Federal Judge Overturns ATF Ban

(ConservativeSense.com) – A federal Judge has overturned an Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Agency (ATF) ban on pistol braces. In the Northern District of Texas, Judge Reed O’Connor granted the plaintiff’s summary motion request in Mock v Garland. He ruled that the ATF regulations were vague and the agency had offered no satisfactory explanation for altering its previous classifications. Prior regulations did not categorize pistols as rifles when affixed with braces, and it was unclear why that rule was changed and the guns reclassified, the Judge said.

O’Connor furthermore decided that the new regulations “violated the Administrative Procedure Act’s procedural requirements because it was arbitrary and capricious.” Gun rights activists hailed the ruling as a significant victory and expansive victory.

The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) and co-plaintiffs initiated the case. FPC president Brandon Combs described Judge O’Connor’s decision as proof that law-abiding Americans can “take on” the Biden administration and win. He said President Biden “hates” gun owners and seeks to turn millions of Americans into felons. He promised to take the matter to the Supreme Court.

The case relates to AR-15-style pistols, which the ATF determined should be classified as rifles if attached with pistol braces. One of the most popular guns in America, the rule would have applied to millions of firearms and obliged their owners to pay a $200 tax and register the weapon under the terms of the National Firearms Act.

The Biden administration claimed that the relevant pistols, which have a barrel around half the size of a traditional rifle, are a favored weapon in mass shootings, but gun groups insist this is untrue.

The President and Donald Trump have made their positions clear during election campaigning, with President Biden promising to continue his pursuit of gun control on the day his son was convicted for illegal weapon possession. Donald Trump has spoken at several National Rifle Association events and accused Biden of trying to “rip firearms out of the hands of law-abiding citizens.”