A federal appeals court on Friday, July 17 ruled that New Jersey's assault-weapons law barring possession of semiautomatic rifles like AR-15s and large-capacity magazines containing more than 10 rounds of ammunition is unconstitutional.
The ruling by the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals marked the first time a federal appeals court had ruled that a state's assault weapons ban violated the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport criticized the decision, saying "it is as unfortunate as it is legally incorrect."
"Every other federal circuit court to consider the issue has come out the other way," Davenport wrote in an email. "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."
That issue is already in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, which agreed in June to review rulings that had upheld similar bans adopted in Cook County, Illinois, and Connecticut against powerful semiautomatic rifles. The Supreme Court has a 6-3 conservative majority.
New Jersey revised its Code of Criminal Justice in 2025 to define dozens of weapons or weapon categories as "assault weapons," including Colt AR-15 and CAR-15 rifles, M1 "carbine type," certain kinds of shotguns and a firearm with a "bump stock" – a device to increase a firearm's ability for rapid repeat firing. Semi-automatic rifles with a magazine capacity of more than 10 rounds are also banned.
Another bill, currently in the New Jersey Assembly, would further tighten the state's leash on assault weapons. Assembly Bill 442 would ban rifles with detachable magazines and one military-style feature, semi-automatic shotguns with one military-style feature and semi-automatic pistols with one military-style feature.
Davenport said the state is "considering our options." Gov. Mikie Sherrill's office referred requests for comment to Davenport.
"We remain committed to working with our law enforcement partners to enforce our other firearms laws and treating gun violence like the public health crisis that it is," Davenport wrote.
On Friday, Republican Assemblyman Brian Bergen, who represents much of Morris County in the 26th District, referred to the U.S. Supreme Court Bruen decision in 2022, which held that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to carry a handgun in public for self-defense.
"After Bruen, I warned Trenton that it could not evade a Supreme Court decision by burying lawful gun owners under new restrictions," he said. "Today’s ruling sends the same message: The Second Amendment is a constitutional right, not a suggestion the Attorney General can disregard when he or she dislikes the result.”
Bergen, a West Point graduate who flew Apache helicopters in combat, said, "I have no illusions about weapons. They demand training, responsibility and respect."
"So does the Constitution," he added.
