Get ready: we’re about to have a rumble at the Supreme Court level that could change gun rights for everyone!
The nation’s highest court is prepping to hear its first gun rights-related case in decades, and this one is a biggie. The U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing a challenge to allow individuals living in New York City to carry a licensed and unloaded handgun outside the city limits. This groundbreaking case could set the stage for additional changes to the law, as other states and municipalities jump on board with getting changes pushed through that will benefit individuals in their fight to maintain Second Amendment gun rights.
Currently, the law only allows individuals living within the New York City limits to take their weapons — loaded or unloaded — to gun courses or shooting galleries inside the city limits. Gun advocates argue that this is too restrictive, and would like to be able to take their weapons and visit gun ranges in surrounding areas throughout the state.
The case, officially named New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. vs. New York City, is supported by the NRA’s New York affiliate as well as several gun owners within the state. While gun owners are allowed to maintain a loaded or unloaded firearm on their person at the license on their registration only, they must be unloaded and in a locked container before traversing the city to gun ranges. Moving them outside the city limits — even unloaded and locked up — is against the current law that is in contention.
New Yorkers are further restricted in their gun rights by laws that state concealed carry permits are only available to individuals who can justify having them — such as law enforcement professionals and business owners who carry or manage a significant amount of cash. Outside those requirements, the rules against concealed carry are quite strict, making it even more difficult for New Yorkers to protect themselves in a city that is known for high rates of violent crime.
The good news is that the current U.S. Supreme Court is very gun-friendly, as it’s chock-full of conservative-leaning justices — two of whom were hand-picked by President Donald Trump. Both Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Brett Kavanaugh are expected to be open to making changes to laws that have stood for several decades. These are laws that were created by a court that was long a bastion of liberal leanings, all of which has changed with the addition of two new justices to the nation’s highest court.
It remains to be seen exactly how this gun-related case will play out, but there are plenty of other cases that are headed for the Supreme Court docket as soon as this case gets the final green light. Anytime the anti-gun think tanks are fired up, it’s potentially a good day for Second Amendment rights.
~ Firearm Daily
