Policy

Gun Rights: Will SCOTUS Block Implementation of High-Capacity Magazine Ban?

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The gun rights case Fyock v. City of Sunnyvale has just taken a very interesting turn. Last week the plaintiffs in that dispute, who are challenging a Sunnyvale, California, ordinance banning the possession of high-capacity gun magazines, failed to persuade both a federal district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit to block the ban from going into effect while their Second Amendment suit moves forward. Yesterday, those plaintiffs filed an emergency motion asking Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy (who fields such requests originating from the 9th Circuit) to stop the law, asking him to "simply preserve Applicants' rights while the case is decided on the merits."

Something in that emergency motion appears to have caught Kennedy's attention, because earlier today the justice asked the city of Sunnyvale to submit a response to him by 3 P.M. on Wednesday. Is Kennedy seriously entertaining the idea of putting the ban on hold while the case is fought out in court? We should have an answer later this week.