The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the city of Denver, Colorado, after it banned “constitutionally protected semi-automatic rifles.”
“The term ‘assault weapon’ is not a technical term used in the firearms industry. Rather, as Justice Thomas has aptly noted, ’assault weapon’ is a rhetorically charged political term developed by anti-gun publicists,” the complaint reads. “In reality, the firearms the City calls ‘assault weapons’ include ordinary semiautomatic rifles possessed by millions of law-abiding Americans. Indeed, Americans own literally tens of millions of AR-15 style rifles, the paradigmatic ‘assault weapon’ covered by the Ordinance. As the Supreme Court has recently recognized, the AR-15 is the most popular rifle in America.”
“When the City banned AR-15 style rifles with standard capacity magazines, it banned an arm in common use for lawful purposes by law-abiding citizens,” it adds. “Therefore, the Ordinance violates the Second Amendment, and the United States brings this action to vindicate the rights of Denver citizens whose rights have been — and are continuing to be — violated by Defendants.”
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s office released a statement saying he was joined “by public safety and civic leaders in rejecting a demand from the U.S. Department of Justice to repeal the city’s longstanding ban on assault weapons.”
“Our first job is to keep Denverites safe, and we will not be intimidated out of doing it,” said Johnston. “Denver’s law has stood for 37 years because it works, it saves lives, and it reflects the values of our community. No demand or lawsuit from Washington is going to change that.”
