A federal judge in Chicago has denied a request for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to block the Illinois “assault weapons” ban and a similar ordinance in Naperville. 

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall on Friday deemed the bans on selling so-called “assault weapons” as “constitutionally sound.”

The decision is believed to be the first from a federal judge considering whether bans on black rifles meet the standards set by a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling authored by Justice Clarence Thomas last summer.

Lawyers representing the National Association for Gun Rights and Robert Bevis, a gun store owner in Naperville, had filed the lawsuit seeking to halt the bans and claimed that the new state gun law and a similar Naperville ordinance cannot meet the requirements set by the U.S. Supreme Court in the aforementioned landmark case of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. 

In the SCOTUS ruling, restrictions on weapons must be limited to dangerous and unusual arms that aren’t commonly used.

They argued the ruling does not align with the nation’s “historical tradition of firearm regulation,” and that the weapons banned by the Illinois law are “unquestionably” in common use.

SEE ALSO: Illinois Bans So-Called ‘Assault Weapons’

“An arm that is in common use for lawful purposes is, by definition, not unusual,” the lawyers wrote. “Such an arm therefore cannot be both dangerous and unusual and therefore cannot be subjected to a blanket ban.”

However, Judge Kendall disagreed and ruled in favor of the ban on selling “assault weapons,” stating that the bans are consistent with the SCOTUS ruling.

“Naperville and Illinois lawfully exercised their authority to control their possession, transfer, sale, and manufacture by enacting a ban on commercial sales,” the judge wrote.

Judge Kendall ruled that the government does have the authority to regulate highly dangerous arms, including “assault weapons” and “large-capacity” magazines, because she believes they do pose an unusual risk that can cause greater harm and more deaths.

“The text of the Second Amendment is limited to only certain arms, and history and tradition demonstrate that particularly ‘dangerous’ weapons are unprotected,” the judge wrote.

She also stated that while black rifles are commonly used for self-defense, gun owners still have other options to choose from for protection. According to the judge, the request to block the bans did not demonstrate a need due to irreparable harm to those suing. 

“Bevis has not furnished any evidence that he will lose substantial sales, and he can still sell almost any other type of gun,” Kendall wrote. “While a high number of assault weapons are in circulation, only 5% of firearms are assault weapons.”

Kendall also ruled that the state and Naperville have made the more compelling argument for protecting the public interest.

SEE ALSO: Illinois Governor Implements Emergency ‘Clear and Present Danger’ Rule to Restrict Gun Ownership and Confiscate Firearms

“On the one hand, they suffer an alleged deprivation of a constitutional right,” the judge wrote. “Again, though, the financial burden and loss of access to effective firearms would be minimal. On the other side, Illinois and Naperville compellingly argue their laws protect public safety by removing particularly dangerous weapons from circulation.”

The plaintiffs first filed suit last year after Naperville passed its ban. Once Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed the statewide assault weapons ban into law, the plaintiffs amended their suit to add the state of Illinois.

The state law — which is temporarily paused in some parts of Illinois as a result of another lawsuit — bans the sale of “assault weapons” and caps magazines at 10 rounds for long guns and 15 for handguns. Earlier this month, a state court judge in southern Illinois blocked the black rifle ban against 865 gun owners and one firearms store owner who filed suit challenging the law.

It also bans the sale of rapid-fire devices known as “switches” because of their ability to turn firearms into fully automatic weapons.

Legal owners of banned guns will be protected by a grandfather clause if they register the firearms with the Illinois State Police by Jan. 1.

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