D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb led a group of 23 state attorneys general urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a federal rule banning bump stock, devices that convert semi-automatic firearms into illegal automatic weapons.
In an amicus brief filed in Garland v. Cargill, the coalition urges the Supreme Court to overturn an appellate court’s decision striking down a 2018 regulation that clarified that the federal law banning machine guns also bans bump-stock-type devices.
The attorneys general assert that the rule aligns with longstanding policies prohibiting automatic weapons and argue that overturning it would pose a threat to public safety and the safety of law enforcement officers.
“Bump stocks were deliberately developed and marketed to circumvent federal law banning civilian use of automatic weapons,” Schwalb said. “These devices are designed to convert semi-automatic firearms to illegal machine guns, with foreseeable tragic and deadly consequences. We urge the Supreme Court to prioritize public safety and the safety of law enforcement officers by upholding a reasonable, well-established rule classifying bump stocks as banned automatic weapons.”
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown joined the Schwalb effort along with their colleagues in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
