The United States Court of
Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruling in June of 2016 found that machine
guns dangerous and unusual weapons are not protected under the Second
Amendment. The ruling stems from a case in which a Texas man was prevented from
converting an AR-15 into a M16.
The M16 has been widely used by the U.S.
military, but is banned for personal use except for pre-1986 models that are
obtained legally. The Gun Control Act of 1968 was amended in 1986 to preclude
the sale or possession of machine guns by private citizens.
That law was upheld in 2008’s District of Columbia v. Heller, which
found that only handgun possession for protection was legally protected by the
Second Amendment--not machine guns. Jay Hollis, the Texas man in question,
pursued a variety of arguments in order to legally convert his AR-15 into an
M16, none of which the Appeals court found convincing.
Arguments that the
Second Amendment should allow for M16s because they are the “quintessential militia-styled
arm for the modern day” were dismissed because machine guns are “nothing like
what militias might have used at the founding of the republic.”
The ruling’s impact won’t be
seen for some time. It can still be contested, but it must be taken to
the United States Supreme Court, which may or may not choose hear it. A refusal to
hear the case would mean that the Appeals Court ruling stands, which will
create a new precedent that could work in the favor of gun control advocates.
The
Supreme Court hasn’t been taking on such cases of late, but that could change in
the future. Should the ruling stand, it could create a precedent for future
ruling that can be used by gun control advocates to find ways around Congress’s
refusal to touch the subject.
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