DOJ Sues Denver, Colorado Over Gun Bans

The Department of Justice filed two Second Amendment lawsuits this week targeting Denver's 'assault weapon' ban and Colorado's statewide 15-round magazine limit.

Driving the news: Assistant AG Harmeet Dhillon filed United States v. Denver on Tuesday and United States v. Colorado on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. Both suits seek permanent injunctions. Both argue the same thing: these bans cover arms in common use for lawful purposes, and no historical tradition justifies banning them under Bruen.

Catch up quick:

• Denver's ordinance dates to 1989 and bans any semi-auto pistol or centerfire rifle with a magazine over 15 rounds — which covers standard-configuration AR-15s and most full-size 9mm pistols
• Colorado's magazine ban, on the books since 2013, bars sale, transfer, or possession of any magazine over 15 rounds statewide
• The DOJ established a dedicated Second Amendment Section inside the Civil Rights Division last year; these suits are part of that ongoing campaign

By the numbers: The complaints make the "common use" case with hard data.

• Americans own more than 32 million modern sporting rifles
• Between 1990 and 2021, Americans bought more than 400 million rifle magazines holding 30+ rounds
• In 2019, rifles of all types were used in 364 homicides — compared to 6,368 for handguns and 600 for bare hands and feet

The legal hook is unusual: Dhillon is using 34 USC 12601 — the same federal civil rights statute enacted after the Rodney King beating to address police misconduct — arguing that enforcing these bans constitutes a pattern or practice of depriving people of constitutionally protected rights. Denver City Attorney Miko Brown and Colorado AG Phil Weiser both called this a misuse of the statute. They're not wrong that it's a novel application. They may not be right that it fails.

Yes, but: Six federal appellate courts have upheld assault weapon bans and magazine limits since Bruen. Weiser is promising a vigorous defense and has the circuit court record to point to. These cases will almost certainly not end in Colorado.

"The Constitution is not a suggestion and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right. Denver's ban on commonly owned semi-automatic rifles directly violates the right to bear arms." — Acting AG Todd Blanche

What to watch: The Supreme Court is the real audience here. Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh have all signaled openness to striking down assault weapon bans. If either of these cases reaches SCOTUS, it could settle the circuit split that's let these bans survive for years. That's almost certainly the point.

The bottom line: This isn't just about Denver or Colorado. The DOJ is building a vehicle to get magazine bans and semi-auto restrictions in front of a Supreme Court that may finally be ready to bury them.