The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the City of Denver, Colorado, alleging it “unconstitutionally bans certain constitutionally protected semi-automatic rifles.” “These laws unconstitutionally infringe on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms in common use for lawful purposes,” a press release read. “As the complaint explains, the City enforces an ordinance that makes it a crime to possess so-called ‘assault weapons.’ But that the City’s ban includes AR-15-style rifles, which are the most popular rifles in America. Law-abiding Americans own tens of millions of rifles like those banned by the City,” it continued. “The Constitution is not a suggestion and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Denver’s ban on commonly owned semi-automatic rifles directly violates the right to bear arms. This Department of Justice will vigorously defend the liberties of law-abiding citizens nationwide,” he added. Justice Department Sues the City of Denver for Unconstitutional Weapons Bans “The Constitution is not a suggestion and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Denver's ban on commonly owned semi-automatic rifles directly… pic.twitter.com/bhY8Q1e1Qt — U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) May 5, 2026 More from the Justice Department: “I have directed the Civil Rights Division, through our new Second Amendment Section, to defend law-abiding Americans from restrictions such as those we are challenging in these cases,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Law-abiding Americans, regardless of what city or state they reside in, should not have to live under threat of criminal sanction just for exercising their Second Amendment right to possess arms which are owned by tens of millions of their fellow citizens.” In 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court, in its landmark decision District of Columbia v. Heller, held that the Second Amendment protects the right of law-abiding citizens to possess weapons that are in common use for lawful purposes. According to the Associated Press, Denver has banned so-called “assault weapons” since 1989. “Our answer is h*** no,” Mayor Mike Johnston said, according to the outlet. “No, we will not roll back a common sense policy that has kept weapons of war off of these city streets for 37 years. No, we will not put first responders at greater risk every time they respond to a dangerous incident No, we will not go back to a time when folks are worried about walking into movie theaters or grocery stores or public elementary schools,” he continued. “We created these large capacity magazine bans in the wake of the Aurora shooting to save lives. The Supreme Court upheld them in 2020. We refuse to let the federal government bully Denver and Colorado into reversing the laws that reduce gun violence and keep our kids safe,” Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) commented. We created these large capacity magazine bans in the wake of the Aurora shooting to save lives. The Supreme Court upheld them in 2020. We refuse to let the federal government bully Denver and Colorado into reversing the laws that reduce gun violence and keep our kids safe.… — John Hickenlooper (@Hickenlooper) May 5, 2026 More from the Associated Press: The assault weapons ban was enacted during a period of heightened concern over gun violence in the city. There have been numerous mass shootings elsewhere in the state in the years since — the 1999 Columbine High School massacre that killed 14 people, the Aurora movie theater attack that killed 12 people and injured 70, a 2021 shooting at a supermarket in Boulder that killed 10 people and a 2022 attack at an LQBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs that killed five people. Denver police Chief Ron Thomas said he joined the department the year the city’s assault weapons ban was adopted and having it in place has helped address gun violence. Of 2,100 guns recovered in the city last year, fewer than 2% were assault-style weapons, Thomas said. Federal officials said in their lawsuit that Denver’s ban includes AR-15-style rifles owned by at least 16 million people in the country. Government attorneys described them as “ordinary semiautomatic rifles” used for lawful purposes, “including but not limited to self-defense.” Justice Department attorneys have made similar claims about the Colorado law banning large-capacity magazines, which the state’s Supreme court upheld in 2020. In an April 28 letter to state officials, the administration threatened to file a lawsuit unless the state stops enforcing the law and agrees it’s unconstitutional.