Supreme Court declines to hear cases regarding bump stock bans


The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear two cases that would have challenged a ban on "bump stocks," attachments that allow semi-automatic firearms to shoot in rapid succession.
While the court released a slate of nine cases that would be tried in the upcoming session, the cases regarding bump stocks were not among those selected. The attachments have come under fire in recent years due to the numerous mass shootings in which they have been used. And in a rare display of GOP-led gun control, the Trump administration enacted a ban following the 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas, the deadliest in U.S. history.
The two challenges from a pair of gun rights activist groups argued that the federal government did not have the right to pass such a ban due to the 1934 National Firearms Act, which laid out the original regulations for machine guns, NBC News reports.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The groups argued that "the legal definition of machine gun has been distorted beyond recognition," and that courts should not make their decisions on gun rights based on federal guidelines, NBC summarized.
The ban, though, has been upheld multiple times by U.S. appeals courts.
Despite the Supreme Court declining to hear the case, the high court is coming off a summer that saw the "widest expansion of gun rights in a decade," CNN writes. A ruling this past June decided that the 2nd Amendment guarantees the right to carry a handgun in public.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.
-
Iran nukes program set back months, early intel suggests
Speed Read A Pentagon assessment says US bombing of Iranian nuclear sites only set the program back by months, not years. This contradicts President Donald Trump's claim.
-
Trump says Iran and Israel agreed to ceasefire
Speed Read This followed a night of Israeli airstrikes on Tehran and multiple waves of missiles fired by Iran
-
How developed was Iran's nuclear program and what's left now?
Today's Big Question Israel and the United States have said different things about Iran's capabilities
-
Israel strikes Iran, killing military and nuclear chiefs
Speed Read Israeli officials said the attack was a 'preemptive' strike on Iran's nuclear program
-
Israel deports Thunberg after seizing Gaza aid boat
speed read The Swedish activist was delivering food and medical aid to Palestine, highlighting the growing humanitarian crisis there
-
Colombian senator shot on streets of Bogotá
speed read Miguel Uribe Turbay, who has announced his candidacy for next year's presidential election, was shot at a rally
-
Trump says Putin vowed retaliation for Kyiv strike
speed read The Russian president intends to respond to Ukraine's weekend drone strikes on Moscow's warplanes
-
Dutch government falls over immigration policy
speed read The government collapsed after anti-immigration politician Geert Wilders quit the right-wing coalition