Thurston County Judge Blocks Lawsuit to Overturn Weapons Ban

Friday, a Thurston County Judge sided with WA State Attorney General Bob Ferguson and rejected a lawsuit challenging the state's new ban on many semi-automatic weapons.

  Ferguson was able to get the case moved from Grant to Thurston County

This was the second state lawsuit against House Bill 1240, which went into effect immediately once signed by Gov. Inslee. It bans not only the sale of dozens of semi-automatic weapons but also many pieces of support equipment, such as sights, certain types of stocks, and other non-firing elements used with firearms.

The term assault weapon is actually inaccurate, as these kinds of firearms (such as AR-15's) are referred to by media and the AG.  By the US Army definition, an assault weapon is a fully automatic gun that requires only one pull of the trigger to fire multiple rounds.

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Judge Allyson Zipp, ruling in Guardian Arms vs. Ferguson and the State of WA, allowed HB 1240 to remain. An earlier state case, Hartford vs. Ferguson et al was also rejected.

There is a third Federal lawsuit still pending on the issue.  The new law does not affect current possession of such semi-automatic weapons, just the sale, marketing, and manufacture of them in WA state.