The Supreme Court decided not to weigh in on federal regulations for gun silencers.
Two men from Kansas, Shane Cox and Jeremy Kettler, were trying to appeal their federal convictions for possessing an unregistered silencer. Cox was also convicted for selling unregistered silencers and owning an unregistered short-barreled rifle.
Federal law allows suppressors, commonly called silencers, but all manufacturers and sellers must register with the ATF and pay a fee. The government also keeps a registry of all silencers owned by state or local entities and private citizens.
Kettler bought his silencer from Cox, and both of them argued that Kansas' Second Amendment Protection Act exempted them from those federal registration requirements. But lower courts disagreed. In most cases, federal law supersedes state law, and the constitution says states can't prevent the government from enforcing federal laws.
With the Supreme Court's decision not to hear the case, both men's convictions stand.
