Two organizations advocating for gun control have urged the Supreme Court to consider a case regarding laws that prohibit modern semiautomatic firearms as a chance to overturn its significant Heller ruling.
The justices have agreed to review two cases linked to bans on modern semiautomatic firearms in Cook County, Illinois (which includes Chicago), and Connecticut. They will hear arguments on the constitutional validity of these so-called assault weapon bans. Among the many legal briefs submitted to the Supreme Court was one from Americans Against Gun Violence and another from the American Enlightenment Project, both calling for the reversal of the Court’s significant 2008 Heller v. District of Columbia decision. (RELATED: Supreme Court Brief Supporting Blue State’s Semi-Auto Ban Argues Part Of Second Amendment Is ‘Extinct’)
Americans Against Gun Violence criticized the Heller decision, asserting in its brief that it contradicts the history and clear wording of the Second Amendment and has severe public health repercussions. They stated, “A ruling in favor of Petitioners in the present case would compound those devastating consequences.”
The group further argued for the Supreme Court to declare that civilian ownership of AR-15s isn’t constitutionally protected, and to acknowledge that the Heller ruling was incorrect.
Now in Viramontes, we have an amicus from “Americans Against Gun Violence,” that decided to boldly go where no other brief today has gone: Asking the Supreme Court to overturn Heller https://t.co/JmYnkvDCj4
— Firearms Policy Coalition (@gunpolicy) October 28, 2026
In the Heller ruling, the Supreme Court invalidated Washington, D.C.’s 1982 ban on handguns, determining it was a violation of the Second Amendment. The Americans Against Gun Violence brief pointed out that England’s gun laws indicate that the Founding Fathers did not mean to guarantee an individual right to own firearms.
“The most obvious modern evidence that the Founders could not have inherited a broad right to private gun ownership from their English ancestors lies in the fact that, although the 1689 English Declaration of Rights remains in effect, Britain has some of the strictest gun control laws in any high-income democratic nation, including a total ban on civilian ownership of handguns and most automatic and semi-automatic long guns,” the organization claimed.
Meanwhile, the American Enlightenment Project also contended that the 2008 decision was incorrect but requested the Supreme Court to “reconsider” the case, arguing it has led to a “gun crisis” in the U.S.
“In constitutionalizing broad firearms possession, Heller amplifies the predictable consequences of anger, intoxication, and impulsive behavior,” said co-founder Robert Ludwig in their brief. “Its costs are measured not only in lives but are pervasive.”
As reported on the Supreme Court’s website, around 40 “amicus” briefs, or “friend of the court” briefs, have been filed by members of the House of Representatives, led by Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia, several U.S. Senators, 27 states, the federal government through the Department of Justice, and many pro-Second Amendment organizations in support of the challenge to the bans on “assault weapons.”
The Supreme Court will listen to oral arguments on December 2 and is anticipated to announce its decision on the case in the summer of 2027.
