In the ever-escalating battlefield of Second Amendment litigation, a recent challenge to Denver’s sweeping semi-automatic rifle ban is making waves, but as the headline astutely notes, it’s missing a critical angle on common use. The case, spearheaded by plaintiffs invoking the Supreme Court’s Bruen framework, argues that these firearms—your standard AR-15s and similar platforms—are in common use among law-abiding citizens for self-defense. It’s a solid line of attack, backed by mountains of data from the ATF’s own National Firearms Manufacturing Survey showing semi-autos dominating production and ownership stats (over 25 million AR-style rifles alone in circulation). Yet, the critique here is spot-on: challengers are overly fixated on empirical commonality, sidelining the deeper constitutional truth that common use isn’t just a popularity contest—it’s about the inherent right to arms bearing a likeness to those at the Founding, unhindered by modern nanny-state metrics.
This oversight matters because Denver’s ban, like those in Boulder and beyond, doesn’t just target assault weapons; it criminalizes the most popular rifle in America today, effectively nullifying the individual right affirmed in Heller and Bruen. By leaning too hard on stats without hammering the historical tradition test—where muskets evolved into repeaters without judicial interference—plaintiffs risk letting judges like those in the 10th Circuit play goalie with commonality thresholds. Imagine if common use in 1791 required a sales quota; the right would be DOA. The implications for the 2A community are stark: victories in friendlier circuits (e.g., Rahimi’s ripple effects) show Bruen’s power, but urban enclaves like Denver test our resolve. If this challenge falters on a technicality, it hands ammo to gun-grabbers pushing nationwide registries or sensitive places expansions.
Gun owners, take note—this isn’t just a Denver dust-up; it’s a preview of state-level showdowns post-Bruen II. Support the Rocky Mountain Gun Owners funding this fight, and push your reps to preempt with pro-2A legislation. The real common use is us, the people, exercising our rights daily. Stay vigilant; the line holds when we draw it ourselves.
