Judge denies request for temporary restraining order in assault weapons ban lawsuit

A Thurston County Superior Court judge rejected a request for a temporary restraining order to block the sale of assault weapons in the state of Washington on Friday.

Gov. Jay Inslee signed the state’s assault weapons ban bill on April 25 and due to an emergency clause in the bill it became effective immediately.

Guardian Arms v. Inslee was filed that same day in Grant County, but the lawsuit was later moved to Thurston County. Guardian Arms, a gun store in Moses Lake, is listed as lead plaintiff in the case along with other gun stores and plaintiffs.

Judge Allyson Zipp will file a written order after Friday’s oral ruling, according to a press release from the Washington Attorney General’s office.

Earlier this month, a federal judge in Seattle denied a request for a preliminary injunction in a U.S. District Court case aimed at blocking the new law.

Another case is pending in federal district court in Eastern Washington, the AG’s office noted.

HB 1240, the assault weapon ban, prohibits the “manufacture, importation, distribution, sale, or offer for sale of any assault weapon” in Washington state. Some exceptions for licensed firearm manufacturers and dealers are baked into the legislation, allowing law enforcement agencies to continue to purchase from firearms dealers and manufacturers, for instance.

Exceptions are included for those who inherit an assault weapon, and the law does not regulate possession for Washingtonians who owned assault weapons before the bill was signed.

Violations of the law are a gross misdemeanor, which can include jail time for up to 364 days and/or a fine of no more than $5,000.

Nine other states including Hawaii, California and New York, as well as the District of Columbia, have passed general assault weapons bans.