Appeals court says NJ’s AR-15, high-capacity magazine bans violate Second Amendment

Skip to content

A federal appeals court invalidated New Jersey’s ban on “assault” firearms and high-capacity magazines in a 10-5 vote on Friday, ruling that it violates the Second Amendment.

The decision by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals hands gun rights advocates one of their biggest legal victories yet on the issue as the Supreme Court gears up to provide a nationwide resolution next term in a separate case.

“The text of the Second Amendment covers all magazines, not just magazines that New Jersey considers ‘standard capacity,’” U.S. Circuit Judge Arianna Freeman wrote for the majority.

New Jersey originally enacted the restrictions in 1990. It effectively bans magazines exceeding 10 rounds and weapons deemed an “assault firearm,” a definition that covers AR-15s and similar models.

It’s the latest gun restriction to fall in the wake of the Supreme Court’s expansion of Second Amendment rights. A test laid out by the high court’s 6-3 conservative majority requires states to point to historical analogues to justify their gun control measures.

New Jersey turned to gunpowder storage laws and regulations on Bowie knives later enacted in many Western territories.

“But even setting aside the timing of regulations on Bowie knives, slungshots and clubs, pistols, and revolvers, none of those regulations are relevantly similar to the Assault Firearm Provisions,” Freeman wrote for the court.

Freeman is an appointee of former President Biden. Trump’s two second-term appointees to the 3rd Circuit, Emil Bove and Jennifer Mascott, were among the other judges who also agreed the restrictions should be struck down.

A group of dissenters led by U.S. Circuit Judge Patty Shwartz, an appointee of former President Obama, said that AR-15s and other assault-style weapons aren’t “arms” entitled to the Second Amendment’s protections.

“In sum, the AR-15’s history, features, and uses indicate it is an unusually dangerous tool used by the military and not an arm in common use by civilians for self-defense,” Shwartz wrote.

The decision lands as the Supreme Court prepares to hear challenges to similar measures enacted in Connecticut and the Chicago area. A decision is likely by next summer.

In New Jersey, the 3rd Circuit got involved after a federal judge issued a mixed ruling. The judge invalidated the ban on AR-15s specifically but kept the restrictions intact for other semi-automatic rifles and high-capacity magazines. The 3rd Circuit now invalidates the restrictions entirely.

“Today’s decision from the Third Circuit invalidating New Jersey’s careful laws restricting the AR-15 and large capacity magazines is as unfortunate as it is legally incorrect. Every other federal circuit court to consider the issue has come out the other way,” New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport (D) said in a statement.

“Assault weapons and large capacity magazines play a dangerous role in the modern epidemic of mass shootings, and New Jersey acted reasonably and lawfully in restricting them,” she added.

New Jersey’s restrictions had come under legal challenges from groups that included the Firearms Policy Coalition and the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) state affiliate.

“Today marks a historic victory for the NRA, the Second Amendment, and law-abiding Americans,” NRA Institute for Legislative Action Executive Director John Commerford said in a statement.

Tags

3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

ar-15

Assault weapons

guns

high-capacity magazine

New Jersey

second amendment

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.