Gun Rights Advocates Over Bump Stocks, Rejected By the Supreme Court

Due to modern innovations and creations, people nowadays have greater and easier lives to live with. These new creations helped us in so many ways to make our daily tasks, easier and lighter. We can create innovations for entertainment purposes, for educational, and professional objectives. We are also able to develop and improve the communication systems that enabled us to be connected despite the distances. There are also innovations for defense and regulatory purposes which includes guns, weapons, or other firearms.

For example, these innovations are used in wars that were meant to protect a territory from terrorist attacks or other else. These innovations also helped the fallen heroes in defending a territory and claiming the freedom they deserve. But, all of these are used and will only be used in a specific purpose. There are limitations and regulations in using things like these. It might bring harm and threat once used in other purposes like robbery, murder, and other else. On the other hand, due to the human’s wide imagination for more innovations, these guns, firearms, and other weapons are also open for change. One great example of that is the bump stock.

What Is A Bump Stock?

A bump stock is a result of human’s wide imagination for innovation. It is a device/tool that can be attached in guns like semiautomatic rifles to make it fire bullets faster. In short, bump stocks are used for bump firing. A bump stock was invented by Jeremiah Cottle, a Slide Fire’s founder. Bump stocks were once sold by a company called Fostech but do no longer now. These bump stocks made a bipartisan interest for its regulation after the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting incident. Senator Dianne Feinstein proposed and introduced a bill on October 4, 2017, that will ban all bump stocks, bump stock makers, and also the sellers, but it was not approved and acted upon. On the other hand, President Donald Trump had instructed the ATF to regulate and to treat bump stocks as machineguns last February 20, 2018. President Trump stated that bump stocks and other firearms must be monitored to ensure the safety of law enforcement personnel and other respondents.

How Does A Bump Stock Works?

A bump stock is firstly attached into a semiautomatic rifle. Then, it can be used just like what a normal machine gun does, but much better. The only difference is that bump stocks are designed to slide back and forth until the bullets are out. It enables the shooter to have more control over the firearm. On the other hand, a regular gun or machine gun is only used to bounce back and forth off the shooter’s arms and shoulders.

These devices are considered harmful and might bring a threat to people. Tools like these were mostly used by terrorists in shooting incidents. This is the reason for it to be banned and regulated by laws. These bump stocks can’t be adjusted for it will result in many shooting and killing incidents. Then, people will be frightened, and they will feel unsafe and unsecured anymore.

Recently, the Supreme Court of the United States denied the request for the temporary blockage of the rule of Trump’s administration banning bump stocks. In an unsigned and brief order, the claim made by gun-rights groups to take the regulation, and considered effective on April 3, on hold for the person who had brought the case against another and challenges the ban in some lower and local courts was denied. Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas stated that they would have voted to make and put the rule on pause or hold.

The Department of Justice already issued a rule in December stating a previous prohibition against automatic weapons and other firearms to cover up also the bump stocks. After the ban went into an effect, civilians and groups who own bump stocks fiercely asked the court to take a step as they seek to appeal and ask for a larger and better panel of judges on the District of Columbia Circuit’s Court of Appeals.

They argue that the Administration had violated the Administrative Procedure Act in times of the creation of the rule.

A lawyer argued that the rule under the Bureau of Alcohol, Explosives, Firearms, and Tobacco, clearly states that the Applicants and their respective members must destroy or surrender their properties or else, they are required to face the consequences or felony charges for possessing unquestionably legal devices.

Lawyers of the Trump’s Administration asked and pushed the Supreme Court to deny a request similar last month, arguing that this rule will be and is necessary for the improvement and advancement of the safety of law enforcers.

The ban states that all bump stocks, semiautomatic rifles, and other firearms are regulated and owners of the mentioned are requested to destroy it. If not, any owner caught still possessing and using these weapons will spend their lives in 10 years imprisonment.

The banning of these bump stocks, rifles, and other firearms is the result of serial mass killings and shooting from different countries all over the world. The mass shooting at the two mosques, Christchurch, New Zealand and the Las Vegas massacre that killed 58 innocent people were only some of that. It was investigated and reported that the suspects in this mass shooting attacks used a bump stock to accomplish their dark mission quickly. It took them only a little time to shoot the mass because a we all know that a bump stock allows a firearm to fire its bullets rapidly.

This world is getting darker as time goes by. Violence like shootings and bombing are now ruling and soon will ruin humanity. Let us hope for the government to make some actions in regards to these incidents. Let us make our world a better place to live in, not just for our own sake but also for future generations.