New NRA-ILA Backed Lawsuit Challenges New York's Unconstitutional Carry Restrictions.

[Charlie T Waite]

Last June—in an NRA-ILA backed case—the United States Supreme Court declared that the Second Amendment protects the right of law abiding citizens to carry a firearm for personal protection and struck the “proper cause” requirement in New York’s Sullivan Law. The Court was crystal clear: the government cannot trample on our Second Amendment rights through an “abusive” permitting scheme. The ink on the Court’s opinion barely had time to dry before New York violated that edict by passing the Concealed Carry Improvement Act (“CCIA”).

Although the law no longer requires one demonstrate that they have a proper cause to carry a firearm, it certainly did not make it any easier to get a license. Applicants must first take a 16-hour training class, including a two-hour live-fire session. Then they must have an in-person interview with a licensing officer where they must disclose several types of personal information, including all of their social media accounts. The officer then reviews that information to determine if the applicant has “good moral character,” which is even more subjective than the unconstitutional “proper cause” standard. The licensing officer then has up to six months—unless they want more time, which they will be granted indefinitely—to pore through the applicant’s information to determine if they are eligible for a license.

Even worse, the CCIA effectively bans carrying concealed by declaring everywhere to be a “sensitive” or “restricted” place. When Governor Hochul was asked where people could carry under the CCIA, she said “probably some streets.”  

“The CCIA replaces one unconstitutional, discretionary law with another unconstitutional, discretionary law,” the lawsuit says. “The CCIA contains a slew of burdensome and discriminatory requirements for obtaining a Handgun Carry License—violating the First, Second, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments—and an additional slew of restrictions on where and how Handgun Carry License holders may exercise their right to carry arms outside the home—in violation of the First, Second, and Fourteenth Amendments.”  

This case is captioned New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen. It was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York.