U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- The Second Amendment Foundation on Friday filed a federal lawsuit challenging Washington State’s newly-adopted ban on so-called “large capacity ammunition magazines” scheduled to take effect July 1.
The legal action came just hours before the Seattle-based Alliance for Gun Responsibility was to hold a press event promoting gun control and “National Gun Violence Awareness Day,” according to KIRO News.
Joining SAF in this legal action are the Firearms Policy Coalition, Inc., a California-based group; Rainier Arms, LLC and a private citizen, Gabriella Sullivan. They are represented by attorneys David H. Thompson, Peter A. Patterson and William V. Bergstrom with Cooper & Kirk PLLC in Washington, D.C., Cody J. Wisniewski at the Mountain States Legal Foundation, and locally by Joel Ard at Ard Law Group.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. The case is known as Sullivan v. Ferguson.
Named as defendants are Democrat State Attorney General Bob Ferguson, Washington State Patrol Chief John R. Batiste, King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall, Kitsap County Sheriff John Gese, Grays Harbor County Sheriff Rick Scott, King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg, Kitsap County Prosecutor Chad M. Enright and Grays Harbor County Prosecutor Katie Svoboda.
In a prepared statement, SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb explained, “We’re asking the court to declare Washington’s ban on original capacity magazines to be unconstitutional under the Second and Fourteenth amendments. We want an injunction against the state because this ban criminalizes something that is common in a majority of states, and also leaves law-abiding Washington citizens more vulnerable to attack by ruthless criminals.”
Washington has become a hotbed of anti-gun activism over the past few years, energized primarily by big bucks involvement from a handful of wealthy Seattle-area elitists including Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, the late Paul Allen (all Microsoft alumni), and venture capitalist Nick Hanauer. Additionally, anti-gun billionaire Michael Bloomberg and his Everytown for Gun Safety lobbying group have provided support for a pair of gun control initiative campaigns, I-594 in 2014 and I-1639 in 2018.
Under provisions of engrossed substitute Senate Bill 5078 passed earlier this year, Washington bans the future sale, importation, manufacture and distribution of ammunition magazines capable of holding more than ten cartridges. These are widely considered standard capacity magazines by manufacturers of firearms for which they are designed. This new law affects both rifles and pistols.
Surprisingly, the law does not outlaw such magazines if they are already owned by state residents. Washington gun rights activists believe this is the first step toward an ultimate ban on all such magazines, which would theoretically come along later while Democrats remain in control of the State Legislature and presumably hold onto both the offices of governor and attorney general.
“Many of the most popular handguns and modern semiautomatic rifles come standard with magazines that hold more than ten rounds,” Gottlieb noted. “Such firearms are legally owned by Washington residents. As we note in the lawsuit, there is no reliable proof that restrictions on new manufacturing or sales of such magazines will reduce violent crime. This law unfairly and arbitrarily penalizes honest citizens for crimes they didn’t commit, in the hopes of preventing crimes they wouldn’t dream of committing.”
There is one standout incident in California that underscores Gottlieb’s position, the infamous Isla Vista murders committed by killer Elliot Rodger in 2014. Of the six people he killed in that rampage near the University of California, Santa Barbara, three were shot and three were stabbed/slashed to death.
Rodger bought three handguns in the months leading up to his attack, going through California’s background check and mandated waiting period. He used only California-compliant 10-round magazines. These facts are rarely mentioned in the gun control debate because they do not fit the narrative.
By filing their federal lawsuit ahead of the effective date of the magazine ban legislation, plaintiffs hope to throw a legal speed bump in the way of Washington’s anti-gun crusade.
A similar ban in California was declared unconstitutional by a federal district judge, and his ruling was initially upheld by a three-judge federal appeals court panel. However, the case was re-heard by an en banc panel in the liberal Ninth Circuit in San Francisco, which reversed the lower courts. The National Rifle Association has since petitioned for review by the U.S. Supreme Court, which has yet to announce whether it will take the case.
Washington is also in the Ninth Circuit, so the California case outcome could have a direct bearing on the new lawsuit.
SAF and NRA are currently challenging provisions of I-1639 in the Ninth Circuit. That’s the measure which raised the minimum age for buying a so-called “semiautomatic assault rifle” to 21 years. A similar prohibition in California was struck down last month by a three-judge panel as unconstitutional by a three-judge panel on a 2-1 vote. That lawsuit will likely also be re-heard by an en banc panel.
About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms, and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
Today 6/6/2022, In remembrance of the 10’s of thousands of brave men who sacrificed so much and to the 1000’s who gave all. I offer my thanks and respect on the anniversary of the D Day Landings at Normandy. Because of the Sacrifices of those Brave Men, “We the People” continue to reap the rewards of their sacrifices and the Freedom and Liberties they fought and died to preserve. They truly were the ‘Greatest Generation’ and as such deserve that “We the People” be willing to put forth the sacrifices necessary to Honor, the sacrifices they made in Handing Down… Read more »
Darkman, this is one of the most poignant responses from a reader I’ve ever read. My dad was part of that “Greatest Generation.” I think it ultimately caught up to him, way too young.
Your words have power, and sensitivity and character.
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, and for reading and sharing this AMMOLAND report.
my father was at wheeler field on his way home from flying tigers duty , have the purple heart and all the service medals and campaign medals the things they did and what they went through to stop the first great attack of the left Mussolini fashist, hitler was a socialist, stalin a communist hirohito a oligark all anti rights and freedom we need to honer and carry on the fight , that war was just the first open aggression of the one world order if you look at the disinformation that led up to the war, it is ramping… Read more »
and the demoncrats failed to acknowledge ,and show respect
As Always Dave your author a well balanced article I wish folks would understand that no matter how many rounds a magazine holds when one is empty reloading with a new magazine is what happens next.
