FPC asks the full D.C. Circuit to let gun owners into court¶
What happened. FPC filed an opening brief and a petition for initial hearing en banc in Wehr-Darroca v. District of Columbia, its challenge to D.C.'s ban on magazines holding more than ten rounds. A district court dismissed the case under D.C. Circuit precedent (Navegar, Seegars and Parker) that requires a heightened showing of a specific threat of prosecution before a gun owner can sue. Under the ban, violators face a felony punishable by up to three years in prison and a $12,500 fine. FPC also argues that its members' cost of buying restricted-capacity replacement magazines gives them standing under the court's recent Angelo v. District of Columbia decision.
Why it matters. FPC says the D.C. Circuit treats Second Amendment cases differently from other constitutional cases. Translation: to challenge a gun ban there, you practically have to volunteer for prosecution first. As FPC President Brandon Combs put it, "The Second Amendment is not a second-class right, and gun owners are not second-class citizens."