The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on Cook County, Illinois’ long-standing ban on commonly owned semiautomatic rifles like the AR-15. The case, Viramontes v. Cook County, could become the defining test of whether America’s most popular rifle falls under the full protection of the Second Amendment.
“This case is the ideal vehicle for the Supreme Court to say—once and for all—that semiautomatic rifles like the AR-15 are protected by the Constitution,” said FPC President Brandon Combs. “The stakes could not be higher: If the Second Amendment doesn’t cover the most popular rifles in America, then it covers virtually nothing at all.”
Combs didn’t mince words about what’s at stake:
“The Supreme Court must end this lawless two-step where politicians ban arms they dislike and judges pretend that’s constitutional to rubber-stamp their policy preferences. The AR-15 is the most popular rifle in America, owned by millions of peaceable people for lawful purposes every day. The Bill of Rights is not a suggestion, and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right. It’s time for the Court to make that unmistakably clear to the lower courts.”
The Petition’s Argument
According to the petition, modern semiautomatic rifles are not just common, but central to the lawful exercise of the right to keep and bear arms. In fact, AR-15 platform rifles are the single most popular rifles in the nation, and semiauto rifles as a whole trail only semiauto pistols in sales.
The filing stresses the constitutional gravity:
“It is hard to imagine a court of appeals treating any other provision of the Bill of Rights this way. If the Second Amendment is not to be relegated to second-class status, and if it truly is intended to elevate above all other interests the right of law-abiding, responsible citizens to use arms for self-defense, then the decision below must be overturned.”
Who’s Involved
FPC is joined in this litigation by two of its members and the Second Amendment Foundation. The plaintiffs are represented by David H. Thompson, Peter A. Patterson, and William Bergstrom of Cooper & Kirk, PLLC. The FPC Action Foundation provided additional strategic support.
The full petition and related case documents are available at firearmspolicy.org/viramontes.
About FPC
The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit dedicated to defending and advancing individual liberty. Through lawsuits, legislative action, scholarship, and grassroots efforts, FPC has become one of the leading voices in restoring the right to keep and bear arms across the United States.
Our Take
Cook County’s AR-15 ban has been on the books for years, serving more as political theater than as any meaningful public safety measure. Everyone knows criminals aren’t lining up at gun stores to buy ARs legally, yet the county insists on disarming its law-abiding residents while crime rates remain sky-high.
This case could finally give the Supreme Court a chance to put an end to the endless game of “ban first, justify later” that anti-gun politicians play. The AR-15 is not some obscure or fringe weapon—it’s the most popular rifle in the country. Millions of Americans own them, train with them, and rely on them for sport, hunting, and defense. Pretending they fall outside the Second Amendment is as absurd as saying free speech doesn’t apply to the internet because the Founders never saw where the evolution of technology would go.
If SCOTUS takes this case, the decision could reshape the entire national conversation on so-called “assault weapon” bans. Lower courts have been ducking, dodging, and inventing hoops to keep these laws alive. It’s time for some clarity—and hopefully, some constitutional backbone from the justices.
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