WA State Supreme Court upholds ban on high-capacity gun ammo magazines
The Washington State Supreme Court on May 8 ruled to uphold a state law banning the sale of high-capacity gun magazines with more than 10 rounds.
Justices decided 7-2 to side with the state, reversing a 2024 lower-court ruling on a lawsuit brought by a gun shop in Kelso.
Gator’s Custom Guns had claimed that the state’s 2022 prohibition on the sale, import and manufacture of ammunition magazines containing more than 10 rounds violated the state’s constitution.
The shop further alleged that the state law conflicted with the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment.
But in the May 8 ruling, the majority of justices found that such magazines aren’t “arms,” instead viewing them as a modifier or an attachment to a weapon. They argued that high-capacity magazines aren’t typically used for self-defense.
Justice Charles Johnson wrote in the May 8 opinion that, by only limiting magazines with a capacity of more than 10, the statute just regulates such magazines’ maximum capacity. He added that the weapon itself is left “fully functional for its intended purpose.”
“Indeed, we can safely say that individuals are still able to exercise the core right to bear arms when they are limited to purchasing magazines with a capacity of 10 or fewer,” Thomas continued.
The dissenting judges were Justices G. Helen Whitener and Sheryl Gordon McCloud.
Gator’s attorneys had contended that such magazines’ popularity demonstrates that they align with a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that protects firearms that are “in common use” and generally owned by “law-abiding citizens” for legal reasons.
They also claimed such ammunition magazines are used for self-defense, an argument with which the majority of justices disagreed.
The state’s ban, passed in 2022, is similar to restrictions in at least 13 other states across the U.S. Such laws have also led to legal challenges.
State leaders applauded — and decried — the state Supreme Court’s ruling on May 8.
Washington State Republican Party Chair Jim Walsh said in an interview that he was disappointed but not surprised by the news. He described the argument that a firearm mechanism isn’t part of the arm as “nonsense.”
“Our state Supreme Court just keeps making a fool out of itself,” said Walsh, who’s also a Republican state representative from Aberdeen.
He added: “This will end up in federal court, by hook or by crook.”
But state Attorney General Nick Brown cheered on the decision, saying that it will save lives.
“Large capacity magazines are used in the overwhelming majority of mass shootings, and reducing the toll of these senseless killings is vitally important,” Brown said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “I’m proud of my Office’s work defending our state law banning the sale of these dangerous items.”
This story was originally published May 8, 2025 at 1:00 PM.
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