Washington court upholds state’s 2023 ban on ‘assault weapons’
Washington gun-control advocates are celebrating a win after the state’s ban on so-called assault weapons was again upheld in court.
A Thurston County Superior Court judge this month upheld a 2023 state law that bars the sale, manufacture, distribution and import of assault weapons. The law defines that term to cover a range of firearms, including certain semiautomatic weapons.
The Alliance for Gun Responsibility said in a Nov. 19 news release that the ruling reasserts the state’s authority to protect public safety by restricting “military-style assault weapons.” It’s the third time that attempts to upend the law were dismissed; the state’s ban is still wholly intact.
The challenge was from Moses Lake firearms dealer Guardian Arms, which filed suit against the state over claims that the law violated the state Constitution’s protections on the right to bear arms. McClatchy was not immediately able to reach the Silent Majority Foundation, which said it represented Guardian Arms in the matter, for comment on Nov. 19.
In an email Friday afternoon, SMF’s Director of Operations Rob Waites said the foundation is disappointed in the ruling and contemplating next steps.
“We think this decision needs to be appealed, because the words of the Washington Constitution, which provide that the right to bear arms shall not be impaired, must mean something,” Waites wrote. “The Court’s decision, and its interpretation of some case law, stand for the proposition that the fundamental right to bear arms is merely a privilege, subject to ‘reasonable regulation’ by the legislature.”
The Alliance for Gun Responsibility assisted in passing the 2023 law. It worked with the Seattle-based Pacifica Law Group to intervene in the case to defend Substitute House Bill 1240 against legal challenge.
“At a November 14 hearing, Superior Court Judge Christine Schaller issued a ruling from the bench granting summary judgment to the State and the Alliance, ending the case in the trial court,” Pacifica Law Group said in a news release on Nov. 18.
Trial and appellate lawyer Zach Pekelis, a litigation partner at Pacifica Law Group, called the decision another crucial win for “commonsense gun violence prevention” in the state. He said via email Nov. 19 that assault weapons aren’t safeguarded by the state Constitution, because law-abiding citizens don’t typically use them for self-defense.
Rather, Pekelis said, these firearms are devised for military combat. He said the law in question doesn’t infringe on the right to self-defense, and that restrictions on the weapons’ sale — not possession — constitute a reasonable regulation from the state.
“And the legislature correctly concluded that the law will save lives, including by preventing would-be mass shooters from purchasing their weapons of choice,” Pekelis said.
He said research indicates that if the federal prohibition on assault weapons had stayed in place in the U.S. from 2005 through 2019, instead of expiring in 2004, nearly 1,500 injuries or deaths in 30 mass shootings would have been prevented.
Pekelis also noted that federal courts nationwide have consistently upheld similar laws facing challenges under the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Renée Hopkins, CEO of the Alliance for Gun Responsibility, said in a statement that the ruling means that lives will continue to be saved by such protections.
“This is another strong affirmation that our state’s gun violence prevention laws are both constitutional and effective,” Hopkins said. “Assault weapons have no place in our communities, and Washington has been clear about that.”
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to include comments from Pacifica Law Group attorney Zach Pekelis and from Rob Waites, Silent Majority Foundation’s director of operations.
This story was originally published November 19, 2025 at 1:12 PM with the headline "Washington court upholds state’s 2023 ban on ‘assault weapons’."
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