RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A federal appeals court will hear arguments on key provisions of Maryland’s sweeping gun-control law.
The hearing is set for Wednesday before a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond.
U.S. District Judge Catherine Blake last year upheld Maryland’s ban on 45 assault weapons and a limit on gun magazines to 10 rounds. Maryland lawmakers approved the measures in response to the shooting deaths of 20 children and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012.
Groups that challenged the law claimed it went too far and banned popular firearms that can be used for self-defense.
Blake ruled that the law serves the government’s interest in protecting public safety without infringing on individuals’ Second Amendment rights.
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