Supreme Court Hears Michael Cargil’s Lawsuit Against Bump Stock Prohibition
Jose Nino
|
The lawsuit Central Texas Gun Works owner Michael Cargill filed against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) bump stock prohibition was kicked off to the United Supreme Court of the United States on February 27, 2024.
In November 2023, Cargill informed Breitbart News that his goal was to prevent the weaponization of federal agencies against the American people.
He stated, “The federal government, they initially started out with just the bump stock. They focused on this little part, this little piece here. But since then, it’s grown to other things. Federal agencies are using the exact same verbiage, the exact rule they used to ban the bump stock to go after everything else.”
Cargill added, “They’re going after AR-15 stabilizer braces. They’re going after triggers, after 80 percent frames and receivers, all with the same words and language as they used against bump stocks.”
The “language” that Cargill referred to is one where the ATF re-defines or re-categorizes pre-existing guns, accessories, or parts.
National Public Radio correspondent Martin Kaste noted that the language of the ATF bump stock prohibition “reclassifies [bump stocks] as ‘machine guns,’ no matter when they were purchased, and owning one will become a felony.”
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in Cargill’s favor in January 2023, arguing that a bump stock is not a “machine gun.” That ruling was subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court, where it was heard on February 27.
Cargill was quoted by the Washington Times, where he said, “Once you give them an inch, they will take a mile…If we win, we use this case law down the road for the Second Amendment community.”
The case in question is Cargill v. Garland and will ultimately determine the fate of the bump stock ban that the Trump administration foolishly allowed to be implemented. Due to massive gridlock at the federal level, the courts are the only option for change at the moment.
This goes to show that the pro-gun strategy has to be multi-pronged when it comes to bringing about political change.
Share: