NJ's assault rifle ban ruled unconstitutional
By: William Westhoven
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... A federal appeals court on Friday, July 17, [2026] ruled that New Jersey's assault-weapons law baring possession of semi-automatic rifles like AR-15s and large capacity magazines containing more than 10 rounds of ammunition is unconstitutional.
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The ruling by the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals marked the first time a federal apples court had ruled that a state's assault weapons ban violated the U.S. constitution's Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.
..... New Jersey's Attorney General Jennifer Davenport criticized he decision, saying "it is an unfortunate as is legally incorrect."
..... "Every other federal circuit court to consider the issue has come out the other way," Davenport wrote in an email. "Assault weapons and large-capacity magazines play a dangerous role in the modern epidemic of mass shootings, and New Jersey acted reasonably and lawfully in restriction them."
..... That issue is already in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, which agreed in June [2026] to review rulings that had upheld similar bans adapted in Cook County, Illinois, and Connecticut against powerful semi-automatic rifles. The Supreme Court has a 6-3 conservative majority.
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New Jersey revised its Code of Criminal Justice in 2025 to define dozens of weapons or weapon categories as "assault weapons," including Colt AR-15 and CAR-15 rifles, M1 "carbine type," certain kinds of shotguns and a firearm with a "bump stock" - advice to increase a firearm's ability for tepid repeat firing. Semi-automatic rifles with a magazine capacity of more than 10 round are also banned.
..... Another bill, currently in the New Jersey Assembly, would further tighten the state's leash on assault weapons. Assembly Bill 442 would ban rifles with detachable magazines and one military-style feature, semi-automatic shotguns with one military-style feature and sine-automaitc pistols with one military-style feature.
..... Davenport said the state is "considering our options." Governor Mikie Sherrill's office referred request for comment to Davenport.
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"We remain commuted to working with one law enforcement partners to enforce our other firearms laws and treating gun violence like the public health crisis hat it is," DAvenport wrote.
..... On Friday, [07/17/2026] republican Assemblyman Brian Bergen, who represents much of Morris County in the 26th district, refereed to the U.S. Supreme Court Bruen decision in 2022, which held that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to carry a hand gun in public for self-defense.
..... "After Bruen, I warned Trenton that it could not burying lawful gun owners under new restrictions," he said. "Today's [07/17/2026] ruling sends the same message: The Second Amendment is a constitutional right, not a suggestion the Attorney General can disregard when he or she dislikes the result."
.... Bergen, a West Point graduate who flew Apache helicopters in combat, said, "I have no illusions about weapons. They demand training responsibility and respect."
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"So does the Constitution," he added.