Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is leading a 27-state coalition urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Washington state’s ban on firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. The coalition filed an amicus brief Monday in Gator’s Custom Guns, Inc. v. State of Washington, arguing the law violates the Second Amendment.
In May, the Washington Supreme Court upheld the 2022 ban, reversing a lower court ruling that had struck down the law as unconstitutional. Knudsen and his counterparts say the decision misinterprets both history and precedent established in landmark Supreme Court cases.
“The Supreme Court needs to step in to uphold Americans’ right to keep and bear arms,” Knudsen said. “Law-abiding citizens should not be treated like criminals for exercising their right to protect themselves. Washington’s failure to properly interpret the Second Amendment and ban plus-ten magazines ignores both history and constitutional precedent.”
The brief notes that magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds are in “common use” for lawful purposes, including self-defense, hunting, and sport shooting. The coalition cites District of Columbia v. Heller and New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which direct courts to measure modern firearm regulations against the Second Amendment’s text and historical understanding.
“Washington’s restrictions burden the rights of millions of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear magazines that have long been considered appropriate for self-defense,” Knudsen argued.
Attorneys general from Idaho, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming, as well as the Arizona Legislature, joined Montana in the filing.
The case now awaits consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court.