Michael Cargill owns Central Texas Gun Works here in Austin and hosts a local radio show focused on firearms, shooting and gun rights. He’s also appeared here from time to time.
With today’s bump stock ban looming, Cargill took the incredibly dangerous firearm accessory he owns (owned) to the local ATF office yesterday and turned it in. Before he did that, though, he announced that, with the help of the New Civil Liberties Alliance, he’s filing suit agains the ATF arbitrary re-classification of bump stocks as machine guns.
Here’s the NLCA’s press release . . .
NCLA to Represent Texas Gun Enthusiast, Michael Cargill, in a Lawsuit Against the ATF’s Bump Stock Final Rule
(Washington, DC) –March 25, 2019— The New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) is filing a lawsuit on behalf of Texas gun enthusiast, Michael Cargill against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) for passing the Bump Stock Final Rule.
Mr. Cargill will surrender his bump stock devices this afternoon at the Austin ATF Field Office in accordance with the ban. He will also be announcing his lawsuit against the ATF. The case is not about whether bump stocks should be outlawed, but rather which government body should be changing the law—and the answer is Congress. NCLA believes the ATF did not act lawfully.
“By banning bump stocks, two agencies have rewritten a law that Congress passed. Under our constitutional system, that’s not allowed. It perverts the rule of law and makes our law makers no longer accountable to the people.”—Steve Simpson, NCLA Senior Litigation Counsel
“Two different federal Courts of Appeals have ordered the ATF to halt its bump stock rule against legal challengers. Today, rather than abide by an order the ATF had no right to issue, Mr. Cargill will be joining those efforts to resist this unlawful rule.” –Caleb Kruckenberg, NCLA Litigation Counsel
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit issued a temporary stay of the bump stock ban. The stay only applies to another NCLA client, W. Clark Aposhian, a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah who has challenged the ban in federal court. The stay prevents the enforcement of the bump stock ban against Mr. Aposhian while the Court considers his Emergency Motion for Preliminary Injunction Pending Appeal.
About NLCA
NCLA is a nonprofit civil rights organization founded by prominent legal scholar Philip Hamburger to protect constitutional freedoms from violations by the administrative state. NCLA’s public-interest litigation and other pro bono advocacy strive to tame the unchecked power of state and federal agencies and to foster a new civil liberties movement that will help restore Americans’ fundamental rights. For more information visit us online: NCLAlegal.org