Howard Sklar

What does "in common use for lawful purposes" mean? If a weapon falls into that category, it cannot be banned. Full stop. The Constitution leaves the decision about what tools are proper for self-defense (as one example) *to the People.* But that doesn't put that test into Step 1 of Bruen, as some courts have mistakenly held. It just means that SCOTUS has done the heavy lifting of step 2 for you, if the weapon is in common use. There is NO HISTORICAL TRADITION of banning such weapons. And no analogy will overcome that absence. Weapons NOT in common use CAN STILL BE PROTECTED if there's no tradition of regulating/banning that weapon. One such tradition is regulating weapons that are both dangerous (beyond normal) and unusual. How do you tell if a weapon is in common use? Well…numbers are one way. The AR, for example, is more popular than the Ford F-150. But even without the massive numbers, there is no question that the People have chosen that weapon for home defense and for competition, two eminently lawful purposes. I believe "common use" also extends to weapons that don't sell into the millions. "Unusual" is *not* the opposite of "in common use." Something can be not "in common use" but still not "unusual." Suppressors, for example. Everywhere they're allowed, people buy them. They're prevalent. Which is a synonym for "common." Red dots. Night sights. 10+ magazines (30rd for ARs). Common. When it comes to ammunition, I'd say the common thread is that people buy magazines that allow the maximum amount of ammunition that fits in the standard grip. I don't think 50-100rd drums are in that category. But if tomorrow someone comes out with a 26rd magazine that fits into the standard Glock 19 grip…we shouldn't have to fight over it. The underlying principle here is that the PEOPLE have the right to decide what's necessary for our own defense, public and private.

DC asks the court to take the case that struck down its magazine ban en banc without asking for a response, saying that the decision "causes immediate and severe risks to public safety" and "opens the floodgates for large-capacity magazines [] to surge into the District."