Justice Department Sues D.C. Over ‘Unconstitutional’ Gun Laws

The Department of Justice is suing Washington, D.C.’s police department over the city’s firearms laws, saying they incriminate legal gun owners.

The lawsuit argues that it goes against the Second Amendment for the capital city to ban AR-15 rifles and other types of firearms, according to a press release. Specifically, the DOJ alleges that the local police department “routinely arrest[s] law-abiding citizens for possessing firearms that are protected under the Second Amendment but not registerable in D.C.”

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement that the lawsuit is part of the DOJ’s new Second Amendment Section, saying it “underscores our ironclad commitment to protecting the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans.”

“Washington, DC’s ban on some of America’s most popular firearms is an unconstitutional infringement on the Second Amendment — living in our nation’s capital should not preclude law-abiding citizens from exercising their fundamental constitutional right to keep and bear arms.”

Gun owners in the district are required to register their firearms through the Metropolitan Police Department, and the lawsuit points out that people cannot register “semi-automatic rifles,” which the DOJ argues incriminates people who “possess these firearms in the home for lawful purposes.”

“If a law-abiding citizen possesses a Second Amendment-protected firearm that is not registerable in D.C. in the home for the lawful purpose of self-defense, that individual faces anything from an administrative fine to a criminal misdemeanor conviction punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,500 fine,” the lawsuit reads.

Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division, Harmeet K. Dhillon, said in a statement that “The newly established Second Amendment Section filed this lawsuit to ensure that the very rights D.C. resident Mr. Heller secured 17 years ago are enforced today — and that all law-abiding citizens seeking to own protected firearms for lawful purposes may do so.”

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The lawsuit comes as federal agents and the National Guard continue to patrol the streets of D.C., following President Donald Trump’s August order to crack down on crime. MPD Chief Pamela Smith resigned from her position amid accusations from the Republican-led House Oversight Committee that she “deliberately manipulated crime data.”

“Let’s be really clear about one thing: Never would I, never will I ever compromise my integrity for a few crime numbers,” Smith said last week, according to NBC 4 Washington. Interim Police Chief Jeffrey Carroll now leads the department.

The Metropolitan Police Department told The Daily Wire it “does not comment on pending litigation.” The mayor’s office and the city attorney’s office did not respond to requests for comment.