The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court may finally decide to hear a challenge to the federal ban on bump stocks, the Daily Caller reports.
Per the outlet: "The Supreme Court may finally take up a pair of cases reviewing a federal ban on bump stocks after declining in previous years to address the issue."
Nothing, however, is definite just yet.
The New York Times explains what a bump stock is, writing, "A 'bump stock' replaces a rifle’s standard stock, which is the part held against the shoulder. It frees the weapon to slide back and forth rapidly, harnessing the energy from the kickback shooters feel when the weapon fires."
The outlet adds, "The stock 'bumps' back and forth between the shooter’s shoulder and trigger finger, causing the rifle to rapidly fire again and again. The shooter holds his or her trigger finger in place, while maintaining forward pressure on the barrel and backward pressure on the pistol grip while firing."
Bump stocks were used by the shooter in the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting. And, subsequently, the administration of former President Donald Trump proposed a ban on bump stocks.
Since then, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) has implemented the ban by including bump stocks in the definition of "machine guns" in the National Firearms Act of 1934.
The 1986 amendment to this act prohibits the possession of machine guns, and if bump stocks are machine guns, then it also prohibits the possession of bump stocks.
This ban has faced several legal challenges that continue to this day. Thus far, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court have refused to overturn the ban.
In 2019, the court decided not to get involved in the matter. And, it did so again in 2022 when gun owners asked the high court for relief from the ban.
Since then, however, there have been some major legal developments. And, the Daily Caller believes that these developments could be enough to get the justices to finally weigh in on the matter.
The Daily Caller reports:
Two decisions earlier this year against the ATF’s rule . . . The government appealed cases from the Fifth and Sixth Circuits to the Supreme Court, where they are now both scheduled to be considered at the Justices’ Oct. 27 conference.
To be clear, what the Daily Caller means is that the justices are going to consider whether or not to hear the government's appeals of those appellate court decisions. In other words, there is no guarantee that the justices will hear the cases. It is up to their discretion.
We should know in the next month or so what the justices decide to do.
