The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned aside the latest challenge to the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA). The National Rifle Association-Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) petitioned for certiorari in Rush v. United States.
This case confronted the decades-old restrictions on short-barreled rifles (SBRs) imposed during the height of Prohibition Era gangland violence.
The NFA requires registration and a tax payment for any rifle with a barrel measuring shorter than 16 inches. Violators are subject to fines of up to $250,000 and prison terms of up to 10 years.
Supreme Court had the opportunity to rule on restrictions affecting entire classes of weapons
The Supreme Court’s rejection followed the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals’ finding that SBRs are not “arms” according to the Second Amendment.
This controversial decision led to the NRA-ILA joining forces with the plaintiffs to petition the high court. The venerable group argued that the bench should clarify how the judicial system should rule on restrictions on whole classes of weapons.
NRA asked that the high court step in and uphold the right to bear commonly used arms
This potentially would include popular semi-automatic sporting rifles that are under attack in several jurisdictions nationwide. Doug Hamlin, NRA executive vice president and CEO, explained the imposition the NFA causes to good citizens.
“The National Firearms Act imposes burdens on law-abiding gun owners that have no grounding in the text, history, or tradition of the Second Amendment,” Hamlin declared. “The Second Amendment guarantees the rights of Americans to own commonly used firearms—including short-barreled rifles—without government interference, and we’re hopeful that the Supreme Court will use this opportunity to reaffirm this right.”
But it was not to be.
This week’s outcome continues the decidedly mixed results from a Supreme Court that at times stood firmly with Second Amendment rights. In other instances where important gun control issues could be resolved, justices merely punted.
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