There is orchestrated push from the democratic party to remove our freedoms as Americans. If the coronavirus taught us anything the lesson learned / that they will stop at nothing.
The praze game the play on words the democrats have become masters at bait and switch to push their narrative.
Darkman made a excellent point no sense on alberating well done.
Thanks for reading and sharing this AMMOLAND report.
I am a native of Grays Harbor County, and I know the sheriff. I was surprised to see that he is a weenie. GHC is a strong gun owning area. I was busy when I owned two gun stores there. Major crime with guns was uncommon. But it is also a strong union democrat county. Don’t vote for democrats, as sooner rather than later, they will vote for and support gun control measures.
I know the barnstable county sherif on cape cod have a mass cc does not make him good, consider I have a cc because he is dirty
Is every facet of government as anti-constitutional as the judicial system? The ninth circuit court is as biased as they come. “We the People” is just rhetoric when state governments can tie up decisions or overturn a lower courts by using the ninth circuit at their whim. Identical issues different states and the same court, what could go wrong?
That wretched Ninth is infested with California libruls, needs t be split and diluted. But that’s an issue for our equally corrupt and biased congress.
Dave – the photo is all that need be said. An evil BX25 Ruger 10-22 mag on top of various AR mags pretty well defines the issue. Has there been a ‘mass shooting’ using a 10-22, off hand I can’t think of any. It visually demonstrates the clear intent of the gun banners – take them all. Since WA has ‘declared’ by fiat that the little Ruger is an ‘assault weapon’ what else are they going to go after. I’m so glad I saw the writing on the wall and decided to not return post retirement. It WAS a good… Read more »
There was a mass shooting at a mall in Burlington WA using a 10-22. There was another one years ago (1979) involving a female shooter, Brenda Spencer, at Grover Cleveland Elementary School, and a scoped 10-22. She was having a bad Monday was her reason for the attack.
Wow, I did not know that!!
Ope – the surgery isn’t all that bad especially considering the alternative. One down and one to go in my case.
Wild – me either, that’s why I asked. Don could have given the casualty counts though. And the one he cited having a “bad Monday” (haven’t we all?) was a decade BEFORE Columbine.
Burlington had 5 fatalities. Cleveland Elementary (San Diego) had three fatalities and from memory 5 or 6 wounded. Cleveland was TWO decades before Columbine. The school’s principal and janitor were killed trying to save children. An 8 year old also died. The shooter never entered the school, but shot from a home across the street.
The primary reason I included that BX25 in the photo was to underscore exactly what you saw…this is a ban that targets all magazines for all firearms.
Thanks for reading and sharing this AMMOLAND report!
you left out m14 and and Reising m50 and a thompson stick just for these are how they were made a street sweeper have a pile of fun you could use
Well,, next time you can provide the photo.
Thanks for reading and sharing this AMMOLAND report
yea the commies screw up an area and make it unlivable and move to a nice area and start the process all over
The IslaVista killer is not the only one who used ten round mags. If Im not mistaken, the Sandy Hook killer, who murdered his MOther then stole HER Connecticut vomplaint guns ,used ten rounders. I KNOW the Aurora Colorado movie theatre shooter used them. And the punk who shot up his former high scoo in Parklnd Florida alsoused ten runders..”they fit into his gun case better”. Same story with the Clackmas Towne Centre Mall shooting.. the tens fit into his gun case better so he coud carry more of them. That incident did not turn into a “mass shooting” because… Read more »
NO, the Sandy Hook killer used 30 round magazines. See the CSP report and the states attorney report to get the details. The hoaxers have muddied the waters on what is fact and fiction.
The Parkland shooter used 30 round AR magazines. He even marked them with swastikas.
NO. The Clackamas Towne Center shooter had (5) 30 round magazines. He fired 17 shots killing two and seriously wounding a third. He had 128 rounds of ammo. He dropped three or four of the magazines one while entering the mall and three while fumbling to reload. He was confronted by a man with a Glock M22. That person did not shoot. The killer committed suicide.
NO. The Aurora Colorado shooter used a 100 round AR magazine. It eventually failed. He started out shooting with a Remington M870, then the AR until it failed and then a Glock 22.
Sorry to have so many entries. I had to revisit each case to confirm what I knew was correct. It pays to research the cases before you post.
one of the shootings was actually carried out with two pistols rifle was in the trunk of car reporters said one thing pictures said another
I hope you are not referring to Sandy Hook. Lanza carried two pistols, but shot the kids with an AR15. The only pistol he shot was the one he killed himself with. The Virginia Tech shooting was carried out with two pistols. At Sandy Hook a 12 ga. shotgun was in the car. An arriving officer saw the AR-pattern shotgun in the front of Lanza’s car. The cop took the shotgun, and using the car keys he opened the trunk and locked it inside. The news chopper video shows another cop opening the trunk later. People mistook the shotgun for… Read more »
ten rounders fit in pockets ,put a drum or double drum in a pocket not even the one for a 10/22 will fit they are huge. bx25 s are the best plinker for 10/22
The Charleston Chuch killer used a Glock M41, a 13 round pistol. He had (8) magazines.
I believe the NYC subway shooter used a Glock 17 with a 33 round magazine, as he fired 33 rounds. He left three magazines of unknown capacity behind on the train.