07/18/2026
Knowledge and Awareness
New Jersey’s long war on ordinary ri**es and standard mags just ran into a wall at the Third Circuit. In a 10–5 en banc decision, the court struck down the state’s so‑called “assault firearm” ban and its 10‑round magazine limit, holding that New Jersey can’t outlaw a whole class of semi‑automatic ri**es, including AR‑15s, or the magazines they run on, when millions of Americans own and use them for lawful self‑defense. This is the first time a federal appeals court has clearly said a state’s r***e ban crosses the Second Amendment line, and the ruling goes beyond the old district court win that only protected one specific AR‑15 model while leaving the mag ban intact.
Groups like FPC, ANJRPC, NRA, SAF, and CNJFO have been grinding on these cases for years, and today’s decision is exactly what they were fighting for: a clear acknowledgement that you can’t call something an “assault weapon” and magically move it outside the Constitution. With SCOTUS already set to hear r***e‑ban cases out of Illinois and Connecticut next term, this decision adds even more pressure and sets up a direct clash between circuits that have tried to uphold similar laws and a Third Circuit that just said “no.”
