A Virginia judge has handed Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) another courtroom setback, expanding a preliminary injunction so the Commonwealth itself not just the State Police is blocked from enforcing her ban on so-called assault firearms and magazines holding more than 15 rounds.
According to RedState, Lancaster County Circuit Judge John S. Martin added the Commonwealth of Virginia, its agencies, and its employees to the injunction over the state's formal objection. Until Monday, November 2, the order had been aimed only at Virginia State Police Superintendent Jeffrey S. Katz, the named defendant.
The state lost on who the injunction covers, but Martin denied the rest of the plaintiffs' motion, and the Commonwealth accepted that denial. The new order keeps the earlier timetable from the June 30 injunction, which runs through December 31 unless the court acts sooner.
Martin carried over the terms of his earlier rulings, so every newly covered state agency must follow the same rules already binding the Virginia State Police. The Gun Owners Foundation posted both pages of the order online, with Assistant Attorneys General Calvin C. Brown and Pebbles I. Burgess recording their objection beneath Martin's signature.
Gun Owners of America highlighted the breadth of the expansion. "Breaking in Virginia. A court has expanded GOA's preliminary injunction against Virginia's ban on 'assault firearms' and magazines over 15 rounds, enjoining all agencies and employees of the Commonwealth from enforcing the new laws," the group announced.
At the center of the fight is Senate Bill 749, which Spanberger signed in May. You can own a rifle legally for years and still run into the law when you go to sell it, because the measure restricts purchases, transfers, imports, and manufacturing.
Even keeping the rifle does not clear the magazine rules, because buying, selling, or transferring magazines that hold more than 15 rounds is a crime under the statute. Mere possession alone is not criminalized, but ordinary private transactions now risk a criminal case which is why gun-rights groups welcomed bringing more of the state under the injunction while the challenge proceeds.
Martin's November order still leaves local sheriffs, municipal police, and local prosecutors unaddressed. Back in June, 13 Virginia Commonwealth's Attorneys had already said they would not enforce the ban.
Spotsylvania County Commonwealth's Attorney Ryan Mehaffey put the constitutional objection plainly. "The assault weapons ban and the public carry ban are obviously unconstitutional. And it's incumbent upon constitutional officers in Virginia to come out and clearly state that they cannot be lawfully enforced, and to defend the people's rights to keep and bear arms."
A separate Washington County case has already produced statewide relief as well. In July, Judge Jeffrey Campbell broadened an injunction in Santolla v. Katz to apply across Virginia, effective July 21, while Monday's order came in Crump v. Katz, where the Commonwealth itself was added as a defendant.
The Crump plaintiffs argue the restrictions violate the right to keep and bear arms under Article I, Section 13 of the Virginia Constitution. While Richmond defends those laws in court, the Commonwealth despite objecting to being covered must abide by the injunction.
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