Virginia Judge Blocks July 1 Assault Weapons Ban Until Dec. 31
Updated
Updated · Courthouse News Service · Jun 25
Virginia Judge Blocks July 1 Assault Weapons Ban Until Dec. 31
3 articles · Updated · Courthouse News Service · Jun 25
Summary
Six days before the law was due to take effect, Lancaster County Circuit Judge John Martin barred Virginia State Police from enforcing the assault weapons ban and said the state was unlikely to prove it complies with the Virginia Constitution.
Martin leaned on the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 Bruen framework, rejecting Virginia's push for a separate state-law analysis and questioning why the ban targets rifles with features such as folding stocks and threaded barrels but not other military-style weapons.
The law would make importing, selling, buying, manufacturing or transferring covered firearms and magazines over 15 rounds a Class 1 misdemeanor; Martin said the listed characteristics lacked a rational basis.
Attorney General Jay Jones called the ruling disappointing and said the ban would save lives, while the state signaled an appeal; the injunction lasts until Dec. 31 or a final order.
The decision split with a Spotsylvania County ruling last week rejecting a different challenge, while a separate NRA-backed case seeking the same relief in Washington County was still awaiting a judge's decision.