Black Codes, enacted after the Civil War to restrict newly freed African Americans, took center stage at the Supreme Court on Tuesday as it considered a challenge to a Hawaii gun law. With

Standing just outside the iron fencing surrounding Virginia’s Capitol in downtown Richmond on Monday, Alexandria resident Gerald Vandendries hoisted a semi-automatic rifle and scanned the crowd gathering for Lobby Day — an annual ritual for gun rights supporters that carried renewed urgency this year.

Activists gathered at Capitol Square's Bell Tower Monday to lobby for gun rights, while others lobbied to prevent gun violence.

It was Lobby Day at the State Capitol on Monday, Jan. 19. As the General Assembly begins each year, advocacy groups talk to lawmakers in favor of policy they'd like to see passed, including gun policy.

After pushback from both gun rights and gun control groups, the Trump administration has quietly abandoned its plan to merge the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives into the Drug Enforcement Administration,