The US Supreme Court has made a controversial decision to lift the ban on bump stocks, the rapid-fire gun accessory that was used in America’s deadliest mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017.
The court ruled on Friday that the government did not have the right to ban bump stocks, which were banned by the Trump administration after the Las Vegas shooting that killed 60 people. The ban was challenged by a Texas gun shop owner who argued that the government had overstepped its authority in defining bump stocks as machine guns, which are illegal under federal law.
In a split decision, the court said that a semi-automatic rifle with a bump stock attachment does not qualify as a machine gun under federal law. Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, who wrote the court’s opinion, stated that the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms had “exceeded” its authority in banning bump stocks.
However, three of the nine justices dissented, including Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor. Justice Sotomayor expressed concern over the decision, stating that putting bump stocks back in civilian hands could have “deadly consequences.”
The debate over whether bump stocks should be considered machine guns was a central point in the case. Some justices questioned the ban during a hearing in March, pointing out the technical differences in how a bump-stock gun fires compared to a machine gun.
Bump stocks harness a rifle’s recoil to rapidly fire multiple rounds, allowing the gun to fire without the user having to move their finger. The Las Vegas shooter used bump stocks to fire hundreds of rounds per minute, resulting in mass casualties at a music festival.
While a spokeswoman for Donald Trump’s campaign supported the court’s decision, a spokesman for President Joe Biden criticized it, stating that “weapons of war have no place on the streets of America.”
The decision to lift the ban on bump stocks has reignited the debate over gun control in the United States, with advocates on both sides expressing strong opinions on the matter.
