On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court considered whether to hear an appeal of Friedman vs. City of Highland Park, a case in which the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Chicago suburb’s ordinance banning semi-automatic firearms that hold more than 10 rounds.
Every firearm that uses a detachable magazine can be fitted with a larger magazine, which means this arbitrary ban could outlaw virtually all semi-automatics. Moreover, the firearms banned are some of the most common in the U.S., owned by millions of law-abiding Americans for sport, competition, hunting and self-defense. The AR-15 has been the best-selling type of rifle in the U.S. for several years now.
If the Supreme Court lets the lower court’s decision stand, similar bans—like those in California, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Hawaii—could continue to spread. A decision on whether to hear the appeal could come as early as Tuesday.
