20 States Join Challenge to Delaware Gun Laws

Twenty states joined a court challenge to Delaware laws banning “assault weapons” and standard-capacity magazines, the Washington Examiner reported.

The coalition of states filed an amicus brief in support of the Delaware State Sportsmen’s Association’s lawsuit against the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security, according to the Examiner.

The states’ challenge against Delaware’s gun control laws was led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and was joined by attorneys general from Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, New Hampshire, South Dakota, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, Wyoming, and West Virginia.

U.S. District Court Judge Richard Andrews, who was appointed by former President Barack Obama, in March denied the DSSA and other groups a preliminary injunction barring Delaware from enforcing HB 450.

A package of six gun safety laws was signed into law June 30, 2022 in Delaware.

The package included legislation that:

• Bans the sale of assault weapons.
• Raises the age to purchase most firearms from 18 to 21.
• Strengthens background checks by reinstituting the Firearm Transaction Approval Program.
• Limits high-capacity magazines.
• Holds gun manufacturers and dealers liable for reckless or negligent actions that lead to gun violence.
• Bans the use of devices that convert handguns into fully automatic weapons.

Andrews had ruled that Delaware’s ban was consistent with historic regulations on weapons, the Examiner noted.

“Nearly all of the historical regulations that the district court relied on stop short of complete bans, and instead tailored their prohibitions to minimize the criminal use of certain dangerous and unusual weapons,” according to a 34-page brief filed by the states.

The coalition says the Delaware legislation is in violation of the Constitution and that lower courts that upheld the law failed to read the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen v. New York Rifle & Pistol Association ruling properly, the Examiner said. That ruling held gun laws must conform with the nation’s historical tradition of firearms regulation.

Andrews’ decision has been appealed to a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeal.