issued Thursday, the court found that the law does not violate the state or federal constitutional right to bear arms. The court found that the magazines are not classified as arms, and that the right to purchase the magazines is not "an ancillary right necessary to the realization of the core right to possess a firearm in self-defense." The law does not prohibit the possession of high-capacity magazines possessed at the time of its passage, but instead prevents the sale, transfer or import of new magazines. "By restricting only magazines of a capacity greater than 10, the statute effectively regulates the maximum capacity of magazines, leaving the weapon fully functional for its intended purpose. Thus, we are not convinced that the restriction here renders the right to bear arms in self-defense meaningless," Justice Charles Johnson wrote in the opinion. "Indeed, we can safely say that individuals are still able to exercise the core right to bear arms when they are limited to purchasing magazines with a capacity of 10 or fewer." In a dissent, Gordon McCloud wrote that "Millions of law-abiding people have chosen semiautomatic firearms as the primary tool for lawful purposes such as self-defense in the home." "Millions of people have chosen to feed ammunition into those commonly used firearms with magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds," McCloud wrote. "It necessarily follows that the Second Amendment protects the arms-bearing conduct at issue here, that is, keeping and bearing operable semiautomatic firearms with commonly used magazines for self-defense and other lawful purposes — including in the home." Adopted by the Washington legislature in 2022, the law was challenged by Gator's Custom Guns, a Kelso-based gun store that contended the law was unconstitutional. A Cowlitz County Superior Court judge ruled in the store's favor last June, a ruling that then-Attorney General Bob Ferguson appealed to the state Supreme Court. In a social media post Thursday, current Attorney General Nick Brown said the decision is "right on the law and will save lives." "Large capacity magazines are used in the overwhelming majority of mass shootings, and reducing the toll of these senseless killings is vitally important," Brown wrote. "I'm proud of my Office's work defending our state law banning the sale of these dangerous items." In a video posted Thursday afternoon, attorney and former Washington Attorney General Candidate Pete Serrano, who represented Gator's guns in the case, said they would likely file an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. "I think this case has the tentacles the Supreme Court's been looking for," Serrano said.
The Hill
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Top Washington state court upholds ban on high-capacity gun magazines
The Washington State Supreme Court upheld the state's ban on high-capacity magazine guns in a Thursday ruling, overturning a lower court order that labeled it unconstitutional. The 7-2 decision affirmed the constitutionality of a three-year old state law that prevents the sale, manufacture and import of ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 rounds 'This regulation does not limit the number of bullets or magazines that may be purchased or possessed. By restricting only magazines of a capacity greater than 10, the statute effectively regulates the maximum capacity of magazines, leaving the weapon fully functional for its intended purpose,' Justice Charles Johnson wrote in the majority's opinion about the ban. 'Thus, we are not convinced that the restriction here renders the right to bear arms in self defense meaningless,' he continued. Gator's Custom Guns Inc., a Washington for-profit corporation and Walter Wentz initiated the lawsuit against the state law, arguing that the ban violated citizens' Second Amendment rights. Justices Sheryl Gordon McCloud and G. Helen Whitener dissented on Thursday in defense of the plaintiffs' dispute, alleging a magazine is not an optional accessory for a repeating firearm. 'It is a defining characteristic of a repeating firearm. As Gator's Custom Guns explains, 'Without a magazine inserted, a semiautomatic weapon will not function properly' and is 'essentially a single shot breech loader' like an old-fashioned musket,' Justice McCloud wrote in the dissent. 'And because the magazine functions as an ammunition feeding device, it is not just a passive receptacle for storing ammunition like a cartridge box.' McCloud, in the dissent, added that the Second Amendment does not just protect 'arms' but also 'arms-bearing conduct.' Washington Attorney General Nick Brown lauded the court's decision on Thursday, citing the threat of violent events. 'Today's decision is right on the law and will save lives,' Brown said in a prepared statement according to the Seattle Times. 'Large capacity magazines are used in the overwhelming majority of mass shootings, and reducing the toll of these senseless killings is vitally important.' Thirteen other states currently outlaw high capacity magazines.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
WA State Supreme Court upholds ban on high-capacity ammo magazine sales
The sale of firearms magazines that hold more than 10 rounds will remain banned in Washington state under a 2022 law that the state Supreme Court upheld in a May 8, 2025 ruling. (Photo by) The Washington Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the state's ban on the sale of gun ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. The law, passed in 2022, faced a challenge from a Kelso gun shop that argued the ban on selling the magazines violates the state constitution, which protects 'the right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state.' Gator's Custom Guns also said the law ran afoul of the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. In a 7-2 ruling, state Supreme Court justices disagreed. They ruled that high-capacity magazines aren't 'arms,' but just a component of a gun, and are not generally used for self-defense. The ruling tracked with arguments attorneys for the state made before the court in January. 'By restricting only magazines of a capacity greater than 10, the statute effectively regulates the maximum capacity of magazines, leaving the weapon fully functional for its intended purpose,' Justice Charles Johnson wrote in Thursday's opinion. 'Indeed, we can safely say that individuals are still able to exercise the core right to bear arms when they are limited to purchasing magazines with a capacity of 10 or fewer.' Justices Sheryl Gordon McCloud and G. Helen Whitener dissented. Attorneys for Gator's Custom Guns, including former Republican attorney general candidate Pete Serrano, had argued that the popularity of high-capacity magazines inherently proved they abide by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling protecting firearms that are 'in common use' and are 'typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes.' The case was a test of a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that moved the goalposts when it comes to assessing the constitutionality of gun regulations. Washington's ban on high-capacity magazine sales took effect about two and a half years ago. The state is among at least 14 nationwide with similar restrictions. These laws have attracted lawsuits as lower courts grapple with the decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. In that case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled state firearm laws must stay true to the nation's 'historical tradition of firearm regulation.' Judges have now had to deduce how laws written over a century ago would square with technological advances, like high-capacity magazines and semi-automatic weapons. In this case, attorneys for the gun shop argued justices have no historical analogue to compare with Washington's high-capacity magazine law. But the state attorney general's office, led by Solicitor General Noah Purcell, countered that the comparison need not be so specific, pointing to Bowie knives banned after they rose in popularity in the 1800s. The U.S. Supreme Court has since clarified its decision in Bruen to note judges can use general principles, not just exact matches, when comparing modern gun laws to historical regulations. The ruling comes about four months after attorneys from both sides argued before the justices about the law's standing under the U.S. and state constitutions. The case came to the state Supreme Court after a Cowlitz County Superior Court judge struck down the ban in April 2024. The judge, Gary Bashor, ruled the law violated the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms for self-defense granted in the state constitution. That ruling had been paused until the case was resolved, so the ban has remained in effect. The case now returns to Cowlitz County Superior Court to decide if Gator's violated state law in allegedly flouting the prohibition. This year, Washington lawmakers passed another controversial gun control measure to force firearm buyers to get a state permit before purchasing a gun. Republicans uniformly opposed the bill, with some arguing judges would deem it unconstitutional under Bruen. That legislation now awaits Gov. Bob Ferguson's signature. This is a developing story and will be updated. State of Washington v. Gator's Custom Guns - May 8, 2025 Opinion The May 8, 2025, Washington state Supreme Court opinion in State of Washington v. Gator's Custom Guns, Inc.
