VA Judge Kills Gun-Ban Hearing—19 Days Until You're a Criminal

Judge John S. Martin entered an order on June 9 staying *Crump v. Katz*—canceling a June 12 emergency hearing while a three-judge panel decides whether to consolidate or transfer the multiple SB749 challenges. That hearing had been agreed to by all parties and the court. Then it vanished.

Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, Virginia Citizens Defense League, and AmmoLand contributor John Crump filed the Lancaster County lawsuit on May 15, one day after Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed SB749/HB217 into law. They followed on May 18 with an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction—the entire purpose of which was to get a ruling *before* July 1, not after law-abiding Virginians were already living as criminals.

SB749 bans the future acquisition, sale, manufacture, importation, purchase, and transfer of any firearm the state now calls an "assault firearm." It bans magazines holding more than 15 rounds. After July 1, owning a newly purchased AR-15 or a standard-capacity magazine in Virginia is not a political statement—it's a crime.

The plaintiffs filed an emergency motion to reinstate the hearing, arguing—correctly—that the stay leaves gun owners, gun shops, and manufacturers in legal jeopardy with the clock running out and no judicial protection in sight.

The procedural shuffle—consolidating cases, transferring courts, convening three-judge panels—is the oldest trick in the anti-gun playbook. Virginia Democrats wrote a sweeping gun ban knowing full litigation would take months or years. In the meantime, every gun owner in the state has to guess whether their rifle is now contraband.

GOA and VCDL are still fighting. The emergency motion to reinstate is on file. But with 19 days until the ban takes effect, the margin for error just collapsed.

**What you need to know:** July 1 is a hard deadline. The courts may not save you in time. Support the legal fight at gunowners.org and vcdl.org—and know your rights before the law flips.