Virginia Governor Spanberger Signs “Red Flag” Laws and Amends AWB to Be Even Worse
The Virginia governor has more than 20 gun control bills on her desk this week.
On April 13, she signed HB901/SB495, which dramatically expands the state’s “red flag” law to include mental health professionals, doctors, designees of local community services boards, immediate family/household members, intimate partners, and even school administrators or designees. Red flag laws have been weaponized and nearly always lead to confiscation without a trial or due process. Previously, only an attorney for the Commonwealth or a law enforcement officer could initiate such measures.
Spanberger added expansive amendments to the “assault weapons” and “high capacity magazine” ban bills (HB 217 / SB 749), which lawmakers will vote on when they reconvene on April 22.
Gun Owners of America Dives Deeper Into the ATF’s Illegal, One Billion Record Gun Registry
Any registry of gun owners is in violation of federal law, yet the ATF has admitted to having over one billion such records. Although it is an incomplete registry, the ATF asks FFLs to turn in searchable records or convert paper records it receives into a searchable format, with the aim of building a full registry.
Gun Owners Foundation Amicus Brief in Challenge Against the NFA Shows Suppressors Are in Common Use
There are three (some might argue four) major lawsuits challenging the National Firearms Act weapons registry subsequent to the abolishment of the $200 tax stamp.
In one of these cases, a plaintiff named Mr. Peterson was indicted on a felony charge for not having registered a suppressor under the NFA, even though courts have found that “silencers are not bearable arms within the scope of the Second Amendment….” (Courts have actually been on every side of this argument).
This recent brief from Gun Owners Foundation shows over 3.5 million silencers lawfully registered nationwide, putting them in common use.
New York Introduces Legislation to Tightly Control BB Guns, Air Rifles, and Pellet Guns
Two measures in New York (S9215 / A10701) would redefine BB guns, pellet guns, and air guns to fall under the state’s “Imitation Weapon” label and, in so doing requires manufacturers to treat them the same as regular weapons when it comes to implementing “reasonable controls and procedures” to make sure they do not fall into the wrong hands.
Under this redefinition, it forces manufacturers to plug the barrel, rendering an airgun useless. It also raises the minimum legal age to purchase paint pellet guns or “other types of air guns” from 16 to 18.
Suppressors Everywhere – Why They Are in Common Use and Why the NFA Is Not a Presumptively Constitutional Shall-Issue Regime
Brown v. ATF is a challenge against the NFA by a coalition of gun rights groups filed in August of 2025. On April 14, the Second Amendment Foundation and co-plaintiffs filed a Supplemental Brief addressing a flawed argument by the government:
The Government argues that the “in common use” inquiry “cannot be reduced to a strictly numerical test,” but must also include whether a weapon is in common use for a lawful purpose.
The brief then answers that question, stating, “…Americans lawfully own 5.8 million suppressors, rendering them ‘in common use’ for purposes of the Second Amendment.”
As for the government defending the NFA as a presumptively lawful licensing scheme, the brief points out they rely entirely on footnote 9 in Bruen, which is purely dicta, adding, “…the Government has applied the NFA ‘toward abusive ends’ by leveraging the Act to establish a registry of protected arms.”
Hawaii Agrees to Injunction in Case Challenging Non-Resident Carry Ban. But…
In an April 15 court order issued by United States District Judge Jill A. Otake, Hawaii has agreed to a “Stipulated Final Judgment and Permanent Injunction” (essentially the terms and conditions of the order) in which Hawaii must pay $35,000 in fees and cease enforcing its carry ban against non-residents, challenged in Solinsky v. Lopez.
However, it is notable that the state is specifically limited and “permanently enjoined from enforcing, against plaintiffs and plaintiff Hawaii Rifle Association’s members.”
Ninth Circuit Appeals Court Reverses 12th Second Amendment Panel Victory
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is consistent in its judicial activism, continuing its pattern of reversing pro-Second Amendment rulings and re-hearing them en banc (to presumably derive the desired outcome).
Baird v. Bonta is the 12th such case to be vacated and reheard, according to an April 15 order by the court. The pattern was reported by Kostas Moros, Director of Legal Research and Education for the Second Amendment Foundation, in an April 15 post on X.
Mr. Moros recently wrote a thoughtful opinion piece for News2A on the role of the Attorney General in light of Pam Bondi’s recent departure.
DOJ Asks Court to Dismiss Its Own Appeal in Case Challenging ATF’s “Engaged in the Business” Rule
The ATF’s “Engaged in the Business” Rule so dramatically expanded the definition of a firearms “dealer” that even the sale of one firearm could place a person into a category of a “firearms dealer,” with stiff criminal penalties for conducting what used to be a constitutionally protected activity.
In June of 2024, a court issued a preliminary injunction preventing that rule from being enforced, which the Bondi DOJ appealed.
On April 16, the DOJ dropped its appeal against the injunction, stating that, “A notice of proposed rulemaking addressing the same subject matter as the challenged rule is forthcoming. In light of the forthcoming NPRM, the government has determined that it is not appropriate to continue this appeal.”
However, without a court determining the constitutionality of such a rule, a future administration could simply reimplement the rule, or one similar to it.
Hypocrisy’s Deadly Price: Anti-Gun Politician Commits “Gun Violence” in Murder-Suicide
In the early hours of April 16, former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, once hailed as a “gun safety champion” by gun control group Giffords, shot his estranged wife and then turned it on himself in a murder-suicide, according to reports.
Fairfax championed Virginia’s strict gun control measures – including red flag laws and framing gun violence as a “national health crisis emergency,” along with policies designed to disarm law-abiding citizens.
The tragedy proves that armed self-defense and personal responsibility – not more laws – protect the innocent, while criminals will ignore laws that exist.
Kentucky Legislature Overrides Governor’s Veto, Allowing Concealed Carry for 18-20-Year-Olds Under Provisional License
On March 20, the Kentucky House and Senate sent a bill to the Governor’s desk that had overwhelmingly positive support from both chambers. HB312 allows concealed carry for adults under 21 through a provisional license that can be converted to a standard license upon reaching 21. The provisional license requirements include at least eight hours of instruction on firearms education, safety, and training, along with a written test and a live-fire training component.
Democrat Governor Beshear vetoed it because he had a friend who was murdered by a criminal, stating during his veto message, “Tonight, I’m remembering my friend Tommy Elliott, who was murdered along with four other children of God three years ago in an act of gun violence.”
On Wednesday, April 15, Kentucky lawmakers overrode that veto.
Additionally, the legislature overrode House Bill 78, which provides critical protections for firearm industry members from third-party misuse of products they manufacture or sell, helping to prevent frivolous lawsuits designed to attack the firearms industry.
