SAF FILES BRIEF WITH SUPREME COURT IN RESPONSE TO COOK COUNTY’S EFFORT TO QUASH “ASSAULT WEAPONS” CASE
BELLEVUE, Wash. — Nov. 11, 2026 — The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and its partners have filed a response brief with the Supreme Court in Viramontes v. Cook County responding to Cook County’s effort to moot the case.
In late October, the lead plaintiff in SAF’s landmark “assault weapons” ban case, Mr. Viramontes, asked to be dismissed from the case. Following that request, Cook County filed a brief with the Supreme Court suggesting the case should be mooted and dismissed. Today, SAF and its partners replied to Cook County and explained to the Court why the case should continue.
This summer, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear SAF’s two cases – Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins – challenging bans on commonly owned rifles, including the AR-15, in both Cook County, Ill., and Connecticut. Originally filed in 2021, Viramontes challenges Cook County’s ban on many commonly owned modern firearms, which was the precursor for the nearly identical statewide ban passed by the Illinois legislature. In Grant, SAF is challenging Connecticut’s ban on commonly owned semi-automatic rifles – both by name and by feature set.
“There’s every reason this case can and should continue,” said SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “We fully expect the Court to agree with our position on Viramontes, but regardless of the Court’s decision, this issue will be heard. SAF has a second case – Grant v. Higgins – that was also granted cert by the Supreme Court so no matter what the Court decides on Viramontes, we will still have the opportunity to present our case to the Justices on Dec. 2.”
SAF is joined in Viramontes by the Firearms Policy Coalition and two private citizens and is joined in Grant by the Connecticut Citizens Defense League and three private citizens. Oral arguments for both cases are set for Wednesday, Dec. 2.
“We’re disappointed to have to file this brief at this juncture, but we will still be in the courtroom on Dec. 2 arguing against this unconstitutional ban, whether in Viramontes or our second case, Grant,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Tens of millions of peaceable citizens across this country own these rifles, and it is high time for the Supreme Court to strike down these bans across the country. We owe it to gun owners across America to have this case decided once and for all. It’s taken five years to get to this point and that’s entirely too long for a law-abiding citizen to be infringed simply because they want to own one of the most commonly owned rifles in the U.S.”
For more information visit SAF.org.
The Second Amendment Foundation (saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group dedicated to safeguarding and promoting the fundamental rights of individuals enshrined in the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. SAF engages in aggressive legal action to ensure the principles of armed self-defense, personal liberty, and the ownership of arms are defended, secured, and restored. Through public education initiatives, SAF teaches the importance of the Second Amendment to promote a society that values and exercises the right to keep and bear arms.
