Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is advising his constituents to remain vigilant in defense of their Second Amendment rights in light of the recent Federal Court ruling that upheld most of the flawed SAFE Act. A small victory can be claimed after the provision restricting ten10-round magazines from holding more than seven bullets was struck down. This ruling, however, upheld much of the law, most notably the registration requirement for so-called assault rifles. Hawley wants to remind his constituents that this ruling is not the final word on the law, as further appeals are likely.

“This ruling reveals the cracks in the shaky foundation of the SAFE Act, and hopefully, the next round of appeals will topple this unconstitutional law entirely. I caution everyone not to get too high or too low about this ruling since it is definitely not the last word,” said Hawley. “It is encouraging to see that the restriction on 10-round magazines was struck down, but the majority of the law was upheld, which means that, as Second Amendment supporters, the fight continues.”

In addition to the seven-round limit being struck down, another encouraging sign from the ruling was Chief U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny’s admission that so-called ‘assault weapons’ and ‘large capacity magazines’ may be considered in ‘common use,’ a legal benchmark set by the Supreme Court that curtails how government may regulate them. Hawley believes that admission could be used in the next appeal to strike down the law entirely.

“As supporters of the Second Amendment, we must remain vigilant and continue to actively speak out against this infringement on our constitutional rights,” Hawley added. “This law has sparked a massive backlash that those who helped pass the SAFE Act will have to answer to. The battle is far from over. I will continue to help lead the effort to get our Second Amendment rights restored.”