Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Challenge to Cook County Assault Weapons Ban

HP3 is calling attention to a monumental legal development following the announcement that the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a constitutional challenge to Cook County’s long-standing assault weapons ban.

In the consolidated case Viramontes v. Cook County, lead appellant Cutberto Viramontes argues that prohibitions on semi-automatic firearms like AR-15s violate the Second Amendment. Joining the petition is the Second Amendment Foundation, whose strategy utilizes impact litigation to dismantle gun safety laws, represented by the law firm Cooper & Kirk, PLLC. In their previous challenges at lower courts the appellants argued that AR-15s are so common in our society that prior law made at the U.S. Supreme Court dictates that bans on AR-15s are unconstitutional.

The high court’s decision to grant certiorari required the agreement of at least four justices, a threshold met after Justice Brett Kavanaugh signaled that the bench would address semi-automatic restrictions soon. Oral arguments are scheduled for this fall, carrying massive public safety implications nationwide.