Gun Rights Group Asks Supreme Court To Keep Blue County From Dodging Semi-Auto Gun Showdown

The Second Amendment Foundation has asked the US Supreme Court to continue hearing its challenge to Cook County, Illinois’s ban on modern semiautomatic firearms. The county wants the case dismissed after lead plaintiff Cutberto Viramontes sought to withdraw, but the group argues another plaintiff still has a live interest in challenging the law.

That plaintiff, Christopher Khaya, says he wants to buy an AR-15-style rifle and a civilian version of the Galil; the foundation argues the county’s ban covers both. Its filing also includes a declaration from Cook County resident Ed Smolen, who says he owns an AR-15 but keeps it outside the county because of the ban. The court is also due to hear a separate challenge to Connecticut’s rifle ban on 2 December.