I’m going to get right to it.
Washington Gun Rights is submitting an Amicus Brief to the United States Supreme Court over the AR-15 ban that took effect in Illinois last year, and we need your help right away!
I know, I know, this is Washington, not Illinois.
But there’s a reason for this that I’ll explain below. First, I want to explain why RIGHT NOW is the time to get into court.
Whatever you think of President Trump, the impact of his judicial nominations will be felt for decades to come.
During his four years in office, Trump successfully appointed a staggering 174 Federal District Court judges. This is the lowest court in the federal process, but these are lifetime appointments!
In addition, Trump added 54 Federal Circuit Court judges to the bench. Circuit Courts hear all appeals from the District Court.
And, of course, everyone knows that Trump appointed 3 Associate Justices to the United States Supreme Court.
Over the last few years, we’ve seen the results.
Dozens of state and federal gun control laws have been blocked in District Court. Most of these cases have been upheld in Circuit Courts across the country. And then there was the massive Bruen decision from the United States Supreme Court in 2022!
The Bruen decision reshaped the Second Amendment field.
Previously, courts analyzed gun control laws through a two-pronged approach. First, was the law in question an infringement on an individual right covered by the Heller Decision?
If not, the court then applied ‘means-end scrutiny.’ Judges would decide if the gun law furthered a ‘governmental interest.’
Since the majority of federal judges certainly prior to Trump were anti-gun, they almost ALWAYS found a ‘governmental interest’ to justify and uphold gun control laws.
That’s why 90% of the legal challenges filed in court in the wake of the Heller decision from 2008 failed!
Bruen changed all of that. Now gun control laws need to pass the first two criteria but must also show that the law has a historical precedent that justifies its existence.
Writing for the majority, Clarence Thomas said:
We hold that when the Second Amendment’s plain text covers an individual’s conduct, the Constitution presumptively protects that conduct. To justify its regulation, the government may not simply posit that the regulation promotes an important interest. Rather, the government must demonstrate that the regulation is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.
This new judicial standard is why now is the best time to fight in court in generations. And WGR is not hesitating!
FIGHT BACK AGAINST JAY INSLEE! DONATE HERE!
Here in Washington, the litigation challenging Jay Inslee’s ban on AR-15s is on track. But it’s moving slowly.
The lawyers in charge of this effort understand that the chances of us getting a favorable verdict from a Federal District Court judge are slim.
That’s why they are pursuing a federal jury trial, instead.
To be clear, Washington Gun Rights supports this approach because it will give us a much better chance at victory in the long term. The downside is that the trial doesn’t begin until this summer.
At the same time, in Illinois (which passed an identical AR-15 ban last year) gun owners in our sister organization have already been through the District AND Circuit Court process -– meaning they are ready to appeal to the United States Supreme Court!
To be clear, it’s not easy getting a case heard by SCOTUS.
The process itself is simple. The party must file what’s known as a certiorari petition (cert petition) asking the court to agree to hear the case. And four justices must agree with the cert petition for the case to make it onto the docket.
That’s the hard part.
Because whenever a gun rights organization seeks a cert petition with the United States Supreme Court, dozens of Leftist groups file Amicus Briefs urging the court to refuse the case.
It’s easy for them.
With almost limitless funds from Soros or Bloomberg-backed organizations, their lawyers can file briefs one after the next.
But if gun rights organizations like Washington Gun Rights flood the court with Amicus Briefs urging the court to take the challenge out of Illinois, we could tip the scale.
We need to try!
HELP US FILE OUR AMICUS TO SCOTUS!
You already know the reason: If the United States Supreme Court strikes down the ‘assault weapons ban’ in Illinois it will overturn the ban here in Washington State, too!
And since the fight over Inslee’s AR-15 ban needs to go through District Court and then Circuit Court, before it can be appealed, joining the Illinois case, will save us valuable time.
In fact, the Illinois case could bring this issue to a head eighteen months faster than if we waited on our lawsuits here.
I’m sure you can see why we’re so excited to proceed!
But filing Amicus Briefs with the Supreme Court isn’t cheap. And, given the timetable that we are working with (I’ve had to tell our lawyers to work very quickly) the costs rise fast.
And that’s why I am writing to you today.
It is imperative that Washington Gun Rights raises $33,000 in the next three weeks, to make sure that our lawyers can join this cert petition with the hardest-hitting Amicus Brief possible!
I am hoping that you will consider a gift of $100 or even $250 to make that happen.
It’s a lot, I know.
But the stakes simply could not be higher. And since this is the most pro-gun Supreme Court that we’ve had in our lifetime, there has never been a better time to make this stand!
Your support will enable our lawyers to review the Illinois case, the decisions from the lower court judges, and the Amicus Briefs filed by the gun control organizations.
Once that’s done, they’ll be able to craft our Amicus Brief to fit the situation.
But we have to hurry.
With the cert petition having been filed, we must file our Amicus Brief in support in 30 days!
This may be our best chance at overturning Inslee’s AR-15 ban, please make your most generous donation TODAY!
For Freedom,
Aaron Dorr
Executive Director
Washington Gun Rights
P.S. While we continue fighting to overturn the AR-15 ban that Jay Inslee signed last year, gun owners in Illinois are doing the same thing, and their case may make it to the Supreme Court FAST!
Bloomberg and other Left-leaning organizations are trying to stop this because this is the most pro-gun court in our lifetime.
And if the Supreme Court overturns the Illinois AR-15 ban, they’ll overturn ours at the exact same time!
But first, the Court needs to agree to take up this case. That’s why Washington Gun Rights is filing an Amicus Brief, urging the Court to review the Illinois case. To do that, we need your help!
MAKE A DONATION TO HELP GET THE AR-15 BAN TO JUSTICE THOMAS!
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